logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2020
51m 37s

Ep. 235: Judith Butler's "Gender Trouble...

Mark Linsenmayer, Wes Alwan, Seth Paskin, Dylan Casey
About this episode

On Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity (1990). Is gender socially constructed, and if so, how?

Butler describes gender not as an essential quality of a person, but as "performed," as habits of acting in certain ways in accordance with customs. Her idea of social construction is so totalizing that even biological sex itself is constructed. With guest Jennifer Hansen.

Please support PEL!

Up next
Jul 6
PEL Presents #200: Hollywood Studio Antics (feat. The Studio and Erica Spyres)
In immediate reaction to the Apple TV+ Seth Rogan show The Studio, we talk about Hollywood's obsession with itself and how studio dynamics interfere with what exactly we all get to see. Also, what's with the fascination with old Hollywood? What's the appeal of Hollywood gossip? E ... Show More
57m 55s
Jul 7
Ep. 370: Christine Korsgaard on the History of Ethics (Part Two)
We dive further into the text of lectures 1 and 2 of The Sources of Normativity (1996). We give Korsgaard's account of the idea of reflective endorsement through Hume and Bernard Williams to get to her own view. When you come to know the origins of your moral sentiments, do you s ... Show More
49m 24s
Jun 29
PEL Presents NEM#233: Jorma Kaukonen (Jefferson Airplane, Hot Tuna) Is Not Taking This for Granted
This famed finger-style guitarist broke through with Jefferson Airplane's seven albums from 1966-1972, recorded eight with Hot Tuna 1970-1976 (with subsequent reunions by both bands), recorded his first solo album in 1974 and then 10 more from 1981-2025, and has collaborated with ... Show More
1h 13m
Recommended Episodes
Oct 2023
We Need Better Narratives About Gender
It’s a time of contrast and contradiction for gender queerness in America: At the same time that about 5 percent of Americans under 30 identify as transgender or nonbinary, over 20 states have passed some sort of restriction on gender-affirming care for children. In 2023 alone, o ... Show More
1h 5m
Apr 2022
What is a Woman?
Zoe Strimpel asks the seemingly simple question 'what is a woman', but finds no simple answer as she explores the question through a brief history of feminist thought. She explores the ongoing controversy over trans women in women's competitive sport, and the reluctance of public ... Show More
9m 47s
Mar 2024
Judith Butler on the Global Backlash to L.G.B.T.Q. Rights
Long before gender theory became a principal target of the right, it existed principally in academic circles. And one of the leading thinkers in the field was the philosopher Judith Butler. In “Gender Trouble” (from 1990) and in other works, Butler popularized ideas about gender ... Show More
26m 17s
Sep 2021
Episode 81: Judith Butler's Gender Bubbles
Show notes/Links:Jesse's review of Trans: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/07/books/review/trans-helen-joyce.html Wi spa incident: https://nypost.com/2021/09/02/charges-filed-against-sex-offender-in-wi-spa-casecharges-filed-against-sex-offender-in-notorious-wi-spa-incident/ Max Re ... Show More
1h 8m
May 2019
There’s More to Gender Than “Man” and “Woman”
Research shows that people who don’t conform to the gender binary are often mistreated by their colleagues, their managers, or HR. Some get fired, demoted, or shut out of the labor market altogether. If fewer people thought gender was restricted to “man” and “woman,” there’d be l ... Show More
48m 6s
Apr 2012
Charlotte Witt, “The Metaphysics of Gender” (Oxford University Press, 2011)
Is your gender essential to who you are? If you were a man instead of a woman, or vice versa, would you be a different person? In her new bookThe Metaphysics of Gender (Oxford University Press, 2011), Charlotte Witt found that most people answered that obviously they’d be differe ... Show More
1h 11m
Apr 2022
masculinity
A podcast comparing and contrasting three philosophies of how to “be a man” and how those philosophies conceptualize masculinity and gender. Get an ad-free podcast feed here: https://www.patreon.com/matthiasjbarker Citations:De Beauvoir, S. (2010). The second sex. Knopf.The secti ... Show More
48m 38s
Oct 2017
The Edge of Gender
Gender is one of the first things we notice about the people around us. But where do our ideas about gender come from? Can gender differences be explained by genes and chromosomes, or are they the result of upbringing, culture and the environment? This week, we delve into the deb ... Show More
49m 50s
Dec 2022
'Detransitioned' Navy SEAL Opens Up About Gender Dysphoria | Chris Beck EP 175
In this episode, I was joined by Chris Beck. A retired Navy SEAL with multiple awards, including a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart, he gained significant public attention in 2013 when he came out as a trans woman. At the time, Chris transitioned to “Kristen Beck” until 2022, when ... Show More
1h 13m
Jan 2022
Kathleen Stock: The debate about sex, gender and equality
Stephen Sackur speaks to philosopher and author Kathleen Stock whose views on the immutability of biological sex and the limitations of gender self-identity have made her a hate figure for some transgender activists and supporters. Why has debate about sex, gender and identity be ... Show More
23m 48s