If sex is repressed, that is, condemned to prohibition, nonexistence, and silence, then the mere fact that one is speaking about it has the appearance of a deliberate transgression. A person who holds forth in such language places himself to a certain extent outside the reach of power; he upsets established law; he somehow anticipates … Continue reading Foucault and the History of Sexuality: A “Queer” Overview
What made a person male or female, anyway? The way they looked? The way they acted? The way they thought? Their hormones? Their genitals? What if some of those attributes pointed in one direction and some in the other? - Ellen Wittlinger, Parrotfish (p. 131) Although Julie Anne Peters' Luna was the first young adult text to tackle … Continue reading Ellen Wittlinger’s [Parrotfish]: A Transgender Coming-Out Novel
Rich, complex, difficult, and groundbreaking are just a few of the words that are usually associated with Judith Butler's works. Despite the fact that her texts are often described as "tedious" and "overwrought," reading Butler is well worth the effort, and I'm often amazed at the way she is able to wrestle with difficult ideas. … Continue reading A Queer Overview of Judith Butler’s [Gender Trouble]
Why is there such a hesitancy to label a child as queer? Is it possible that all children are queer (at least in some sense of the word)? How does a child grow, when said growth is being heavily monitored, delayed, and controlled? These are just some of the many questions that Stockton explores in … Continue reading An Overview of Kathryn Bond Stockton’s [The Queer Child]
Never in my life did I think that I'd be writing about porn within an academic setting, but I guess there is a first time for everything (especially if you work in areas such as gender or queer studies)!While surfing the web and perusing through Buzzfeed (a website that provides a snapshot of the viral … Continue reading When (Gay) Porn and Academia Collide: Pornography as Emancipation?
I finally got a chance to watch an episode of Girls, an American television series that began airing on HBO during 2012. The show stars and is written by Lena Dunham, and the show is partly inspired by Dunham's real-life experiences. Strangely enough, I did not watch the first episode of the series, but rather, … Continue reading Would you get into a bathtub with your friend? HBO’s [Girls] and Non-Sexual Intimacy
Perhaps one of the most shocking moments of Suzanne Collins's Mockingjay is when the reader finds out that Finnick Odair--a past victor of the Hunger Games tournament who is attractive and always surrounded by suitors--reveals that he was sold and used as a sex slave for wealthy patrons residing in the Capitol. This confession is broadcasted across the dystopic … Continue reading Male Prostitution and [The Hunger Games] – The Case of Finnick Odair
Some of the most awkward and disturbing conversations that I've had about the body have taken place during a meal. There is something about sharing food with company that ignites interesting topics of conversation as pertained to our body, nature, and food. I recall one particular instance in which I went over a friend's house for … Continue reading Do You Hate Your Body? Western Culture, Gender, and Body Issues
“Knowledge is knowing the tomato is a fruit, wisdom is not putting it in your fruit salad.” - Miles Kington Knowledge, as can be deduced from the morphological composition of the word, entails knowing: an awareness that is developed empirically. Wisdom, on the other hand, is concerned with the judgment, assessment, and use of knowledge … Continue reading On Wisdom, Experience, and Self-Reliance
