Feminist theories in history of art - Assignment Example

In this chapter, Elizabeth Grosz attempts to shed light on what makes up the body. In doing this, Grosz presents several theories that discuss the male and female form. For example, Grosz tries to interpret how Julia Kristeva and Mary Douglas. Supposedly, the body is polluted. While some bodily fluids are symbols used to represent the way pollutants get inside the body, others serve to cleanse it. (195) Another thing Grosz noted is that the body, regardless of its sexuality, is used as models and representations. (196) Still another interesting aspect from Grosz is that while the bodily fluid from women is associated with harmful substances that may pollute men, that which comes from men have not been given much focus until recently.

Surprisingly, seminal fluid in films and movies are again associated with women, and not man. It is supposed to represent a female’s satisfaction, not man’s. Sexual differences are not discussed or understood in terms of their ‘otherness’ or alterity. Instead, they are to be understood as interlinked and interconnected ideas. Understanding sexual difference cannot be done using a single framework or context. Instead, Grosz aims to explore, experiment and discover contexts, frameworks that may help us understand our ‘misunderstanding’ of sexual differences in relation to how we perceive it and act on it.

According to the writer, we are polluted by ideas on power relations, patriarchy, etc. and this is why when talking about sexual differences, the idea is that man is the superior being and nothing is wrong with him, unlike women. There is no single theory that will explain sexual differences in this light. As such, there is a need to explore other contexts or frameworks to address this issue. Reference:Grosz, Elizabeth. (title of book). Date published: publisher.