AIDS ir queer teorijos sąlyčiai: Gintaro Varno spektaklių "Tiksinti bomba" ir "Tolima šalis" analizė
LTStraipsnyje apžvelgiami AIDS istoriniai aspektai ir aptariama, kokią įtaką AIDS padarė gėjų gyvenimui. Taip pat atskleidžiama, kaip gėjų bendruomenė įsitraukė į kovą su AIDS, o įvairių organizacijų bendradarbiavimas suformavo platų infrastraktūrinį tinklą, kuris siekė suvaldyti ŽIV plitimą. Tiksliniu švietimu apie saugų seksą siekta paskatinti gėjų sąmoningumą, kad jie atsisakytų barebacking (nesaugaus sekso) praktikos. Queer studijos, kurių teorinis diskursas apima ir AIDS problematiką, parodo, kad gėjai, jų barebacking praktika, hipermaskulinizacijos fenomenas, sergančiųjų AIDS įtraukimas į neįgalumo diskursą ne tik konfrontuoja su heteronormine pasaulėjauta, bet ir dekonstruoja jos stabilumą ir vientisumą, padaro ją pažeidžiamą. Remiantis šiais teoriniais pagrindais, straipsnyje analizuojami du režisieriaus G. Varno spektakliai - „Tolima šalis“ ir „Tiksinti bomba“, kuriuose gėjai tampa hegemonine jėga. Analizėje atskleidžiama, kaip spektaklių personažai, sergantys AIDS, išlaiko subversyvią poziciją, jų silpstantys kūnai tampa neįgalumo diskurso objektu, o aktyvi barebacking praktika lemia susirgimą AIDS. [Iš leidinio]Reikšminiai žodžiai: AIDS; Barebacking; Gintaras Varnas; Gėjus; Heteronormatyvumas; Hipermaskulinizacija; Homoseksualumas; Queer; AIDS; Barebacking; Gay; Gintaras Varnas; Heteronormativity; Homosexuality; Hypermasculinization; Queer.
ENArticle presents the relationship between the queer theory and AIDS, and reveals the historical context of the disease as well as the extensive network of organisations, whose collaboration forms a solid infrastructure encouraging to solve the intensive spread of AIDS-related issues. The gay community was active in this infrastractural network and participated in the prevention of AIDS. The brief overview of the history of AIDS reveals that in the beginning of the AIDS epidemic, it was considered to be a gay plague. However, HIV was spreading amongst other groups as well, such as drag addicts, sex workers and blood recipients. Furthermore, the first ones to start fighting against AIDS were the middle class white gays. The prevention of the disease, the financial aid and better treatment along with therapy conditions was encouraged by a close cooperation between organizations. During the epidemic of the disease, education which targeted safe sex was formed, and it sought to raise the awareness of homosexual men by emphasizing the pleasure of safe sex. Along with the target goal of safe-sex education, an important role in supporting the diseased was played by the buddy program, which aimed to help the PWA patients in their daily lives, both while socializing and during the nursing process. The main aim of the preventive education was to reduce the spread of HIV and unsafe sexual intercourse. While practicing barebacking, condoms are not used purposely, thus it did not coincide with the preventive education promoted, since the active gay sex life dismissed the relevant aspects of the prevention, such as reducing the number of partners, refusing casual sex and using condoms during intercourse.The targeted safe sex education was not supposed to moralize vaguely, but to reflect on gay experience and to highlight not only the frightening factors of unsafe sex, but also to reveal that safe sex is possible between PWAs and healthy people. The preventive education aimed to encourage the awareness of gays and to question the revved up stigma of homosexuality and HIV/AIDS. However, it was impeded by the barebacking practice used by gays, since it symbolises sexual freedom. Therefore, homosexual men do not want to refuse practising unsafe sex, which is also associated with the risky behaviour by which real (hegemonic) manhood is characterized. While aiming to reject the present stereotypes which link homosexual manhood with the aspects of feminization, gays include the tendencies related to risky behavior (such as unsafe sex) into their performances of masculinity. Thereby, they seek to prove and affirm the standard of masculinity. Nonetheless, the barebacking practice also disrupts heteronormativity stability and wholeness. Although, in the context of AIDS, safe sex is considered to be a positive thing, it forms the stigmatizing aspects in gay life. Firstly, safe sex is no longer associated with risky behavior which presupposes hegemonic manhood. Safe sex also represents the restriction on liberty and becomes an allusion of a disease which undermines manhood, liveliness and sexuality. This article also reveals that the AIDS epidemic in the gay community has revved up the hypermasculinity processes, which seek to create an illusion that a diseased gay can look healthy and be lively, sexual and desired. [...]. [From the publication]
