Queer Theory

Abstract

There are few working in the social sciences or humanities today who have not at least heard of queer theory. That said, relatively few (not enough?) have an understanding of its theoretical and political underpinnings nor of its potential for enriching our understandings of a wide variety of fields. Queer theory is not simply a code name for gay and lesbian studies nor need it necessarily even be confined to studies of sexuality and while the term “queer” has become an often used shorthand for those lying outside the dominant sex/gender/sexuality paradigm, in the sense of queer theory it is meant more to imply “queering” something, that is to say questioning it, turning it inside out, and decentering it from the norm. This chapter will discuss the institutional and theoretical origins of queer theory including in gay and lesbian studies, social constructionism, and poststructuralism. It will also discuss what are widely considered to be the essential hallmarks of queer theory, its present state and potential future, its uneasy relationship with sociology and conclude with a number of critiques.

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