Is Gender a Result of Biology or is it a Social Construct - Essay Example

Is Gender a Result of Biology or is it a Social Construct? OUTLINE I. ESSAY TOPIC: Is gender a result of biology or is it a social construct? II. THESIS STATEMENT: Biology provides the natural, physiological basis upon which the choice of gender identity and association is made or changed. III. BODY 1st point: I. TOPIC SENTENCE: Society generally tends to recklessly interchange ‘sex’ and ‘gender’ to represent the same idea, which is a grave error. II. QUOTE: Sex is dichotomous and refers to biological differences between males and females. Gender on the other hand, is idiosyncratic and reflects degrees of femininity and masculinity. Social norms dictate that men are expected to possess masculine characteristics and women are expected to possess feminine characteristics (Schmalz & Kerstetter, 2006; 536). III. DISCUSSION: Some children are born into sexes in which they feel incompatible usually because they do not exhibit the degree of masculinity or femininity that society expects of them. IV. TRANSITION: This often results in GID, where they want to be the other sex. 2nd point: I. TOPIC SENTENCE: Though uncomfortable in their present sex, becoming the other sex/gender becomes even more confusing. II. QUOTE: Gender identity includes personal and social attributes, social relationships, interests and abilities, symbolic and stylistic behaviors, and1 biological/physical/material attributes (Frable 1997; 139). III. DISCUSSION: The confusion stems from the fact that these individuals lack the biological attributes to be identified with the gender they aspire to, which is the cause of their GID in the first place. IV. TRANSITION: These individuals sometimes resort to hormonal treatments or sex reassignment surgery. 3rd point: I. TOPIC SENTENCE: The above remedy may be the best available. II. QUOTE: The supporting quote will come from the experience of a girl, known as Christa, from the Adolescence journal. The name of the author is not available, but the publication information is in the list of journals. III. DISCUSSION: It not only helps the affected individuals balance sex and gender, but also eliminates the stigma associated with GID. IV. TRANSITION: Since it decisively solves the problem of gender identity within the context of occurrence, that is, the individual affected. With time, they will gain societal acceptance, that is, if they don’t already have it. QUESTION: Is gender a result of biology or is it a social construct? THESIS STATEMENT: Biology provides the natural, physiological basis upon which the choice of gender identity and association is made or changed. In determining whether or not the gender of a child (or an adult) stems from its physical attributes at birth or its behavioral choices as is grows, certain factors and challenges have, over the years, stuck out for painstaking consideration. While society might take for granted, for example, that a child born with male genitalia would grow up to be a man with masculine attitudes, the dynamics of everyday human complexities have incessantly challenged this line of reasoning. The issues of gender identity, and more especially, choice, have become extremely important and sensitive as gender becomes more a social issue than a mere biological expression. Cited in Frable (1997; 139), Kohlberg (1966; 18) defines gender identity as the “cognitive self-categorization as ‘boy’ or ‘girl’.” Judith Butler further expands on this assertion, while examining Simone de Beauvoir’s famous expression that “one is not born, but rather becomes, a woman” (Beauvoir, 1973; 301, cited in Butler, 1986; 505) by arguing that the true masculine or feminine identity of a person transcends the mere existence of sexual genitalia. According to her, “gender is dislodged from sex”. (Butler, 1986; 505) Her following question, however, paints a clear picture of the dilemma that persists in individuals’ attempt to classify gender: “If genders are in some sense chosen, then what happens to the definition of gender as a cultural interpretation of sex, that is, what happens to the ways in which we are, as it were, already culturally interpreted? How can gender be both a matter of choice and cultural construction?” (Butler, 1986; 505) Since the genital make-up of a child at birth is often generally assumed to be the blueprint of its future accommodations and choices, society generally tends to erroneously and recklessly interchange ‘sex’ and ‘gender’ to represent the same idea. Schmalz & Kerstetter (2006; 536) make a clear distinction between both terms by asserting that “sex is dichotomous and refers to biological differences between males and females. Gender on the other hand, is idiosyncratic and reflects degrees of femininity and masculinity. Social norms dictate that men are expected to possess masculine characteristics and women are expected to possess feminine characteristics.” On face value, this clarification may be simple, but carries the issue’s underlying problem. Sometimes, a child born with a vulva may not grow up to assume feminine traits, just as another born with a penis may not grow up to assume masculine traits, as society will expect. A conflict of these physical and behavioral attributes often results in a desire to live or be treated like, with a conviction that one has the typical feelings and reactions of the other sex (Gender Identity