It was a particularly interesting weekend for me, introducing eve at the time my dissertation advisor to my mother, who was speaking about one of her books entitled reconstructing illness. The history is importantfor understanding some of the tonalities and cognitive structures of epistemology of the closet. Eve kosofsky sedgwick s epistemology of the closet is often approached as one of the most groundbreaking discussions within the study of queer theory. I first saw eve kosofsky sedgwick s artwork at a conference at stonybrook in 1999, on examining the culture of death and dying in america.
Eve kosofsky sedgwick s work in between men 1985 and epistemology of the closet 1990 seems to me some of the most enduringly valuable literary criticism of the past few decades. Epistemology of the closc t eve kosofsk sedgwicky, p. English literature and male homosocial desire 1985, epistemology of the closet 1990. Eve sedgwick, axiomatic by giovanna pompele on prezi.
Eve kosofsky sedgwick and judith butler showed me the. America fictionn men author histors y an criticismd. She combines an extraordinarily astute philosophical mind with a resilient attachment to the messiness of ordinary life, a sense of how permeated by and yet how resistent to theoretical categories are actual. May 2, 1950 april 12, 2009 was an american academic scholar in the fields of gender studies, queer theory queer studies, and critical theory. Eve kosofsky sedgwick, whose critical writings on the ambiguities of sexual identity in fiction helped create the discipline known as queer studies, died on sunday in manhattan. This has been due, in no small degree, to the influence of eve kosofsky sedgwick s critically acclaimed epistemology of the closet. Epistemology of the closet is a book published in 1990 by eve kosofsky sedgwick, who is considered one of the founders of queer studies. Hardwick supreme court decision, which upheld a georgia sodomy law. Get an answer for in sedgwick s epistemology of the closet, what excatly is she saying about axioms 2 and 4.
Sedgwick notes in the 2008 preface to epistemology of the closet that it was written in light of the 1986 bowers v. Gxleata birds forage in and near dense wetland vegetation. What hindrances does the born this way argument have on people who dont have that experience. Eve kosofsky sedgwick and judith butler showed me the transformative power of the word queer i say this because in all reality the closet was created to prolong the believe that heterosexuality is the natural and normal way of being and to demonized anything that differs from it.
If we try to selfremember then we might think were selfremembering when were really not. Sedgwick dispenses paradigms with breathtaking fluency, untangles every knot in gay theory, and proves that modern cognition itself hinges on the heterohomo impasse. Combining poetry, wit, polemic and dazzling scholarship with memorial and autobiography, these essays have set new standards of passion and truthfulness for current theoretical writing. Epistemology of the closet eve kosofsky sedgwick download. Eve kosofsky sedgwicks epistemology of the closet a. Selfremembering was the specific effort of being conscious. A pioneer in queer theory and literary studies, eve kosofsky sedgwick brings together for the first time in touching feeling her most powerful explorations of emotion and expression. The epistemology of the closet by eve kosofsky sedgwick was published in 1990 and is considered a foundational work in the discipline of queer studies. Axiomatic by eve kosofsky sedgwick by prezi user on prezi. Epistemology of the closet by eve kosofsky sedgwick.
The essays range from discussions of diderot, oscar wilde and henry james to queer kids, political correctness adn the poetics of. She also notes that it is hard to convey now the emergency of the late 1980s of the aids crisis, which epistemology was also a response to. Sedgwick argues that limiting sexuality to homosexuality or heterosexuality, in a structured binary. Eve kosofsky sedgwick work epistemology of the closet. Some notes on queer theory based on the assigned readings, hall, excerpt from queer theories 2003 sedgwick, axiom 2 from epistemology of the closet 1990 queer is a term with many meanings in regards to sexuality and politics. Gurdjieff focused on two main cosmic laws, the law of three and the law of seven citation needed. Whether youve loved the book or not, if you give your honest and detailed thoughts then people will find new books that are right for them. Epistemology of the closet introductionchapter 3 summary. Eve sedgwick, axiomatic by giovanna pompele on prezi more than any other book, epistemology of the closet has probably had the greatest influence on geographical research on sexualities. Well, eve sedgwick is brilliant, as always, although her literary analysis is certainly a much lass breezier read than the amazing and muchassigned introduction and first chapter of this book. These citations may not conform precisely to your selected citation style. Epistemology of the closet closetedness itself is a performance initiated as such by the speech act of a silencenot a particular silence, but a silence that accrues particularity by fits and starts, in relation to the discourse that surrounds. Axiomatic eve kosofsky sedgwick discussion questions is there a benefit to finding out the origin of sexuality, and thus homosexuality.
This 38page guide for epistemology of the closet by eve kosofsky sedgwick includes detailed chapter summaries and analysis covering 5 chapters, as well as several more indepth sections of expertwritten literary analysis. What seems likelier, indeed, is that to label with the literalminded and at least by intention censorious metaphor mental masturbation any criticism one doesnt like, or doesnt understand, is. Qlqg, anyone working in gay and lesbian studies, in a culture where samesex desire is still structured by its distinctive publicprivate status, at once marginal and central, as the open secret, discovers that the line between straining. Wgs 210 popular representations of queer sexualities. Eve kosofsky sedgwick touching feeling pdf a pioneer in queer theory and literary studies, eve kosofsky sedgwick brings together for the first time intouching feelingher most powerful explorations. Epistemology of the closct eve kosofsky sedgwick, p. Eve sedgwick elaborates some deceptively simple axioms from which gay and lesbian studies might proceed. Combining philosophical, legal, literary, and historical approaches towards queerness and human sexuality, sedgwick s text is focused on the destruction of the dichotomous divides used to discuss and categorize expressions and. As explained in the book, some women, according to sedgwick, call themselves lesbians yet they do not identify at.
Epistemology of the closet, updated with a new preface by. She reminds the reader that homosexual panic, or kempfs disease, was coined in the 1920s by psychologist edward kempf and described hysteria attributable to perverse sexual cravings in oneself or another. In essays that show how her groundbreaking work in queer theory has developed into a deep interest in affect, sedgwick offers what she calls tools and techniques for nondualistic thought, in. Since the late 1980s, queer studies and theory have become vital to the intellectual and political life of the united states. While feeding in the open they will quickly seek cover when disturbed. Eve kosofsky sedgwick thinking through queer theory. Eve kosofsky sedgwick s article, queer and now, collected in her book tendencies routledge 1994, challenges the dominant cultural conception of what it means to be queer, i. University of california press, 2008 a signal event in the history of late twentiethcentury gay studies. Nevertheless, we may take as an explicit axiom that the. Eve sedgwick axiomatic pdf free download as pdf file. Her purpose, moreover, in composing this article is to fight against the homogenizing effects of political correctness upon art and. Working from classic texts of european and american writers including melville, james, nietzsche, proust, and wilde sedgwick analyzes. Therefore, sedgwick is, theoretically, not presenting anything new.
Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides for challenging works of literature. In sedgwicks epistemology of the closet, what excatly. In epistemology of the closet, sedgwick argues that standard binary oppositions limit freedom and understanding, especially in the context of sexuality. Eve kosofsky sedgwick, a pioneer of gay studies and a.
Working from classic texts of european and american writersincluding melville, james, nietzsche, proust, and wilde sedgwick analyzes a. Part of the problem is that i havent read a lot of the texts by dead white men that she analyzes, and that made some of the later chapters incredibly. But it was the introduction to sedgwick s epistemology of the closet, titled axiomatic, that i. Epistemology of the closet is a book published in 1990 by eve kosofsky sedgwick, who is. Eve kosofsky sedgwick and judith butler showed me the transformative power of the word queer.
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