A Culture of Two Genders

While reading “Impossible Hermaphrodites” by Elizabeth Reis I came to the realization that I do not know nearly as much as I thought I knew about gender, sex, and intersex individuals. In the article, there was much emphasis on the binary sex system, which deems anything other than male or female unnatural and abnormal. Although “abnormal” may be correct to a certain extent when considering intersex individuals, it is imperative to change the way we think about this extremely natural occurrence. In addition, we should also reconsider what we mean when we use the word normal. In this article it states, “Medical experts estimate that one of every two thousand people is born with questionable gender status, about the same ratio as those born with cystic fibrosis” (413) Reis provides a compelling argument as to why we give so much power to medical experts while simultaneously asking why perform risky irreversible surgeries without a medical reason. The discussion during our last class made myself and others realize that change is a big part of it. We are historically afraid of change, and this fear is what holds us back from breaking boundaries and implementing a more accepting perspective. Impossible Hermaphrodites served as the perfect transition into what I will be discussing from the article, “The Medical Construction of Gender: Case Management of Intersexed Infants” by Suzanne J. Kessler.

In this specific passage, Kessler sums up her perspective on intersex infants, and the effects it has on the parents and the physician. She states, “Rather than admit to their role in perpetuating gender, physicians “psychologize” the issue by talking about the parents’ anxiety and humiliation in being confronted with an anomalous infant.” (25) The power that we give medical experts to make decisions surrounding gender is what contributes to perpetuating gender. By continuing to let personhood and society force us into the conventional male/female binary, we suppress our ability as humans to learn and to move forward. In this article, there was said to be a situation in which parents told their friends that they had twins, and one of the twins died, to keep from admitting that their child was born gender ambiguous. What does that say about society? Why is it easier to reveal that the child was born with two thumbs or cystic fibrosis in comparison to ambiguous genitals? If intersex is a natural phase of fetal development that every child experiences, why hide? What is so shameful? I think this article attempts to answer my questions through the lens of the physician and the general understanding that anatomy is a part of happiness. To be male or to be female is what genuinely makes up happy.  Biologically, we are born to do one thing as a species—reproduce. It is simplest for us to accept our fate as either male or female, and act accordingly. This is what makes up happy, and provides us with a sense of self. This insistence that physicians have placed on the parents that have to make the decision reveal our social construction. It is completely natural for a child to be born with both male and female genitalia, and we have proof of that. We also have come to the realization that the surgeries that are being performed are risky, and do not have a medical explanation, merely a social explanation.

It seems as though physicians in a way are asking the parents to internalize this psychological dilemma and are not only contributing to the dilemma, but also facilitating it. If I were a doctor, I think I would try to be as open as possible to the situation. Instead of forcing them to choose, or allowing them to choose the sex of the child, I would explain how natural and healthy their child is, and what I suggest strictly from a medical standpoint. I think it is important for the doctor to keep the conversation strictly medical, and provide the parents the safest option concerning surgery and how to move forward. In this article, a variety of different medical experts were interviewed to provide a greater insight into intersex infants. One of the medical experts was a urologist who stated, “One of the worst things is to allow [the parents] to go ahead and give a name and tell everyone, and it turns out the child has to be raised in the opposite sex.” (10) In addition, the parents may cause more harm to their child by sticking to that one gender instead of allowing room for alternative options. 

In our society, the moment in which the gender of the baby is determined in pregnancy is a huge moment. It is a defining moment for the parents to prepare for one sex, and the community embraces this very strict binary. When the parents have baby showers, gifts are brought to them that usually are not ambiguous. For girls, there are dresses and pink clothing, Barbie’s, and make-up. For boys there is blue clothing, trucks and cars, sport-related things. It would simply be false to say that this is not one of the most defining moments in the parents’ lives. I think what physicians can do to decrease the amount of anxiety that is caused when an intersex child is born, would be to say that they are unsure of the sex. In sonograms things can be blurry and although they may have a good idea of whether it is a boy or a girl, in certain cases I think it would we wise to say they are unsure. In doing this, parents can ask their friends and family to buy them gender ambiguous toys until they know for sure. Even if the physician can say with 100% certainty that the child is a girl or boy, I think we as a culture can start loosening up the gender roles and expectations for the child through the gifts and labels we place on the child. Although entirely subjective, I think this article I found on the Huffington Post raises some good points as to why it is wise to wait until the child is born to find out the sex. In the article, “7 Reasons Not to Find Out The Sex of the Baby” link there are a handful of reasons why we should try new options to avoid gender stereotyping and our societal expectations.