Introduction

Throughout this gender studies course, I have gained significant insights into the

complexities of gender theory and studies through the exploration of foundational gender

theory, masculinity studies, intersectionality, and queer theory. Engaging with key readings

such as Judith Butler's "Bodies that Matter," Cathy J. Cohen's "Punks, Bulldaggers, and

Welfare Queens: The Radical Potential of Queer Politics?", and Haunani-Kay Trask's

"Feminism and Indigenous Hawaiian Nationalism" has deepened my understanding of how

gender identities and roles are constructed and performed. Additionally, Leslie Salzinger's

"Re-Marking Men: Masculinity as a Terrain of the Neoliberal Economy" and the

collaborative work of David L. Eng, Judith Halberstam, and José Esteban Muñoz in

"Introduction" from Social Text have further enriched my perspective on the intersection of

gender with social, cultural, and economic factors. This essay will explore how I have further

informed my understanding of gender dynamics through these readings.

Foundations of Gender Theory

Through this course, learning about the historical foundations of Gender Theory have further

helped me understand how socio-cultural, political, and intellectual forces have shaped the

understanding of gender throughout history. I found Judith Butler’s ‘Critically Queer’

reading in ‘Bodies that Matter’ helpful in understanding some of the foundations and ideas of

gender theory.

Butler presents her theory of gender performativity in the reading. Butler asserts that gender

is not an inherent identity but rather a series of acts and performances. This is highlighted by

Butler through the quote: ‘Performative acts are forms of authoritative speech: most

performatives, for instance, are statements that, in the uttering, also perform a certain action
and exercise a binding power. Implicated in a network of authorization and punishment,

performatives tend to include legal sentences, baptisms, inaugurations, declarations of

ownership, statements which not only perform an action, but confer a binding power on the

action performed.’ (Butler, 2011, p. 171). In the quote, examples of performatives are given,

such as legal sentences, baptisms, inaugurations, and declarations of ownership. These

statements don't only describe an action; rather, by speaking these declarations, the speaker

brings about the action or establishes a particular status or authority. Butler asserts that these

gendered performative acts are the key to actualising gender roles.

Butler further highlights how these performances are repeated and ritualised, creating the

illusion of a stable gender identity. This is further shown through the following quote “The

practice by which gendering occurs, the embodying of norms, is a compulsory practice, a

forcible production, but not for that reason fully determining. To the extent that gender is an

assignment, it is an assignment which is never quite carried out according to expectation,

whose addressee never quite inhabits the ideal s/he is compelled to approximate.” (Butler,

2011, p. 197). This quote from Judith Butler's "Bodies That Matter" presents the notion that

the process of embodying gender norms is compulsory and forcibly imposed by society.

However, Butler argues that despite this, individuals do not fully actualise these norms.

Gender assignment, according to Butler, is never fully realised according to societal

expectations. The assigned gender roles and norms individuals are compelled to conform to

are never perfectly inhabited by the individual. In essence, Butler suggests that there is

always a gap between the idealised gender norms and the lived experiences of individuals,

highlighting the complexity and fluidity of gender identity.

Acknowledging the theories behind gender perceptions and gender expectations is essential

to further understanding gender theory. This reading has helped shape my understanding of
gender theory. Butler's critique of the binary constructs of gender has challenged traditional

understandings of masculinity and femininity. By arguing that gender is performative and

socially constructed, she dismantles ideas of fixed gender categories, allowing for a more

nuanced understanding of the fluidity and complexity of gender identity.

Cultural perceptions of gender and Intersectionality

Regarding the perceptions of gender as well as the expectations of gender roles, one of the

readings that I found extremely insightful was ‘Feminism and Indigenous Hawaiian

Nationalism’ by Haunani-Kay Trask.

How gender is understood can vary in different cultural contexts. Trask points out how there

are discrepancies between traditional Hawaiian perceptions of gender roles and the

mainstream colonial perceptions of gender roles. This is explained by Trask through the

following quote: “In traditional Hawaiian society, women held high positions of power and

respect, and their roles were complementary to those of men. Colonialism imposed Western

patriarchal structures that marginalized Hawaiian women and disrupted these traditional

gender roles” (Trask, 1996, p. 911).

