About queer(eco)logy

Sat, 20 Mar 2004 20:19:33 GMT

QUEER WHAT?

I have changed the name of my blog a few times. One could say that I have no stable identity. I shall switch again. I am going to call this blog, once more, queer(eco)logy but continue to label myself Spencer Fox, my pen name. There are several reasons why I am choosing to return to this title:

First, let's look at the definitions of ecology and queer and then I shall explain their fusion.

ECOLOGY

The science of the relationships between organisms and their environments. Also called bionomics.
The relationship between organisms and their environment.
The branch of sociology that is concerned with studying the relationships between human groups and their physical and social environments. Also called human ecology.
The study of the detrimental effects of modern civilization on the environment, with a view toward prevention or reversal through conservation. Also called human ecology.

All of these definitions work for what I'm going for but I should also point out that ECO comes from the Greek word Oikos, meaning home.

Next, queer:

Deviating from the expected or normal; strange: a queer situation.
Odd or unconventional, as in behavior; eccentric. See Synonyms at strange.
Of a questionable nature or character; suspicious.
Slang. Fake; counterfeit.
Feeling slightly ill; queasy.
Offensive Slang. Homosexual.
Usage Problem. Of or relating to lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, or transgendered people.

All of these work as well.

The basic fusion is thus the study of a queer person (me) and his environment (or thoughts, home, etc.). Queer Ecology is also the working title of my thesis on the combination of postmodern queer theory and environmental philosophy. I have been frustrated by the dominant associations of queer culture with the worst form of consumerism. Shows such as "Queer Eye for a Striaght Guy" associate queerness with purchasing expensive clothing and being a good interior decorator. (To illustrate the problem with this association, consider, an alternative: "White Eye for a Black Guy" in which white men teach black men to balance their checkbook, fake reciepts and open a Blockbuster account.) I reject such an association and my thesis aims at formulating a uniquely queer environmental ethic that is not consumerist.

There are, however, many definitions of queer ecology, definitions that are encompassed in this blog. I want queer(eco)logy to represent a process. The process involves approaching both one's own identithy and the world with a child-like sense of wonder. Instead of defining and placing value on parts of the world or parts of our selves we ought to first experience them in the moment, be comfortalbe with them rather than linguistically separting ourselves from them in order to study them.

next...

Why the parenthesis around eco? Several reasons:

1. I want to emphasize the importance of ECO, home.

2. I want to poke fun at scientific studies of queers, homosexuals and the environment.

3. I split the word into several parts: queer, queer ecology, ecology, and queerlogy. Queerlogy does the opositite of point #1, it deemphasizes the term eco and puts into question the importance of "home" when studying somthing such as the queeer.

4. Both "queer" and "ecology" are valued by their "naturalness." Queers are shuned becuase they are unnatural. Parts of the environment that are not suited to human needs are destoryed because they are unnatural.

I encourage others to write in with more views on the term queer(eco)logy and where I can go from here.

Spencer Fox: qeco

About queer(eco)logy