Gender and Language

15/03/2024

In our latest issue (17.4), guest editor Kristine Køhler Mortensen demonstrates how concepts of gender and s*xuality are increasingly mobilised as symbolic values in Danish immigration politics, examining student-teacher interactions and narratives in asylum centres about "Danish s*xual morals".

Read her fascinating article here as part of the special issue "Mobilising Language, Gender and Sexuality Studies": https://journal.equinoxpub.com/GL/issue/view/2433

Full abstract (English):
This article examines how concepts of gender and s*xuality are increasingly being mobilised as symbolic values in Danish immigration politics. The Danish national self-perception rests on an idea of widespread tolerance, especially regarding gender and s*xuality. However, understandings of gender and s*xuality as represented in Danish immigration discourse draw clear boundaries between insiders and outsiders. As of 2017, Danish asylum centres introduced compulsory teaching of so-called ‘Danish s*xual morals’ as an attempt to prevent s*xual violence by educating asylum seekers in s*xual conduct. Based on fieldwork conducted in a language and culture class at an asylum centre, the analysis demonstrates how the teacher simultaneously reproduces and challenges concepts of differing national s*xualities as they appear in the teaching material, and how the students push back against culturally specific conceptualisations of gender and s*xuality by offering personal narratives countering those ascribed to them in the stereotypical representations.

Full abstract (Danish):
Denne artikel undersøger, hvordan kategorier som køn og seksualitet i højere og højere grad mobiliseres som symbolske værdier i dansk udlændingepolitik. Den nationale selvopfattelse i Danmark er baseret på en idé om exceptionel tolerance især hvad angår køn og seksualitet. Dog tegner de forståelser, der udtrykkes omkring køn og seksualitet i den danske udlændingepolitik, tydelige grænser mellem insidere og outsidere. Fra og med 2017 initierede regeringen indførslen af obligatorisk undervisning i såkaldt ’dansk seksualmoral’ på alle danske asylcentre med det formål at forebygge seksuel vold og uddanne asylansøgere i seksuel etikette. Baseret på etnografisk feltarbejde på et dansk asylcenter diskuterer artiklen, hvordan kravet om undervisning i dansk seksualmoral håndteres på et konkret sprog- og kulturkursus med én lærer og tre kursister. Igennem analyse af lydoptagelser fra klasserumsinteraktion demonstrerer artiklen, hvordan læreren på samme tid reproducerer og udfordrer undervisningsmaterialets statiske konceptualiseringer af bestemte nationale seksualiteter. Ydermere, viser analysen hvordan kursisterne yder modstand imod dominerende diskurser om kulturelt specifikke udgaver af køn og seksualitet ved at producere svar, der demonstrerer modsatrettede oplevelser og positioner.

29/02/2024

Our fantastic editors Rodrigo Borba, Kira Hall, and Mie Hiramoto are together in Singapore for the National University of Singapore's Research Workshop on Gender, Youth and Media in Asia. Find out more here: https://fass.nus.edu.sg/genderyouthandmediainasia/

06/02/2024

In their new Gender and Language article "Where the personal is political: Intersections of s*xuality and activism in q***r asylum stories", Mike Baynham, Bahiru Shewaye, and Kayode Gomes analyze life stories told in interviews collected as part of the Q***r Asylum Stories project. The authors focus on narratives leading up to and triggering the decision to seek asylum, and the processes of formation of the interviewees’ q***r subjectivity.
You can read this fascinating piece in our latest issue here: https://journal.equinoxpub.com/GL/issue/view/2433

Full abstract (English):
The Q***r Asylum Stories project collected interviews with people who had successfully gained asylum based on their s*xuality. The focus of this article is on life stories leading up to and triggering the decision to seek asylum, and the processes of formation of the interviewees’ q***r subjectivity. The discussion draws on the three related constructs of interpellation, ideological becoming and habitus, and considers the role of q***r activism, understood as a dimension of q***r habitus as theorised in the foundational work of Didier Eribon. Finding that the term ‘activism’ is widely used but infrequently defined, the article suggests that activism in general, and q***r activism in particular, need to be defined explicitly and explored in order to gain a deeper understanding of what is involved. It provides a working definition of q***r activism to guide this process.

