# 1479 Petro-masculinity: Fossil Fuels and Authoritarian Desire

“1479 Petro-masculinity: Fossil Fuels and Authoritarian Desire” (2018), by Cara New Daggett. Arts and Humanities research paper. Original abstract below, unchanged. No free PDF was found.

- Authors: Cara New Daggett
- Published: June 20, 2018
- Field: Arts and Humanities
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0305829818775817
- Source: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783112212035-010

## Abstract

As the planet warms, new authoritarian movements in the West are embracing a toxic combination of climate denial, racism and misogyny. Rather than consider these resentments separately, this article interrogates their relationship through the concept of petro-masculinity, which appreciates the historic role of fossil fuel systems in buttressing white patriarchal rule. Petro-masculinity is helpful to understanding how the anxieties aroused by the Anthropocene can augment desires for authoritarianism. The concept of petro-masculinity suggests that fossil fuels mean more than profit; fossil fuels also contribute to making identities, which poses risks for post-carbon energy politics. Moreover, through a psycho-political reading of authoritarianism, I show how fossil fuel use can function as a violent compensatory practice in reaction to gender and climate trouble.

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