This Sex Which is Not H1

By gnovisguest February 10, 2009

Posted in 2009 The Gnovis Blog

“This Sex Which is Not H1” is a digital story inspired by Luce Irigaray’s “This Sex Which is Not One,” the creator’s home town of Orange County, California and the many truths and falsehoods put forth by reality television. Because of its identifiable military inspiration, the Hummer has become a symbol of power, patriotism, and masculinity in America. Yet, in many areas of the United States, glamorous women can be found driving these rugged vehicles. However, are these women challenging gender norms?

Luce Irigaray explains that because language was created and formulated originally by men, female desire cannot be described or explained. Their desire is, therefore, not their own. Hence, a female’s desire to own a Hummer is nothing more than a false assumption that a gender norm is being challenged at all. Therefore, while the ad in this digital story suggests that women will be able to ‘threaten men,” they will in fact be nothing more than women driving a vehicle with a masculine history in a world influenced by the force of the western masculine heterosexual. As the Goldilocks Hummer commercial at the conclusion of this visual story reinforces, the H1—the largest and most threatening of the three models— will forever remain in the possession of Papa Bear.