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University of Cambridge

Pharmacopornographic Subjectivity in the Work of Paul B. Preciado

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

This thesis examines ‘pharmacopornographic’ subjectivity in the work of contemporary Spanish philosopher, Paul B. Preciado, and represents the first extended study of his work. In Preciado’s writing, ‘pharmacopornographic’ describes the entwined influence and dominance of the pharmaceutical and pornographic industries, and the thesis analyses how they produce ‘pharmacopornographic’ subjects. This thesis explores Preciado’s writing on gender, sexuality, pornography, drugs and power between 2002 and 2014 and articulates an emergent trans-feminism. This research analyses how pharmacological and pornographic industries affect the design and production of genders and subjectivities. The thesis further refines Preciado’s assertion that contemporary, ‘pharmacopornographic’ regimes of power produce subjects rather than objects, or people, rather than things. Ultimately, this research is concerned with understanding the production of pharmacologically-determined subjectivity. The thesis articulates various subject positions, as a means of theorising pharmacopornographic subjectivity: ‘The Voyeur’, ‘The Sex Worker’, ‘The Biodrag King’ and ‘The Junkie’. These subject-position chapters are prefaced with a chapter exploring theoretical frameworks used to analyse Preciado’s work, and the thesis concludes with a chapter on accelerationism and the microprosthetic scale of Testo Junkie.

Degree

thesis:*
Name dc:type.qualificationname
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Level dc:type.qualificationlevel
Doctoral
Grantor dc:publisher.institution
University of Cambridge
Year dc:date.issued
2018

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Ropek Hewson, Sofia
Advisor dc:contributor.advisor
  • Crowley, Martin

Subjects

dc:subject × 3

Rights

dc:rights
Language dc:language
en

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
DOI dc:identifier.doi
https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.32468
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/285097

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
Cambridge University
Base URL
api.repository.cam.ac.uk/server/oai/request
Last updated
2026-07-22
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
citation

Ropek Hewson, Sofia. Pharmacopornographic Subjectivity in the Work of Paul B. Preciado. Doctoral thesis, University of Cambridge, 2018. https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.32468