Butler, J (1990) Gender Trouble. Reprint, UK: Routledge, 2007.

Butler, J (1990) Gender Trouble. Reprint, UK: Routledge, 2007.  

Judith Butler, in her book, Gender Trouble, takes a postmodern standpoint which opposes the basic beliefs of feminine identity. She believes that the ‘politics of identity’ cause more harm than good in the freeing of women.

She quotes Catharine MacKinnon as saying, “Stopped as an attribute of a person, sex inequality takes the form of gender; moving as a relation between people, it take the form of sexuality. Gender emerges as the congealed form of the sexualization of inequality between men and women” (MacKinnon quoted in Butler, pp. xii). Going on this though, it is the result of a sexual hierarchy that gender is born. According to Butler, the only way gender produces identity is when people express gender (Butler, pp. 34). She sees gender as a compilation of identities, but these have no relation to our sex. Instead gender is performative. This performance aspect is based on repetition, it has to be repeated, by repeating it is reenacting something that is becoming and is already established in society (Butler, pp. 191). The fact that gender is performative, to Butler, suggests that it takes form from the repeated acts, this is its reality. Thus gender has no existential status. It’s reality is influenced by society, personal and public acts and conversations (Butler, pp. 185). This relates to gender inequality, the repetition of certain beliefs and their continued belief has create a view which is embedded deep in society. This also relates to gender roles. The repetition of the belief in gender roles coincides with human behaviour, together they create a set of beliefs which is ingrained in our society. Most of the time this behaviour is done unconsciously, probably due to the intense conditioning human have gone through over the centuries. “The view that gender is performative sought to show that what we take to be an internal essence of gender is manufactured through a sustained set of acts, posited through the gendered stylization of the body” (Butler, pp. xv). Butler believes that there is a gender reality which is born from continuous social performances, this is infect how gender inequality has taken hold (Butler, pp. 192). 

Butler looks at the relationship between politics and feminist theory. She believes it is imperative that a dialect which represents women correctly and truthfully be developed. According to Butler, this should help with the problem in our cultural conditioning which is recognised to be both excluding and misrepresenting women (Butler, pp. 2). This relationship between politics and feminist theory relates to representation. The representation of women in many spheres, not only in politics, is a cause for debate. This debate leads onto my work, as the representation and expectations is one issue at the heart of gender inequality. Butlers work looks at feminine identity, whilst not completely concentrating on gender inequality, her work lends itself to this topic, as there are overlaps which make her work useful to my research.  

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(Butler, 1990; Stewart, G).