Queer temporality is a term used to describe the experience of time that challenges traditional Western conceptions of linear progress and chronological order. In queer theory, this means that queer people often exist outside of the dominant social narrative, which privileges heterosexuality and cisgender identities as normative. Queer temporalities are nonlinear, fragmented, and discontinuous. They challenge the notion of time as an unchanging, universal concept and instead view it as subjective, fluid, and constantly shifting. This has important implications for moral frameworks, particularly those that rely on fixed ideas about obligation and accountability.
One way that queer temporality challenges conventional morality is through its ability to reframe the temporality of obligation. Traditional ethics typically emphasizes the importance of taking responsibility for one's actions in the present moment and paying attention to future consequences.
Queer temporality rejects this idea, arguing that obligations can be fulfilled or ignored at any point in time, regardless of when they were originally established.
Someone might feel obligated to support their family financially but choose to prioritize their own needs at the moment, knowing that they will take care of their family later. This approach upends the idea that there is a clear and immutable path between cause and effect, instead suggesting that the past, present, and future are all intertwined and connected in complex ways.
Another way that queer temporality challenges conventional morality is by questioning the role of accountability. In many cultures, individuals are held responsible for their actions, whether positive or negative, with little regard for context or circumstance. But queer temporality suggests that accountability should not be determined solely by action, but also by intention and impact. It asks us to consider how our actions shape our relationships over time, rather than simply focusing on the immediate consequences.
If someone commits a crime against another person, but then makes amends and shows genuine remorse, it may still be appropriate to hold them accountable even though they have already served their sentence.
Queer temporalities also challenge traditional ideas about progress and growth. Traditionally, progress has been understood as a linear process, with each step building upon the last towards a goal. But queer temporality suggests that progress is more cyclical, with moments of stagnation and regression punctuating periods of forward momentum. This view rejects the idea that we must always be moving in one direction, instead allowing for backward steps and circular patterns. Queer temporalities allow for multiple, intersecting narratives to coexist simultaneously, rather than privileging one storyline above all others.
Queer temporality disrupts conventional moral frameworks by reframing the temporality of obligation and accountability. By questioning fixed concepts of causality, responsibility, and progress, it opens up new possibilities for ethical decision-making and relationship-building. Its emphasis on intentions and impacts challenges traditional notions of justice, while its focus on intersectionality acknowledges the complex interconnectedness of different experiences and perspectives.
This approach can be difficult to implement in practice, requiring individuals to think beyond rigid categories and embrace a more fluid understanding of time.
How does queer temporality disrupt conventional moral frameworks by reframing the temporality of obligation and accountability?
Queer temporality challenges traditional notions of morality because it reframes time and obligations in unconventional ways that go against societal norms and expectations. By refusing to adhere to heteronormative timelines and expectations, individuals who identify as queer are able to challenge the status quo and create new ways of understanding time and responsibility.