The Intertwining of Theory and Practice: Power, Agency, and Negotiation in Gender Identity within Post-Closet Culture

Abstract

This study explores the dynamic evolution between sex, gender, and gender performance under individual agency and the social power system. Through case studies as well as the theoretical analysis and application of Michel Foucault’s power/knowledge, Judith Butler’s gender performativity, and James Joseph Dean’s post-closet culture, this research investigates the gender performance practices of both the LGBTQ+ community and heterosexuals in the context of post-closet culture. By analyzing transgender individuals’ medical experiences, drag performances, gender norms in the workplace, and changes in heterosexual masculinity, this study demonstrates that the power system is not rigid but a fluid field open to continuous negotiation. The analysis results show that individual agency in sex, gender, and gender performance not only facilitates negotiation with the social power system but also innovatively applies theories in practice, expanding the practical fields and application methods of these theories. However, this study also has limitations, including a Western-centric bias, the lag in case application in the digital era, and constraints in the intersectionality perspective. Based on case and theoretical analyses, this study concludes that individual agency is a crucial driving force for advancing gender diversity and social inclusiveness. These findings can provide us with an understanding of gender practices that is cross-class, non-dualistic, and interconnected.