The Imagery of Dot-commers
Tolliver asserts, “It helps that I have Ben; I know that. Some years back, when I was still single, the charm of the city was wearing thin for me. All those imperial dot-commers in their SUVs and Hummers barrelling down the middle of Noe Street as if leading an assault on a Third World nation. And those freshly minted queens down at Badlands, wreathed in cigarette smoke and attitude, who seemed to believe that political activism meant a subscription to Out magazine and regular attendance at Queer as Folk night.” Sophisticated vehicles are distinguishing possessions for the dot-commers. Moreover, they have a proclivity for smoking which portrays them as refined. The magazine subscribers are deemed cultured.
The Imagery of Tolliver’s Past Partners
Tolliver explains, “Ben is twenty-one years younger than I am- an entire adult younger, if you insist on looking at it that way. But I really haven’t made a habit of this. My first lover, Jon, who died back in’ 82, was a year older than I was, and Thack and I are only months apart in age.” All the past partners are male. In the perspective of Queer Theory, Tolliver is gay; hence, he would not be expected to have females for lovers.
