An American philosopher and professor at the University of California, Berkeley. In Gender Trouble, from 1990, she argued that gender is not something we are by nature, but something we do and repeat. She also writes about mourning, violence, and vulnerability, and is one of the most influential and debated thinkers today.
Core ideas
Gender is built through repeated acts and is not a natural essence
Social norms define which lives are recognized and which are ignored
We are all vulnerable and depend on one another to live
The tradition: Queer theory
Queer theory questions fixed norms of gender and sexuality, showing that they are socially constructed. Butler is one of its founders and main references.
