ABSTRACT
This chapter argues how hegemony appear under neoliberal conditions when the relationship between sameness and difference is no longer one of a simple hierarchy that defines sameness in opposition to subordinated differences, but instead becomes dynamic. Heteronormativity, as a theoretical concept, makes it possible to reveal ana deconstruct the processes by which gender and sexuality become part of a normative matrix that designates what is regarded as a 'normal', 'healthy' and most importantly 'livable' life. The neologism of crip theory is thus an attempt to think queer and disability together in innovative ways and to define novel directions for a concerted critique of hegemonic able-bodiedness and heteronormativity. As Stuart Hall notes, 'cultural hegemony is never about pure victory or pure domination, it is never a zero-sum cultural game; it is about shifting the balance of power in relations of culture; it is about changing the dispositions and the configurations of cultural power, not getting out of it'.