Full abstract (Yoruba):
Ise agbese Q***r Asylum Stories ti gba awọn itan ti a sọ fun ni akojọpọ kekere ti awọn ifọrọwanilẹnuwo pẹlu awọn ti o ṣaṣeyọri gba ibi aabo ti o da lori ibalopọ wọn. Idojukọ rẹ wa lori awọn itan igbesi aye yori si ati nfa ipinnu lati wa ibi aabo. Onínọmbà ti awọn itọpa wọnyi Ibaṣepọ pẹlu ohun ti awọn oniwadi sọ fun wa nipa awọn ilana ti iṣeto ti wọn q***r subjectivity, yiya lori meta jẹmọ itumọ ti: interpellation, arojinle di ati habitus. A fa lori iṣẹ ipilẹ ti Eribon fun imọ-jinlẹ ti habitus quer ki o si fojusi lori ipa ti ijajagbara, ti a loye bi iwọn kan ti iwa ihuwasi, wiwa pe ninu awọn litireso, nigba ti oro ijafafa ti wa ni o gbajumo ni lilo, o ti wa ni loorekoore asọye. Awọn iwadi ṣe imọran pe ijafafa ni gbogbogbo, ijafafa q***r ni pataki, nil lati ṣe asọye ni kedere ati ṣawari lati le ni oye ti o jinlẹ ti ohun ti o kan. Lati dari ilana yii a pese asọye iṣẹ ti ijajagbara q***r.

Full abstract (Amharic):
Q***r Asylum project በሴክሽዋሊቲያቸው ምክንያት የጥገኝነት ጥያቄ ጠይቀው ጥገኝነት ካገኙ ሰዎች ጋር የፅሁፍ ጥያቄና መልስ በማድረግ ታሪኮችን ሰብስቧል፡፡ ጥያቄና መልሱ በዋናነት ያተኮረው ጥገኝነት ለመጠየቅ ወደመሯቸው የህይወቶቻቸው ክፍሎች ወይም ያንን ያበቁ ገፊ ክስተቶች ነው፡፡ እነዚህን የሕይወት መንገዶች ስንተነትን በምልልሳችን ያነሱልንን፣ ኪውርነታቸው በመረዳት ውስጥ ያለፉባቸውን ሂደቶች፣ ከሶስት ማንነት ገንቢ ማዕቀፎች፣ ማለትም፡- ቅባሌ ያገኙ ማህበረሰባዊ አመለካከቶች (Interpellation) ፣ ንፅረተ ዓለማዊ ቁመናዎች እና ግላዊ ንፅረቶች ጋር በማሰናሰል ተንትነናል፡፡ የኪውር ግላዊ ንፅረትን (q***r habitus) እና የኪውር መብቶች አራማጅነትን ሚናን በተመለከተ ጠቃሚ ፅንሰ ሃሳባዊ መሰረት የሚሰጠውን የEribonን ስራ መነሻ አድርገናል፡፡ የኪውር መብት አራማጅነት እንደ አንድ የኪውር ግላዊ ንፅረት የተገለፀ ሲሆን በፅሁፉ ውስጥ በተደጋጋሚ ጥቅም ላይ የዋለ ቢሆንም አራማጅነት የሚለው ቃል ብዙም ብያኔ አልተሰጠውም፡፡ ጥናቱ እንደሚያመለክተው፣ በጥቅሉ አራማጅነት በተናጠል ደግሞ የኪውር መብቶች አራማጅነትን በተሻለ ለመረዳት እና በውስጡ ምን እንደሚዪዝ በሚገባ ለማወቅ በግልፅ መበየን እና መፈተሽ ይገባዋል፡፡ ይሄን ሂደት ለማገዝ፣ የኪውር መብቶች አራማጅነትን በተመለከተ መነሻ ብያኔ አዘጋጅተናል፡፡

02/02/2024

Busi Makoni's new article "Metalinguistic discourses of ‘styling the other’: The discursive construction of liminal masculinities" is out now in our new issue! Makoni uses styling/‘styling the other’ as an interpretive framework to analyze how economic precarity leads to ambivalence in the masculinities of Zimbabwean heteros*xual-identifying male migrants who engage in male-to-male s*x work to achieve economic security. The article shows that the men perform stereotypical Black hypermasculinity and sophisticated, cosmopolitan gay subjectivities through language crossing and physical styling to solicit wealthy white men, while ultimately aiming to achieve the normative masculine identity of being a husband and provider.

