Variation:

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Variation Culture Biology, Gender Sex
1. Sex versus gender 2. Intermediate sexes and
developmental issues 3. Third genders 4.
Gender as a linguistic category 5.
Transgender/transsex
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1. Sex versus gender
We have been talking about the relationship
between biological variations in the realm of
race to cultural variations a key biological
difference recognized in virtually every culture
is sex. Classic definitions within
anthropology sex the biologically-based
differentiation between male and
female. gender culturally prescribed
differentiation between roles grounded in the
biological differentiation between the
sexes. This distinction still widely accepted
but more recently challenged. Well use it as
working distinction to be investigated.
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Biological differences between the
sexes Categorical Different genitalia
Cyclical versus non-cyclical brain (I.e.,
menstruating versus non) Statistical Body
hair Stature Skin color Voice pitch
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What do the biological differences have to do
with roles and statuses? anthropologists
observed that, in society after society, where
there is a gender-based distinction of
subsistence activities between hunting and
gathering, it is the men who tend to hunt, the
women who tend to gather. Is there a biological
basis for this cultural distinction? Yes.
However, culture can overturn it. in society
after society, where there is a distinction along
gender lines between child-care-givers and
non-care-givers, it is the women who tend to be
the care-givers.
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What is a role anyway?
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Role bundle of rights, duties, and
expectations right what you can demand
of others duty what you must do in
relation to others expectation how you
should be Status a position (associated with
a role) within a structure of such
positions Recruitment rule for selecting who
occupies what status
How are you expected to conduct yourself if you
are male or female?
Are you male or female?
How did you get to be male or female?
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Do biological propensities explain the existence
of gender roles and statuses?
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Do biological propensities explain the existence
of gender roles and statuses? Rights, duties,
and expectations refer to socially recognized
ideas about proper comportment. Biological
characteristics of stature, strength, etc. are
clinally distributed. Why try to impose a duty
on someone or expect something of them if that is
not their tendency independently of the cultural
rule?
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Do biological propensities explain the existence
of gender roles and statuses? Rights, duties,
and expectations refer to socially recognized
ideas about proper comportment. Biological
characteristics of stature, strength, etc. are
clinally distributed. Why try to impose a duty
on someone or expect something of them if that is
not their tendency independently of the cultural
rule? Also, observe that many of the gender role
rights, duties, and expectations (about clothing,
hairstyle, body ornamentation, speech patterns)
are so variable as to indicate that they have no
biological basis. Yet cultures are interested in
those aspects of gender roles as well.
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Conclusion the biological differentiation
between males and females does not explain the
existence of socially recognized gender roles.
We need another kind of explanation for those
roles, if indeed we find that there are near
universal distinctions between male and female
genders in different cultures.
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Conclusion the biological differentiation
between males and females does not explain the
existence of socially recognized gender roles.
We need another kind of explanation for those
roles, if indeed we find that there are near
universal distinctions between male and female
genders in different cultures. Gender
distinctions are, in part, a mechanism for
organizing the complexity of individual
differences into a small number of social actors
(for example, males and females, though well
complicate this later). It then becomes a
simpler task to conceptualize how those few
actors can be put together to form a cohesive
collectivity (for example, through sex and
marriage as social glue).
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Gender role orientation
Males Females
Gender role orientation
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At the same time, it is possible to see why, if
people are divided up into exclusive categories
of males and females (i.e., if the cultural
categorization is taken as a prior condition), it
makes sense to attribute to males those
expectations which are in keeping with average
male biology, and to females those expectations
in keeping with average female biology.
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At the same time, it is possible to see why, if
people are divided up into exclusive categories
of males and females (i.e., if the cultural
categorization is taken as a prior condition), it
makes sense to attribute to males those
expectations which are in keeping with average
male biology, and to females those expectations
in keeping with average female biology.
Culture could assign the expectations in the
opposite way (male gender role expectations to
female biology female gender expectations to
male biology), but this would be relatively
harder, that is, it would require relatively more
cultural inculcation of the roles. Therefore, it
is relatively easier to assign gender role
expectations in accord with the average
biological propensities of males and females.
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However, because role expectations are assigned
to gender statuses on the basis of typical (or
mean) biological characteristics, while the
characteristics themselves are distributed
clinally, it still requires cultural inculcation
to get individuals to conform to the expected
norms.
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2. Intermediate sexes and developmental
issues In contemporary U.S., we speak of an
individual as being either male or female. That
is, there are two gender statuses. How do
individuals come to occupy one of those statuses?

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Typically by externally observable genitalia
traditionally this was determined at birth now
have ultrasounds through which the fetus in utero
can be can be observed can refer to this
principle of recruitment to gender status as
phenotypic sex.
