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The Matter of Sex and Gender: a Dialogue Between Trans Bodies

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The Matter of Sex and Gender: a Dialogue Between Trans Bodies THE MATTER OF SEX AND GENDER: A DIALOGUE BETWEEN TRANS BODIES AND FEMINIST THEORY A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE TEXAS WOMAN'S UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES BY J.A. STEIN, B.S. DENTON, TEXAS AUGUST2009 TEXAS WOMAN'S UNIVERSITY DENTON, TEXAS May 19, 2009 To the Dean of the Graduate School: I am submitting herewith a thesis written by J.A. Stein entitled "The Matter of Sex and Gender: A Dialogue Between Trans Bodies and Feminist Theories." I have examined this thesis for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements forthe degree of Master of Arts with a m J 'kWomen's Studies." We have read this t Accepted: �� Dean of the Graduate School ABSTRACT J.A. STEIN THE MATTER OF SEX AND GENDER: A DIALOGUE BETWEEN TRANS BODIES AND FEMINIST THEORIES AUGUST2009 Despite significantsocial and political gains derived from gender theory, feminist scholars, progressive thinkers, and those in the transgender community do not critically examine the pre-supposed meanings of sex in gender theory. Instead, they simply assume its significance,th4s erasing its complexity and inadvertently reproducing its binary status. In this paper, I use close analysis of theoretical texts to expose the foundational assumptions prevalent in prominent gender theorists who sometimes fallinto the trap of pre-supposed sex signifiers. I explain why this tendency erases the terminology's complexity and inadvertently silences diverse trans identities. Arguing that these unexamined/unintentional dualistic perceptions of sex reproduce existing binaries, I demonstrate how and why such a dualism harms trans-people and produces disjunction between our lived realities and academic theory. I conclude by presenting new and alternative ways or perceiving systems of sex that are fluidlyinclusive of broader identity categories. 111 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT ..........................................................................................iii Chapter I. ORIGINS AND IDEOLOGIES: TRENDS IN FEMINIST DISCOURSE .......... 1 II. BODY LANGUAGE: THE BORDERS, BARRIERS, AND BINARIES OF MARGINALIZED SEX ..................................................................20 III. THE ISLAND OF THE WORLD: VISIONS FOR (RE)THINKING SEX ........37 IV. WORKS CITED ............................................................................52 IV CHAPTER 1 Origins and Ideologies: Trends in Feminist Discourses I have always had trouble recogni zing myself in the features of the intellectual (philosopher, writer, professor) playing his [sic] political role according to the screenplay that you are familiar with and whose heritage deserves to be questioned. ---Jacques Derrida Just as the social forms of labor demand certain kinds of personality, the social forms of sex and gender demand ce1iain kinds of people. ---Gayle Rubin In feminist circles, theory constrained within binaries is often considered inadequate, ineffective, and incomplete, and yet, feminist scholars, progressive thinkers, and those in the transgender community have stopped short of critically examining the pre-supposed meanings of sex which, ironically, are located within an accepted (though often unacknowledged) dichotomy. In such instances, fragmented critical interrogation of both sex and gender inevitably eclipses the liberating component of contemporary sex­ gender theorizing. Consequently, this distinction has yet to fully benefit the lives of those who transgress normative identity boundaries, specifically those within the transexual 1 and transgender communities. In this thesis, I argue that by assuming a natural, dialogic, and dualistic relationship2 between sex and gender, theorists who pre-suppose untroubled 1 The spelling of transexual with one 's' reflects a conscious political move to displace the term from its medical origins. Therefore, I prefer to spell transexual with one "s. " When citing the work of others, I will follow the author's spelling preference. 