Judith Butler

Provides a comprehensive introduction to notoriously difficult work of Judith Butler, plus a critical examination of it and its precursors, both feminist (including Simone de Beauvoir), and non-feminist (including Erving Goffman).

Introduction 1. Gender as Performance and Performative 2. Body Matters: From Construction to Materialization 3. Performativity, Subjection and the Possibility of Agency 4. The Politics of the Performative: Hate Speech, Pornography and 'Race' 5. Beyond Identity Politics: Gender, Transgender and Sexual Difference. Conclusion