Feminism is Queer: The Intimate Connection between Queer and Feminist Theory

by Mimi Marinucci

In the years since Feminism Is Queer was first published in 2010, feminist and LGBTQ activism has increased and evolved at an incredible rate. With the current third wave of feminism and gay rights issues steadily dominating mainstream media, Mimi Marinucci’s innovative concept of queer feminism that unites natural allies, queer and feminist theory, is more vital than ever before.
 
This updated and expanded edition explores with the relevancy of queer feminism to a new generation of feminist activists and offers a way to both understand gender, sex, and sexuality while fostering solidarity between allies for women’s and LGBTQ rights. Bringing this comprehensive introduction to gender and queer theory up to date are examinations of the latest developments in feminism and queer theory, including new forms of both feminism and antifeminism developing out of online communities, as well as the growing significance of transgender experiences in mainstream media. An essential guide for anyone with an interest in gender or sexuality, this new edition will be indispensable to those wanting to stay current on the vital role that these intersecting disciplines play in contemporary LGBTQ and feminist movements.

Genres: Feminism, Nonfiction, Queer, LGBT, Theory, Sociology, Politics

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Mimi Marinucci completed a Ph.D. in philosophy and a graduate certificate in women's studies from Temple University in 2000. Currently serving as associate professor of philosophy and women's & gender studies at Eastern Washington University, Marinucci teaches courses on feminism, philosophy, and feminist philosophy. Marinucci, who is especially interested in the subjective and social aspects of knowledge production, particularly knowledge produced around issues of gender and sexuality, is the author of of several articles that employ references from popular culture in the service of a more scholarly agenda. Examples include 'There's Something Queer About The Onion' (forthcoming in The Onion and Philosophy, edited by Sharon Kaye, Open Court), 'What's Wrong with Porn?' (forthcoming in Pornography and Philosophy, edited by Dave Monroe, Wiley-Blackwell), 'Television, Generation X, and Third Wave Feminism: A Contextual Analysis of the Brady Bunch' (Journal of Popular Culture, Volume 38, Number 3, February 2005), and 'Feminism and the Ethics of Violence: Why Buffy Kicks Ass' (in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Philosophy: Fear and Trembling in Sunnydale, edited by James B. South, Open Court, 2003). Marinucci is also the founding editor of Wave 2.5: A Feminist Zine, a two-time Utne Independent Press Award nominee (2005, 2009).

Reviews

[Elizabeth Day · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book taught me, for one, that audiobooks make scholarly texts much easier to digest!

As I was working on a video essay last semester, I was eager to find texts about gender queerness in cinema for a video essay I was making about Barbie (2023), and the overlap between feminist theory and queer theory is so vast that sometimes it’s hard to tell them apart at all. When I found this book, I knew it would be perfect.

It’s a very accessible scholarly piece, which I love to see and would always love to see more of. The ideas are sound and nuanced. I found myself having arguments with myself in my head. The best theory is less about coming to conclusions and more about reading the world (and the texts in it) in different ways, and this book offered me plenty of opportunities to do that.

Marinucci also bravely brings up and gives their own perspective on many viewpoints existing in queer theory, including some that I’ve thought extensively about but am rarely courageous enough to bring up. In the end, though, queer theory is ultimately about the complications of life, so multiple (and multifaceted) arguments are more than welcome here. Some highlights for me were the history of homosexuality (and whether or not homosexuality as we know it today has always existed), the exclusion of women in gay rights movements, and how straight allyship is cringe at best and insulting at worst (my words, not theirs, but there’s a LOT of discussion about straight allyship in this book and I have never felt more understood in my life).

Long story short, Feminism is Queer is a wonderful and comprehensive text on feminist and queer theories that I would recommend to anyone interested in studying those topics more.

[Keith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not sure why I selected this book as my introduction to queer theory, but I'm sure glad I did.

Academic in nature but not in style, the book explores the links between queer theory and feminism but doesn't stop there, bringing in issues of racism, disability, social class etc. issues that all intersect in someones life at one point or another.

Full of references and one of the most comprehensive glossaries I have seen, this is a must read for those looking to broaden there knowledge of feminism.

[Manuel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book since the beginning! I would highly recommend this book to everyone who wants to have a good time, specially on this specific genre, there was a few things that iwould have changed in this book but that happens most of the times i read books so it's not such a big deal. Loved it, thats all i've gotta say. Well deserved five stars.

[Sarah Kaddoura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect as an introductory guide.

[Dasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are looking for an introduction to queer and feminist, this is a very accessible introduction to what is often a very academic and difficult to understand topic. I wish Marinucci spent more of the book on Queer Feminism, rather than spending much of the book doing an overview of the two fields separately and only briefly bringing it together. Nonetheless, the questions at the end of each chapter would be useful to teachers or TAs and the sources for further reading is a nice touch. If you are familiar with the field there really isn't much new here, but nonetheless a well-written and concise summary of two dense topics.

[K Kriesel · Rating 1 out of 5]

How disappointing! This had been on my to-read list for years as none of the library systems I've lived in have had copies. I was so thrilled to discover the audiobook at last, and eagerly dove in.

Marinucci's disconnect from lived reality was a huge waste of my time. Academic texts have a reputation of dealing with matters far outside of actual human experience, but this is in a whole other galaxy. This is the whitest book I've read since seminary.

[Denise Sudbeck · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is essentially an introductory survey as other reviewers have commented. Hopefully it might peak interest in further study but will hardly make anybody really knowledgeable. One more innovative section is the very last chapter re: allies. I would have marked it 3 1/2 stars if I had that option.

[سیاووش · Rating 3 out of 5]

Didn't add anything to me. Kept waiting for it to get exciting and new and it never did. But it's old, and once you get used to the usage of outdated language it's really fun to get to see a little bit of what scholars of A Long Time Ago thought about queer experiences. I also loved the queer Oz quotes at the start of each chapter.

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic introduction to feminist and queer theory. The argument for combining the fields to produce a more all encompassing understanding of queer philosophy is compelling. I will be using this book as a reference guide through further queer feminist literature moving forward.

[Markéta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good introduction to gender studies, feminism and queer theory. Some very interesting thoughts and scholarly arguments. Highly readable and drives down the point without repeating it over and over - this book is appropriately long.
4/5

[Meriel Colenutt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Concise and useful for understanding both feminism and queer theory

[Montana Vince · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this as a modern bridge between radical 70s lesbian feminism and more modern queer theory

[Alyssa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love a queer book. I love a feminist book. I love a good queer feminism book

[Rose]

really good primer

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

This reinforced some notions I already held about gender, sex, sexuality, and social (and philosophical) responses to all of these. It also made me question some ideas that I had previously been pretty sure of. Most importantly, Marinucci's book, in precise, carefully considered language, introduced me to concepts that were completely new to me, spurring me to write a friend who teaches a class on Queer Sociology to get some clarification.

I had originally picked this text up to find some new perspectives to include in an article I'm writing about a film on an intersex adolescent, but instead of skimming for useful gems, I ended up reading (and rereading parts of) the whole thing. It made me rethink my own positions and even reconsider my own categorizations.

Highly recommended.

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

I hadn't read a book that explicitly connected feminist and queer theory yet, so I was glad to have the chance to grab this one. It reads like a textbook, so if you go into it looking for something along the style of the essays that are being published, you might end up unhappy. There is a focus on both feminism and queer theory, and then a drawing of the two together. Each chapter has the references, notes, and resources listed at the end of the chapter, which I didn't mind. I feel like this could have been longer and/or more in depth. But for an introduction, which doesn't sugarcoat anything, this works.

[Rocío Trupo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great introduction to queer and feminist theories, to sex and gender and sexuality, and to so many concepts that I would fill in this review with them. The writer takes you by the hand and thrusts you into a brief summary of theories, history and practices with the intention that you are an active reader and are able to form your own conclusions. If you haven't read much of feminist theory or queer theory (as is the case for me at the time of this review), you will love it, possibly as much as I have. It is a bit slow in the first chapter, but it is so worthwhile as you shift from the paradigm.

[Lucifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book but it is definitely only a supplement to these readings. I can't imagine being able to really follow or gain a lot of knowledge from just this book without any reference to these texts. The short breakdowns of each piece are just a few key ideas with an opinion or two. I hate to admit but I think quite a few of these ideas could be digested incorrectly without any other supporting ideas. Great, but only as a supplement with further discussion!

[Frank Karioris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really lovely introductory style book. I think the title is misleading, it is not - on the whole - about Feminist theory's connection with Queer Theory. It is a broad introduction to Feminist theory (particularly gender, sex, sexuality) and then hints at a few places to look towards. On the whole, really lovely; will possibly use for more intro course.

[Mel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply written yet covers significant territory. This has been much-needed. Great introduction to feminist theory, queer theory, and LGBT studies.

[maile · Rating 3 out of 5]

Concise coverage of introductory concepts, very good appendix, I wish I had this book in undergrad

[Apoorva · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely one of the more accessible books on feminism & queer theory that I've read.

[Joey Gamble · Rating 3 out of 5]

A useful introduction with an even more useful bibliography. Appropriate for lower-level gender studies classes.

[amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5