Read Makoni's full article here: https://journal.equinoxpub.com/GL/issue/view/2433

26/01/2024

Alwin Aguirre’s new article in Gender and Language called "'We also have lives, you know': Social media and identity work of Filipina labour migrants in Hong Kong" highlights how Filipina labor migrants in Hong Kong harness the representational affordances of social media to contend with a limiting ontology that is defined by one’s labor in its intersection with gender, class and ethnicity. Watch Aguirre's fascinating video abstract below!

You can access his article and the full new special issue "Mobilising Language, Gender and Sexuality Studies" here: https://journal.equinoxpub.com/GL/issue/view/2433

Full abstract (English):
Using a multimodal discursive approach supplemented with semi-structured interviews, this article analyses the identity work of Hong Kong-based Filipina labour migrants on social media. The study is premised on the representational potential of these media forms to circulate ideas that either challenge or reinforce dominant notions of migrant life. The intersections of gender, race and class in the participants’ discourses are salient as they attempt to make sense of their lives in the host city through online signifying affordances. Further, a desire to differentiate themselves from dominant notions of being a Filipino woman in Hong Kong is prominent, illustrating the need to interrogate limiting and oppressive characterisations of migrants that are emplaced in both online and offline realities.

Full abstract (Filipino):
Gamit ang lapit na diskursong multimodal, kasama ang semi-structured interview, sinusuri ng papel ang paglikha ng identidad sa social media ng mga Filipinang migranteng manggagawa sa Hong Kong. Sinasandigan ng pag-aaral ang representasyonal na potensiyal ng naturang anyo ng midya na magpainog ng mga ideyang maaaring humamon o sumuhay sa dominanteng kaisipan ukol sa buhay-migrante. Makikita sa diskurso ng mga kalahok ang pagsasalikop ng kasarian, lahi, at uri sa pagsisikap nilang bigyang-kahulugan ang kanilang buhay sa naturang lungsod. Higit pa, angat ang pagnanais na ibahin ang kanilang sarili mula sa dominanteng nosyon ng pagiging babaeng Filipino sa Hong Kong, na nagpapakitang kailangang bakahin ang limitado at opresibong pagkilala sa migrante mula sa realidad na online at offline.

22/01/2024

At this historical moment, public discourses about migration have become increasingly virulent. What can scholars of language, gender, and s*xuality contribute to understanding xenophobic discourses? Check out our new special issue "Mobilising Language, Gender and Sexuality Studies" to find out! And watch guest editors Lynnette Arnold and Kristine Køhler Mortensen discuss this work below!

Access the full issue here: https://journal.equinoxpub.com/GL/issue/view/2433

If you have any questions or comments while reading, or if you are interested in collaborating, please feel free to get in touch. All contributors’ contact info can be found in the publication.

22/01/2024

Did you know that heteropatriarchal ideologies of family care are crucial to the social power of migration discourse? In her recent article in special issue 17.4, guest editor Lynnette Arnold analyses how migrants are depicted in discussions of migration in El Salvador. While the figures of migrants shift over the decades in response to changing national and global dynamics, the normative ideal of the masculine breadwinner providing for his family remains a constant anchor that allows the state to call Salvadorans—migrants and nonmigrants alike—into a neoliberal subjectivity that is individually responsible but also relational. Watch her video discussion of the article below!
Access full article here: https://journal.equinoxpub.com/GL/issue/view/2433

Full abstract (English):
This article centres the Global South in studies of language and mobility by focusing on migration discourse in El Salvador, a Central American country with four decades of widespread emigration. The analysis examines state-endorsed discourses, tracing how entextualised figures of migrant personhood shift over time in response to changing political-economic conditions. Gender is central to these dominant depictions, which rely on a consistent contrast between successful and failed migrants that mobilises neoliberal models of personhood. This dichotomy emerges through indexical associations with heteropatriachal forms of care: successful migrants fulfil their responsibilities by providing for their family and their nation, whereas failed migrants do not. By placing the onus on individual actions, these dominant discourses elide the state abandonment and global political economic inequalities that continue to compel Salvadorans to migrate.

