Quatrefoil: A Modern Novel
Cover of the book
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| Author | James Barr |
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| Language | English |
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Publication date
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1950 |
| Pages | 321 |
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| LC Class | PZ3.B2715 Qat |
Quatrefoil: A Modern Novel is a novel about gay men written in 1950 by James W. Fugaté under the pen name James Barr. It is known for being the first modern book to portray homosexuality in a positive way. The main character, Phillip, is based on a college fraternity brother that the author had an affair with while in college.
Quatrefoil has been translated into French and German.
Quatrefoil tells the story of a naval officer and banker named Phillip Froelich who is engaged to be married to a woman named Sybel Jo. While under investigation by court-martial by the Navy in 1946, he meets and is assisted by Tim Danelaw, a superior officer. An affair with Tim causes Phillip to confront his closeted homosexuality. They become lovers. They are masculine and intellectual characters who discuss art and philosophy, and thus are contrasted with behaviors of "the average homosexual" of the time. Phillip wrestles with his feelings and thoughts of his future, and the choice between living a stable life running his family's bank, or pursuing his newfound feelings for Tim. Meanwhile Tim goes through a divorce with his wife Pat.
The novel presents an example of how gay men kept their homosexuality hidden in the 1950s. It has been admired as a work that portrayed the main characters as people, which differentiated the novel from other gay literature of the time portraying homosexual men as campy. Most gay works at the time had ended with either suicide or murder, another tradition broken by Quatrefoil.
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