Sexual liberation and religious obligation – the ‘liquid authenticity’ of ‘traditionalist’ bachelorettes in the Israeli dating scene: a phenomenological study

Abstract

Following Zygmunt Bauman’s concept of ‘Liquid Modernity’, the term ‘Liquid Authenticity’ is ascribed to a community that holds a type of identity known in Israel as ‘traditional’ and does not purely conform with either the secular or religious identity categories. This concept is examined through an ethno-phenomenological study of female university students who identify with this category and go out on numerous dates through dating apps. These women proclaim a sexual liberation discourse on the one hand, while declaring that they are non-liberal and aspire towards having a traditional family and a Jewish traditional lifestyle. They see no contradiction between their sexual rhetoric, 'erotic capital' and their Jewish-traditional-religious core identities. The article's main argument is that the category to which these women belong is one of many emerging categories in Israeli society that are characterized by ”Liquid Authenticity”: a form of authenticity expressing a cooptation of discourses towards identity-based ethoses and cores. At first glance a feminization of the religious discourse may be suspected, but as illustrated it is rather a cooptation of liberal language and practices into a religious-traditional identity. Similar ”liquid authenticity” configurations can be noted among additional discourse communities and specifically political communities in Israel.