Subversion of normative sexuality in Pedro Almodovar’s Movie Bad Education

Abstract

The present thesis entitled “Subversion of Normative Sexuality in Pedro Almodovar’s movie Bad Education” shows the performativity of gender and sexuality in order to rupture the heterosexual values and norms. It challenges the notion of male/female category based gender roles and opens the horizon for possible other sexual identities. For Almodovar homosexuals, transsexuals, bisexuals, transgenders and drags are as real as heterosexuals. He believes that gender and sexuality are matter of construction and performance. In the movie Bad Education almost all major characters have multiple and ambiguous gender and sexual roles. They play more than one gender identities as per the demand of situation, desire and interest. The protagonist of the movie, Juan has homosexual relationship with a film director Enrique and priest Father Manolo. Likewise, he plays the role of trasnsgender drag queen Zahara for the movie “The Visit” and other theatrical performances. But ultimately, he marries with a girl named Monica and has a son. Similarly, next character Ignacio, in his childhood, he has gay homoerotic sensibility but in his adulthood he turns into the preoperative transgender having well developed breasts. He prepares for sex change surgery.