#identity performance

[self-conscious-selfie]

Queer and Proud - it truly is an honour, above all else, to be a part of this big, beautiful community built upon Love. Happy Pride 2019! 

I have chosen this as my final post for this project as it serves as a form of diverse representation, particularly through potential embodiment and identity performance. In December 2018, Marvel Studios released Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, a new take on our traditional idea of “Spider-Man” as Peter Parker. In this remodel, team Spider-Verse is instead made up of five members, each of which is a unique and varied version of the hero “with great responsibility” in their own respective worlds/realms. 

The team is comprised of Miles Morales / Spider-Man: An intelligent yet rebellious teenager of African-American and Puerto Rican, Peter B. Parker / Spider-Man: Miles's reluctant mentor who is intended to be an amalgamation of all pop culture Spider-Man adaptations and interpretations, Gwen Stacy / Spider-Woman: A dimension-displaced counterpart of Gwen Stacy with spider-like abilities, who takes up the alias of "Gwanda" while at Miles' school, Peter Porker / Spider-Ham: An alternate funny animal version of Spider-Man from an anthropomorphic universe, who was once a spider, bitten by a radioactive pig, Peni Parker / SP//dr: A young Japanese-American girl from an alternative anime-like universe who co-pilots a biomechanicalsuit with a radioactive spider that she shares a telepathic link with, and finally [pause to catch breath], Peter Parker / Spider-Man Noir: A dark and monochromatic alternate version of Peter Parker from a 1930s universe. - Thanks to Wikipedia for the run-down.

The film’s takeaway (at least from my experience) exemplified strength in difference as each hero has a particular strength that adds to their ultimate triumph. Each are strong individuals who come from wildly different backgrounds, all capable of equally important contributions to their collective fight to save humanity, under the same banner.  

If only this lens could be applied to much more in the world... a queer lens of sorts, that celebrates strength in difference and fights against divisive rhetoric and regimes.

[self-identification-manifes-blog]

2. BECAUSE an individual’s identity performance is impacted by policing

Lesbian is the word, the label, the condition that holds women in line. When a woman hears this word tossed her way, she knows she is stepping out of line. She knows that she has crossed the terrible boundary of her sex role. She recoils, she protests, she reshapes her actions to gain approval.

—  Radicalesbians from The Woman-Identified Woman

Labels are treated as concrete definitions for everyone’s identity, thus the potential for fluidity within a given identity category is invalidated. Society has constructed the belief that each identity marker is defined by an assortment of innate qualities. Individuals are expected to adhere to the innate qualities of their respective identity markers. Failure to comply with the appropriate traits would result in an individual being deemed inferior or criticized for not being a “true” representation of their ascribed identity marker.

Similar to the belief that identity markers possess innate qualities, society believes individuals are born with a collection intrinsic identity markers. Influenced by others, such as their caregivers, individuals are indoctrinated to uphold the socially determined categories that were placed upon them at conception. The proper aspects of the predetermined identity markers are enforced, and individuals are policed if they perform their identity in an improper fashion.

As a result of identity policing, individuals become focused on self-modification in order to uphold the innate qualities of their given identity markers. The constant pressure to alter one’s identity performance leads to the feeling of being insufficient because the individual loses control over their own body while trying to satisfy the societal ideals.

Rather than expecting individuals to conform to socially-determined definitions for identity markers that were placed upon them at birth, individuals should be allowed to express their unique identity in a manner that guarantees their happiness. Instead of enforcing predetermined identity markers, individuals should be encouraged to craft their own identity with a compilation of labels that best suit their perception of their identity. Self-definition rather than self-modification would foster a new belief that fluidity amongst identity categories is possible.  

Introduction and Sentiments

[arigratch]

A communication based teaching activity for a variety of classes, based on Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried, recently published in Communication Teacher.

I’m in the process of updating all my professional and teaching stuff (cv, website, etc...), but I’ve got some posts planned and lots to share in the near future. Looking forward to getting back in the groove soon, and excited to actually get to see this teaching activity in print. If you’re having trouble accessing the activity and want to know where to find a pdf, just get in touch.

[asceticaesthetics-blog]

scene from Pedro Almodóvar's 1987 film Law of Desire, featuring Jacques Brel's song "Ne Me Quitte Pas" here sung by a woman and performed by a young girl, on a stage, while her real-life drama looms just behind the curtain, infusing her performance with pathos.