Curiosity Project Post #1: Gender
The topic I choose is on gender and about the different roles and identities in society. I wanted to understand more about the many ways gender is perceived by people in western society and in other cultures, and to learn how concepts about gender have changed throughout history. Although this topic can be argued and analyzed in many ways, and there are people who feel very strongly about it. I wanted to explore the topic of gender in a non-partisan way.
Firstly, something that I learned, and think is an important aspect to note before delving into the topic, is that sex and gender are separate things. “Sex is characterized by biological and physical traits of the body, such as reproductive organs, hormones, outward appearance of genitalia, secondary sex characteristics, and chromosomes. Whereas gender is the performance of roles, identities, and ideas surrounding masculine, feminine, or neutral traits. Binary is the predominate idea of only 2 genders, male and female.” (Bainbridge)
We also usually think of sex in the same way, that certain biological traits such as two XX chromosomes equals a female and that XY chromosomes equals a male. However, “intersex people share a variety of traits across the sexual divide.” (Bainbridge) Examples of an intersex person would be someone who has XX chromosomes but present in most physical ways as male. Or someone with extra or less chromosomes, such as XO or XXY. Intersex people are more common than you might think. “Approximately 17 of every 1,000 people are intersex.” (Burn)
I learned there are many cultures throughout history that have and still recognize gender fluidity or categories that exist beyond the binary. Some good examples being the Hijra in India, who identify as a third gender, dating back as far as the Kama Sutra, even today these Hijra range from Intersex people to male cross dressers.
In Canada, Two Spirit is a term that was coined in the 1990s, to reclaim one of the many historical traditions of Indigenous people that colonization tried to remove. Indigenous cultures use this term to represent those who have both male and female spirits and to represent third/fourth genders in their cultures.
Lastly the Burnesha of Albania (Balkan sworn virgins) who have sworn a vow of chastity, wear male attire, and thereby can be elevated to the status of men and share the same rights, however the population of Burnesha is increasingly declining. (Bainbridge)
These few examples show that concepts of gender have been fluid in history across different cultures. Even in Western Europe prior to the 18th century, there was a theory that men and women’s reproductive organs could belong to the same sex. However, during this time, gender as well as other categories like race and class, were placed on a hierarchy, where white male people of high class were placed at the top. (Bainbridge) With the dawn of enlightenment thinking and revolutionary uprisings worldwide; such as the American, Haitian, and French revolutions, language about rights of man started to appear. This language however wasn’t thinking about the term of “man” as meaning all human beings. And therefore, only addressing high class white voting men. (Bainbridge) In the 18th and 19th centuries are where we see a further codification of the accepted binaries (male and female). And with the rise of colonization there was a solidification of gendered roles becoming the norm. This occurrence has no doubt influenced those in the West who do not fit these gender norms or fit within the binary. As Shawn M. Burn states in her article “I’m concerned about socially constructed gender binarism because it contributes to norms supportive of stigmatization, harassment, discrimination, marginalization, and violence towards those with non-conforming gender identities and expressions.” (Burn) There are many people and cultures though that still perceive gender only within the binary. Whether this perception of the binary is due to such circumstances as the rise of colonization, the Western formation of traditional duties of women and men in social and workplace matters, or rather if it’s an innate comprehension of gender in human nature, is hard to tell. Thus, I concluded this is why gender is heavily debated upon. As many historic practices die out (including both binary conforming and non-binary conforming customs) and new interpretations of gender are formed, people continue to feel increasingly divided about the topic of gender.
Sources:
Bainbridge, Danielle. “The Origin of Gender.” YouTube, uploaded by Origin of Everything, 25 Sep 2018, https://youtu.be/5e12ZojkYrU.
Burn, Shawn M. “Understanding the Changing Landscape of Gender Identity.” Psychology Today, 02 Mar 2014, www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/presence-mind/201403/understanding-the-changing-landscape-gender-identity#comments_bottom.
Peters, Jill. “Nirvan, the Third Gender of India.” Third Gender, 2013, www.jillpetersphotography.com/thirdgender.html.
Sengupta, Manimanjari. “These Women Have ‘Converted’ Themselves Into Men For A Reason That Is Both Ironic & Empowering.” ScoopWhoop, ScoopWhoop, 16 June 2016, www.scoopwhoop.com/Albanian-women-live-as-men-Burneshas/.
“Who Are Two Spirit People.” CCGSD, 19 Aug 2016, ccgsd-ccdgs.org/1-who-are-two-spirit-people/.
