The use of the subtext as sexist propaganda in the character of Lois Lane in Man of Steel (Zack Snyder, 2013)

Abstract

The Sin of the Flesh: new materialism and the (re)discovery of the body

This article aims to present the conceptual basis of the so -called new materialism in the context of the debates concerning gender relations and sexual difference. I pursue this goal through a close reading of the main formulations of the feminist theorist Karen Barad, one of the leading voices linked to the «material turn» underway in feminist theory and practice. My focus is, namely, on the fundamental aspects of Barad’s proposal of «agential realism», which underpins her account of «post­‑humanist performativity». After that, I seek to outline some spots of tension between the theoretical perspectives of Karen Barad and Judith Butler, in order to highlight the different approaches of the sexed body by Queer and new materialist theorists.