The Owls Are Not What They Seem: Eccentricity and Masculinity in Twin Peaks

Abstract

This essay asks the question: what is the function of eccentrics in American culture and attaches this question to recent research in “freaks.“ It argues that eccentrics occupy an ambiguous place in the American imagination, providing both incentives for a broadening of normative horizons and models of the human to be distrusted and feared. Using David Lynch’s television series Twin Peaks as its example, the essay shows how eccentric characters are used to push the boundaries of acceptable masculinities.