Full abstract (Spanish):
Este artículo ubica el sur global en los estudios del lenguaje y la movilidad al enfocarse en el discurso migratorio en El Salvador, un país centroamericano que ha experimentado cuatro décadas de emigración masiva. En el análisis se examinan los discursos respaldados por el estado y se estudia cómo las figuras entextualizadas de las personas migrantes varían con el tiempo en respuesta a las cambiantes condiciones político-económicas. El género es fundamental para estas representaciones dominantes, que se basan en un contraste constante entre los migrantes exitosos y los migrantes frustrados que activa los modelos neoliberales de la individualidad. Esta dicotomía emerge a través de asociaciones indexadas con formas heteropatriarcales de cuidado: los migrantes exitosos cumplen con sus responsabilidades manteniendo a su familia y su nación, pero los migrantes frustrados no lo hacen. Al colocar la responsabilidad sobre las acciones individuales, estos discursos dominantes eluden el abandono del Estado y las desigualdades económicas políticas globales que continúan obligando a los salvadoreños a migrar.

16/01/2024

Our latest issue just dropped! Special issue 17.4 'Mobilising Language, Gender and Sexuality Studies' features interdisciplinary scholarship on migration, gender, s*xuality and language and demonstrates how ideologies of gender and s*xuality play a central role in global migration discourses, profoundly shaping how human movement is mobilised to advance political-economic projects.

The issue features an introduction by guest editors Lynnette Arnold and Kristine Køhler Mortensen as well as articles by Mike Baynham, Bahiru Shewaye, and Kayode Gomes on intersections of s*xuality and activism in q***r asylum stories; Busi Makoni on ‘styling the other’ in masculinities of Zimbabwean heteros*xual-identifying male migrants in Johannesburg; Alwin C. Aguirre on identity work of Hong Kong-based Filipina labour migrants on social media; Kristine Køhler Mortensen on how concepts of gender and s*xuality are increasingly being mobilised as symbolic values in Danish immigration politics; and Lynnette Arnold on how entextualised figures of migrant personhood shift over time in migration discourse in El Salvador.

Access the full issue here: https://journal.equinoxpub.com/GL/article/view/22687

01/12/2023

Are you a penguin, a nerd, or a cabbage roll? In our latest issue (17.3), Chloe Willis explains what these (and more) ‘types’ of people are, where they come from, and why they matter. She focuses on the ways heteronormativity, gender norms, and neoliberalism shape and sustain this taxonomy of kei or ‘types’. Read the full article here: https://journal.equinoxpub.com/GL/issue/view/2432

あなたはどのタイプでしょうか。ペンギン系？オタク系？それともロールキャベツ系？この論文では、クロエ・ウィリスが「〇〇系」という性別分類体系を考察しています。異性愛規範、ジェンダー規範、新自由主義がこの分類法をどのように形成し、維持するかに焦点が当てられています。ここでこの論文を読んでください: https://journal.equinoxpub.com/GL/issue/view/2432

29/11/2023

New issue out now! Issue 17.3 features work by Chloe Willis on Japanese binary gender taxonomies and neoliberal self-making; Maeve Eberhardt on the use of the word 'abortion' in newspaper reports following the overturn of Roe v. Wade; Ila Naga on "love-jihad" and weaponized gendered language in the Hindu right; and Jinsuk Yang on English teaching as gendered care work in South Korea. Access the articles here: https://journal.equinoxpub.com/GL/issue/view/2432

Gender & Language is an international forum for research on and debates about feminist research on gender and language. Gender and Language showcases research on femininities and masculinities, on heteros*xual and q***r identities, on gender at the level of individual performance or perception and o...

21/08/2023

In our latest issue (17.2), Sandhya Krittika Narayanan writes on "the gender of language contact". Her article considers how language contact is gendered through an analysis of how inter-Indigenous Quechua–Aymara boundary maintenance practices and ideologies are feminised in the Peruvian altiplano. The analysis focuses on the semiotic regimentation of Indigenous ethnolinguistic boundaries, concentrating on the role of four Indigenous female figures: the Indigenous wife; the Indigenous female market vendor; the reimagined mythic Indigenous founding mother; and the Indigenous beauty pageant contestant. An ethnographically grounded, scalar analysis of Quechua–Aymara contact in the region shows how each of the female figures is ideologically linked to a specific aspect of inter-Indigenous language contact and boundary maintenance. Furthermore, the discussion shows the interconnectedness of these female figures and their associated ideologised practices and discourses, which lead to the feminisation of inter-Indigenous language contact in the region.