Disorder in Adolescence: Outcomes of Psychotherapy, 1999; 305). A contradiction of social expectations, this condition is known as the Gender Identity Disorder (GID). And as societies attach certain gender attributes to particular sexes, the desired separation of sex from gender becomes more difficult. As if revolting against an assigned gender, based on their sex, is not difficult enough for certain individuals, choosing or determining what ‘camp’ to which they (want to) belong often proves even more cumbersome. It often raises questions and objections sometimes from within the affected individuals themselves. Butler (1986; 508) points out that “becoming a gender is an impulsive yet mindful process of interpreting a cultural reality laden with sanctions, taboos and prescriptions” and that “the anguish or terror of leaving a prescribed gender or of trespassing upon another gender territory testifies to the social constraints upon gender interpretation…” This is because gender identity, according to Frable (1997; 139), “includes personal and social attributes, social relationships, interests and abilities, symbolic and stylistic behaviors, and2 biological/physical/material attributes,” which, in these individuals’ cases, clearly appear to have been mismatched. In other words, they lack the biological attributes to identify with their desired sex. In resolving this ‘biological anomaly’, such radical choices as hormonal treatment and surgical sex reassignment have become popular. Sometimes, these choices, after proper consultation and therapy, may offer the best remedy available. The following excerpt from the Adolescence journal features a ‘girl’ named Christa and her process to correcting her Gender Identity Disorder: When she was seventeen, her parents brought her to the Frankfurt University Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Outpatient Clinic. They had requested therapy because of Christa's persistent wish for sex reassignment. Christa reported that she had always felt herself to be a boy, refusing to wear female clothes or play with girls... Christa lived two lives: at home and at work, she grudgingly passed as a female, but otherwise she lived as a male. She had a steady girlfriend who was fully aware of the situation and who hoped, too, that sex reassignment would be performed. The girlfriend's parents, however, did not know Christa's biological sex, and considered her to be their future son-in-law. Christa readily accepted that she had to wait two years before medical sex reassignment measures would be considered. She believed that the waiting period was a reasonable requirement... She said she never had any doubts that her decision to live as a male was the right one. Conflicts arose only when she encountered resistance, mainly from her mother, who opposed her desire to become male... After completing two years of psychotherapy, Christa was referred to the Frankfurt University Institute for Sexual Science, where she would continue to receive therapy and eventually undergo the procedure for sex reassignment (Gender Identity Disorder in Adolescence: Outcomes of Psychotherapy, 1999; 305). By affording previously deprived individuals an opportunity to be able identify with the gender of their chosen sex, procedures like this not only strike a ‘balance’ between sex and gender, but also eliminate the confusion, trauma and stigma associated with being at sea or ‘undecided’ about such a socially crucial issue. Now, although the legitimacy of a new gender, based on physical alterations, may come into question, it is important to note that it decisively solves the problem of gender identity within the context of occurrence, that is, the individual affected. With time, they will gain societal acceptance. Certain episodes in the Showtime TV series, The L-Word, provide a vivid, modern day picture of individuals grappling with these challenges, and similar choices they make to correct their problems. Having considered the weight of biology against that of society as affects gender identity, it may be safe to conclude that in most regards, gender is better appropriated as a social construct. True, the social concepts of masculinity and femininity are based on the physical features of the male and female sexes (assigned by biology). But society has impressed on itself, the right to assign gender expectations to specific sexes, as well as the prerogative of rectifying, when the need arises, what it may deem as biology’s ambiguity or indecisions. PEER-REVIEWED JOURNALS Butler, Judith. “Variations on Sex and Gender: Beauvoir, Wittig and Foucault”. PRAXIS International (PRAXIS International), 1985. Pages 505 & 508. www.ceeol.com Frable, Deborrah E.S. “Gender, Racial Ethnic, Sexual and Class Identities.” Annual Review of Psychology. Annual Reviews, Inc., 1997. Pages 139+. www.questia.com Schmalz, Dorothy L & Kerstetter, Deborah L. “Girlie Girls and Manly Men: Children's Stigma Consciousness of Gender in Sports and Physical Activities.” Journal of Leisure Research. National Recreation and Park Association, 2006. Pages 536+. www.questia.com Sender, Katherine. “To Have and to Be: Sex, Gender, and the Paradox of Change.” Women and Language. George Mason University, 1997. Pages 18+. www.questia.com Unknown Author. “Gender Identity Disorder in Adolescence: Outcomes of Psychotherapy.” Adolescence. Libra Publishers, Inc., 1999. Page 305. www.questia.com Read More