Re: Krupskaya

dkirsh who-is-at lsu.edu
Wed, 14 Apr 1999 09:18:48 -0500

The discussion (below) of self definition through oppositions
casts identity as a matter of conscious self-interpretation
(e.g., "3 billion heterosexuals with diverse views of their
sexuality"). But there is a semiotic sense in which definition is
always and necessarily cast in terms of oppositions (e.g.,
Greimas squares). It is in this way that signs can be said to
be determined through their relations with other signs rather
than to exist as independent or absolute entities. Perhaps the
psychoanalytic sense in which the discussion of race, gender,
and sexual orientation is undertaken below can be further
explicated.

David Kirshner

Louisiana State University
dkirsh who-is-at lsu.edu

Peter Smagorinsky <smago who-is-at peachnet.campuscwix.net> on 04/14/99 04:56:04 AM

Please respond to xmca who-is-at weber.ucsd.edu



To: xmca who-is-at weber.ucsd.edu

cc: (bcc: David H Kirshner/dkirsh/LSU)



Subject: Re: Krupskaya

At 06:58 PM 4/13/99 -0600, you wrote:
> it is almost as if whites define themselves as whites through
>negation - they are not black.
>
> rather like the way men define themselves as men - they don't have
>feminine attributes.
>
> the way heterosexuals define themselves as heterosexuals - they
>don't have homosexual relationships.

While undoubtedly many whites, men, and heterosexuals define themselves
this way, I'd be cautious about stating absolutes like these. There are 2
billion men on the planet, with considerable variation among them. I
imagine that there are well over 3 billion heterosexuals with diverse views
of their sexuality. It's also likely that such views can change over time.
That's certainly an assumption in the field of education where much effort
is devoted to enlightenment along these lines.

Peter