Besides Oneself: On the Limits of Sexual Autonomy

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A livable world is defined from the society you participate in everyday life. We as people make laws and regulations for situations that may or may not happen. This is because humans are imperfect and full of flaws. Laws and regulations are the guidelines for properly living in a society that dictates to the mass instead of hearing individual concern. Then again what is it meant to be “imperfect”? Who designates the description behind being perfect? This is what I believe is “the norm” or normal way of life of a society. In the essay by Judith Butler, Besides Oneself: On the Limits of Sexual Autonomy, she describes the social norms of society slowly changing and designing new social norms of society by the awareness of Gays, Lesbians, and Transgender preference people. She is also describing the struggles of everyday life for gays, lesbians, and transgender people. Butler states a question that makes a good point for this way of thought, “what makes for a livable world?”(Page 240). This question is asked to understand what a livable life is first. A livable life is life that is accepted by society. If society does not accept certain individuals because of the choices they choose to make or the way they are brought up, then society chooses to stay ignorant and uneducated on these types of situations. Individuals who are not accepted by society receive less treatment than that of some who is accepted by society. This does not only extend to gays, lesbians, and transgender, but extends to people who are less fortunate than others. People judge people. This is human life. People are influenced by other people and want they have. The media is a big part of what people strive to be like or accomplish. People watch th... ... middle of paper ... ...t?” (Butler Page 240). A human life is a human life. We are all made the same way and we all of the ability to make choices, we have an ability to learn, and to adjust to uncomfortable situations in order to maintain a mindset without prejudice. Society is as a whole is slowly learning this aspect of acceptance of gays, lesbians, and transgendered people. Society is slowly creating laws for people of these sexual preferences in order to protect them. Works Cited • 9/11 Attacks History.com Articles, Video, Pictures and Facts. (n.d.). History.com History Made Every Day American & World History. Retrieved September 30, 2013, from http://www.history.com/topics/9-11-attacks • Bartholomae, D., & Petrosky, A. (2011). Ways of reading: an anthology for writers (9th ed.). Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's. “Judith Butler; Beside Oneself: On the Limits of Sexual Autonomy.”

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