• Research Support
      • Starting Library Research
      • Research Guides
      • Subject Librarians
      • Digital Scholarship Center
      • Publishing & Copyright
      • Research Data Management
      • Study Skills & Campus Resources
      • Request a Purchase
    • Using the Libraries
      • Rooms & Study Spaces
      • Borrowing & Requesting
      • Connect from Off-campus
      • ILL (Interlibrary Loan)
      • Course Reserves
      • Technology, Printing, & Scanning
      • Tutoring at the UO Libraries
      • Classroom Technology Support
      • Canvas Support
      • Accessibility
    • Collections
      • Databases A-Z
      • Scholars' Bank
      • Videos, Music, Photos
      • Special Collections & University Archives
      • Unique Collections
      • Government Documents
      • Maps & Aerial Photography
      • Oregon Digital
      • Oregon Newspapers
    • Library Accounts
      • LibrarySearch Account
      • ILLiad Account (Interlibrary Loan)
      • Endnote Web (Citation Manager)
    • About
      • Hours & Locations
      • Staff & Department Directory
      • News & Events
      • Calendar
      • Mission, Values, & Strategic Directions
      • Diversity & Inclusion
      • Policies
      • Jobs
      • Comments & Suggestions
    • Chat/Ask Us
      • Email
      • Phone
      • Text
    View Item 
    •   Scholars' Bank Home
    • University Archives
    • University of Oregon Administration
    • The Office of Research, Innovation and Graduate Education
    • Theses and Dissertations
    • View Item
    •   Scholars' Bank Home
    • University Archives
    • University of Oregon Administration
    • The Office of Research, Innovation and Graduate Education
    • Theses and Dissertations
    • View Item
    JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

    Speculative Fictions, Bisexual Lives: Changing Frameworks of Sexual Desire

    View/Open
    Wilde_oregon_0171A_11293.pdf (12.00Mb)

    Date
    2015-08-18
    Author
    Wilde, Jenee
    Metadata
    Show full item record
    Author
    Wilde, Jenee
    Abstract
    While studies of lesbian, gay, and transgender communities and cultural production have dramatically increased, research on bisexuality remains highly undervalued in humanities and social science disciplines. To challenge this lack of scholarship, this doctoral dissertation applies both textual and ethnographic methods to examine bisexual representation in non-realistic or “speculative” narratives and to explore the insider perspectives of bisexual people who are also science fiction fans. The overall trajectory of chapters follows a progression from grounded research and analysis to theory and application. First, I explore bisexual worldviews through ethnographic research in overlapping sexual and fan communities and through textual analysis of a 1980s bisexual fanzine. Next, I establish theoretical and methodological foundations for a new sexual paradigm, called dimensional sexuality, and work to intervene in interpretive methods that may restrict readings of sexuality in cinematic narratives. And finally, I test dimensional sexuality as an interpretive mode by offering dimensional readings of science fiction television and novels. From one direction, the project seeks to understand bisexuality as a position from which to theorize sexual knowledge. A major claim is that bisexual epistemology offers an alternative to dominant monosexual frameworks. Specifically, the multivalent logic of bisexuality refutes the “either-or” structure of heterosexuality and homosexuality. By embracing the logic of “both-and,” bisexuality as a category of knowledge enables the reorganization of sexuality within a non-binary, non-gender based multidimensional framework. From another direction, the project demonstrates the productive textual and social spaces offered by speculative narratives for questioning what we “know” about gender, sex, sexuality, and other intersections of social identities. Science fiction bears a deep structural affinity with the dialectical thinking found in critical theory. By asking “what if” questions that challenge our assumptions about “what is,” non-realistic narratives estrange us from the “known” world, interrogate our assumptions about the world, and make visible ideas and experiences outside of the norms we use to interpret what is “real” in a particular social and historical moment. As such, speculative narratives enable us to imagine sexual and gender possibilities beyond the episteme of the moment.
    URI


    Collections
    • Theses and Dissertations [2590]
    • English Theses and Dissertations [108]

    My Account

    LoginRegister

    Browse

    All of Scholars' BankCommunities & CollectionsBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjectsThis CollectionBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjects

    Statistics

    View Usage Statistics

    CAMPUS

    • News
    • Events
    • Maps
    • Directions
    • Class Schedule
    • Academic Calendar

    RESOURCES

    • Webmail
    • Canvas
    • Duckweb
    • Find People
    • A–Z Index
    • UO Libraries

    RELATED INFORMATION

    • Library Accessibility
    • Privacy Policy
    • Giving
    UO Libraries
    1501 Kincaid Street
    1239 University of Oregon
    Eugene, OR 97403-1299

    T: 541-346-3053

    FacebookTwitterYouTubeInstagram

    CareersPrivacy PolicyAboutFind People
    University of Oregon
    ©University of Oregon. All Rights Reserved.

    UO prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national or ethnic origin, age, religion, marital status, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression in all programs, activities and employment practices as required by Title IX, other applicable laws, and policies. Retaliation is prohibited by UO policy. Questions may be referred to the Title IX Coordinator, Office of Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity, or to the Office for Civil Rights. Contact information, related policies, and complaint procedures are listed on the statement of non-discrimination.