Rethinking Identity in Political Science

2020 ◽  
pp. 147892992091936
Author(s):  
Scott Weiner ◽  
Dillon Stone Tatum
Keyword(s):  
Gender Identity ◽  
Political Science ◽  
Ethnic Politics ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Gender Politics ◽  
Integrated Model ◽  
Politics Of Identity ◽  
Theoretical Approaches ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Insight Into

Political science engages similar types of identity on different terms. There are extensive literatures describing phenomena related to national, ethnic, class, and gender identity; however, these literatures in isolation give us little insight into broader political mechanics of identity itself. Furthermore, many of the theoretical approaches to identity in political science tend to proceed from the macro-level, without conceptualizing its building blocks. How should we conceptualize and operationalize identity in political science? In this article, we examine the existing literature on identity in ethnic politics, nationalism studies, and gender politics to show this disconnect in conceptualizing identity across research agendas. We then provide an integrated model of identity, focusing on how gradations of visibility, conceptualization, and recognition form the basis of claims and conflicts about the politics of identity. We conclude by elucidating a path to overcoming these issues by opening space for a rethinking of identity in political science.

scholarly journals Queering participatory planning

2021 ◽  
pp. 095624782110193
Author(s):  
Vanesa Castán Broto
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Orientation ◽  
Gender Identity ◽  
Queer Theory ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Participatory Planning ◽  
Radical Democracy ◽  
Politics Of Identity ◽  
The World ◽  
Participatory Processes ◽  
And Gender

All over the world, people suffer violence and discrimination because of their sexual orientation and gender identity. Queer theory has linked the politics of identity and sexuality with radical democracy experiments to decolonize development. Queering participatory planning can improve the wellbeing of vulnerable sectors of the population, while also enhancing their political representation and participation. However, to date, there has been limited engagement with the politics of sexuality and identity in participatory planning. This paper identifies three barriers that prevent the integration of queer concerns. First, queer issues are approached as isolated and distinct, separated from general matters for discussion in participatory processes. Second, heteronormative assumptions have shaped two fields that inform participatory planning practices: development studies and urban planning. Third, concrete, practical problems (from safety concerns to developing shared vocabularies) make it difficult to raise questions of identity and sexuality in public discussions. An engagement with queer thought has potential to renew participatory planning.

Logics of Gender Justice and Their Meaning for the Study of Sexuality and Gender Identity: A Dialogue

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 519-526
Author(s):  
Phillip M Ayoub
Keyword(s):  
Gender Identity ◽  
Political Science ◽  
Gender Justice ◽  
Open Questions ◽  
Sexuality And Gender ◽  
Theoretical Assumptions ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Role Of Religion

Abstract This piece dialogues with Htun and Weldon's exceptional new book, The Logics of Gender Justice, as it relates to LGBTI rights. Beyond engaging the authors' questions of when and why governments promote women's rights, I also engage their argument that equality is not one issue but many linked issues, including issues of sexuality and gender identity. My own reflections on their work thus address the contributions the book makes to the study of political science, as well as open questions about how their logic of gender justice might apply across other issue areas less explored in the book. Htun and Weldon's own definition of gender justice also rightly includes space for LGBTQI people, which I see as an invitation to think through the typology in relation to these communities. The piece begins by reflecting on the book's theoretical and methodical innovations around the complexities of gender politics, before moving on to the multi-faceted role of religion in gender justice, and then theoretical assumptions around visibility of the marginalized.

Ezekiel and Gender

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amy Kalmanofsky
Keyword(s):  
Gender Identity ◽  
Gender Identities ◽  
Dynamic Relationship ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Insight Into

This chapter identifies a gender instability manifest by the three major characters in Ezekiel—Israel, the prophet, and God—and shows the ways in which these characters exhibit a compromised masculinity, and the ways in which their gender identities are interconnected. Ezekiel and Israel become less male when they encounter God, the ultimate male; and God becomes less male when encountering sinful Israel. Recognizing gender instability in Ezekiel provides insight into Ezekiel’s gender rhetoric, and the ways in which the text privileges masculinity. Maleness is the preferred gender identity for God, the prophet, and Israel. Compromised masculinity and femaleness indicate weakness—and perhaps ironically, they function together to protect and privilege masculinity. Perceiving gender instability also reveals the ways in which gender is not fixed, but fluid. Gender identity is relational in Ezekiel. God, the prophet, and Israel are in a dynamic relationship with one another that impacts their gender identity.

scholarly journals Playing it Fashionably Queer: Mae West’s Performing Sexuality

Pólemos ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-80
Author(s):  
Giada Goracci
Keyword(s):  
Social Context ◽  
Gender Politics ◽  
Body Language ◽  
The Body ◽  
The Other ◽  
Gender Performativity ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The One ◽  
Insight Into

