Where I End and You Begin: Irigarayan Reflections on Women’s “Boundary Issues”

This paper critiques self-help literature for promoting personal boundaries while neglecting the value of boundary ambiguity, which is essential to care relations. Acknowledging the sufferings that undergird the term “boundary issues,” it reframes the cause of such experiences through Irigaray’s theory of gendered individuation. It argues that sexism produces structural obstacles against women’s ability to own their desires, and boundary-setting remains an inadequate solution because it is modeled after a masculine image of individuality. It draws on Irigaray’s concept of place-making to offer an alternative solution that does not devalue temporary boundary ambiguities.