#jjaygenderstudies

[forgenderstudiesclass]

Reading Response to "The Five Sexes: Why Male and Female Are Not Enough" by Anne Fausto-Sterling and "The Medical Construction of Gender" by Suzanne Kessler

The article by Sterling gave a brief overview on why have two sexes are not sufficient because there are people who have both reproductive organs which Sterling identifies as "herms," "merms," and "ferms." The reason for this is because, although many "intersexes" enjoy a fulfilling life, a great amount of them still live in fear of being ridiculed and feel the stigma of having more than one reproductive organ. The idea that accepting "herms," "merms," and "ferms," as official sexes will stop insults is foolish. That idea gives hope that the human race neither deserves nor will achieve because humanity will always have something to insult, complain, or slur against even if that something is not relevant to them in any way. To be born with more than one sex organ does not affect anyone, yet it is not accepted.

The article "The Medical Construction of Gender" by Kessler explains the painfully long and, one can assume, expensive process of turning an intersexed infant into either a boy or a girl. The whole process just proves how important it is to fit in the social construction of the world. Parents would mutilate their own child just so the child could a life with an identity as a boy or girl and assume a "gender." The intolerance of society pushes people so far to meet its constructed standards including parents and children. It all boils down to conformity and roles in society. If a person cannot be identified being a boy or girl, man or woman, male or female, that person will not have a place in society and the only reason why is because society will not know how to assign gender roles to the person.

[forgenderstudiesclass]

The Social Construct of Gender by Judith Lorber Reading Response

The text assigned for February 4th is painfully true. Lorber's essay is dominated with arguments that gender is socially constructed and men are seen to be more prominent than women in wester civilization. Men are paid more and society sees them as a greater asset.  She then makes a daring statement by saying "the continuing purpose of gender as a modern social institution is to construct women as a group to be subordinates of men as a group." One cannot help but to argue that is true, but at the same time one can argue the same for man. In a "normal household" the mother is the one who is seen of more importance. If a child behaves in a classroom the teacher has a higher chance of saying, "Your parents raised your well," or "Your mother raised you well." A common quote, "Do you kiss your mother with that mouth," if someone says something foul or vulgar. This shows that even though "modern social institution" is to make women subordinates of men, it could also be the other way around.

[forgenderstudiesclass]

Jamaica Kincaid's "Girl" and Borstein's "Welcome To Your Gender Workbook" reading response

Jamaica Kincaid's "Girl" is a piece of text that is a how to guide on how to "properly" be a woman. The mother seems to be the one instructing Kincaid while ignoring her questions or answering them in a sardonic manner. If geography, culture, and time period were to be largely disregarded, this piece of text seems to be an absolute guideline of being a woman. It is not questioned and everything seems to be set in stone simply by the tone of the text. The guidelines for being a proper woman (or a proper man for that matter) are different in present day United States compared to the text, but there are still guidelines in which one should follow if the person wants to be seen as a man or as a woman. If the person or people fail to meet those standards are often insulted and ridiculed for not being a real man or a real woman. 

The second text "Welcome To Your Gender Workbook" by Borstein, takes a whole new angle on a proper man or a proper woman. In fact, it questions what is a proper woman and a proper man. The text puts the reader in some situations that might make the reader feel awkward or uncomfortable.  The main point of the text is about the reader. It questions on how the reader defines his or herself. To a reader who doesn't question his or her gender, it seems futile to even take the questionnaire provided within the text. The second text seems more appropriate for someone who is screaming, "Help! I'm a man trapped inside a woman's body," or vice versa.