Desire, Discourse, Delany.

Since I didn’t’ get to discuss the Delany article in class, I’m going to dedicate a post to the reading. Simply put, I enjoyed reading every section of this discourse.  From Corduroy to AIDS, Delany pulls together the concept of discourse – “the structuring and structurating force” (5) – that continually (re)shapes what we believe to be true and natural. Reading Delany brought together so much of what we’ve discussed this semester in terms of queer theory. Here are a few connections I made to our readings thus far:

Space, Time, and Perversion: Much of the work we discussed from Grosz’s book discussed the perversity of lesbian desires. I find it interesting to tie into this discussion Delany’s notion of desire being foundationally centered upon “absence” (15) and “lack” (19). The idea that lesbian desires are perverse suggests that at the desires to love and be loved both have normative limitations. Grosz’s work suggests to me then, that desire for another, that void/lack/absence and subsequent desire to fill said void/lack/absence has heterosexual boundaries, so lesbian desires, which lie outside of these normative limits, are perverse. Perhaps more accurately, desire, as sadistic and masochistic as Delany contends, is a perverse concept in and of itself, so, lesbian, gay, straight, bi, etc desires are all deviant, really. 

Gender Trouble: Delany’s attempt to re-gauge Iva’s reading of Corduroy’s gender confirms a lot of what Sandra Butler presents in her work. Gender and its pretenses exist, and I think both Delany and Butler acknowledge this. But the arbitrary nature of gender – like the simple fact that Corduroy wears pants – makes it a troublesome and false basis for sexuality and societal expectations.

The History of Sexuality: The most significant take-away from Delany’s essay is the importance of discourse.  His many examples of how discourse shapes perception, helping to edify our understanding of not only what’s important, but also why and how it’s important.  He explicitly references Foucault’s work, but much of his work has echoes of just how significant discourse is in the history of humanity, and how it can mold and shape our perception in such deep and meaningful ways.

This was definitely my favorite essay thus far in our class. Delany’s stories and examples gave clarity while also adding humor to a rather serious meditation on, among other things, desire, sexuality, and concept of discourse surrounding these matters. 

P.s. I found myself completely surprised when Delany noted that he was a gay black male. For whatever reason, I thought of him as a middle-aged white man, probably of hetero persuasion. I just found that really odd that I had this assumption in already in mind. Maybe I’m just another cog in the machine…?

- terese

Works Cited

Delany, Samuel R. Queer Thought and the Politics of the Paraliterary. London: Wesleyan University Press, 1999. Print.