Gender Trouble: Unpicking Gender Identity
By Dr Daniel Somerville, Senior Lecturer, Co-Course Leader BA Drama and Performance at University of Worcester
Gender identity is a hot topic and the debates on social media, in the mainstream press, at debating societies, in pubs, living rooms and classrooms across the country are polarised and often aggressive.
What we do know is that a lot of people have very strong views about gender. Are there two genders, more or none at all? What is non-binary? Toxic masculinity? Gender critical? Is this a new thing?
Gender identity is tied up with so much else it seems. Unfortunately, it is often young people and already vulnerable adults who get caught in the crossfire or who become targets of hate, resulting in disproportionately high rates of murder and suicide among trans and non-binary people.
This talk will discuss a few of the controversies, unpick a few positions and will aim to redirect attention to the, often complex, theory that emerged from the 1990s, arguing the need for informed debate, understanding and safety.
Dr Daniel Somerville is a senior lecturer at University of Worcester where he teaches and researches in the Department of Theatre and Performance. His PhD research was conducted through the lens of queer theory and his learning and teaching includes a module called Sexuality in Performance, which looks at gender and queer theory and how different forms of performance have challenged and disrupted binary ideas of gender. He is the LGBTQ+ staff network co-ordinator at the University of Worcester and was one of the founders (and treasurer) of Worcestershire Pride 2016-2019.
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The Hereford University Centre
Run in partnership with the University of Worcester, the Centre acts as an educational and cultural hub, aiming to raise educational aspirations in Herefordshire and encourage increased participation in higher education.
The Hereford University Centre has a mixture of public lectures, research seminars and stage performance running throughout the year. During this Pandemic, we have moved these online, and the recordings of these are available here - [ Ссылка ]
