https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/321 2026-05-28T05:44:08Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/146829 Title: The fragility of binary referential gender Abstract: By definition of their mutually exclusive meaning, binary gender excludes the gender between and beyond. This rigidity is what makes it brittle, fragile and prone to contradiction. Referential speechacts contain a semantic and a pragmatic layer of reference. While the first refers to a concept, the latter points it to a referent (Hanks, 2019, p. 16), placing the one referred to in the category provided by the concepts. Pronouns (she), but also of nouns with semantic gender (sister) and other gender markers, depending on the language, assign referential gender. Successful reference does not depend on truthfulness or the approval of the one referred to, but on being traced and comprehended by an addressee (Butler, 1997), divergent frameworks of gender assignment being a prevalent cause for conceptual mismatches.; A mistaken reference can be successful, if the addressee shares the conceptual mismatch, or backtracks it (Capone, 2024, p. 35). Since reference presupposes gender and referential gender is binary, references to queer and intersex people involve crises of normativity. According to Latour (2005) functionality is best understood from situations of crisis, breakdown and change. The paper analyses the controversy, insecurity and linguistic innovation provoked by discursive representation of nonbinaryity to what it reveals about normativity. It shows how reference relies on the obviousness of social gender for reference tracking, thus implicitly guardrailing gender expression to fulfilling this requirement. The aspect of obviousness confirms, once more, that referential gender does not represent sex, but assigns the complex and dynamic notion of socially intelligible gender to people. Another finding is, that like in English, neuter is not used for nonbinary reference in German, either. This points to the fact that neuter is in fact conceptually neutral, not gender inclusive. Speakers resort to using plurals, loanwords and neologisms, cobbling together a common gender not known to German before. 2026-05-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/146828 Title: Gender equality through an intersectional framework : QMUL’s gender impact plan (2022–2027) Abstract: Queen Mary University of London’s Gender Impact Plan (2022–2027) presents a structured strategy for advancing gender equality across recruitment, progression, leadership, and institutional culture. Central to the plan is an intersectional approach, recognising that gender inequality is shaped by overlapping factors such as race, ethnicity, disability, and socioeconomic background. It sets measurable targets to improve representation and addresses systemic barriers, while embedding inclusive practices into governance, research, and daily operations. Supported by dedicated oversight and continuous monitoring, the plan reflects the broader Equality, Diversity and Inclusion objectives, aiming to drive sustained cultural and structural change across the university. 2026-05-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/146827 Title: Queer intimacies : space, relationality, and identity in one day in a life Abstract: This presentation examines the film One Day in a Life (directed by Stefano Tummolini, 2008) through the combined lenses of queer studies and media studies, with particular attention to the relationship between space and identity. The analysis centres on how the beach — specifically the queer and nudist beach of Capocotta, in Rome — functions as a transformative environment that enables unexpected forms of intimacy. It is argued that the beach setting provides the conditions for the intimacy that develops between the protagonists, Salvatore and Daniela, who overcome their profound loneliness through a queer platonic relationship that defies conventional categorisation.; Although the film was largely misunderstood upon its release, recent developments in queer theory, particularly around queer kinship, relationality, and fluid identities, allow for its reassessment in a more positive light. One Day in a Life not only challenges heteronormative frameworks, but it also interrogates rigid identity boundaries that can emerge within the LGBT community itself. By presenting a bond between a gay man and a heterosexual woman that is neither romantic nor strictly sexual, the film disrupts normative assumptions about desire and interpersonal relationships.; In the film, the beach emerges as a space of possibility in both narrative and theoretical terms: Capocotta beach becomes a microcosm where multiple dynamics of sexuality, nudity, and sociability coexist, sometimes harmoniously and sometimes in tension. What begins as an experience coded as distinctly gay gradually transforms into a deeply human encounter marked by sincerity and connection. The affectionate, uncomplicated relationship that develops between Salvatore and Daniela stands in contrast to the transactional or superficial interactions surrounding them, and offers a counter-narrative of hope within an otherwise bleak context. Ultimately, the film demonstrates how the spatial setting can destabilise fixed notions of identity and enable forms of queer relationality grounded in vulnerability and deep emotion. 2026-05-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/146826 Title: Industrialised anger and the rage machine : how platform capitalism hijacks the language of activism Abstract: Historically, women’s anger has functioned as a "situated survival practice" and a crucial instrument for political testimony, resistance, and collective mobilisation. However, as feminist activism transitions into the platform economy, a perilous transformation occurs: the metamorphosis of anger from expression to extraction. Building on Audre Lorde’s ‘The Uses of Anger’ regarding the political utility of rage and Sara Ahmed’s Affective Economies, this paper contends that we have entered an era of ‘industrialised rage’, wherein AI systems accelerate the commodification of women’s voices. [excerpt] 2026-05-01T00:00:00Z