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Revision as of 10:37, 15 April 2005 by Lantog (talk | contribs)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Queer Theory is a theory about sex and gender within the larger field of Queer Studies. It proposes that one's sexual identity and one's gender identity are partly or wholly socially constructed, and therefore individuals cannot really be described using broad terms like "homosexual," "heterosexual," "man," or "woman". It challenges the common practice of compartmentalizing the description of a person to fit into one particular category.
In particular, it questions the use of socially assigned categories based on the division between those who share some habit or lifestyle and those who do not. Instead, queer theorists suggest complicating all idenitity categories and groups.
Historical influences on queer theory include (among others) Audre Lorde, Monique Witteg, Jonathan Katz, Ester Newton, Andy Warhol, Roland Barthes, Jacques Lacan, Louis Althusser, and Jacques Derrida, but the primary voices in the development of Queer theory are Gayle Rubin, Kaja Silverman, D.A. Miller, Sue-Ellen Case, Douglas Crimp, John D'Emilio, Lee Edelman, Michel Foucault, Joan Scott, Simon Watney, Judith Butler, Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, Leo Bersani, David Halperin, Michael Moon, Michael Warner and several others.
The first known use of the phrase "queer theory" in print was by Teresa de Lauretis. In 1994, however, she criticized queer theory as a marketing ploy that had "quickly become a conceptually vacuous creature of the publishing industry."
Other critics of queer theory hold that some, highly contested, physiological, genetic and sociological evidence show that sexual orientation and sexual classification can not be considered social constructs. In this view, various biological characteristics (some of which are heritable) play an important role in shaping sexual behavior. As of present, there remains no conclusive evidence.
Many different commentators respond to these claims by noting that not all individuals are clearly classifiable as either "male" or "female", even on a strictly biological basis. For example, the sex chromosomes (X and Y) may exist in atypical combinations (as in Klinefelter's syndrome ). This complicates the use of genotype as a means to define exactly two distinct genders. Intersexed individuals may for many different biological reasons have ambiguous genitalia.
A select few of those aligned with queer theory work from a Lacanian point of view. This proposes that biological aspects are not relevant to those who view the process of construction as taking place within the confines of a language system. These critics find that language constructs an idea of self and gender/sex distinctions. For these theorists, some biological truths may exist, but our conception of them remains mediated by both culture and language.
Many queer theorists do not rely on Lacanian psychoanalsis or its terms at all.
Hybrid theories combining the notions of innate characteristics (esstenialism) and social constructs also exist.
See also
- Gender role, gender studies, post-structuralism, critical theory, classlessness, Heteronormativity, List of transgender-related topics.
Source
- de Lauretis, Teresa (1994). "Habit Changes", differences 6:2-3: 297.