“Queer uses of time and space develop…in opposition to the institutions of family, heterosexuality, and reproduction. They also develop according to other logics of location, movement, and identification” (Halberstam 1).
Halberstam’s articulation of queer time and space here reframes queerness as a state of existence, one that seeks to transgress the linear path toward Hetero Happiness. Although seemingly complex, queer space and time are concepts present and identifiable in contemporary fiction. Orphan Black, released in 2013 by BBC America, is a show that follows the struggles of a group of clones to reclaim their bodies and their personal freedoms from the corporation that created them, with focus on a clone named Sarah whose backstory includes time spent in foster care. Sarah is both a clone and an orphan, someone who lacks access to her biological parents—and thus capacity to be a “daughter” in the traditional sense—and also has an unconventional yet still significant connection to the other clones who literally share her DNA. Orphan Black engages with Halberstam’s conception of queer space and time in how its characters create their own queer family identities, ones that still foster community and connection without any origins in normative family spaces.
Although most of the clones inhabit the queer family space in their reference to one another as “sisters,” it is actually a non-clone, Felix, who exists in perhaps the queerest family space in the show. As Sarah’s foster brother he has no “legitimate” familial relation to her, yet Sarah fiercely defends his status as family whenever its legitimacy is questioned. When her clone-sister Helena behaves aggressively toward Felix (in episode 2×05), Sarah immediately insists: “Hey, you treat him with respect, you got it? That’s my brother, which means he’s one of our sisters. Family.” Sarah’s assertion is that Felix’s connection to her, which is not through blood, necessities a connection to Helena, who is also a “sister” of Sarah’s. She even uses the word “sister” to describe Felix, not “brother,” since Helena would accept more easily the word that is also used to describe their clone family, with whom their connection is inexplicable but deep. Sarah’s sense of her family space is queer—it transgresses the common notion of what family is or ought to be. By creating characters whose identities inherently defy tradition in this way, Orphan Black seeks to highlight and valid the queer family space.
I think the connection to this tv show and Halberstam’s writing. Coming from someone who has never seen the show, I think you do a great job at unpacking some key points without getting lost or giving away spoilers (which is vey important just in case anyone else what to watch the show. I do think you could unpack Halbertsam a little bit more here, just as a final touch to complete the connection to Halbertsam. All in all, great description and gives me a look into a show I may want to watch now.
I find the application of queer theory to this particular series (Orphan Black) fascinating. Specifically, you have successfully been able to demonstrate how the family dynamic in this series seems to contradict heteronormative ideas of the nuclear family – thus making it queer. I also appreciate that you used several quotes and concrete information from Orphan Black, which enabled the post to still serve as a close reading.