Zilo Teorija (queer Theory): Īss Vēsturisks Pārskats: Queer Theory--a Brief Historical Overview.
What do we mean when we ask someone "who are you"? Which characteristics of our identity do we tend to prioritize and why? What is the origin of the ideas we have about our identity and what is the process by which we arrive to construct who we are? These and numerous other questions parti...
| Published in: | Cel̜š |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | Latvian |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
LU Akadēmiskais apgāds
2009
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| In: |
Cel̜š
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| Further subjects: | B
BUTLER, Judith, 1956-
B Gender Identity B Homosexuality B Sexual Orientation B GAY rights movement B Queer Theory B Foucault, Michel, 1926-1984 B Social Control B Social Constructionism |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) |
| Summary: | What do we mean when we ask someone "who are you"? Which characteristics of our identity do we tend to prioritize and why? What is the origin of the ideas we have about our identity and what is the process by which we arrive to construct who we are? These and numerous other questions particularly relating to an individual's sex, gender, and sexuality are being asked by the queer theory which arose in the 1990s from the discourse between biological essentialists and social constructionists within the context of gay liberation movement and AIDS crisis in the second part of the 20th century. Essentialists considered sexuality as a biological given which was universal and unchangeable across ages and cultures and was therefore predetermined by nature. Constructionists, on the other hand, believed that sexuality was a relative and contextual phenomenon which to some extent was an individual's choice. Both of these arguments have been exploited since the beginning of the debate by the gay liberationists on the one side and the anti-gay protagonists on the other. It is erroneous to consider one superior to the other, or, as it is often believed, to assume the essentialists to represent a more conservative view than the constructionists. Michel Foucault was the first to propose the post-structuralist idea about the relationship between sexuality and power. By deconstructing the history of sexuality starting from the second half of the 19th century, Foucault pointed out at the relationship between the rise of new categories (i.e., sexual identities) and increased social control. He argues that the binary division between homosexuality as a deviant form of expression of desire and the polar opposite of it-heterosexuality as representing the unquestionable and self-explanatory category of the norm was generated. The prominent queer theorist Judith Butler built on the ideas of Foucault focussing on and challenging the identities based on gender and sex. According to Butler, these categories are extremely difficult to challenge as they are represented within a highly biological and monolythic discourse. Butler points out that there is nothing "essential" about sex or gender and proposes the idea that gender is but an endless sequence of gender-affirming acts which are mistakenly perceived as essential qualities. She does not, however, suggest that gender can be "worn" or "changed" as an outfit, as gender non-conformity is severely frowned upon and punished by the society by exclusion and ostracision. The purpose of the queer theory is thus the questioning and deconstruction of any category of identity. Instead of being conceptualized as a fixed entity, identity is considered to be a process of identification which permits the use of "queer" as a verb. It has been proposed that the queer theory is a critique of the concept of identity. Due to its fluidity and changeability, the principal tenets of queer theory have remained unchallenged, and in the English speaking world, the term "queer" has to some extent become a shortcut to indicate any non-normative sexualities, genders, and sexes. |
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| Contains: | Enthalten in: Cel̜š
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