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Exploring the Construction of the Sexually Dimorphic Body Portland State University PDXScholar Dissertations and Theses Dissertations and Theses 1-1-2011 Gendering the Body: Exploring the Construction of the Sexually Dimorphic Body Sarah Kaye Lewis Portland State University Follow this and additional works at: https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds Let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation Lewis, Sarah Kaye, "Gendering the Body: Exploring the Construction of the Sexually Dimorphic Body" (2011). Dissertations and Theses. Paper 152. https://doi.org/10.15760/etd.152 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of PDXScholar. Please contact us if we can make this document more accessible: [email protected]. Gendering the Body: Exploring the Construction of the Sexually Dimorphic Body by Sarah Kaye Lewis A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Sociology Thesis Committee: Grant Farr, Chair Ann Mussey Martha Balshem Portland State University ©2011 ABSTRACT Gender is a pervasive and regulating social institution that is operationalized in mainstream Western culture as a natural extension of the ontological difference perceived to exist between the binarily sexed bodies of male and female. Feminist theory has widely established, however, that gender is done - i.e., gender is not a naturally occurring phenomenon, but is an ongoing construction engaged and replicated by individual actors and which, while compulsory, is nevertheless optional. Within this canon is a small number of feminist theorists, notably Judith Lorber, Judith Bulter, and Nancy Tuana, who argue that the constructive manifestations of gender performativity (that is, do ing of gender) are not limited to the social sphere. They argue the role of gender in the production of the material body, asserting that doing gender has a constructive role in physical embodiment: what we do influences, and in fact creates, what our bodies are . This study engages the feminist theory on the production of the body through a qualitative exploration of the lived experience of gendered bodily change, as described in the first-hand narratives of trans-identified individuals. I predict that the analysis of the narratives in the sample will show that in comparison to cisgender individuals, trans individuals possess a heightened awareness of the performative nature of gender, and that trans individuals consciously engage performativity in order to conform to the normative expectations associated with the desired gender role. I further predict that trans S. K. Lewis - Gendering the Body / Abstract i individuals experience sexually dimorphic bodily change to be a direct result of changes to their gender identity. The interview analysis findings provide mixed support for the first hypothesis, demonstrating that while trans individuals in the sample do demonstrate a heightened awareness of the ways in which gender is performed, the respondents' insights came largely from their experiences in their compulsorily cisgender, pre-transition lives, rather than their current gender embodiments. The concept of performativity and its perceived implication of artificiality clashed with the respondents' sense of their gendered actions as an expression of an authentic self, and my analysis thus addresses performativity as a necessarily polemic concept located between the subjectivity of the individual narratives and the theoretical position that gender is done . The findings provide a substantial level of support for the second hypothesis that trans individuals understand experienced bodily change to be a direct result of changes in gender identity. This study's exploration of trans experiences of lived bodily change contributes a narrative perspective to the ongoing discussion in feminist theory which surrounds the role of gender in the production of the material body. S. K. Lewis - Gendering the Body / Abstract ii for Max S. K. Lewis - Gendering the Body / Dedication iii Table of Contents Abstract ................................................................................................................................ i Dedication .......................................................................................................... ................iii List of Tables ......................................................................................................................v Glossary .............................................................................................................................vi Chapter One Introduction ........................................................................................................................1 Chapter Two Part I: Theoretical Review ................................................................................................12 Part II: Literature Review .................................................................................................26 Chapter Three Methodology .....................................................................................................................56 Chapter Four Findings ............................................................................................................................74 Chapter Five Part I: Discussion ............................................................................................................118 Part II: Conclusion ..........................................................................................................137 Reference List .................................................................................................................144 Appendices A. Interview Guide ..............................................................................................149 B. Call For Participants .......................................................................................154 C. Intermediary Script and Cover Letter .............................................................155 D. Questionnaire .................................................................................................157 E. Cover Letter of Informed Consent .................................................................161 S. K. Lewis - Gendering the Body / Table of Contents iv List of Tables Table 1: Selected Characteristics of the Sample ..............................................................78 S. K. Lewis - Gendering the Body / List of Tables v GLOSSARY Cisgender: This term refers to individuals whose sex category is cohesively aligned with their gender identity (i.e., male/man, female/woman). Cis is a Latin prefix meaning “on this side” or “on the same side.” In their article "Doing Gender, Doing Heteronormativity: 'Gender Normals,' Transgender People, and the Social Maintenance of Heterosexuality," Kristen Schilt and Laurel Westbrook defined cisgender as a label for "individuals who have a match between the gender they were assigned at birth, their bodies, and their personal identity" (2009: 440). The term "cisgender" is also used to discussed the larger concept: just as "gender" can refer to both individual identity and a general social phenomenon, cisgender is at times used to collectively discuss those who consider their sex and gender to be cohesive. Transgender : This term refers to individuals whose gender identity is not cohesive with sex category as assessed at birth. They do not identify with the gender traditionally ascribed to their sex category, and instead identify with the gender. In the theoretical context, the term "transgender" is used to refer to the larger phenomenon of gender transgression, specifically as it relates to moving from one socially-accepted gender role to the other. Sex : This term refers to biological sex, which can include consideration of anatomical genitalia, chromosomal karyotype, and/or endrocrinological/ hormonal typing. Culturally, "sex" is understood to be limited to an exclusive male-female dichotomy. However, this narrow conception neglects the true spectrum of human diversity and the prevalence (and, indeed, the existence of) intersexuality. Though presumed to be a naturally occurring "fact," sex is also a phenomenon subject to social interaction. As Candace West and Don Zimmerman (1987) write, "Sex is a determination made through the application of socially agreed upon biological criteria for classifying persons as females or males" (127). Herein, "sex" will be used to refer both to biological sex and to socially- assigned sex categories in cases of intersexuality and/or "ambiguous" genitalia. S. K. Lewis - Gendering the Body / Glossary vi Gender : Gender is a social phenomenon not empirically related to sex. To again quote West and Zimmerman (1987), gender "is the activity of managing situated conduct in light of normative conceptions of attitudes and activities appropriate for one's sex category" (127). Culturally, gender is understood to be limited to an exclusive male-female dichotomy, though many other gender identities exist. Herein, "gender" will be used to refer to the full spectrum of gender identities, including but not limited to male, female, trans, transgender, transsexual, androgyny, and genderqueer. Sexual Dimorphism : In this study, the term sexual dimorphism refers not to genital binary (i.e., male/female), but rather to the non-genital physical differential that is observed between the sexes of the same species. S.
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