"And second, as feminist scholars and other have pointed out for over a hundred years, and as my references to bodybuilding and the like show, human bodies are always already bearers of meaning" (Taylor 16-7)
When I read this quote, particularly the "always already" segment, it brought to mind the work of Judith Butler in relation to gender, but I know it's also associated with Heidegger and Derrida. Taylor elaborates on the idea that human bodies and the conditions in which they exist are "always already" defined by the "semantic" and "structural" racial projects that produce them (Taylor 24). I really appreciated this distinction because I think it brought to life the dual impact of race-talk/thinking in our everyday lives in that: 1) it informs how we conceptualize the world around us and 2) it is also informed by the conditions under which it has taken shape. There's an organization in Philadelphia that I'm affiliated with called "The Brothers' Network," which seeks to challenge dominant narratives about African American men through dialogue in arts and culture. One day, I was having a conversation with the founder and he made a statement that I think illustrates the two points about race talk/thinking; he said (something to the effect) that he could not imagine living a life in which he did not have to fight or struggle because of how tremendously impactful slavery and its aftermath have been. And it made me pause. Being told in each pre-dominantly white space I occupied that I did not fit the stereotypical mold of being Black; I'm "just different"; or I don't "act Black enough;" those times when I notice white salespeople following me around stores, regardless of my attire; and being told that it's good because I don't seem to angry, even though I talk about race. And all these instances are derived from the origins of Omi and Winant's concept of racial formation- "the sociohistorical process by which racial categories are created, inhabited, transformed and destroyed" (Taylor 24). I think a resounding point in this introduction is Taylor's emphasis on why engage race philosophically: precisely because as inhabitants of this country, our orientation to each other in a racialized society necessitates that we understand race although, like Zarita, we may not have the language to articulate our experience...just yet, that is.
There's a lot I'd like to comment on here. But I'll settle for your opening. I don't see what you take "always already" to mean and why you like it. In what way is it illuminating?
ReplyDeleteI take "always already" to mean that, in context, that there is historically embedded significance that is ascribed, both externally and internally, to human bodies. The phrase is noteworthy because of the broad-ranging consequences associated with this significance that Taylor illustrates in Chapter 2 in that it informs our characterizations of "people, actions, beliefs, practices, institutions, and attitudes."
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