You have to be normal to be abnormal: an empirically grounded exploration of the intersection of asexuality and disability

Cuthbert, K. (2017) You have to be normal to be abnormal: an empirically grounded exploration of the intersection of asexuality and disability. Sociology, 51(2), pp. 241-257. (doi: 10.1177/0038038515587639)

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Abstract

This article explores the intersection of asexuality and disability by means of a qualitative study with asexual-identified disabled persons. The article discusses the ways in which the asexual community is normatively constructed. Although figured as disabled-friendly, the findings suggest that this is conditional on the denial of any causal links between asexuality and disability, and that this can be thought of in terms of the construction of the ‘Gold Star’ asexual. The article also examines how coming to identify as asexual is constrained when one is already marked as ‘disabled’, and more broadly argues that alternative identities or orientations are reliant on a pre-existing ‘normality’. Looking at asexuality in tandem with disability also allows us to interrogate the asexual subject of existing asexuality research and writing, and uncover the implicit privileges being assumed.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Cuthbert, Dr Karen
Authors: Cuthbert, K.
College/School:College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Sociology Anthropology and Applied Social Sciences
Journal Name:Sociology
Publisher:SAGE Publications
ISSN:0038-0385
ISSN (Online):1469-8684
Published Online:25 June 2015
Copyright Holders:Copyright © The Author(s) 2015
First Published:First published in Sociology 51(2):241-257
Publisher Policy:Reproduced in accordance with the publisher copyright policy

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