Abstract
A 'sexless marriage' seems a most joyless and banal union to many, old asmatrimony itself. Yet the new sexless marriage championed in this paper does notconcern cold-bedded companionships, but the legal union of two citizens whosesexed bodies remain unspecified, unsignified and unimportant ' in legislation (theirimportance in bed is left to participating citizens to determine). This article considersthe recent changes to marriage legislation in European countries through the frame ofQueer Theory. It particularly reflects on the introduction of the sexless marriage inNorway and Sweden, in the context of other models. It applies Judith Butler's notionsof gender performativity to the policisation of partnerships, applying her concepts ofOverplay, Transference and Erasure in the disruption of the heterosexual matrixwithin coupled citizenship. It considers the varying value of marriage models to Queerprojects in 'opening up' citizenship, offering new perspectives on 'gay marriage'debates.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1-25 |
| Number of pages | 25 |
| Journal | Sextures |
| Volume | 1 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| Publication status | Published - 2009 |
