Had a conversation with Kanga yesterday about stories which I incorporated in some thoughts I'd been having on Queer and Postcolonial Theory. You see, I wasn't sure if I could appropriate the stories of others without offending people. This of course, is rather dumb because I am a deconstructionist at heart, and therefore believe that identity is not fixed but a fluid thing that can never be pinned down to say you're part of a specific "group" of people. So, in that sense I believe that all stories can be my stories.
However, when it comes to oppressed peoples it gets a little strange. Western society works on a power basis based on binary oppositions. You are either one or the other. The "other" has just recently been allowed an identity and they are using it to gain some much needed empowerment within this fucked up society. (I say Western because I'm not really sure how it works in Eastern places - I know there are power struggles there too but I'm not sure if they are based on the same system of binaries)
Which of course brought me to the gay/lesbian vs queer. Queer studies is a deconstructionist theory that says that as sexuality is part of identity, it is therefore as fluid, changeable and affected by many factors as identity. When you place yourself in one category, it is merely on a performative basis and really you are just encouraging this idea of being 'one' or the 'other.' This is a tough subject, as I believe that sexuality is a fluid thing, but in deconstructing that form of identity/identification it makes it hard for those who flow more towards the homosexual side of the spectrum to gain the equal place in (binary)society that they deserve.
It’s an odd thing to think about: I want this whole binary opposition of sexuality to dissolve. To do this, do we let people maintain their identity groups as a basis of power until the under privileged part of the binary opposition becomes equal? Or do we have to dissolve the binary system first as it is impossible to have equality within it? The same question could be asked of the cultural identities of oppressed groups in Postcolonial. As much as many complain that they do not fit it with the main group of Black Americans, can we really say that no "black american identity" exists without taking away their power within the binary system?
Postcolonial and Gay and Lesbian theories focus on “identity.” These groups finally have a strong community heading under which they fall and can fight from. I believe it is important for the disempowered to find some space from which they can gain some feeling of safety and equality in numbers. Can oppressed groups find a way to empower themselves if we deconstruct their fairly recently given identity? Can people in this society feel empowered without identity?
However, when it comes to oppressed peoples it gets a little strange. Western society works on a power basis based on binary oppositions. You are either one or the other. The "other" has just recently been allowed an identity and they are using it to gain some much needed empowerment within this fucked up society. (I say Western because I'm not really sure how it works in Eastern places - I know there are power struggles there too but I'm not sure if they are based on the same system of binaries)
Which of course brought me to the gay/lesbian vs queer. Queer studies is a deconstructionist theory that says that as sexuality is part of identity, it is therefore as fluid, changeable and affected by many factors as identity. When you place yourself in one category, it is merely on a performative basis and really you are just encouraging this idea of being 'one' or the 'other.' This is a tough subject, as I believe that sexuality is a fluid thing, but in deconstructing that form of identity/identification it makes it hard for those who flow more towards the homosexual side of the spectrum to gain the equal place in (binary)society that they deserve.
It’s an odd thing to think about: I want this whole binary opposition of sexuality to dissolve. To do this, do we let people maintain their identity groups as a basis of power until the under privileged part of the binary opposition becomes equal? Or do we have to dissolve the binary system first as it is impossible to have equality within it? The same question could be asked of the cultural identities of oppressed groups in Postcolonial. As much as many complain that they do not fit it with the main group of Black Americans, can we really say that no "black american identity" exists without taking away their power within the binary system?
Postcolonial and Gay and Lesbian theories focus on “identity.” These groups finally have a strong community heading under which they fall and can fight from. I believe it is important for the disempowered to find some space from which they can gain some feeling of safety and equality in numbers. Can oppressed groups find a way to empower themselves if we deconstruct their fairly recently given identity? Can people in this society feel empowered without identity?
