Journal article
The X factors of sex: Hijras, Victorian law, and digital porn in postcolonial India
Porn Studies, Vol.7(1), pp.76-96
2019
Abstract
This essay expands and transposes Kimberlé Crenshaw Williams’ notion of ‘intersectionality’ in the geographical and historical context of contemporary India. The article offers the theoretical heuristic of ‘intersex/tional’ identity to re-think the erotic lives of hijras in India following the Supreme Court of India's legal recognition of the so-called third gender. I begin by establishing a rationale for doing so, and then briefly move into a history of the pathologization of hijras as non-confirming genders from British colonial times to now. Following this introduction, I examine the limited representation of hijras in digital pornography, expanding my scope to the queer purview of Digital India. The questions that I ask and propose to answer are as follows: in what ways are digital articulations of hijras as erotic figures complicated through technology; and are these new modes of subjectivity that challenge hegemonic pathology of non-gender-conforming subjects?
Details
- Title
- The X factors of sex: Hijras, Victorian law, and digital porn in postcolonial India
- Authors/Creators
- R.K. Gairola (Author/Creator)
- Publication Details
- Porn Studies, Vol.7(1), pp.76-96
- Publisher
- Taylor & Francis
- Identifiers
- 991005540427807891
- Copyright
- © 2019 Informa UK Limited,
- Murdoch Affiliation
- Creative Media, Arts and Design; Asia Research Centre
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article
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