Embodied Deviance, Gender, and Epistemologies of Ignorance: Re-Visioning Drugs Use in a Neurochemical, Unjust World

Abstract

The paper develops key notions needed for a feminist embodiment approach to drugs, their use and users. First, the term embodied deviance is defined in relationship to women drug users. Second, the bodily tasks of gendered drug use are defined to show how “normal” embodiment is foreclosed to women drug users. Third, disease regimes and epistemologies of ignorance are introduced. Fourth, another piece is inserted into the feminist embodiment puzzle –emotions. Simply, we look at some of the practices that emerge from the affective dimensions of gendered drug use. In the concluding section of my paper, I ask, “Where do we go from here?”

Keywords:

• gender
• embodiment
• epistemologies of ignorance
• disease regimes
• the body
• biosociality