Due to the difference between assigned gender roles in different cultures, Trask is also critical

of how Western feminism does not consider the historical impacts that colonialism has had on

gender theory and gender expectations. Due to this, Trask also explores how colonialism has

uniquely impacted Hawaiian women, shaping their experiences of gender oppression. She

argues that gender oppression for indigenous women is highly intertwined with colonial

domination, which is often overlooked by mainstream feminist theories that focus primarily

on patriarchy without considering colonial contexts. This can be seen in the following quote:
“Western feminism has often failed to consider the historical impacts of colonialism on

gender theory and gender expectations, overlooking the unique experiences and struggles of

indigenous women” (Trask, 1996, p. 909).

Trask brought to my attention how perceptions of gender can vary drastically in different

cultural contexts and subsequently the importance of considering historical and cultural

contexts in understanding gender dynamics. Her critique of Western feminism's neglect of

colonial impacts on gender theory serves as a reminder of the need for intersectional

approaches that encompass diverse experiences.

Masculinity Studies

Before taking the course I was aware of the impacts that traditional western gender roles have

had on men, but I did not consider the relationship between these gender roles and other

theories and concepts.

The reading that helped to establish a connection between mens gender expectations and

capitalist desires, especially neoliberal ideas would be: ‘Re-Marking Men: Masculinity as a

Terrain of the Neoliberal Economy’ by Leslie Salzinger. Through the reading, Salzinger

explores the intersection of masculinity and neoliberal economic structures. Salzinger

examines how neoliberalism shapes contemporary masculinity by emphasising individualism,

competition, and market-oriented values. She argues that the neoliberal economy

reconfigures traditional notions of masculinity, commodifying masculinity itself and creating

new forms of gendered labour and consumption. This is shown by Salzinger through her

exploration of ‘global assembly work’ as well as the neoliberal evolution in Mexico.

Prior financial ‘success’ of women in the labour force is due to, Salzinger asserts “Mexican

women’s cultural “conditioning” in obedience (which is used) as a primary selling point for
locating production in the region’ (Salzinger, 2016). Women were also presented as more

docile and agreeable, in comparison to men who were deemed to cause more ‘social

problems’.

‘The production manager argued that women made better maquila workers, because (real)

men have “more ideas about self-improvement”’(Salzinger, 2016). The presentation of work

in the garment industry as feminine is extremely damaging to the identity of men working in

the industry. This also influences how women are treated by men in the industry. Now,

financial success seems to be presented as interchangeable with masculinity, with masculinity

being commodified to fit into neoliberal ideals.

The drive for financial success in order to prove and validate masculinity creates new forms

of gender expression. The actualization of these neoliberal ideals is particularly challenging

for men in low-paying or entry-level jobs, such as garment work, which is perceived as

feminine. As a result, men feel compelled to exert their masculinity in other ways, often

leading to the reinforcement of traditional gender roles and potentially aggressive behaviours.

The reading illustrates how men navigate these changing economic landscapes, often

experiencing insecurity and pressure to conform to idealised masculine identities. Through

this reading I came to understand how different social structures are able to interact and

reinforce each other. The relationship between masculinity and success in a neoliberal

economy is extremely interesting. The exploration of masculinity as a feature of the

neoliberal economy not only expands our understanding of gender dynamics but uncovers

how widespread economic structures can have broader implications on individual identities

and gendered behaviours.

Through the course discussions and readings regarding Queer theory has helped me further

understand the need for gender studies. The readings that helped me digest these ideas were

‘Punks, Bulldaggers, and Welfare Queens: The Radical Potential of Queer Politics?’ by Cathy

J. Cohen and ‘What’s Queer About Queer Studies Now?’ in ‘Social Text’ by David Eng,

Judith Halberstam and José Esteban Muñoz.

