These readings all point out the strong distinctions between sex and gender. Sex is thought of as a biological and reproductive category, while gender is defined in terms of social norms and behaviors. Furthermore, gender is the “psychological transformation of the self-the internal conviction that one is either male of female” (Sterling, 3). I think it is important to understand the difference of sex and gender because these terms permeate our minds and are apparent in our everyday lives. In the readings for today, these authors analyze if gender and sex are fixed in our society and if these terms are interchangeable. This begs the question; Do we choose to accept the roles given to us? I think society makes them fixed and forces us to choose between them.
After reading “Dueling Dualisms,” I gained a lot of insight on what defines someone’s sex. Her reading indicated that along with gender, sex is another aspect of one’s character that has been traditionally constructed and distorted. Sex has not been defined by us, but rather for us. Sterling writes, "our beliefs about gender affect what kinds of knowledge scientists produce about sex in the first place" (Sterling, 3). Through scientific research, we are aware of these beliefs and how they shape research. Overall, I think it is very difficult to define sex. Therefore, I agree with Fausto that we should look at the biology of the human body in “shades of difference” (Sterling 3) instead of on either the male/or female range.
I found it interesting to see how scientific thought has evolved by a dualistic world view in which sex opposes gender, male / female, mind / body, and nature / nurture. (21). I think that these dualisms lead to an understanding of the world in terms of opposing pairs, yet we often take them for granted. I think it will be important to question their purpose and past to help us view the world in a different way. Sterling argues that rather than seeing these pairs as opposites we should recognize their interdependence (Sterling, 21). How will this help change our society?
Another interesting point from her reading was when she posed the question, "Is sex socially constructed?" Her answer to the question is quite simply, yes. Based on this, How do we determine a person's sex? Is it through chromosomes, external genitalia, hormones, and/or organs? I was shocked how the Olympic committee performed sex testing on Olympic athletes in the past. I could not believe that they simply asked the athletes to “parade naked in front of the board of examiners” (3) and “breasts and a vagina were all one needed to certify one’s femininity” (3). This to me is completely bogus and indicated a great need for the use of scientific testing. However, scientific testing can have faults and cause a great deal of controversy as seen in the case of Maria Patino. Although the tests showed that she has a Y chromosome, she looked female on the outside. How else could this case have been handled?
Her story reveals that labeling a man or a woman by judging their chromosomes can lead down a risky path. Female athletes can become the subject of hurtful questions about their gender if they don’t look like what people assume women should look like. It reminded me of Caster Semenya who is at the heart of a controversy regarding her gender. With a muscular body and strong features she was requested to undergo a gender test to ensure that she was “truly” a female. Following Fausto’s reasoning of sex and gender, one would conclude that Semenya has developed a female gender identification over her entire life. Friends and family in South Africa have always reinforced her femininity. Growing up as a female and then suddenly adjusting to life as a male, based on the results of one test, would be a psychologically damaging process. While these examples of Patino and Semenya are few, it is still important to investigate the distinction between sex and gender and how we can alter socially constructed views of what the characteristics of a gender really are.
Sterling also references second wave feminists who argued that social institutions perpetuate gender inequality, which relates to Myhre’s article. Myhre agrees saying our society years later continues to put pressure as to how to behave as a women or a man. She argues that we continue to base judgments of gender on people by their appearances-style of dress, hair, wearing makeup, if they have long hair. There are certain traits we see as feminine while others we view as masculine. It is unfortunate that this is what our society has become. People make assumptions solely based on appearances without truly getting to know a person. In some cases, people whose gender appears masculine are sometimes ridiculed for exhibiting what the society regards as a woman's gender role. If you saw what appeared to be a man with a beard and Adam’s apple wearing a woman's dress, makeup, and high heels, carrying a purse, how would you react? Unfortunately, it is human nature to judge people in this way, but as Myhre argues it doesn't tell the whole story.
Similarly, in reading Levy’s chapter, I found her discussion of “bois” to be very enlightening as well. It opened my eyes to a whole other realm and made me think: What is going on with women in our culture? These “bois” are defined as “lesbians who dress androgynously, aggressively pursue casual sex, and otherwise mimic adolescent male sexuality” (130). Bois want to be young and not have the responsibility of men. They have created a new subculture, in which young women adopt not only an exaggerated male appearance and mannerisms, but more interestingly, "male" promiscuity. How are they achieving this fluid identity that they strive towards?
Seeing the way our society operates as indicated by these readings, there is a need to change these socially constructed views. How can we work to eliminate assumptions about people based on their appearance? Will be ever as Myhre states, look at people as people and not as a gender?
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