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Typically by externally observable genitalia
traditionally this was determined at birth now
have ultrasounds through which the fetus in utero
can be can be observed can refer to this
principle of recruitment to gender status as
phenotypic sex. However, also have
amniocentesis, as well as other tests through
which genetic composition can be ascertained
this allows determination of genotypic sex, and
well be interested in this distinction.
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However, phenotypic sex is not always
automatically determined by genotypic sex.
Stage 1 Embryo development after
fertilization through approximately day 40 of
gestation genotypic sex is lacking phenotypic
manifestations Stage 2 Only in genotypic
males with the Y chromosome Y chromosome
contains a gene that codes for H-Y antigen this
allows for the development of the sexually
undifferentiated structures in the direction of
male testes Stage 3 Only in genotypic males
with the Y chromosome Testes secrete hormones
(androgens) that prevent the internal development
of the uterus and vagina. The external genitalia
of males and females derive from the same
primitive phallus, with the clitoris the analogue
of the penis. Development of the penis depends
on the presence of the male hormones.
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So Y chromosome contains gene coding for H-Y
antigen
H-Y antigen enables development of the testes
Testes secrete hormones (androgens) which 1.
Suppress uterine development 2. Stimulate
external male genitalia.
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Many things can cause phenotypic development to
diverge from this model If you castrate a
normal XY male in utero, it will develop as a
phenotypic female If a developing XY male is
insensitive to androgen, it will develop as a
phenotypic female If a developing XX female is
exposed to high levels of androgen, it will
develop in the direction of a phenotypic
male Etc.
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Add to these developmental possibilities various
genetic outcomes that diverge from the normal XX
or XY mode, for example Klinefelters syndrome
XXY or XY/XXY mosaic Turners syndrome X or
XX/X mosaic True hermaphroditism XX or XY or
mosaic, but both testes and ova develop
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It is evident that even phenotypic sex is, in
some measure, clinally distributed. There are
phenotypes that are intermediate between male and
female total incidence of intermediate
types unknown, because so much secrecy surrounds
them in the contemporary U.S. and Europe, and
because it is impossible to draw precise
boundaries in the case of hormonal effects,
producing different sizes and shapes of
genitalia medical practice in the U.S. has
varied, but has regularly involved making a
choice between whether the child should be male
or female. surgical and other procedures
developed and used to try to align biological sex
with a dichotomous, culturally-constituted gender
system.
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3. Third genders? A question we have to pose as
anthropologists is whether the two-gender system
found in the contemporary U.S. and Europe is
universal. Considerable debate over this issue,
but in the last twenty years mounting research
that many other cultures have developed what
appear to be third genders, that is, a gender
status that is neither male nor female, but
something in between. What is interesting for
present purposes, because it demonstrates the
cultural character of gender as role, is that
these third genders may be recruited through
choice. That is, individuals born with the
genitalia associated with biological male or
female sex choose to be in the third gender.
In some, but not all, cases this involves
surgically altering the genitalia.
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Now evidence on thirds genders from many areas
around the world, although the concept is still
being debated. Ill mention only two 1.
Hijras of India 2. Two-spirits (also called
berdaches) found traditionally in North
American Indian communities.
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The Hijras are found especially in Northern
India They may be born with ambiguous
genitalia, or they may be males who undergo
surgery to remove their penis and their
testicles. However, they do not undergo surgical
procedure to form a vagina. They are associated
with the Mother Goddess, Bahuchara Mata, whom
they worship and serve. Evidence of their
culturally-recognized status. They are also
ceremonial performers after the birth of a child,
for weddings, and at temple festivals. There is
even a mythological explanation of their origin.
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Here is one such origin myth of the Hijras, told
by Hindu from South India (from Nanda, Serena,
Neither Man Nor Woman, Wadsworth Publishing Co.,
1999, p. 13) Rams father commanded Ram to
leave Ayodhya his native city and go into the
forest for 14 years. As he went, the whole city
followed him because they loved him so. As Ram
came to the banks of the river at the edge of the
forest, he turned to the people and said, Ladies
and gents, please wipe your tears and go away.
But those people who were not men and not women
did not know what to do. So they stayed there
because Ram did not ask them to go. They
remained there 14 years and when Ram returned
from Lanka he found those people there, all
meditating. And so they were blessed by Ram.
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Two-spirits found in traditional North American
Indian communities Different from S. Asian
third gender No genital surgery most are
phenotypic males who choose the two- spirit
role May marry and carry on responsibilities
of a wife, though they are distinguished from
females On-line photos can be found at Will
Roscoes website.
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1895 photo of Charlie Weaver, Navajo (right) with
friend.
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We'wha (Zuni) demonstrating weaving on the Mall
in Washington, D.C.
