Sex-February 5

As I read the last three texts, it became clear to me that the body is what defines sex.  I believe Fausto-Sterling's articles emphasize the body as a boundary.  "Dueling Dualisms" describes a Spanish Olympian, Maria Patino, who failed the femininity test as a result of exhibiting a Y chromosome.  This event called into question, how can a person's sex be determined if biology does not comply with the social binary construct of sex?  Historically, scientists studying sex divided sex into two entities: male and female, with no account for persons in between.  Understanding of genders changed throughout history in context of a person's sexual attraction.  The basis for the divisions of sex and gender is the body.  The body in scientific perspective creates a boundary between male and female.  The boundary exists socially in the differences between genders.
Intersex beings challenge the widely accepted notion that there are only two sexes in nature, backed by respective genders.  The challenge is met with push back, making it difficult for hermaphrodites to be accepted as they are in society due to their physical inability to be bound by the male or female sexes.  Physicians and parents alike often decide to surgically "correct" their intersex children and raise them according to their assigned sex.  This action creates issues in that the child does not have any choice in this process, and therefore grows to resent their sex and their parents.  If we could just abandon the Western need to have each and every aspect of life fall into two categories, we would create a more inclusive and understanding society.  Instead, we let the boundaries created by sex and history to inhibit our ability to care for those who do not align with preconceived notions of sex.


 Summary and Response:
 Emma in her journal made many thoughtful responses to Fausto-Sterling's articles on both the Dueling Dualism of sex and the problems with fitting into our society's strict social construct of two sexes in regards to the second article. Emma also states that through these readings she found out more of what our society defines as sex. For example, she comments on how "Physicians and parents alike often decide to surgically "correct" their intersex children and raise them according to their assigned sex.  This action creates issues in that the child does not have any choice in this process, and therefore grows to resent their sex and their parents. " This issue that has been historically been happening with intersex children is one of the main problems that Fausto-Sterling mentions in her article. I enjoy how Emma also comments on how if our society abandoned the Western cultural need for the strict two sexes that these people could find a place in our society. Though personally I feel like writing about abandoning these strict categories is easier than actually doing this. Many in people in our society would have major problems with this dissection of the sexes.
~ Aubrey Sneesby