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Journal ArticleDOI

Sex Wishes and Virgin Dreams: Zebedy Colt's Reactionary Queer Heterosmut and the Elusive Porn Archive

01 Jan 2017-GLQ: A Journal of Lesbian and Gay Studies (Duke University Press)-Vol. 23, Iss: 3, pp 359-390
TL;DR: As a gay man directing straight hardcore pornographic films in the 1970s, Zebedy Colt smuggled a certain queer eros into the visual culture of heterosexuality as mentioned in this paper, in which he leveraged a particularly misogynistic white masculinity to achieve his queer interventions.
Abstract: As a gay man directing straight hardcore pornographic films in the 1970s, Zebedy Colt smuggled a certain queer eros into the visual culture of heterosexuality Indeed, he belonged to a queer cohort of hetero-pornographers whose subversive flourishes have gone largely unrecognized by porn studies and queer studies scholars, in part because of the incomplete archives generally used to narrate and analyze pornography Yet Colt's work, in such films as The Devil Inside Her (1976), Sex Wish (1976), Virgin Dreams (1977), and others, was a reactionary queer cinema, in which he leveraged a particularly misogynistic white masculinity to achieve his queer interventions This article attends to both his implantation of queer desire into the heart of normative heterosexuality and the gender and racial politics that allowed heteromasculinity to absorb those seeming challenges without any threat of veering toward a queer utopian horizon
Citations
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01 Jan 1992
TL;DR: The body politics of Julia Kristeva and the Body Politics of JuliaKristeva as discussed by the authors are discussed in detail in Section 5.1.1 and Section 6.2.1.
Abstract: Preface (1999) Preface (1990) 1. Subjects of Sex/Gender/Desire I. 'Women' as the Subject of Feminism II. The Compulsory Order of Sex/Gender/Desire III. Gender: The Circular Ruins of Contemporary Debate IV. Theorizing the Binary, the Unitary and Beyond V. Identity, Sex and the Metaphysics of Substance VI. Language, Power and the Strategies of Displacement 2. Prohibition, Psychoanalysis, and the Production of the Heterosexual Matrix I. Structuralism's Critical Exchange II. Lacan, Riviere, and the Strategies of Masquerade III. Freud and the Melancholia of Gender IV. Gender Complexity and the Limits of Identification V. Reformulating Prohibition as Power 3. Subversive Bodily Acts I. The Body Politics of Julia Kristeva II. Foucault, Herculine, and the Politics of Sexual Discontinuity III. Monique Wittig - Bodily Disintegration and Fictive Sex IV. Bodily Inscriptions, Performative Subversions Conclusion - From Parody to Politics

1,125 citations

Journal Article
TL;DR: The Techniques of Pleasure: BDSM and the Circuits of Sexuality by Margot Weiss as discussed by the authors provides an in depth ethnographic study of the BDSM community as it exists in the San Francisco Bay area during the early 2000s using a plethora of qualitative data gathered among willing BDSM practitioners.
Abstract: Techniques of Pleasure: BDSM and the Circuits of Sexuality Margot Weiss Durham & London: Duke University Press, 2011 336 pp, $2495 trade paperback [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Department of Psychology, University of Saskatchewan Margot Weiss provides an in depth ethnographic study of the BDSM community as it exists in the San Francisco Bay area during the early 2000s Using a plethora of qualitative data gathered among willing BDSM practitioners, Weiss succeeds in her exploration of BDSM within the realms of capitalism, feminism, racism, sexism, the political sphere and even exploration of the self The author takes her data and creates what she calls "circuits," where aspects of BDSM, the individuals involved and more global social constructs are brought together in a unique form (These circuits can vary depending on what is being examined) Should the BDSM communities that exist outside the San Francisco Bay area show similar elements to those observed by Weiss (as I suspect they do), then this book serves as a crash course for those in the academic or general communities who wish to have a better understanding of BDSM and all the intricacies therein The book begins with a prologue that is informative as it delineates relevant terminology Specifically, Weiss breaks down the subtleties that exist within the language used both in the BDSM community and in the general public's descriptions of BDSM practitioners For example, "the acronyms BDSM and SM are used interchangeably to denote a diverse community" (p vii) This small piece of information is important as it informs the reader that any situation where "SM" may be encountered, does not necessarily refer to sadomasochistic practices alone Weiss also partitions the acronym "BDSM" into its three basic components (B&D--bondage and discipline, D/s--Domination/submission, SM--sadomasochism) and provides examples of activities that may be involved within each of the components The breakdown of "BDSM" illustrates the dichotomy of "SM" within the BDSM community, where the acronym SM has a double meaning (describing both the community as a whole but also pain/sensation play) Besides providing clarity and definitions for various acronyms used, the author introduces and defines new terms for the reader For example, a "scene refers to a specific BDSM encounter" (p viii) that is considered to take place in a bubble outside of reality Also, a "top refers to the person on the giving end of any form of BDSM" (p xi) whereas "bottom is the corresponding word for the person on the receiving end" (p xi) These are but a few examples Weiss shares with the reader before taking him/her into the BDSM world of the San Francisco Bay area For a reader who is not a BDSM practitioner, these notes are invaluable as they describe terms that come up regularly within this book, especially during the interviews Throughout the remainder of the book and beginning in the Introduction, Weiss uses the interviews she conducted and her personal experiences as a roadmap to help the reader navigate the BDSM landscape but also to build linkages within the circuits she discusses In the Introduction, Weiss begins with a very broad description of some of the events she had attended and notes just how "NORMAL" (p 2) everyone in attendance seemed as opposed to what she expected This observation seems to be the tone adopted throughout the rest of the book, that of BDSM practitioners being as normal as anyone else, but just preferring experiences/activities that might be considered a little different by some people Although Weiss embraces a tone of understanding and acceptance of BDSM practitioners, at the same time she maintains an air of neutrality within her description of events Due to this "objective voice," it feels as if the reader is supposed to make up his/her mind about what he/she is reading as opposed to being "told" how to interpret the information provided …

