Queering the crisis-recovery nexus: Personhood and societal transformation after economic collapse in Iceland

This chapter examines the nexus between crisis and recovery by exploring the ambiguity communities experience in transitioning from states of collective crisis to recovery. The chapter is situated in Iceland following the country’s 2008 economic crisis as part of the global financial crisis. It argues that, while crisis is a popular topic to explore in anthropology today, a deeper focus on its connection with recovery is required. The chapter uses affect and queer theory to explore this nexus through an ethnography among queer men in Iceland who are involved in individual and collective reform projects after the economic collapse. The chapter pairs timelining (a form of graphic elicitation) with ethnography to understand how these projects enable people to build pathways toward recovery. A new ‘personal’ ethics and the recasting of the nation’s ‘moral framework’ are explored, particularly through efforts to push for the country’s draft constitution that was written after the crisis to be legislated.