What is Heteronormativity?

The Project 

• What's this project about?
• Why are we doing it?
• What are our research questions?
• Where are we focusing our research?
• How are we researching information?

Defining Heteronormativity: 

"As a term, heteronormativity describes the processes through which social institutions and social policies reinforce the belief that human beings fall into two distinct sex/gender categories: male/man and female/woman. This belief (or ideology) produces a correlative belief that those two sexes/genders exist in order to fulfill complementary roles, i.e., that all intimate relationships ought to exist only between males/men and females/women." 

"Heteronormativity is the cultural bias in favor of opposite-sex relationships of a sexual nature, and against same-sex relationships of a sexual nature. Because the former are viewed as normal and the latter are not, lesbian and gay relationships are subject to a heteronormative bias." 

Heteronormativity is a relatively new term popularized by Michael Warner in 1991. This term is generally criticized by feminist because it assumes that the dominate gender and sex, which are women/female and man/male are destined and inherently supposed to be linked. In assuming that this coupling is imperative, one makes the mistake in thinking that sex and gender are the same thing, one makes the mistake in thinking that only these two gender/sex exist, and one makes the mistake in thinking that only the sexuality between women/men and female/male exist (heterosexuality). To understand the problems that arise from heteronormativity, for one, one needs to clarify what nearly all feminist strive to communicate, which is the difference between gender and sex. 

Secondly, it is important to notice how the model of man and woman, male and female shape our understand of ourselves and how we operate in the world.  In assuming the coupling of male/female and man/women, heterosexuality, in essence the "normal" sexual orientation, becomes the dominate sexuality. The visibility of heterosexuality makes all other sexualities "deviant", powerless, and ends up marginalizing sexualities, genders, and sexes that do not appropriately perform heteronormative gender, sex, and sexual norms. 

Gayle Rubin's illustrates the threats of heteronormativity in his "sex/gender system".  This system explains sex is biologically fixed, and that gender, is socially constructed. Because gender is socially constructed, it is made up of differences that result in oppression; Oppression by which heternormativity forces societal expectations to dictate how women and men behave. He states, women are oppressed as women by having to be women”. The same could be said about men, heterosexuals, homosexuals, intersex, etc. Adhering to a sexuality and gender that is “normal” creates the institution of (heterormativity) that assumes we are all female/ male performing “proper” gender. For example, a woman is to perform being a woman under heteronormativity. She is supposed to be submissive to her husband, is suppose to taker care of the children, care for her husband, cook the meals, dress femininely, etc. Failing to perform being a woman convincingly strips her of her “woman-hood”. 


Examples of heteronormativity include:

• The underrepresentation of same-sex couples in advertising and entertainment media
• Laws that actively discriminate against same-sex relationships (ie marriage) 
• Religious bias against same-sex couples
• Like racism, sexism, and heterosexism, can only be eliminated culturally--not legislatively. But from a civil liberties perspective, the government should not participate in heteronormativity by enacting heteronormative laws

Sources: 

Farrel, Gupta, Queen. Interrupting Heteronormativity. The Graduate School of Syracuse University. 2005. pg. 3. 

http://civilliberty.about.com/od/gendersexuality/g/heteronormative.htm