Lesbianism in Contemporary Arab Cinema and Literature: Identities, Bodies, Spaces

This project explores representations of lesbianism in contemporary (21st century) Arab cinema and literature. It explores how the lesbian body performs in relation to the space it occupies, and examines the duality in Arab cultural spaces as spaces that criminalise yet overlook lesbianism. The research explores an understudied topic; whilst male homosexuality is well represented in the literature on sexuality in the Arab world, the same cannot be said about
lesbian bodies.

The thematic elements that will be focused on are the eroticisation and sexualisation of lesbians in Arab films and literary texts and how Arab lesbians (un)perform their sexuality and religiosity, traditional customs, and cultural and familial expectations.

I will examine how lesbian sex, pleasure, and intimacy are framed for the reader (in text) and spectator (in film) and how the lesbian body performs/experiences them in different spaces. I will also explore the extent to which these (mis)representations encompass the full scope of lesbian desire, including stereotypes/generalizations such as the butch/femme dichotomy, and practices such as kink and BDSM.

This is a qualitative study of representations of lesbianism in contemporary Arab films and literary texts. I plan to conduct cultural analysis and queer-feminist analysis of my primary cinematic sources and literary texts while using thematic and narrative analytical approaches. My primary sources have not been studied in previous research and are socially and politically significant within the context of Arab queer and particularly lesbian identities. I will analyse a
total of 6 cinematic sources that include films, short films, and a documentary. I will also analyse 6 literary texts that include fiction and non-fiction writings.

Lesbian studies are underrepresented in academic research and are often overlooked in broader non-academic contexts. My research combats lesbian invisibility by offering an original study of lesbian desire, sex, and pleasure in contemporary Arab cinematic and literary representations. Within and beyond academia, engaging in topics that revolve around (queer) female sexuality in Arab contexts is restricted due to certain sociocultural perceptions of shame,
taboo, chastity, and honour. Thus, researching this topic breaks cultural and generational cycles of silencing and erasure. My research offers new perspectives on (Arab) lesbian agency and identity politics which is intrinsic to expanding scholarship in the field of gender and sexuality studies and instigating social change, particularly through combating Arab cultural taboos and conceptions of honour which often revolve around queer sexualities. My work also informs
cultural policy as it concerns cultural institutes and queer organisations that focus on Arab queerness, particularly cinematic platforms.