During this talk, Religious Studies faculty member Dr. Max Strassfeld will discuss how, in the face of the contemporary gender binary, Jewish transgender and intersex activists have turned to classical legal texts from the first few centuries that feature eunuchs and androgynes. The most widely read of these sources attempts to slot the androgyne into Jewish law by describing the ways in which the ze* is like a man, woman, both, and neither. Dr. Strassfeld will situate this text in its context and suggest some of the theoretical implications of this conversation for the intelligibility of genderqueer bodies in Jewish law.
*Ze is a gender-neutral pronoun used in the place of "she" or "he."
This talk is sponsored by the Institute for LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) Studies. Free pizza and water will be provided.
Please visit the following link for more information about this talk: https://lgbt.arizona.edu/events/deep-dish-november-06-max-strassfeld-phd
