Class: AH4111
Nivi Chawda
Bodies that Matter: On the Discursive Limits of Sex
Feminist thinker and gender theorist Judith Butler in her book ‘Bodies that Matter: On the
Discursive Limits of Sex’ deconstructs the link between materiality of a body and performativity
of a body. Sex is normative, it not only functions as a norm but is a “regulatory ideal” (Foucault)
that governs the body. The materialisation of sex as an ideal construct takes place through
coercion over time. However, it is not a static condition of the body that sediments with forceful
reiteration of norms, it is dynamic and open to rematerialisation. The transient nature of sex
challenges the hegemonic force of regulatory norms.
Gender, on the other hand, is a socially constructed norm, it is not something one is born with
rather a social ritual one follows. Gender, as a discursive practice, is fluid and ever changing.
"One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman" (Simon De Beauvoir in The Second Sex)
explains how gender is a repetitive performance. This brings into question whether we can
separate the body we inhabit at birth and its performance. Someone can be assigned female at
birth but not relate to any of the socially constructed rituals that form femininity, this gives rise to
body dysphoria. It is here one can draw the line between the materiality and performativity of the
body. There is a set of performances associated with being born with a certain genitalia, but
when someone feels dysphoric with these performances, they can choose to not conform to the
social obligations. Gender and sex both exist on a spectrum and neither is binary. Some
examples that keep reiterating the binary are gender reveals, “Adam and Eve”, definition of
marriage being the union of man and wife, honorific titles, etc. These gender roles and
expectations are a dichotomy of male and female and are harmful to anyone that does not
relate to either.
Judith Butler also touches upon the age old Nature-Nurture controversy. Some models of
gender reconstructed the relation between nature and culture- it implied that while culture and
nature are necessary counterparts, social agencies act upon nature that is a passive surface
like a blank lifeless page. Psychologist B.F. Skinner and philosopher John Locke describe the
mind as tabula rasa i.e. a blank slate. Looking at the human mind as a blank slate means one
can shape a human and their personality as one desires. This theory completely disregards the
inherent DNA of an individual and the traits they inhabit from their parents. Scientists and
psychologists have conducted various studies on identical and fraternal twins, but failed to
prove that Nature overrules Nurture or vice versa. Thus, modern studies have opted for an
eclectic approach that explains the vital influence of society and culture in shaping an
individual’s gender or personality as a whole, but it also takes into account the materiality of the
body and it’s inherent biology.
In conclusion, materiality and performativity of the body are in a perpetual dialogue; both
influence each other and impact the body.