Theoretical introduction to discourse and the body

Foucault, Butler, queer theory, and transgender studies

pp. 43-78

in: Lanei Rodemeyer, Lou Sullivan diaries (1970-1980) and theories of sexual embodiment, Berlin, Springer, 2018

Abstract

Beginning with basic philosophical distinctions that separate the mind from objects in the world, the author then moves to the philosophy of Michel Foucault, who argues that our understanding of sex arises from how different establishments (such as medical, psychological, and criminal) talk about it. This move demonstrates a major shift in philosophical understandings of sexual embodiment: from a natural "object" in the world to a focal point within "discourse". Judith Butler develops this position further, arguing that our very experience of our bodies is especially mediated by "performativity". Some critics from trans studies argue, however, that trans experience is eclipsed by those queer philosophies that understand our bodies to be entirely discursive or performative. Thus the question arises whether some aspects of sexual embodiment might indicate rudimentary experiences that exceed the limits of discourse and performativity.Excerpts from Sullivan's diaries accompany the theoretical discussion in a way that Sullivan himself might engage in the theory.