2 The dichotomy between sex and gender is a unique and paradoxical one. The critique here will be on the tendency to associate sex with biology and gender with sociological apparatuses. In other words, there are more complex dualisms that exi t within the sex-gender paradigm. meanings silence "alternative" trans identities such as queer, intersex, no-hos (no- hormones transexuals), andros (androgynous gender), and genderqueer. The tendency to assume the significance of sex erases the term's complexity and inadvertently reproduces it as part of a binary. Without agitating the very significance of sex, transgressive theory theory inadvertently excludes "non-normative" identity experiences by (re )producing the problematic orders of sex vs. gender, sex-biological, and gender-social. The genesis of more inclusive feminist dialogues requires archaeology, examination, and new methodologies to replace failing discourses. In this chapter, I examine prominent gender theorists who sometimes fall into the trap of pre-supposed sex signifiers. I then explain, in chapter two, why this tendency erases the terminology' s complexity and inadvertently silences diverse trans identities. Chapter two problematizes the prevailing discourse on sex and gender as an accepted dichotomy with presupposed meanings for the term "sex." I demonstrate how and why such a dualism harms trans people and excludes identities that fall outside conventional notions of transgender. 3 In addition, unexamined/unintentional dualistic thought erases the complexity of these categories and inadvertently reproduces division. In the final chapter, I present alternative ways of perceiving systems of sex that are fluidly inclusive of broader identity categories. 3 "Conventional notions" of transgender/transexual people include re-codifying sex transitions from one oppositional "side" to the other, for example, male-to-female (MTF) or female-to-male (FTM). The traditional definition of sexual difference (as polarized binary opposites) sometimes permeates even the most liberal of ideologies addressing transgressive identification. This "either/or" thinking erases the complexity behind sexual transitioning and ignores trans people who may identify in-between or outside of the sexual binary. Thus, conventional examples of trans people (crossing from one side to the other) actually reinforces/reproduces gender binarism. I will speak more on this point in chapter two. 2 The need to present new understandings of sex is paramount for transexual activists and theorists. Despite the sex-gender dyad's potential benefits, theorists' unexamined acceptance of this dichotomy4 has had negative effects on trans people who identify beyond categories of "man" and "woman." Especially significant is the medicalization of trans people as "dysmorphic" and psychologically impaired. Since the 1960s, with the inception of the te1m "gender" in sociological and psychological circles, the transgender community has largely relied on medical apparatuses to rectify the incongruency between our "sex" and our "gender." One does not match the other. Kate Bornstein speaks to this point via her personal accounting of therapy: "transsexuality is the only condition for which the therapy is to lie .... Here I was, taking a giant step toward personal integrity by entering therapy with the truth and self-acknowledgement that I was a transsexual, and I was told, 'Don't tell anyone you' re a transsexual'" (Gender Outlaw 62). Bomstein's account echoes my own experiences in therapy. I had known from the very beginning that I did not identify completely as a male or as a female but found myself embellishing my attachment to the male gender for fear of not receiving the coveted "surgery letter," since the therapeutic purpose was to diagnose dysmorphia. Understanding medicalization as a tool for social control is foremost in examination of how and why the treatment of sexual ambiguity is firmly rooted in binary classification. Consequently, there is little room for the medical/psychological community to accept identity categories that fall outside established sexual domains. 4 I explore this un examined acceptance later in th is chapter. 3 The sex-gender distinction may provide a neat little package for feminists to use as they problematize connections among power, language, and gender while applauding identity transgressions as socially progressive. However, for trnnsgender theorists and members, this little package can be a tight box of static imperatives. The sex-gender distinction is an inclusive and free domain for trans people only if all spaces of identity are recognized, especially those existing outside the sexual binary. If the distinction between sex and gender exists, then it is critical that both sides be examined equa1ly and without ignorance of one for knowledge of the other. The gender component of the sex­ gender dyad has often been positioned by feminist thinkers as a "socially constructed" dividend of power, institutions, and difference. 5 Additionally, some feminists have examined queer theory's defining lack of attention to other intersections that may interact with and alter perceptions and definitions of gender. 6 As a result, perceptions of gender have become more fluid, nuanced, and critically re-defined and examined as an oppressive social construct while perceptions of sex have not developed in similar fashion. Humans have a unique ability to question their own existence. What
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