You can access Narayanan's fascinating article here:

This journal is affiliated with the International Gender and Language Association. Members receive the journal as part of membership, among other benefits. Join here!

27/07/2023

We're thrilled to announce our new issue 17.2 is out! The issue features articles by Sandhya Krittika Narayanan on the gender dynamics of language contact in Peru; Julie Abbou on French controversy about ‘inclusive writing/d’écriture inclusive’; and Alexandra Woodward on the representation of women and female agency in 'intimate wellness' websites. This issue also includes Lucy Jones's review of research in the field of language, gender, and s*xuality in 2022. Access the full issue here:

This journal is affiliated with the International Gender and Language Association. Members receive the journal as part of membership, among other benefits. Join here!

05/07/2023

In her paper "Of tradwives and TradCaths: The anti-genderism register in global nationalist movements" in our latest issue (17.1), Catherine Tebaldi that shows far-right women enact a “subversive submission” to men to construct an ideal femininity as both threatened woman and saving mother of the white nation. Can we find modes of being feminine which are more truly subversive? Watch her video discussion of the article below!

Access full article here: https://journal.equinoxpub.com/GL/issue/view/2377

Full abstract (English):
Building on Borba’s theorisation of the anti-genderism register, the articles in this special issue explore anti-genderism as a political tool for the global right in four cases: online ‘tradwives’ or traditional wives defending national and s*xual purity (Tebaldi), homonationalism in the Islamophobic forum r/thedonald (Brotherton), the natalist chronopolitics of Bolsonaro in Brazil (Silva and Dziuba) and the invocation of the spectre of gender to place Poland at the centre of the white West (Baran). Together, they highlight new discursive elements in the nationalist far-right use of the anti-genderism register and the construction of morally marked figures through nationalist discourses of tradition, s*xuality, temporality and place. Anti-genderism is not just a call for ‘traditional’ gender or marriage, but the evocation of a gendered nation, an idealised past and a strong future populated with warriors and mothers.

Full abstract (French):
S’appuyant sur la théorisation du registre de l’anti-genderisme de Borba, les articles de ce numéro spécial explorent l’anti-genderisme comme outil politique de la droite globale dans quatre cas : les ‘tradwives’ ou épouses traditionnelles défendant la pureté nationale et s*xuelle (Tebaldi), l’homonationalisme du forum islamophobe r/thedonald (Brotherton), la chronopolitique nataliste de Bolsonaro au Brésil (Silva et Dziuba), et l’invocation du spectre du genre pour placer la Pologne au centre de l’Ouest blanc (Baran). Ensemble, ils mettent en évidence de nouveaux éléments discursifs dans l’utilisation par l’extrême droite nationaliste du registre de l’anti-gendérisme, la construction de figures moralement marquées à travers les discours nationalistes de la tradition, de la s*xualité, de la temporalité et du lieu. L’anti-genderisme n’est pas seulement un appel au genre ou au mariage ‘traditionnel’, mais l’évocation d’une nation genrée, d’un passé idéalisé, d’un avenir fort peuplé de guerriers et de mères.

03/07/2023

We’re excited to announce our latest issue 17.1, a special issue called "Anti-genderism in Global Nationalist Movements", featuring articles by linguists Catherine Tebaldi, Dominika Baran, Chloe Brotherton, Daniel N. Silva & Allison Dziuba, Letícia Cesarino, and Eric Lous Russell. Access the full issue below!

Guest editors Catherine Tebaldi and Dominika Baran detail: "Building on Borba’s theorisation of the anti-genderism register, the articles in this special issue explore anti-genderism as a political tool for the global right in four cases: online ‘tradwives’ or traditional wives defending national and s*xual purity (Tebaldi), homonationalism in the Islamophobic forum r/thedonald (Brotherton), the natalist chronopolitics of Bolsonaro in Brazil (Silva and Dziuba) and the invocation of the spectre of gender to place Poland at the centre of the white West (Baran). Together, they highlight new discursive elements in the nationalist far-right use of the anti-genderism register and the construction of morally marked figures through nationalist discourses of tradition, s*xuality, temporality and place. Anti-genderism is not just a call for ‘traditional’ gender or marriage, but the evocation of a gendered nation, an idealised past and a strong future populated with warriors and mothers."

