queer theory. Many of us have heard the term. But do we really understand what this means? For some reason, things with theories tend to be daunting. But queer theory is not. Let's explain it.
Queer theory an introduction
We recognize that those who are not members of the LGBTQ community or its allies may have a relatively traditional understanding and view of sexual and gender identity. They see themselves as “normal” and those who identify as LGBTQ as “different”. While things have changed considerably in recent years, much of this ideology is still reinforced in their daily lives.
Queer theory studies address these more traditional ideas and challenge the belief that heterosexuality is what is and should be considered normal. There queer theory is therefore a sociological and philosophical theory which postulates that sexuality, but also the masculine, feminine or other gender of an individual are not determined exclusively by their biological sex (male or female), but by their socio-cultural environment, by his life story or by his personal choices.
Although many are unfamiliar with the term, queer theory is not new. Honestly, it's been around for decades. In fact, the work of some of the most prominent gay activist groups, like Queer Nation, has helped define this because of the education they have provided through their actions. They worked incredibly hard to enlighten the world on options that differed from things like identity politics.
LGBTQ Nation has shared valuable resources on queer theory. They suggested reading the following queer theory books for more insight.
- Gender Issue by Judith Butler
- Queer theory: an introduction by Annamarie Jagose
- The History of Sexuality by Michel Foucault
- Deidentifications by Jose Esteban Munoz
- Epistemology of the closet by Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick
These books share a wealth of interesting information about the origins of queer theory, how it progressed, and how we as individuals affect and interpret it.
But where does that come from?
Queer is initially a North American insult, which comes to name the other in its strangeness, its oddity. Contrary to straight (which translates to right), to refer to heterosexuals. Since xxe century, the word queer is therefore used as an insult to LGBT people, roughly corresponding to our French "faggot".
Groups of lesbians, who did not belong to the North American homosexual world integrated from the 1970s and 1980s, made this insult a standard and called themselves "queers" to mark their desire to non-integration in society walking in step with the heterosexual norm. But also under this name “queer”, all identifications with a class or a race are torn to pieces: it is a radical promotion of the individual to the detriment of pre-existing groups of belonging.
This signifier, therefore diverted from its value of insult, the term queer, is a strong word with a symbolic meaning of the deconstruction of sex and gender.
Queer theory is an interesting concept, one we probably don't think about much, but something that affects the way we live, learn, and interact. At the house of Trans-shop, we continue to believe that knowledge is power, and learning and understanding queer theory is an important start.
We encourage everyone to take the time to explore this. It is fascinating and can help us better understand the world in which we live.
