Identifier

etd-04072017-210816

Degree

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Foreign Languages and Literatures

Document Type

Thesis

Abstract

Judith Butler argues that gender is a performative cultural construction; this analysis is taken to further means of discussion in reference to the revelation of sex and gender as both cultural and social constructions. Sex and gender appear as a result of heteornormative regulations imposed onto social actors, arguing that these constructions are essences naturally attached to the human body. The constructions of the sex/gender system are inflicted by a regulative discourse. In the heterocentric society this discursive control is implemented through social norms which enforce male with masculinity and female with femininity. Through various analyses of contra-hegemonic cultural and artistic productions, this thesis focuses on the deconstruction of the heteronormative discourse. The artists and theorists whose critiques and performances are analyzed reveal a fluidity in the defected social and cultural constructions of sex and gender. These categories are dismantled through the same discourse that maintains them as normative essences by a means of collectivity through a multitude of voices and experiences. Itziar Ziga (Spain) and Sayak Valencia (Mexico) utilize the discursive power as a tool of deconstruction to portray various examples of the flawed naturalness that society depicts as rigid. Through the use of blogs, a resistance is established against the normative impositions by way of queer activism. The blogs, Parole de Queer (Spain) and Potencia Tortillera (Argentina), publish the works of individuals which the heterocentric regime classifies as social deviants. By demonstrating that sex and gender are not naturally appended to individuals and their bodies the dissident voices that appear in this work articulate a counterargument to the heteronormative discourse. A resistance to heterosexual control is highlighted within this thesis by engaging in a discussion with these constructions through means of bodily demonstrations and performances.

Date

2017

Document Availability at the Time of Submission

Release the entire work immediately for access worldwide.

Committee Chair

Castro, Elena

DOI

10.31390/gradschool_theses.4400

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