Non-Subjective Assemblages?: Foucault, Subjectivity, and Sexual Violence

In contrast to such arguments, this essay draws upon and extends recent feminist analyses that acknowledge Foucault’s sexist treatment of the Jouy case but nonetheless contend that the insights Foucault ultimately draws from it are relevant for feminism. Chloë Taylor’s work is especially important in this regard, since she relates these insights specifically to the issue of sex crimes. For Taylor, Foucault’s analysis of the Jouy case illustrates the normalizing effects for perpetrators and victims alike of construing subjectivity in terms of an inherent sexuality.