Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 16 of 16
Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities
(Please Don’T) Take Me To Church, Allie Begin
(Please Don’T) Take Me To Church, Allie Begin
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
Sexual inequality has been an issue of debate for centuries. Recently, the push back against this inequality has been at an all time high. Social norms are changing and groups that have previously been marginalized are beginning to find liberation and empowerment. This drastic shift in mindset would not have been possible without the strong backing of influential people. This essay analyzes the work of Irish musician Hozier in his recent song Take Me to Church. Specifically, this piece will examine his disapproval for the way religious institutions control sexuality, polarize sexual binaries, and attack homosexuality with a negative hyperfocus. …
Subversion Of The Transgender Gaze Through Cisnormativity, Debra Beight
Subversion Of The Transgender Gaze Through Cisnormativity, Debra Beight
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
This paper analyzes Halberstam’s interpretation of the transgender gaze as it applies to the character portrayal of Brandon Teena in the film Boys Don’t Cry. An oppositional approach examines the idea of a cisgender gaze that compromises the subjectivity of not only the character of Brandon but extending to dismissiveness towards trans identity as a whole. Dissecting the reveal scene from the film highlights Halberstam’s process of the transgender gaze and allows for a focus on cisgender interpretation and demands that illustrate cisnormative expectations on trans bodies and behaviors. Connecting these demands is the concept of abjection as described by …
“I Didn’T Think You Could Be Any More Butch”: Gender Performance, Expressions Of Masculinity And Rape In Veronica Mars, Chelsee Bergen
“I Didn’T Think You Could Be Any More Butch”: Gender Performance, Expressions Of Masculinity And Rape In Veronica Mars, Chelsee Bergen
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
No abstract provided.
The Case Of M.C. – An Argument For Legal, Medical, And Social Recognition Of Ambiguity, Debra Beight
The Case Of M.C. – An Argument For Legal, Medical, And Social Recognition Of Ambiguity, Debra Beight
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
This paper is an examination of the interconnectedness of juridical, medical, and social constructs surrounding intersex/DSD (Difference/Disorder of Sex Development) sex assignment surgeries. Looking at a pending court case involving a child that was in state custody at the time of their sex assignment surgery, we can observe the influences of the medical industry’s tendency to treat intersex conditions like disabilities, as sites of therapeutic interventions. These pathologized intrusions become government-sanctioned interventions that are supported by, and in turn bolster, societal expectations of conformity and normalcy.
Marriage Equality And “It Gets Better”: Neoliberalism And The Absence Of Political Feeling, Kristi Carey
Marriage Equality And “It Gets Better”: Neoliberalism And The Absence Of Political Feeling, Kristi Carey
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
The fight for marriage equality and the “It Gets Better” campaign exist as two activist movements within contemporary gay liberation politics. This paper will understand these iterations of activism as both emanating from and perpetuating our neoliberal and capitalist present. Through striving for the politics of inclusion, both marriage equality and the IGB campaign merely rearrange the societal and rhetorical plane rather than undertake structural change—that which critically questions the very structures that individuals want to be included into. Using Foucault’s (1976) exploration of the repression of sex within marriage, as well as Cvetkovich’s (2012) theories of depression, I ask …
Liberation Is Not Wearing A Bra To The Gym, Maggie Deagon
Liberation Is Not Wearing A Bra To The Gym, Maggie Deagon
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
No abstract provided.
Psychosomatic Disorders In The Queer Community, Tanner Gill
Psychosomatic Disorders In The Queer Community, Tanner Gill
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
This paper analyzes and evaluates why psychosomatic disorders are present in such higher rates in the queer community than in other communities. To assess this issue, this report supplies research on the intersection amongst various sexual and gender minorities within the community, three psychosomatic disorders (eating, anxiety, and mood disorders), and the heteronormative and homophobic society in which the aforementioned items are positioned. These disorders are linked to the feeling of societal marginalization in communities where heteronormativity and homophobia are prevalent and predominant, and also the bullying, hate, and stigmatization that coincide with such social institutions. To combat the rapid …
For Those On Glass Cliffs: The Nature Of Women In Power As Explored Through Frozen, The Abramson Effect, And "Let It Go, Raelissa Glennon-Zukoff
For Those On Glass Cliffs: The Nature Of Women In Power As Explored Through Frozen, The Abramson Effect, And "Let It Go, Raelissa Glennon-Zukoff
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
This paper seeks to explore the link made by Deborah Spar in her recently published piece The Ambramson Effect: Tales of Women Who Topple From Power between the effects of the glass ceiling and glass cliff effects on women in the topmost positions in American businesses, organizations, and corporations and the ascension to power of Queen Elsa in the Disney motion picture Frozen. By incorporating media reports on merchandising and animation, as well as scholarly research, this paper places Spar's theory into a more accessible space. Furthermore, by referencing the lyrics to the feature power ballad from the animated film, …
Grotesque Bodies: Transsexuals’ Struggle For Truth In Iran, Marie Lecuyer
Grotesque Bodies: Transsexuals’ Struggle For Truth In Iran, Marie Lecuyer
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
Many western commentators have been shocked by the legislation addressing transsexual’s’ right to transitioning and sex reassignment surgery in a strictly-gendered regulated county like Iran. As if all of a sudden Iran rose among countries of the Middle East as a paradise for transsexuals. Other recurrent narratives depicted the Iranian members of the LGBT community as victims of a purely theocratic and authoritarian regime, forcing non-gender normative individuals to change sex to fit in society. Rather, the space given to transsexuals now allowed to function more freely and be at peace with themselves reshapes the LGBT community’s relation to the …
Rational Emotion, Feminine Professionalism, And Cooperative Success: Women Scientists In Star Trek: Voyager As Challenges To The Dominant Ideology, Kiran Mccloskey
Rational Emotion, Feminine Professionalism, And Cooperative Success: Women Scientists In Star Trek: Voyager As Challenges To The Dominant Ideology, Kiran Mccloskey
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
This article considers Star Trek: Voyager’s portrayal of women in the sciences through the lens of Eva Flicker’s 2003 review of scientific women throughout film and television from 1927 to 1999. Two core divergences in Star Trek: Voyager are identified: the absence of constraining dualities such as the rational/emotional and professional/feminine divisions, and the lack of isolation experienced by the female scientists. Such a representation would have positive effects on female viewers according to the sociological interpellation process model, which is supported by testimony and correspondences with multiple fans.
