View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Helsingin yliopiston digitaalinen arkisto The Department of Philosophy, History, Culture, and Art Studies University of Helsinki FROM VIOLENCE TO RESISTANCE: JUDITH BUTLER’S CRITIQUE OF NORMS Sanna Karhu ACADEMIC DISSERTATION To be presented, with the permission of the Faculty of Arts of the University of Helsinki, for public examination in auditorium XII, University main building, on Saturday 23 September 2017, at 10 a.m. © 2017 Sanna Karhu ISBN 978-951-51-3647-3 (paperback) ISBN 978-951-51-3648-0 (PDF) http://ethesis.helsinki.fi/ Unigrafia Helsinki 2017 To Miska. In loving memory. 2 ABSTRACT In this doctoral dissertation, I provide a systematic analysis of the role of so- cial norms in the thought of philosopher and feminist theorist, Judith Butler. More specifically, I investigate the way in which Butler theorizes the relation- ship between norms and violence in light of her notions of critique and re- sistance. The key argument of the study is that in order to understand the wide range of topics that Butler addresses in her work—such as gender nor- malization, the critique of violence, ethical responsiveness, and the biopoliti- cal regulation of life—we need to pay close attention to her account of norms. Although Butler’s theorization of norms has begun to attract increasing scholarly interest, a thorough analysis of the topic has not yet been written. In order to fill this gap in previous research, my dissertation offers the first monograph-length study that explicates the problematic of norms in Butler’s thought. My study seeks to answer the following questions: What is the role of norms in Butler’s work? How does Butler conceptualize the relationship between norms, violence, and nonviolence? How should we understand critique, transformation, and resistance in the midst of norms? What are the ethical and political implications of Butler’s notion of norms? I respond to these questions by examining Butler’s theorization of norms through what I call her twofold understanding of norms. I argue that on the one hand Butler theorizes norms as mechanisms of social power that violently regulate the field of recognizable subjects, bodies, and lives, but on the other hand she conceptualizes norms in terms of the possibility of critical change and re- sistance. I illustrate Butler’s twofold notion of norms through four key topics, which I have organized into four main chapters. First, by examining Butler’s often- neglected feminist theoretical background in the thought of Monique Wittig, I argue that her conception of the relationship between norms and violence critically builds on Wittig’s argument that normative heterosexuality can be understood as a form of discursive violence. Second, through explicating But- ler’s conception of gender normalization vis-à-vis her generally overlooked discussions of transgender embodiment and livability, I challenge recent ar- guments that feminists should get rid of the concept of gender. By introduc- ing the concept of “trans livability” I highlight Butler’s work as a contribution to trans-affirmative feminist theory. Third, by challenging the general tendency to interpret Butler as a critical humanist, I demonstrate that she puts forward a critique of anthropocen- trism that offers insights into problematizing the speciesist norms that up- hold not only the human-animal binary but also differentiates between liva- 3 ble and killable nonhuman animals. Finally, by foregrounding Butler’s psy- choanalytic account of grief in terms of her critique of norms, I argue that her discussion of the normative separation between grievable and ungrievable lives does not represent a turn away from politics as many critics have ar- gued. I contend that her account of grievability must instead be understood as a theorization of resistance. Taken together, all the four chapters of my dissertation highlight Butler’s theorization of norms as a practice of feminist critique. By elucidating the re- lationship between norms, violence, and social change, my study emphasizes the close relationship between feminist and queer practices of political re- sistance and the critique of norms. 