Link to journal issue:

This journal is affiliated with the International Gender and Language Association. Members receive the journal as part of membership, among other benefits. Join here!

15/05/2023

Fresh off the press!! New special issue of Gender and Language on anti-genderism in global nationalist movements! You can't miss it! Our guest editors Dominika Baran and Cat Tebaldi have prepared an OUTSTANDING collection of papers about one of the most insiduous and dangerous political phenomenon currently.

This journal is affiliated with the International Gender and Language Association. Members receive the journal as part of membership, among other benefits. Join here!

03/02/2023

University College London Hebrew and Jewish Studies has issued a call for papers for their upcoming conference - Challenging the Binary: Non-Binary, Genderq***r, and Gender-Neutral Language. The hybrid two-day conference (14-15 June 2023) will explore non-binary, gender-inclusive, and gender-non-conforming language cross-linguistically. Please visit their website for more information and submission guidelines:

The purpose of this two-day conference (14-15 June 2023) is to explore non-binary, gender-inclusive, and gender-non-conforming language cross-linguistically.

31/01/2023

In our latest issue (16.4), Laura Coffey-Glover and Jai Mackenzie provide a feminist stylistic analysis of gendered agency in Disney’s ‘Heroes’ collectible trading cards. Their analysis of the connections between grammatical, semantic and social agency reveals that despite some cause for optimism, the cards overall uphold the hegemonic status quo. Watch their video discussion of their article below!

Access full article here: https://journal.equinoxpub.com/GL/issue/view/2129

Full abstract:
This study provides a feminist stylistic account of gendered agency in a set of Disney Heroes collectible trading cards designed for young children. Through a mixed-methods analysis of grammatical, semantic and social agency in the texts, we show how the representation of male and female characters in these cards reinforces limiting, and potentially damaging, gender norms around men being more socially agentive, having more impact on the world around them and ultimately being more ‘heroic’ than women. There is some cause for optimism in the improved representation of female characters over time and the foregrounding of female heroes’ agentive roles in their worlds, but overall the cards uphold the hegemonic status quo. The quantitative and qualitative dimensions of this analysis also reveal quite different insights, demonstrating the importance of analyses that account for the way linguistic strategies are deployed in context, and in combination with a range of other resources.

26/01/2023

In our new issue (16.4), In the new issue, Konstantinos Argyriou analyzes applicability of trans terminology in Spanish & Modern Greek, grammatical gender languages, demonstrating the importance of cross-language comparisons that question pretensions & biases permeating the Western gender structure.

Konstantinos Argyriou presents his video abstract below!

Click here for access to the issue and article: https://journal.equinoxpub.com/GL/issue/view/2129

Full abstract (English, Spanish, Greek):
This article examines the applicability of trans terminology in non-Anglophone linguistic environments, particularly in Spanish and Modern Greek, two grammatical gender languages. The aim is to demonstrate the importance of cross-language comparisons that question the all-encompassing pretensions and universalist biases which still permeate the Western gender structure. Drawing on the methodological tools of double vision uncertainty, trans-crip-t time and translatxrsation, the article examines the particularities of both languages in terms of gender language scripts and representations, and offers a sociocultural analysis of how norms of the masculine generic, female semantic subordination and presumed binarism and cisgenderism have been consolidated, much to the detriment of s*xual and gender diversity. Although this reflection stays within the Western paradigm, it focuses on peripheral models of gender diversity that help to deconstruct the binary and to q***r gender in open dialogue with transnational realities, and calls for more cross-cultural and cross-language comparisons.

Este artículo examina la aplicabilidad de la terminología trans en entornos lingüísticos no anglófonos, particularmente en español y griego moderno, dos lenguas gramaticales de género. El objetivo es demostrar la importancia de las comparaciones entre idiomas que cuestionan las pretensiones omnímodas y los sesgos universalistas que aún impregnan la estructura de género occidental. Basándose en las herramientas metodológicas de la incertidumbre de la doble visión (double vision uncertainty), el tiempo de trans-crip-ción (trans-crip-t time) y la traducción no binaria (translatxrsation), este artículo examina las particularidades de ambos idiomas en términos de guiones y representaciones del lenguaje de género, y ofrece un análisis sociocultural de cómo las normas del masculino genérico, de la subordinación semántica del femenino y del presunto binarismo y cisgenerismo, se han consolidado en detrimento de la diversidad s*xual y de género. Aunque la presente reflexión se mantiene dentro del paradigma occidental, se enfoca en modelos periféricos de diversidad de género, que ayudan a deconstruir el binarismo y q***rizar el género en diálogo abierto con realidades transnacionales, y pide más comparaciones entre culturas y entre idiomas.

