Will it explode at some point? Resources for Reflecting on Radicality in Women’s and Gender History

Abstract

A certain distance to affirming and welcoming radical political action is to be recommended in academia, otherwise it might not be possible to explore it at all. But still: what does radical authorship mean in a feminist perspective and in a historical context? What constitutes rebellious forms and content? What about them is capable of touching, captivating, seducing – and advancing critical analysis? This essay presents for discussion a number of works that engage explicitly or implicitly with political radicality, among them a hit list of radical history, an explosive language experiment from 1970s lesbian feminism, a meandering search for the archives of radicality, and powerful images of gender and anti/racism in Third Cinema. Will it all explode? Let’s try.