Between Autonomy And Alienation: Creating The Self Via Sex-Reassignment Surgery, Annthony M. Duffey
Between Autonomy And Alienation: Creating The Self Via Sex-Reassignment Surgery, Annthony M. Duffey
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
Upon a consideration of self-creation and the introduction of the gender binary a potential limiter of autonomy, sexQreassignment surgery (SRS) beckons significant reconsideration by the biomedical/ethical field, ranging from the transpersons who undergo it to the preoperative processes that oversee it. Autonomy does not underlie a majority of SRS on prevailing biomedical hypotheses; SRS is granted to those candidates who report symptoms of dysfunction and denied to candidates who do not confirm such suspicions. This research proposes that, upon his or her failure or refusal to demonstrate some understanding of the potentially limiting influence of the gender binary, a candidate …
Nonconsensual Pornography, Hannah Mcneil
Nonconsensual Pornography, Hannah Mcneil
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
This paper addresses the issue of nonconsensual pornography and its effects on victims; a case study involving an in-depth interview of a participant who offers a personal perspective on the struggle of coping with the damaging aftermath of revenge porn. This research aims to examine how this type of exposure and online sexual harassment is harmful to its victims and seeks to raise awareness for this form of harassment in the digital age.
Effects Of School Curriculum On Sexual Health, Emma Sturm
Effects Of School Curriculum On Sexual Health, Emma Sturm
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
Surveys indicate that, when asked directly, women have positive perceptions of their vaginas and perceive vaginal, sexual, and reproductive health as important. However, when asked about their actual habits relating to vaginal health, women’s answers seemed to suggest the opposite. This disconnect between perceptions and practice suggest there may be some societal influence keeping the women from carrying out their health maintenance as well as they would like to. This paper examines the role schools play in controlling women’s sexuality, which may be contributing to the lack of accessibility to vaginal, sexual, and reproductive health.
Sexual Assault: Whose Fault Is It Anyway In A Rape Culture?, Grace Pappas
Sexual Assault: Whose Fault Is It Anyway In A Rape Culture?, Grace Pappas
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
Sexual assault has recently gained attention as a prevalent issue in American culture, particularly on college campuses. While in some places much is being done to raise awareness and end this form of gendered violence, too often fingers are pointed at possible causes rather than intertwined as hands held together in the fight against this injustice. Through an examination of empirical research, it is clear that the issue of sexual assault stems from and is perpetuated by a rape culture, a culture in which we are all a part. This paper argues that if we are to fight sexual assault, …
Bending The Binary: Lgbtq Sex Workers’ Gender Presentations, Nicole White
Bending The Binary: Lgbtq Sex Workers’ Gender Presentations, Nicole White
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
The lived experiences of LGBTQ sex workers are largely unknown. Of the few representations of LGBTQ sex workers in media and academia, most are shrouded in inaccurate and dehumanizing stereotypes. Through qualitative interviews with eight LGBTQ sex workers in Denver and Boulder, Colorado, this thesis attempts to portray an accurate view of the way LGBTQ sex workers negotiate their gender and sexual identities. LGBTQ sex workers were found to balance their queer and trans identities and presentations with clients’ perceived desires for hegemonic gender presentations, maintaining a unique blend of authentic presentation and marketability.
Gender Work: Survival, Subversion, And Subjectivity For Queer And Trans Youth, Josie Wenig
Gender Work: Survival, Subversion, And Subjectivity For Queer And Trans Youth, Josie Wenig
sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies
Gender play as a mode of exposing hegemonic gender norms has become over determined and circumscribed within queer discourse. Subversion becomes only possible through hyperbole, drag, and performance. We play with gender, we fuck with it, and that’s that. What would a different framework, one that accounts for the very real labor of gender, look like and how would this redefine resistance? Discussions of “gender play” leave some things to be desired: an intersectional understanding of how people negotiate gender presentation, and a way to talk about how gender can be intentional, strategic, and still subversive. These considerations become even …