Abstract
By attending to the ways in which cutting manifests in the life histories of three queer and trans*+ youth of color, I argue that cutting is a literacy practice. I focus on the life histories of three youth, Jay, Harper and Sam, who have different experiences, reasons for, and reactions to their cutting. With each story, we learn something new about the act and how it pushes us to the brink of literacy pedagogy. Jay’s narrative forces us to reckon with youth who refuse to or cannot maintain their bodily integrity. Harper’s story brings to the fore the violence of everyday life for queer and trans*+ youth of color. Sam’s story showcases the nuanced ways in which desire and rage can exist side by side in the act of cutting. All of these stories help us to understand the larger implications of engaging with embodied literacies inside a classroom space.
Repository Citation
Van Asselt, B. (2022). Cutting as a Literacy Practice: Exploring the Fractured Body, Desire and Rage through Queer and Trans*+ Youth Embodiments. Taboo: The Journal of Culture and Education, 21 (1). Retrieved from https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/taboo/vol21/iss1/6
Included in
Curriculum and Instruction Commons, Curriculum and Social Inquiry Commons, Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons, Gender Equity in Education Commons, Language and Literacy Education Commons, Secondary Education Commons