Η παρούσα εργασία εξετάζει τη δυνατότητα εφαρμογής της τρανς ορολογίας σε μη αγγλόφωνα γλωσσικά περιβάλλοντα, ιδιαίτερα στα ισπανικά και τα νέα ελληνικά, δύο γλώσσες γραμματικού φύλου. Ο στόχος είναι να καταδειχθεί η σημασία των διαγλωσσικών συγκρίσεων που αμφισβητούν τις καθολικές αξιώσεις και τις οικουμενικές προκαταλήψεις που εξακολουθούν να διακατέχουν τη δυτική έμφυλη δομή. Βασιζόμενη στα μεθοδολογικά εργαλεία της αβεβαιότητας διπλής όψης (double vision uncertainty), του χρόνου μεταγραφής (trans-crip-t time) και της μη δυαδικής μετάφρασης (translatxr-sation), η εργασία εξετάζει τις ιδιαιτερότητες και των δύο γλωσσών όσον αφορά στα σενάρια και τις αναπαραστάσεις της γλώσσας του φύλου, ενώ προσφέρει μια κοινωνικοπολιτισμική ανάλυση του τρόπου με τον οποίο οι κανόνες της χρήσης του αρσενικού ως καθολικού, της σημασιολογικής υποταγής του θηλυκού και του εικαζόμενου δυαδισμού και ισοφυλισμού (cisgenderism) έχουν παγιωθεί, σε μεγάλο βαθμό, σε βάρος της σεξουαλικής ποικιλομορφίας και της διαφορετικότητας των φύλων. Αν και ο παρών προβληματισμός παραμένει εντός του δυτικού προτύπου, εστιάζει σε περιφερειακά μοντέλα ποικιλομορφίας των φύλων που βοηθούν στην αποδόμηση του δυισμού και την κουηροποίηση του φύλου σε ανοιχτό διάλογο με τις διακρατικές πραγματικότητες, και αποζητά περισσότερες διαπολιτισμικές και διαγλωσσικές συγκρίσεις.

25/01/2023

In the latest issue, Li-Chi Chen discusses how gay Taiwanese men employ the four strategies to create humor through ‘indexical disjuncture’. The analyzed examples show how they combat society’s heteronormative discrimination in an entertaining way.

Li-Chi Chen discusses his fascinating article in the video below!

Read the full article here: https://doi.org/10.1558/genl.18746

Full Abstract:
This study illustrates and discusses how young gay Taiwanese men interact with straight and nonstraight people through humour and teasing on an LGBTQ-oriented YouTube entertainment variety show in Taiwan. The analytical framework of the study is informed by multimodal discourse analysis and interactional sociolinguistics. Four strategies used to create humour are identified: performing wúlítóu ‘nonsense’, using quadrisyllabic (non)formulaic expressions, using gender subversion and using indirect insults (towards close female friends). The analysis suggests that all four strategies rely on indexical disjuncture and are used by young gay Taiwanese men not only to create humour, but also as a means of voicing themselves through online media in an environment where they still face many obstacles. The study argues that, as a discursive strategy, indexical disjuncture is at the very heart of Taiwanese camp.

本文以YouTube網站上的一檔臺灣同志談話性娛樂節目為研究題材，旨在分析及探討臺灣年輕男同志如何透過幽默及嘻鬧的方式跟異性戀及非異性戀者互動，並以多模態言談分析及互動式社會語言學為分析框架。研究發現，節目受邀的男同志來賓使用了四種幽默策略，包括：無厘頭表現、四音節熟語（或非熟語）、性別顛覆及（對親密的女性好友）間接性羞辱。研究結果顯示，上述這四種策略皆是透過索引分離的方式來製造幽默，且由於臺灣男同志在所處環境中仍遇到不少阻礙，可藉此透過線上媒體為自己發聲。本文認為，索引分離作為一種言談策略，可被視為是臺灣「敢曝」最核心的部分。