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Re-invisioning the Third Space: Arab-Israeli Masculinity and the Politics of Inclusion/Exclusion
Abstract by Lama Mourad On Session 010  (Queer Legibilities)

On Thursday, November 18 at 05:00 pm

2010 Annual Meeting

Abstract
This paper examines the ways in which Arab-Israeli citizens are facing a crisis of masculinity due to their position within the matrix of the Arab-Israeli conflict. While early work on feminist issues has focused on the subordination of women to men within society, and ways in which that should be challenged, later works have challenged the very notion of categories such as men and women having any true meaning (Butler, 1990). Extending this observation, it has been argued that it makes little sense to talk of a singular masculinity. Rather, at any given moment, there exists a multiplicity of masculinities, which are said to be in competition. Based on a careful examination of secondary and literary sources, this paper is situated within an interpretivist framework of research that places an emphasis on language and other symbolic systems as means of understanding societies and cultures. Relying on Homi Bhabha's concept of the 'Third Space' and the concept of hegemonic masculinity first developed by R.W. Connell, I argue that Arab citizens of Israel find themselves 'trapped' between two dominant masculine cultures, the Israeli and Palestinian, within neither of which they enjoy full inclusion or exclusion. Within these societies, three coexisting scripts of hegemonic masculinity emerge: (1) the Soldier; (2) the Martyr/Resistance Fighter; (3) the Provider. Arab-Israelis are barred from accessing all three of them. Within the dominant Israeli society, they are granted certain rights and opportunities as citizens of the state, while their non-Jewish and Palestinian/Arab status structurally excludes them from the nation and thereby attaining the hegemonic masculine script of the Soldier. With regards to the larger Palestinian society, where the image of the fighter and fida'i provide the most dominant image of masculinity, Arab-Israelis are alienated by their perceived membership within the Israeli state and their virtual inability to violently oppose the occupation. Moreover, due to the increased role of women in the labor force and the effects of welfare state institutions on the ability of women to provide for themselves, Arab-Israeli men are finding their role as Provider being undermined. Finally, this paper will explore emerging alternative and competing masculine scripts within the Arab-Israeli population in response to this crisis.
Discipline
Political Science
Geographic Area
Israel
Palestine
Sub Area
Gender/Women's Studies