Abstract “Marriage is a fine institution, but I’m not ready for an institution.” With this challenging innuendo, the American actress and author Mae West offers an insight into gender performativity and heteronormativity through marriage in a period, the “Roaring Twenties,” in which sexual and gender politics could not be put into scrutiny. Her vamp persona and the elaborated iconography that she crafted on her character gave birth to a meticulous semiotics of the body that eventually undermined the American social context of the time fostering on the one hand, an image of heterosexual desire, and on the other hand an appealing icon to a gay market. This article ventures a queer-oriented perspective on West’s charismatic character and on the intertwined effects that tie semiotics to body language, especially focussing on the plays Sex (1926) and The Drag (1927).

scholarly journals Mission Impossible? New Housework Theories for Changing Families

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia Geist ◽  
Leah Ruppanner
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
Household Level ◽  
Sexual Identities ◽  
Theoretical Approaches ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Work Family ◽  
And Shifts ◽  
Insight Into

Theoretical approaches to housework do not reflect contemporary families and gender relations. We evaluate assumptions about gender and families in three dominant explanations and propose theoretical extensions. First, we suggest a work-family fit approach that examines housework and resources at a household level. Second, we propose the diverse capital perspective that extends earnings centered assessments of housework bargaining. Finally, a "doing genders" approach captures how gender shapes housework in nuanced ways. Our study does not focus on the more general issue of power in relationships, nor do we seek to dismantle existing theoretical perspectives or solve all shortcomings of the inherently couple-centered and cissexist heteronormative approach to families that primarily focuses on the United States. Rather, we provide some insight into how these theories can be expanded given the realities of diverse family arrangements, stalled gender revolutions, and shifts and fluidity in gender and sexual identities.

scholarly journals An Absence of Modesty: The Male/Female Dichotomy inModesty Blaise

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 357-374
Author(s):  
Laura Crossley
Keyword(s):  
Gender Identity ◽  
British Empire ◽  
Gender Politics ◽  
Global Politics ◽  
Post Colonial ◽  
Liminal Spaces ◽  
Secret Service ◽  
Action Heroine ◽  
And Gender

This article examines the figure of Modesty Blaise as an action heroine in the canon of British espionage texts. It argues that the character and her stories offer multiple, liminal spaces for investigating and challenging ideas about gender, nation and class. It also addresses the current landscape of action-adventure films at a time when there are increased calls for more female-centric vehicles and gender-blind casting. While the gender politics of the Modesty Blaise franchise make for fascinating analysis, they are also played out against a backdrop of global politics. This can be seen in the first of the novels – simply entitled Modesty Blaise (1965) – and to some extent in Joseph Losey's loose adaptation of the book in 1966. Modesty's employment by the British secret service coincides with the dismantling of the British Empire, and the negotiation of gender identity that is a recurring theme in the stories intersects with the post-imperial, post-colonial concerns that dominated geopolitics at the time the original texts were released.

Effects of Gender, Parental Role, and Time on Infant- and Adult-Directed Read and Spontaneous Speech

2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (11) ◽  
pp. 4001-4014
Author(s):  
Melanie Weirich ◽  
Adrian Simpson
Keyword(s):  
Parental Involvement ◽  
Gender Identity ◽  
Spontaneous Speech ◽  
First Year ◽  
Space Size ◽  
Vowel Space ◽  
Potential Impact ◽  
Phonetic Features ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Description Task

Purpose The study sets out to investigate inter- and intraspeaker variation in German infant-directed speech (IDS) and considers the potential impact that the factors gender, parental involvement, and speech material (read vs. spontaneous speech) may have. In addition, we analyze data from 3 time points prior to and after the birth of the child to examine potential changes in the features of IDS and, particularly also, of adult-directed speech (ADS). Here, the gender identity of a speaker is considered as an additional factor. Method IDS and ADS data from 34 participants (15 mothers, 19 fathers) is gathered by means of a reading and a picture description task. For IDS, 2 recordings were made when the baby was approximately 6 and 9 months old, respectively. For ADS, an additional recording was made before the baby was born. Phonetic analyses comprise mean fundamental frequency (f0), variation in f0, the 1st 2 formants measured in /i: ɛ a u:/, and the vowel space size. Moreover, social and behavioral data were gathered regarding parental involvement and gender identity. Results German IDS is characterized by an increase in mean f0, a larger variation in f0, vowel- and formant-specific differences, and a larger acoustic vowel space. No effect of gender or parental involvement was found. Also, the phonetic features of IDS were found in both spontaneous and read speech. Regarding ADS, changes in vowel space size in some of the fathers and in mean f0 in mothers were found. Conclusion Phonetic features of German IDS are robust with respect to the factors gender, parental involvement, speech material (read vs. spontaneous speech), and time. Some phonetic features of ADS changed within the child's first year depending on gender and parental involvement/gender identity. Thus, further research on IDS needs to address also potential changes in ADS.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document