Browsing by Subject "Heterosexuality"
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Item Destabilizing science from the right : the rhetoric of heterosexual victimage in the World Health Organization's HIV/AIDS controversy(2009-05) Mack, Ashley N.; Cloud, Dana L.; Brummett, Barry, 1951-In this project, I am interrogating discourse surrounding the 2008 WHO/UNAIDS controversy, which both preceded and followed the publication of an article in the U.K. newspaper The Independent. The article reported that the head of the World Health Organization’s HIV/AIDS initiative admitted that the threat of an AIDS pandemic among heterosexuals was “officially” over. These texts are particularly important for such an endeavor because, as I will argue below, the controversy enables both “AIDS” and “heterosexuality” to operate as floating signifiers whose meanings are contested in public discourse in ways that ultimately reinforce heterosexual privilege and under-attention to the AIDS crisis. In the end, the destabilization of the meaning of HIV/AIDS does not serve emancipatory ends. Although the destabilization of meaning is the emancipatory gesture ‘par excellence’ for the poststructuralist tradition, my investigation shows that the destabilization of meaning in the WHO controversy actually results in the reification of master narratives.Item Johnny, are you queer? : the sexual and gender politics of ambiguous sexual identity(2015-05) Beaver, Travis Dean; Carrington, Ben, 1972-; Bridges, Tristan; Moore, Lisa; Rudrappa, Sharmila; Young, MichaelA number of scholars have pointed to the increasing visibility and acceptance of gays and lesbians in Western nations since the 1990s. One of the potential ramifications of these changes is a transformation in the construction of heterosexual identities. Some masculinities scholars have found evidence that heterosexual masculinity is changing to be more inclusive of practices that have been stereotyped as “gay” or “feminine.” This dissertation adds nuance to these findings by studying straight-identified men who claim to be perceived as gay. Through life history interviews with 20 men, I examine the ways that ambiguous heterosexuals manage their sexual identity. I find that many of the men in my study self-identify as “feminine” men on account of their practices, comportment, and emotional traits. I highlight how the meanings of these “feminine” gender practices are inflected by men’s class positions and racial identities. I also show how these men struggle to claim a straight identity in a culture where effeminacy is still conflated with being gay. Next, I explore the ways that straight people experience and make sense of being targets of homophobia. I found that most of my respondents experienced homophobia raging from the explicit and overt to more subtle forms of homophobic microaggressions on account of being gender non-normative. However, I demonstrate how they draw on heterosexual privilege to mitigate negative social consequences that result from being read as gay. Finally, I show how ambiguous straight men’s sexual identities are validated or undermined through their interactions with women.Item Masculinity, gender, and power in a Mayan-Kaqchikel community in Sololá, Guatemala(2014-05) Ajcalon Choy, Rigoberto; González-López, Gloria, 1960-How do self-identified heterosexual Kaqchikel men in the rural areas of Sololá attain status and power in their relationships with women? This question is explored here by analyzing different masculine roles in various social spaces. The complexity of masculine identity requires a meticulous analysis to assess the extent to which the masculine role and identity has been or not a determinant factor in the social and personal development of both women and men in the communities. This exploration also allows us to see the different expressions of masculine identities and evaluate their current role in society. I learned that the Kaqchikel men I interviewed find their social power and status in part through well-established, old ideologies and belief systems, as well as their perception of a biological superiority, which they justify by their hard work in agricultural activities. Based on this socially constructed beliefs and practices, men emphasize the passivity of the women and their social absence – their subordinate status in society. However, the authority of the men is not limited to their remarkable role as leaders and head of the households; it also encompasses pernicious acts such as domestic violence, which is still highly prevalent in contemporary Sololá. This project also explores these men’s perceptions about: (1) the women living in their communities, (2) the low level of education of these women, and (3) the justice system that is still weak and flawed. While all of these are indeed prevailing problems in the communities, women are challenging to an extent all the practices and beliefs associated with the authority of the men.