91 citations

01 Jan 2003

35 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Wang as mentioned in this paper discusses the linguistic, ethnic, and cultural divisions among Filipino Americans, and how these differences were overcome through mobile DJing and provides a clearly written, accessible, and theoretically sophisticated examination of Filipino American mobile DJ crews in the San Francisco Bay area.
Abstract: also needs to be conducted on the potential internal divisions within the scene that may reflect cleavages within the Filipino American community more broadly. Did the distribution of economic, symbolic, and erotic capital reflect internal divisions within the Filipino American community? If mobile DJs were predominantly middle class, how did working-class Filipinos engage in the scene? How were these divisions overcome in order to forge a unified Filipino American identity? Though Wang discusses the linguistic, ethnic, and cultural divisions among Filipino Americans, it is not clear how these differences were overcome through mobile DJing. Overall, Wang succeeds in providing a clearly written, accessible, and theoretically sophisticated examination of Filipino American mobile DJ crews in the San Francisco Bay area.

20 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Chandan Reddy, FREEDOM WITH VIOLENCE as discussed by the authors, discusses race, sex, and violence in the US state of North Carolina. RACE, SEXUALITY, and the US State, Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2011 (Perverse Modernities Series), xiii + 303 pp., £17 (paper)
Abstract: Chandan Reddy, FREEDOM WITH VIOLENCE. RACE, SEXUALITY, AND THE US STATE, Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2011 (Perverse Modernities Series), xiii + 303 pp., £17 (paper) Chandan Reddy's Freedom w...

18 citations

References
More filters
Book
01 Jan 1990
TL;DR: The body politics of Julia Kristeva and the Body Politics of JuliaKristeva as mentioned in this paper are discussed in detail in Section 5.1.1 and Section 6.2.1.
Abstract: Preface (1999) Preface (1990) 1. Subjects of Sex/Gender/Desire I. 'Women' as the Subject of Feminism II. The Compulsory Order of Sex/Gender/Desire III. Gender: The Circular Ruins of Contemporary Debate IV. Theorizing the Binary, the Unitary and Beyond V. Identity, Sex and the Metaphysics of Substance VI. Language, Power and the Strategies of Displacement 2. Prohibition, Psychoanalysis, and the Production of the Heterosexual Matrix I. Structuralism's Critical Exchange II. Lacan, Riviere, and the Strategies of Masquerade III. Freud and the Melancholia of Gender IV. Gender Complexity and the Limits of Identification V. Reformulating Prohibition as Power 3. Subversive Bodily Acts I. The Body Politics of Julia Kristeva II. Foucault, Herculine, and the Politics of Sexual Discontinuity III. Monique Wittig - Bodily Disintegration and Fictive Sex IV. Bodily Inscriptions, Performative Subversions Conclusion - From Parody to Politics

