pickAn incredibly informative read: I learned a lot & will be processing this for a while.
Chapter one focuses on the colonialist underpinnings of "trans panic" narratives arising in British India as a means of oppressive imperialist control.
Chapter two moves to Antebellum USA and the weaponisation of trans misogyny for the imposition of white supremacist culture on Native American and enslaved African peoples as a means of control and erasure. ⬇️⅓
A couple of weeks ago, on the anniversary of Foucault's death, the garden of his family home was open to the public, as was his office, & 2 short plays, including the premiere of the 1 based on the tagged book, were given for free. I was there, but as photos were not allowed, there's no proof 😊. I enjoyed the play, and am now reading the book. It contains Herculine's own account of her life as an intersex person in the 19th century.
"'Trans misogyny' refers to the targeted devaluation of both trans femininity & people perceived to be trans feminine, regardless of how they understand themselves." - Preface
"We are living in the global era of 'trans', a shortened or prefixal version of the word 'transgender'." - Introduction
"Long before it was a legal defence, in the nineteenth century, the global trans panic began." - Chapter 1
#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl
pickI read a few pages and I‘m already in love with it 🥰👏
bailedI was having fun when I started out following the “choose your own adventure” style path through this, but when I actually to started go through the chapters in order to see what information was really contained here I started to get more and more irritated. I found the premise is almost laughably broad making it impossible to go into depth about anything, and in calling attention to numerous stereotypes the author also trips over quite a few.
pickI loved this book! I already knew that gender is a social construct—but this book made me think about it in an entirely different way. There are no page numbers, and each chapter ends in a way that directs you toward another path of how you are navigating what we call ‘gender‘. It touches on race, class, abled and disabled bodies, sexual orientation, and more. This is a fantastic guide to helping you figure things out when you live in a world⬇️
Next up in quarterly review faves: non-fiction and lit fic. Biggest surprise: all the nature non-fiction I've done in the last three months, none of it ended up sticking with me, and the reading experience/writing quality was really hit and miss. Might have to rethink sampling in that subgenre (no more picking it up because it has a tree on the cover! Literary fiction is never my primary genre, at least I read ONE I loved! 🤷🏼♂️
pickFucking fascinating. Maybe a little too much Freud. Apologies for the dreadful cover showing in your feed.
Carol J. Clover's 'Her Body, Himself: Gender in the Slasher Film' remains one of my faves of the collection, I realize that's my final girl bias showing through.
I think I honestly enjoyed Thomas Doherty's 'Genre, Gender and The Aliens Trilogy' (written back when it was just a trilogy) because those films made such an impression on me. 1/?
The conclusion gathers the threads of the chapters and brings Gill-Peterson\'s perspective into the 21st century.
Throughout, JGP is at pains to emphasise that concepts of trans femininity are culturally specific and that one perspective cannot, and should not, ⬇️ (edited) 3mo
Naturally, given it\'s subject matter, there are examples of awful transphobia, misogyny, homophobia, racism and colonisation, along with discussion of sex work, drug use, and, briefly, child abuse. (edited) 3mo