Queer studies have evolved drastically through time, the term initially being used to

challenge ‘the socially constructed nature of sexuality and sexual categories, but also the

varying degrees and multiple sites of power distributed within all categories of sexuality,

including the normative category of heterosexuality’ (Cohen, 1997, p. 439). Early Queer

Theory primarily centred on the socially constructed norms of accepted sexuality, along with

the exclusion and mistreatment experienced by individuals who did not conform to these

norms.

In contemporary society Queer Studies still focuses on power dynamics but now calls for a

‘renewed queer studies’ which is ‘ever vigilant to the fact that sexuality is intersectional, not

extraneous to other modes of difference, and calibrated to a firm understanding of queer as a

political metaphor without a fixed referent’ (Eng et al., 2005, p. 1). Through Queer Theory

the binary understanding of gender is rejected instead the fluidity and complexity of gender is

emphasised. It encourages the exploration of the diverse ways in which individuals

experience and express their gender beyond traditional categories.

The expression of different gender and sexual identities and the subsequent defiance against

the status quo can be seen through history. This can be shown through the reclamation of

stigmatised identities such as "punk," "bulldagger," and "welfare queen," shown in the

reading ‘Punks, Bulldaggers, and Welfare Queens: The Radical Potential of Queer Politics?’
by Cathy J. Cohen. The following quote from members of the Chicago-based group Queers

United Against Straight-acting Homosexuals provided by Cohen shows how embracing

non-traditional identities can empower marginalised individuals and challenge societal

norms. “...Fuck the heterosexual, nuclear family. Let’s make families which promote sexual

choices and liberation rather than sexual oppression’. Queer Theory can be seen as

fundamentally challenging normative assumptions about gender and sexuality, advocating for

personal expression in regard to gender and sexuality.

Through the course discussions and readings on Queer theory, I've gained a deeper

appreciation for the importance of gender studies. Queer studies have undergone significant

evolution, challenging societal norms and power dynamics surrounding sexuality and gender.

From its origins in critiquing the socially constructed nature of sexuality to its contemporary

emphasis on intersectionality and fluidity in gender, Queer theory has expanded my

understanding of human identity and expression.

Conclusion

In conclusion, my understanding of gender dynamics has been greatly improved by this

gender studies course's examination of queer theory, intersectionality, masculinity studies,

and basic gender theory. Judith Butler, Cathy J. Cohen, Haunani-Kay Trask, Leslie Salzinger,

and David Eng, Judith Halberstam, and José Esteban Muñoz have all contributed important

readings that offer a variety of viewpoints on the creation and performance of gender

identities and roles. Butler's theory of gender performativity highlighted how gender is a

performative and socially constructed idea. Trask's examination of how colonialism affected

gender norms highlighted how important it is for gender studies to take intersectionality and

cultural contexts into account. The intricate relationship between gender and economic
systems was made clear by Salzinger's analysis of how the neoliberal economy affects

masculinity. Finally, my understanding of human identity and expression has been broadened

by queer theory's rejection of binary gender constructs and emphasis on fluidity and

intersectionality. All of these analyses and ideas present in this essay highlight the value of a

complex and intersectional approach to gender studies, providing a variety of ideas for

examining the complex aspects of gender in modern society.

Word count: 1952

Butler, J. (2011). Bodies that matter. In Routledge eBooks.

https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203828274

Cohen, C. J. (1997). Punks, bulldaggers, and welfare queens: the radical potential of queer

politics? GLQ, 3(4), 437–465. https://doi.org/10.1215/10642684-3-4-437

Eng, D. L., Halberstam, J., & MuñOz, J. E. (2005). Introduction. Social Text, 23(3–4), 1–17.

https://doi.org/10.1215/01642472-23-3-4_84-85-1

Salzinger, L. (2016). Re-Marking Men: Masculinity as a terrain of the Neoliberal Economy.

Critical Historical Studies, 3(1), 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1086/685553

Trask, H. (1996). Feminism and indigenous Hawaiian nationalism. Signs, 21(4), 906–916.

https://doi.org/10.1086/495125