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Mask of Ko'lhamana, Zuni two-spirit kachina
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Finds-Them-and-Kills-Them (Crow), 1928
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Heemaneo, Cheyenne male two-spirits (on right),
leading the scalp dance
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Cheyenne hetaneman or female two-spirit in a
ledger drawing ca. 1889
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4. Gender as a linguistic category Gender
roles manifest themselves in languages around the
world in different ways. American English,
differences between male and female speech in
pitch contours turn-taking in
conversation the pronunciation of certain
sounds, e.g., s word choices Etc.
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In other languages, find situations where A
special morpheme is applied to words to indicate
whether the speaker is male or female There
are alternate vocabularies depending on whether
the speaker is male or female In some
bilingual situations, especially with linguistic
exogamy, husbands and wives may speak different
languages they mark their differences by the
language they speak.
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Considerable amount of recent research on
language and gender issues, which we cannot even
begin to review here. Want to mention only one
issue, which many of you will be aware of
gender as a grammatical category of nouns.
the sing. masc. the sing. fem. the
neuter French le la Spanish el la Portu
guese o a German der die das These are
called noun classifiers. Every noun has to occur
with one of the classifiers. English lacks them.
Some languages, like Navajo, have an elaborate
classifier system long objects, round
objects, containers, etc.
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These are called noun classifiers. Every noun
has to occur with one of the classifiers.
English lacks them. Some languages, like Navajo,
have an elaborate classifier system long
objects, round objects, containers, etc.
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These are called noun classifiers. Every noun
has to occur with one of the classifiers.
English lacks them. Some languages, like Navajo,
have an elaborate classifier system long
objects, round objects, containers,
etc. Male and female are only two
possibilities for noun classifiers not found in
every language that has classifiers, and many
languages lack classifiers altogether. So gender
as a grammatical category of nouns is not the
norm. However, it is common in Indo-European
languages, like French and German and Russian,
etc.
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Important point There is a general
correlation between grammatical gender and gender
roles or biological sex. For example, in French,
you do say la femme (the woman) and le homme or
(lhomme) (the man), and you say le roi (the
king) and la reine (the queen). However, the
correlation is not perfect. French, for example,
assigns grammatical gender to nouns that have no
gender role or biological sex correlates. For
example, la pierre (the stone), which is
categorized as feminine. And then there are some
gender contradictions for example sentinelle
(sentry or guard, a typically masculine
gender role) has feminine grammatical gender.
And modele (model, as in fashion model), an
archetypally feminine role, takes masculine
grammatical gender. In fact, much of the
grammatical gender ascriptions have more to do
with the phonological shape of words (e.g., nouns
ending in ion with feminine) than with gender
roles or biological sex.
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Gender role (Culture)
Gender grammatical category (Language)
Genetic or phenotypic sex (biology)
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5. Transgender/transsex The idea in the
contemporary U.S. is that everyone should be of
one or the other of two sexes, one or the other
of two genders. What happens when people feel
that they dont fit the gender or the sex to
which they have been assigned? The experience
of not fitting has been labeled gender
dysphoria. Resultant idea people with gender
or sex dysphoria should change their gender or
sex. Transvestites dressing in accord with the
clothes and make-up of the gender opposite to
which one has been assigned by virtue of
phenotypic sex. Transsexual person who
desires to be of the opposite sex to that
assigned to them by virtue of their phenotype,
and who usually undergoes sexual reassignment
surgery.
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CHERYL I started college and tried my best to fit
in with the other males in my group. I made lots
of new friends there and enjoyed college very
much. All through this time I took my
crossdressing no further, I still dressed in
private but only on my own. I longed to be able
to have the confidence to meet and have other
friends like myself. I had friends, but only
those who did not know the real me so you can
never perhaps be as open with them as you would
like to be.
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CLAIRE I went to college at 16 to study
mechanical and electrical engineering and soon
joined a group of girls called Katie's gang who I
would sit with and go out with in the evenings.
The all male class that I was a part of would
sometimes spray me with perfume usually obtained
from a member of Katie's gang. I wasn't exactly
bullied just noticed for my differences. We had
an Arab in the class who was very likable, he had
a brother called Talal who fancied me and called
me 'xaneth' (it means boy-girl). I declined his
offers although he did buy me my first alcoholic
drink in pub.
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I found that the gender dysphoria got the better
of me around 1989 when I was 32, I could no
longer pretend to be feminine for a laugh as I
had done all my life. I became very depressed and
would go to the TV/TS group in London on a
Wednesday afternoon telling my wife I had a
London chauffeur job. It didn't really help and I
went to my GP who arranged an appointment with a
local psychiatrist who was fascinated but
unhelpful. I then told my wife one evening, she
was devastated, here was her 6'7" fifteen
stone husband telling her that he had wanted to
be woman all his life and had been to a
psychiatrist. We had two young sons and I was the
only breadwinner. Our relationship changed
overnight I was not allowed to touch her anymore.
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Concluding question to ponder Is the two-sex,
two-gender dichotomy natural or better adapted
than the three (or more) gender or sex model?