5 New Things Learned So Far

While I have learned way more than expected in such a short amount of time, there have been a few points that have simply blown me away.

1. I want to say the first and foremost thing I have learned in this class is the definition of the term queer, but I would be lying. I have learned that queer is the other, neither heteronormative, nor homonormative, but if there is or could be a solid definition of queer, I have not put it together so far. More importantly I learned what exactly heteronormative and homonormative meant, and how present and obvious they are in society. It is not at all surprising how heteronorative everything is, and how binary we are trained to think from childhood. The concept of homonormative was a bit more surprising to me, having never considered how segregated the homosexual community can be. Although having watched shows like The L Word and Will and Grace for years, I had never seriously considered the gross exaggeration of the stereotypes these shows perpetuate on society.

2. The medicalization of gender roles and homosexuality was rather provocative and eye-opening. In this new light, it seems referring to someone or oneself as homosexual would be insinuating that that person is ill, or has something wrong with them in a medical manner. This is just invention of society to place the unknown in a box. The film The Christine Jorgenson Story really drilled this idea home for me. In the film, Christine's transgendered feelings are heavily medicalized by both the doctors and the public. Christine was obviously born female in a man's body, and did not have a medical condition, but rather simply a natural feeling that she was able to make official.

3. The Ann Fausto-Sterling piece has been my favorite reading, so far. This piece greatly cleared up some of the gender questions I have developed from reading Butler, such as why its so important to distinguish. It was very interesting seeing the different, yet so similar reactions from the European cultures to the study of hermaphrodites. The story of the Italian soldier giving birth really helped pick up the spirits, but it is still startling to read how society has and continues to treat intersex individuals. I feel the intersex category has been greatly overlooked in the binary gay/straight debate. Our scientific need to label things really repulses me in the way it disregards humans for the sake of knowledge. THIS is why we need the social sciences.

4. Judith Butler is not a read-for-fun kind of piece, but in all seriousness, she has some great points about gender and sex. I had never thought so deeply into the idea of gender and sex, previously assuming that sex was more concrete, while gender could fluctuate. Butler's Gender Trouble and Bodies that Matter pieces certainly proved to make me question all of my ideas of gender and sex. After reading that sex itself is culturally created, I've started to rethink everything, because literally every norm has been a creation of society. After growing up with the norms of society drilled into your head, it is difficult to put your mind in that questioning state in which Butler seems to live. I have to say, I did not fully understand what I read in Butler until our class discussion, which was very helpful. Butler left me with more questions than answers, but I feel that is her mission in attempting to challenge and explain such tough topics.

5. Michel Foucault's evolution of repression was also news to me. It makes complete sense in retrospect, because statues and artwork we see from Roman and Greek empires are full of nudity and are still revered as beautiful artwork. Today, when an artist works with nudes, they can just as easily be labeled as pornographic as art. Why we have put ourselves in the sexuality box, I do not know. It seems life would be so much easier and more peaceful with the freedom of expression and sexuality. Maybe in those times of freedom there was less of a need for labels in society, and therefore less fear of the unknown. The increase of the need for religious penance seems to be a central point of repression for Foucault. Society finds comfort in religion, and being able to repent for "sins" is an outlet for the guilt that we as a society have propelled on ourselves by taking something as natural as sexual urges and turning them into something to feel bad about. We truly have become confessing animals, as Foucault puts it.

I look forward to learning so much more in the next couple weeks. Although this is a short class, I feel we are making the most of it.