Researcher ORCID Identifier
https://orcid.org/0009-0009-4501-2797
Graduation Year
2025
Document Type
Open Access Senior Thesis
Department
Art, Scripps College
Reader 1
Kim-Trang Tran
Reader 2
Ken Gonzales-Day
Terms of Use & License Information
Rights Information
© 2024 Ryan Nguyen
Abstract
I have always understood queerness in relation to the heteronormative standards that our modern society imposes. That is, despite being queer, my own perception of my identity has been that it is abject. The abject is what disturbs identity, system, order, and what does not respect borders, positions, and rules. I have been indoctrinated to believe that queerness is a disturbance to the current system, that it is unnatural and repulsive. However, there is value in abjection. When faced with a primal repulsion, the boundaries between the Self and the Other are confronted and begin to break down. By breaking apart our understanding of our Selves, we can begin to build a new identity, and the value in this process is that we can form an identity that is not bound by our own biases for abjection is a kind of narcissistic crisis. What does it mean then to explore abjection within the queer community rather than queerness as the abject? To answer that question I will pursue the exploration of queer abjection, specifically in the realms of modern dating and artificial intelligence (AI). My project will be a video game that critiques the current system of online queer dating by creating an abject experience that highlights how shallow/objectifying the system is for gay men.
Recommended Citation
Nguyen, Ryan, "Queerness through the Lens of Abjection, Games, and AI" (2025). HMC Senior Theses. 286.
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/hmc_theses/286