Let's define "queer temporality" as an alternative way of experiencing time that challenges normative understandings of past, present, and future. It is often associated with non-linear concepts of time that move beyond traditional narratives of progress and linear progression, as well as the idea of timelessness and eternity. Queer temporalities have been explored through various lenses, such as queer theory, feminist science studies, disability studies, critical race studies, postcolonial studies, and indigenous studies. They challenge dominant notions of time and encourage new ways of thinking about identity, history, memory, and community. Queer temporalities can help us to rethink how we relate to the world and ourselves, opening up possibilities for new forms of ethics and modes of being.
One important aspect of queer temporality is its relationship to memory. Traditionally, memory has been understood as a stable repository of facts and events that can be retrieved from the past.
Queer temporalities suggest that memory is always already shaped by power dynamics and social constructions, making it difficult to separate fact from fiction or truth from distortion. This means that memories can be transformed and reshaped in ways that are both creative and destructive. In this sense, memory becomes an active process rather than a passive recording of what happened before.
Another key concept in queer temporality is becoming. Becoming refers to the ongoing process of transformation that occurs within individuals and communities over time. This process involves change, growth, and development, but also resistance and struggle against oppressive structures. As queer people experience and enact their identities in the present moment, they also reflect upon their past experiences and project into possible futures. The act of remembering is thus intricately linked with the process of becoming.
How might queer temporality redefine the ethical relationship between memory and becoming? One way to think about this is through the notion of "unforgetting." Unforgetting suggests that we cannot simply forget certain aspects of our pasts because they have had a lasting impact on who we are today.
Queer people may unforget traumas of violence, marginalization, and exclusion from mainstream culture. By refusing to let go of these experiences, they refuse to let them be erased from history. They use memory to reclaim themselves and reimagine new possibilities for identity and community.
Queer temporality also challenges traditional notions of progress and linear progression. It encourages us to think more critically about the ways that power operates through historical narratives and dominant discourses. Rather than viewing history as a series of events leading up to some kind of final goal or endpoint, it opens up space for multiple, intersecting temporalities that challenge hegemonic understandings of time. This can help us to see the present as a site of contestation and resistance, rather than just the latest stage in an unfolding story.
Queer temporality offers important insights into the relationship between memory and becoming. By questioning normative understandings of time, it opens up new possibilities for ethical modes of relating to ourselves and others. It invites us to engage in critical reflection on our own experiences and the broader social and political contexts in which we live. As we continue to explore queer temporality, we will likely find new ways of imagining new forms of community and solidarity based on shared values and practices.
How might queer temporality redefine the ethical relationship between memory and becoming?
Temporality refers to the concept of time and its measurement. Queer temporality is an approach that challenges conventional notions of time, especially as it relates to gender and sexuality. It emphasizes nonlinear experiences of time, wherein past, present, and future are fluid and intersect with each other. This approach posits that our understanding of time can be shaped by social structures such as power dynamics, oppression, and privilege.