Innovative Representations of Sexualities in Studies in English

Abstract

This book comprises the papers presented by graduate students at the conference entitled “Innovative Representations of ‘Sexualities’ in Studies in English” organised by the Centre for British Literary and Cultural Studies, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey, on 11 March 2015. These papers were not only reviewed by referees but were further revised extensively and edited by myself. The objective in the organisation of the first graduate conference held by the Centre and the publication of the papers presented at the conference was to provide graduate students with an academic platform to present their current research and discuss their ideas with their peers and professors. The papers published in the book deal with different aspects of sexuality in literature and non-literary media. The papers provide readings of sexuality, which is a complex and multidisciplinary topic, not just through poetry, fiction and drama but also as represented in feature films, animations and TV series because of the dominance of visual culture in today’s societies. Drawing on relevant theoretical material, mainly feminist and queer theories, these papers explore and question how sexuality is represented in a variety of mediums and how it functions. In addition, the ways in which sexuality is conceptualised and constructed is interrogated mostly with the intention of deconstructing essentialist notions of sexuality and identity formation. In this postmodernist era in which sexual and gender identities are no longer limited to two binary sexes, the papers invite the readers to reconsider their understanding of sexuality. Along with non-binary understandings of both sex (male, female, or intersex) and gender (man, woman, transgender, third gender and so forth) even non-human sexualities are taken into consideration. Furthermore, how sexualities are linked to hegemonic categories of identity, such as nationality, race, class and gender is discussed.