News Flash: Women vs. Berlusconi

News Flash: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/14/world/europe/14italy.html?src=me&ref=world

On February 13^th, the New York Times (online) printed an article about the Italian protests over Prime Minister Berlusconi’s sex scandals. In summary, Berlusconi has been under scrutiny for his alleged scandal with an underage girl, whom he is thought to have paid for sex (Donadio and Povoledo). Berlusconi, a 74 year-old Prime Minster, allegedly paid a 17 year-old young woman for sex, and over the next couple days a judge is expected to announce whether or not Berlusconi will go to trial for these charges, although both the Prime Minister and the young woman deny the claims (Donadio and Povoledo 1). This article is interesting to explore for many different reasons, and I will address a few different points in this news flash. First, the title of the article interests me. The article is called “Italians Protest Over Berlusconi Scandals”, however the article itself only mentions female protesters, suggesting that men continue to dominate the production of media. Secondly, an Italian couple quoted in the article suggests that a gender difference exist in the way Italians perceive Berlusconi’s actions. Finally, the article’s tone supports the idea that men continue to dominate the public sphere in Italy. Therefore, I argue that Berlusconi will not go to trial for his actions, because men continue to dominate Italian politics and until male attitudes towards Berlusconi change, he will remain in power because female demonstrations seem to be ineffective in Italy.

When I found this article, the link that I clicked on simply stated “Italians Protest Over Berlusconi Scandals”. When I studied abroad in Barcelona last semester, I learned a lot about Berlusconi in my Media and Politics of Europe course. This link about Berlusconi excited me, because I assumed that there were large Italian protests going on, including a large set of the population (both males and females). I thought this article would be perfect for my news flash, because it could illustrate the progress that society is making through male support for female rights. However, upon reading the article, I realized my hopes had been too high. Although the title of the article is about Italians in general, the subtitle that appears at the top of the page reads “Italian Women Take to Streets in Anger at Berlusconi”. Furthermore, the article includes multiple quotes from Italian females, such as Ms. Camusso, Mrs. Ginevra Coppotelli, and Ms. Livia Turco. All of these women voice their criticisms of Berlusconi. To my shock and disgust, the only man quoted in this article is Mr. Benedetto Bruno (who I will discuss later), and his voice is not one of female support, to say the least. I think it is extremely interesting that the title of this article leads one to believe that general protests are going on against Berlusconi, when in reality the protestors are almost exclusively women.

I believe that this misleading article title relates to Adrienne Rich’s 1977 Convocation Speech at Douglass College. Rich states that “When you read or hear about ‘great issues’, ‘major texts’, ‘the mainstream of Western thought’, you are hearing about what men, above all white men, in their male subjectivity, have decided is important” (Rich). This quote resonates with the article because I believe that the title does not include the word “women” because it could make the article less popular to the public. In light of our class discussion about marketing techniques, I argue that the article would have been less popular if the title included to world “women” or “females”. Furthermore, I believe that the higher-up male editors of the New York Times would not want the word “women” to be in the title, because people are generally dismissive of women’s issues in today’s society…we are “post-feminism”, remember? Therefore, a title that leads readers to believe that all Italians protested Berlusconi versus only women protested Berlusconi would “sell” more. This reminds me of the article we read about patriarchy, written by Allan Johnson. His article was powerful because he wrote about the system that we operate under and he mentioned flaws of his own gender (Johnson). Similarly, the title of the Berlusconi article suggests that both Italian men and women are criticizing and protesting Berlusconi’s actions. This title sells because as humans, we like to see people criticizing their own kind. Therefore, an article title that suggests that both men and women are criticizing Berlusconi gives the article more validity and makes it more popular. As humans, we want to read about men who are just as disgusted by Berlusconi as women are. Sadly, the article title is misleading.

