This page is going to become a list of links to articles about the ideas of Judith Butler, and some feminist texts.
History: I was intending to do a reading group for Gender Trouble, but this seems to not be in favor in the group at this time, which is during the Israeli retaliation bombing campaign of Gaza after the al-Aqsa Flood. So I’m going to put up links to study.
Rachel Aldred, In perspective: Judith Butler
I also did a bit of thinking, and asked Bing/GPT4 for some help. My prompt was:
Please evaluate the following statement and tell me if it is logical: The gender binary in the west is a specific social construct that defines men and women as opposites. It’s a western social construct, and differs from the gender binary in other societies. Some societies don’t have a binary, but more than two genders. Thus, the western gender binary excludes, in addition to trans and nonbinary people, even cisgender people who exist in non-western social contexts within the west.
Bing Chat responded:
The statement is logical in the sense that it is based on some factual premises, but it may also be incomplete or oversimplified in some aspects. Here are some points to consider:
- The gender binary in the west is a specific social system that defines men and women as opposites, but it is not the only one. Other cultures may have different ways of categorizing gender, such as by roles, traits, behaviors, or spiritual aspects. Some cultures may also recognize more than two genders, such as the Native American concept of two-spirit or the Indonesian concept of waria.
- https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/content/two-spirits_map-html/
- https://genderrights.org.au/information-hub/what-is-gender-diversity/
- The western gender binary is influenced by various factors, such as religion, science, law, and media. It is not a fixed or natural system, but rather a dynamic and contested one that changes over time and across contexts. For example, the western gender binary has been challenged by various social movements, such as feminism, LGBTQ+ activism, and intersex rights.
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_binary
- https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2019/04/22/how-people-around-the-world-view-gender-equality-in-their-countries/
- The western gender binary excludes or marginalizes not only trans and nonbinary people, but also cisgender people who do not conform to the norms and expectations of their assigned gender. For example, cisgender women who pursue careers in male-dominated fields or cisgender men who express emotions or vulnerability may face discrimination or stigma.
- https://www.britannica.com/topic/gender-binary
- https://content.wisestep.com/cultural-gender-diversity-workplace-pros-cons/
- The western gender binary may also clash with the gender diversity of other cultures that exist within the west, such as immigrants, refugees, or indigenous peoples. These groups may have different ways of understanding and expressing their gender identity and may face challenges in adapting to the dominant system. For example, they may have to deal with legal barriers, cultural misunderstandings, or identity conflicts.
- https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/content/two-spirits_map-html/
- https://genderrights.org.au/information-hub/what-is-gender-diversity/
Therefore, the statement is logical in its main argument, but it could also be expanded or nuanced to reflect the complexity and diversity of gender across cultures and time periods.
Random Thoughts
I got into thinking about the “western” aspect of the gender binary because I was thinking back to reading aznidentiy (a redpill, sometimes misogynist Asian space, part of the manosphere), and noticing how they often used an analysis that resembled intersectional feminism, but were not typically feminist.
How could Asian, male, anti-feminists end up sounding like feminists? When they discuss gender: because in white cishet patriarchy, white cis het men do not often analyze gender; feminists and others do.
People who are culturally non-white will fall in different places in the space around the US gender binary. This includes cishet people of color.
Not only that, but racism can, and does, attach gender to race. The “Asian” race is coded as more feminine, so Asian men and women get coded as more feminine than other men. The Black race is coded as more masculine, so Black women and men get coded as more masculine than other women.
I’m not sure how the Brown/Red race is coded, but I think it’s as more feminine, but not as much as Asians.
These encodings change over time, of course — it’s all contested and always changing.
The Reddit group Aznidentity’s takes on the male gender vary.
One common position is to conform to some subset of behaviors of the Western male gender identity. This is like assimilationism.
Another common position is to assert the legitimacy of non-Western Asian male gender identity, as part of a larger global male gender identity. This is like demanding inclusivity for diversity: a cluster of gender poles.
Another is to turn away from the West, and spend time existing outside of the West. Some might suggest moving to an ethnic enclave. Many don’t put it in those terms, but talk about visiting their ancestral homeland, and having an easy or easier time dating, than in the West, and decide that country will be part of their dating pool.
I’m sure many other strategies are represented, including an alliance with feminists to overturn the binary, but these are not discussed that much.