Do you believe in gender?
I know what you're thinking "Of course I believe in gender,everyone is either male or female"
Wrong. Physically, you are male or female, but mentally there is no reason to be...which can be better explained by this lovely fellow, Micheal James [the first 2 mins are all that's needed for the explanation]
What are your views? Is there actually such things as male and female or is it all created by society? EG: A mother goes into topshop // new look // any womens store and takes her son [we're talking toddler age here] he picks up a headband and puts it on seeing nothing wrong with it as he has not been taught what's masculine or feminine.
Wrong. Physically, you are male or female, but mentally there is no reason to be...which can be better explained by this lovely fellow, Micheal James [the first 2 mins are all that's needed for the explanation]
What are your views? Is there actually such things as male and female or is it all created by society? EG: A mother goes into topshop // new look // any womens store and takes her son [we're talking toddler age here] he picks up a headband and puts it on seeing nothing wrong with it as he has not been taught what's masculine or feminine.
this is a great blog.
With your todler example, how do you teach maculinity or femmininty?
I'm foggy on the idea of gender. I think society makes you want to be either a girl or guy. I know a lot of people get confused about it because they don't understand it's not only guys and gals, there's more. & we as classifying human beings haven't created a label for such. Humans can't understand anything if it's not labeled.
I in no way think gender has anything to do with weather or not you have a penis, vagina or whatnot. In the next few generations, Gender will no longer exist & will become a forgotten fad.
I think you should read My Gender Workbook by Kate Bornstein.
Umberto, July 30th, 2008 at 03:48:37pm
to me, gender is real. although you can say you feel like a girl and like boys while still being a boy, you are still a boy. you are born with boy parts, so i think thats what defines your actual gender. sexual preferance is different, hormones is different. there are many gay people that like their same sex but would never get a sex change. there are many people who do want a sex change. but gender to me is what parts you have. if you get a sex change, you can call yourself whatever sex that you have the proper parts for. but if you are a boy, have boy parts, but are gay, you are still a boy. i'm not sure if i explained that clearly, lol. i think a lot of people think gay guys especially are all femine and want to be girls. this is DEFINIETLY not the case. there are many gay guys that are proud to be men. thats a bit off topic, though. bottom line- gender depends on your parts, not your hormones, lol.
suburban.zombie, July 28th, 2008 at 01:20:01am
'Guys' with XXY chromosomes often behave in a feminine manner and may be gay or straight or bi. And don't forget about fa'afafine. Traditionally eldest Samoan boys are raised by their mothers to be extremely feminine although the practice is dying out. Many of these gus are straight but many also become gay. I've worked with some of these guysover the years and I personally love them.
Grandma, July 25th, 2008 at 03:41:10am
Like Kurtni said, thank God, it's generally based on hormones. A toddler can be taught to dress like a girl, act like a girl, do anything like a girl, but once the testosterone starts pumping, the sexual male instincts will start to kick in and that's really going to form who he is, be it gay or straight. =] Sure, society can pressure a person into being something they're not, but it plays only a miniscule role.
Hello, My Name Is Asshole, July 24th, 2008 at 03:10:48pm
I agree about the sexuality thing...sexuality is not at all connected to gender imo
I also agree your body produces hormones, but I believe in years to come the gender boundaries will start to blur.
Eg: If it was "acceptable" for men to wear skirts, a lot probably would...just like many women wear trousers now when years ago that wasn't "acceptable"
EvilGiraffe!, July 24th, 2008 at 02:33:27pm
yes, i do believe in gender. like kurtni said, male and females both have exact hormones given off. gender doesn't set your sexuality in stone, though. there is nothing wrong with being gay. it doesn't make you better or worse than anyone else. it's who you are.
get famous, July 24th, 2008 at 01:54:08pm
"Wrong. Physically, you are male or female, but mentally there is no reason to be.."
That's scientifically inaccurate. Your mentality is affected by various hormones your body produces. The example you gave about the small child doesn't take into consideration that most distinctive male characteristics are developed during puberty. I'm sure society has some effect on our views of gender, but that doesn't explain all of it.
Kurtni, July 24th, 2008 at 01:14:31pm
gosh he looks cute. hahaha XD
uh i dunno... i mean, i feel perfectly comfortable as a woman... well not prefectly but i'm still rather a girl than a boy. hehe... i mean i like to be like this but i have no problems what so ever with people who are gay/bi/transsexual or whatever. i think it's nice when people are different.
princess consuela, July 24th, 2008 at 11:20:00am