4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Although the research conducted for this dissertation was mostly carried out alone, I have received plenty of support from numerous people during the course of my project that lasted five and a half years. First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my advisors, Professor Tuija Pulkkinen and Professor Johanna Oksala. Completing this project would not have been possible without their unwavering support, guidance, and encour- agement. I owe special gratitude to my two pre-examiners, Professor Moya Lloyd and Professor Catherine Mills. I highly appreciate your comprehensive and de- tailed comments on my dissertation. Thank you. I have been privileged to be a salaried member of the Finnish Gender Studies Doctoral Program, led by Prof. Pulkkinen. The regular meetings and work- shops of the program gave me an invaluable opportunity to receive com- ments and critique from a group of dedicated gender studies professors. I wish to thank the professors Päivi Korvajärvi, Marianne Liljeström, Päivi Naskali, Harriet Silius, and Jaana Vuori. I also want to thank all the mem- bers who participated in the doctoral student group for their clever com- ments, peer support, and enthusiastic discussions during and outside the workshops. Special thanks go to Liu Xin, Johanna Hiitola, Mona Mannevuo, Niina Vuolajärvi, Salla Peltonen, and Aino-Kaisa Koistinen. While conducting research for this dissertation I closely collaborated with Prof. Pulkkinen’s project and research team “Politics of Philosophy and Gen- der” (PPhiG) and attended regularly the workshops, seminars, and symposi- ums with the other team members. I wish to thank Anna Elomäki, Julian Honkasalo, Heini Kinnunen, Jacek Kornak, Mervi Patosalmi, Soili Petäjäniemi-Brown, Heta Rundgren, and Eeva Urrio for their insightful and thorough comments on various parts of my manuscript. My thanks also go to Pilvi Toppinen who occasionally attended our seminars. We also were fortu- nate to have several guest professors in our seminars. I am grateful to com- ments by Professors Anne-Emmanuelle Berger, Penelope Deutscher, Clare Hemmings, Susanne Lettow, and Moya Lloyd. I warmly thank all my colleagues in Gender Studies and in the Doctoral Pro- gramme in Gender, Culture, and Society (SKY) at the University of Helsinki. In particular, I want to thank Heini Kinnunen, with whom I shared an office. Thank you for being a wonderful officemate all these years. Joking and laughing with you was the best form of stress-relief during my intensive peri- ods of writing. My sincere thanks are also due to my former teachers Laura 5 Werner and Leena-Maija Rossi who both encouraged me to pursuit a doctor- al degree. In summer 2016, I attended Professor Judith Butler’s Master Class “From Freud to Klein: Death Drive, Pleasure, Ethics” at The Institute for Critical So- cial Inquiry (ICSI), The New School for Social Research. I want to thank Prof. Butler and the participants in the Master Class for intellectually stimulating discussions on Freudian and Kleinian psychoanalysis. Part of this project was completed during my visit to the Department of Comparative Literature at New York University in 2016-2017. I am very grateful to Professor Emanuela Bianchi who hosted me and provided insight- ful comments on chapter drafts of the manuscript. I especially enjoyed our conversations on feminist theory and continental philosophy at La Lanterna. My thanks also go to Laryssa Witty for her assistance with practical issues during my stay at NYU. I also wish to thank the members of the Queer Theory reading group in the Department of Philosophy at The New School for Social Research for invig- orating discussions on queer and feminist theory. In particular, I want to thank Ryan Gustafson and Robert Cremins for inspirational conversations and friendship. Throughout the years that I spent writing the dissertation, my friends have supported me in numerous ways. Warm thanks go to Maisa Akkola, Annukka Jamisto, Laura Menard, Jenni Müller, Laura Tulehmo, Vilma Venesmaa, and Liu Xin. In addition to my human friends, two nonhuman animals also de- serve special mentioning: my dearest dog, Miska, the smart and sensitive German Pinscher, as well as Stevie, my later adoptee, the silly little Rat Ter- rier mix. Even under the many pressures of PhD studies, my life has been full of joy and laughter thanks to you. I want to thank the Finnish Gender Studies Doctoral Program, American Scandinavian Foundation, Academy of Finland (Prof. Pulkkinen’s Academy Professor project “Philosophy and Politics in Feminist Theory”), and the University of Helsinki for funding this dissertation project. I also want to sincerely thank my mother Pirkko Lehtimäki and my father Timo Loukola for their profound and inestimable support. I am deeply grate- ful for your love, care, and trust. Finally, I wish to express my heartfelt thanks to my partner, Julian, for his unfaltering emotional and intellectual support. Not only did he read and comment the entire manuscript in the last phase of the writing process, but 6 he also provided me with encouraging and funny Rocky Balboa quotes in those moments when I exactly needed them. The Bronx, New York, 28 August 2017 Sanna Karhu 7 CONTENTS ABSTRACT .........................................................................................................................