This paper explores Stanley Cavell's notion of "passionate utterance", which acts as an extension of/departure from (we might read it as both) J. L. Austin's theory of the performative. Cavell argues that Austin having made the revolutionary discovery that truth claims in language are bound up with how words perform, then gets bogged by convention…

Seeks rhetoric(s) that enact corporeally in language suggestions of "queer," a "queer rhetoric," in which desire/bodies put into play a kind of linguistic music. Searches for "queer," particularly its sexual and gendering connotations. Connects that with postmodern, poststructuralist rhetoric(s) as self-referential.…

Heterosexism, as defined in this paper, designates those central social structures that advocate heterosexuality as the only natural sexual interest. The cluster of social mores that constitute heterosexist attitudes is defined and described, with illustrations from various contexts showing both the subtle and the overt ways in which these…

Reports the study of ritual verbal insults among Black men and among gay men. Gives examples of these insults and explains the situations in which such insulting takes place. (PMJ)