ERIC Number: EJ1368802
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2022
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0013-1857
EISSN: EISSN-1469-5812
Untangling Pedagogical "Eros": Toward an Erotic Model of Education
Educational Philosophy and Theory, v54 n12 p2043-2053 2022
As a term, "eros" has never had a candid etymology. Consequently, "eros" has emerged as a vexed facet of pedagogy. Understandably, its existence in academia is hardly spoken of. Delimiting "eros" to sexual seduction has catalyzed the institutional denial of "eros." Eventually, the conceptualization of "eros" in academia has been discursively misrepresented and cognitively confused. The present paper taps the untapped operation of "eros" in academia. It contends that academia is not an "eros"-free zone and identifies how pedagogy is constantly mediated by "eros." Acknowledging the sexual dimension of the 'erotic' in pedagogy, it dissects the dynamics between pedagogy and 'eroticism' and inquires if 'eroticism' can be divested of necessary sexual fixity. During powerful pedagogical interactions, desire circulates in both teachers and students; this is the desire of merging without enacting sexual encounter. Pedagogy, thus, emerges as an 'erotic' engagement (of mind) between teacher and student. The paper addresses this 'erotic' dimension of pedagogy. Tracing the pedagogical paradigm shift, the paper offers a radical restructuring of the teacher-student dynamics. Referencing the rich heritage of Plato's doctrine of "eros," this paper attempts a nuanced conceptualization of pedagogical "eros" confined within brackets of cultural codes to encode the unsaid of pedagogical discourse.
Descriptors: Teaching Methods, Educational Philosophy, Teacher Student Relationship, Sexuality, Power Structure, Learner Engagement, Educational Change, Educational History, Definitions
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A