Queer(ing) gender: a critical analysis of thinking, embodying, and living genderqueer

UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
Dana Marie Stachowiak (Creator)
Institution
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )
Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/
Advisor
Leila Villaverde

Abstract: A purpose of this dissertation is to offer a new look at the genderqueer body and experiences in order to further queer our current frames of thinking about gender in ways that challenge hegemonic structures of analyzing, defining, and evaluating lived experiences in relation to more than gender alone. Informed by Queer Theory and Gender Studies, and hinged on Endarkened Feminist, Feminist, and Post-Structuralist epistemologies, this study encourages a shift from only acknowledging the social construction of gender (both inside and outside the binary), to acknowledging the social process of becoming. As such, this study encourages valuing the relationships between intersectionality, liminality, and assemblages as a part of rhizomatic qualities of gender. In order to accomplish the goals of the project, the researcher, along with nine participants, explored the genderqueer terrain of identity and representation through participatory action research, A/R/Tography, and Mindful Inquiry. Four critical questions helped aide in thinking about the genderqueer body: (1) What kind of body is the genderqueer body, and how is it understood and lived? (2) What is the liminal space in which genderqueer individuals occupy/navigate/live? (3) How is this liminal space productive or unsafe? and, (4) How can others embrace/utilize the productivity within the liminal spaces of their own identity in both social and educational spaces?

Additional Information

Publication
Dissertation
Language: English
Date: 2013
Keywords
Gender, Genderqueer, Qualitative, Queer, Rhizome
Subjects
Queer theory
Gender identity $x Social aspects
Sexual minorities $x Identity

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