21,123 citations

Book
01 Jan 1985
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a survey of the history of sexual politics and sexual meaning in the English language, focusing on the early 20th century and its relationship with homosocial desire.
Abstract: Introductioni. Homosocial Desireii. Sexual Politics and Sexual Meaningiii. Sex or History?iv. What This Book Does1. Gender Asymmetry and Erotic Triangles2. Swan in Love: The Example of Shakespeare's Sonnets3. The Country Wife: Anatomies of Male Homosocial Desire4. A Sentimental Journey: Sexualism and the Citizen of the World5. Toward the Gothic: Terrorism and Homosexual Panic6. Murder Incorporated: Confessions of a Justified Sinner7. Tennyson's Princess: One Bride for Seven Brothers8. Adam Bede and Henry Esmond: Homosocial Desire and the Historicity of the Female9. Homophobia, Misogyny, and Capital: The Example of Our Mutual Friend10. Up the Postern Stair: Edwin Drood and the Homophobia of EmpireCoda: Toward the Twentieth Century: English Readers of Whitman

2,496 citations

Book
01 Sep 2009
TL;DR: The Utopian Hermeneutics in the Face of Gay Pragmatism as mentioned in this paper has been studied in the context of queerness as Horizon, a vision of the future in which the future is in the present.
Abstract: Acknowledgments Introduction: Feeling Utopia1 Queerness as Horizon: Utopian Hermeneutics in the Face of Gay Pragmatism2 Ghosts of Public Sex: Utopian Longings, Queer Memories 3 The Future Is in the Present: Sexual Avant-Gardes and the Performance of Utopia4 Gesture, Ephemera, and Queer Feeling: Approaching Kevin Aviance5 Cruising the Toilet: LeRoi Jones/Amiri Baraka, Radical Black Traditions, and Queer Futurity6 Stages: Queers, Punks, and the Utopian Performative 7 Utopia's Seating Chart: Ray Johnson, Jill Johnston, and Queer Intermedia as System8 Just Like Heaven: Queer Utopian Art and the Aesthetic Dimension9 A Jete Out the Window: Fred Herko's Incandescent Illumination 10 After Jack: Queer Failure, Queer Virtuosity Conclusion: "Take Ecstasy with Me"Notes Bibliography Index About the Author

1,834 citations

Book
01 Jan 1999
TL;DR: The authors examines the process of identification in the work of filmmakers, performance artists, ethnographers, Cuban choteo, forms of gay male mass culture (such as pornography), museums, art photography, camp and drag, and television, pointing to the intersecting and short-circuiting of identities and desires that result from misalignments with the cultural and ideological mainstream in contemporary urban America.
Abstract: There is more to identity than identifying with one's culture or standing solidly against it. Jos Esteban Mu oz looks at how those outside the racial and sexual mainstream negotiate majority culture--not by aligning themselves with or against exclusionary works but rather by transforming these works for their own cultural purposes. Mu oz calls this process "disidentification," and through a study of its workings, he develops a new perspective on minority performance, survival, and activism.Disidentifications is also something of a performance in its own right, an attempt to fashion a queer world by working on, with, and against dominant ideology. By examining the process of identification in the work of filmmakers, performance artists, ethnographers, Cuban choteo, forms of gay male mass culture (such as pornography), museums, art photography, camp and drag, and television, Mu oz persistently points to the intersecting and short-circuiting of identities and desires that result from misalignments with the cultural and ideological mainstream in contemporary urban America.Mu oz calls attention to the world-making properties found in performances by queers of color--in Carmelita Tropicana's "Camp/Choteo" style politics, Marga Gomez's performances of queer childhood, Vaginal Creme Davis's "Terrorist Drag," Isaac Julien's critical melancholia, Jean-Michel Basquiat's disidentification with Andy Warhol and pop art, Felix Gonzalez-Torres's performances of "disidentity," and the political performance of Pedro Zamora, a person with AIDS, within the otherwise artificial environment of the MTV serialThe Real World.

1,720 citations

Book
01 Jan 2005
TL;DR: In this paper, Teena, Teena and Tipton discuss the concept of the "transgender look" and the representation of the trans body in contemporary art, and discuss the importance of trans bodies in trans art.
Abstract: Acknowledgments 1 Queer Temporality and Postmodern Geographies2 The Brandon Archive 3 Unlosing Brandon: Brandon Teena, Billy Tipton, and Transgender Biography 4 The Transgender Look 5 Technotopias: Representing Transgender Bodies in Contemporary Art 6 Oh Behave! Austin Powers and the Drag Kings 7 What's That Smell? Queer Temporalities and Subcultural Lives Notes Bibliography Index About the Author

1,561 citations


"Sex Wishes and Virgin Dreams: Zebed..." refers background in this paper

  • ...For differing perspectives on queer archivism, see Halberstam 2005; Edenheim 2014; and Stein 2014....

    [...]