I have established the fact that the article only quotes female protesters. Furthermore, the article illustrates the differences between male and female opinions of Berlusconi in Italy, and the male attitudes seem to perpetuate female oppression. The most blaring example of this can be seen through the words of an Italian couple, Ginevra Coppotelli and her husband, Benedetto Bruno. Coppotelli attended protests in one of the Piazzas in Rome, where she said that “Berlusconi has insulted women, and even worse, he’s given political positions to his whores” (Donadio and Povoledo 2). Coppotelli has joined women in Rome to voice their opinions about the Prime Minister. Not only have his actions insulted women, but he has also undermined females who hold legitimate positions of political office. Berlusconi has allegedly appointed his “whores” (Coppotelli’s term) to office. By appointing these women who do not have any political credentials, Berlusconi is supporting the idea of unearned privilege. Peggy McIntosh described this idea in her article “White Privilege and Male Privilege”, explaining how certain people have privileges that are not based on meritocracy, but based on situations that we have no control over. Berlusconi appointed certain women to office because he enjoyed their company, and his actions undermine other Italian women who want to run for office. Perhaps, in the future, Berlusconi will actually work with women who are highly educated and prepared for the political sphere. However, now there will always be a stigma attached to women who work with Berlusconi because he has a history of appointing women who do not deserve the position. This is Coppotelli’s main point when she suggests that Berlusconi has given “positions to his whores”.

Although Coppotelli is highly opposed to Berlusconi, her husband has a very different view. In light of Berlusconi’s sex scandals, Benedetto Bruno suggests that “when you hear about what he does, 80 percent of men think, ‘I wish I were in his place’…I hate to say this, but Italians don’t want to respect laws, they don’t want to pay taxes, they want to do as they like, and he personifies this” (Donadio and Provoledo 2). This is the only quote from an Italian male included in the article, and the quote disgusts me. It embodies the idea that Adrienne Rich brought up in her Convocation speech. Bruno is speaking from a strictly male point of view when he says that Italians want to “do as they like”, implying that Italians want to be like Berlusconi. I highly doubt that any Italian women want to embody Berlusconi’s ideals. However, Bruno is speaking from a male perspective and he is unaware that his generalization about Italians does not apply to Italian women. Women have made their opinions on Berlusconi quite clear through their protests across Italy. Bruno’s quote raises a second point of concern: the idea that women live in close proximity to their oppressors (Class Lecture 1/25). This is an idea that Simone de Beauvoir brought up in her article The Second Sex. I think that Bruno is a prime example of how women live very close to (and sometimes with!) their oppressors. Bruno’s wife participated in protests against Berlusconi, and Bruno himself admits that Italian men wish that they could basically be Berlusconi. Bruno does not seem to support his wife in her protests against Berlusconi, and his comment makes the women’s protests seem trivial. In order to be more effective, Simone de Beauvoir would argue that women must begin working outside of the established system in order to obtain a leader who will respect women.

Finally, this article has a tone that suggests that females are completely dominated by males in the Italian political sphere, and I believe that this male domination will cause Berlusconi to remain in power. Upon hearing about the protests, Berlusconi “dismissed the demonstrations as purely political, calling his critics ‘moralists’ and ‘puritans’” (Donadio and Povoledo 2). As we discussed in one of our first class lectures, some people in society dismiss feminists or women involved in movements as “man-haters” or extremely abrasive and overly proactive individuals. Berlusconi perpetuates this idea by making a public statement about the female demonstrators. He diminishes and belittles their messages by simply writing them off as “puritans”. The tone of the article supports the idea that many Italians will not take the women’s demonstrations seriously, and one woman, Livia Turco, hopelessly states “nothing will change” (Donadio and Povoledo 2). Another women shares her opinion that “if we go to elections, things will probably stay the same. Berlusconi has touched the bottom, and dragged Italy with it” (Donadio and Povoledo 3). In other words, these women are realizing that their demonstrations are not going to affect the majority of the Italian population. The demonstrations are not enough to dismantle the political system that is dominated by males who support to acts of the misogynistic Berlusconi. Because Berlusconi is a powerful man who already has a number of supporters, it is highly unlikely that women’s movements will succeed in dethroning him. Berlusconi has the privilege of being a man in a male-dominated society. He has the power to belittle women’s movements by making harsh statements that his supporters will recycle throughout society. Therefore, I predict that Berlusconi will remain in power.

My prediction is the same as many Italian women’s predictions, since they are realizing that Berlusconi has the support of many: “People have been anesthetized by this man”, states an Italian woman in the article. People are under Berlusconi’s spell, and no amount of protesting from women’s groups will break this spell. The process must start at the top and work down (Lecture 2/8). If one of Berlusconi’s important male advisors can make him realize how demeaning his actions are towards women, then perhaps change will be seen in Italy.

News Flash: Order Your Bride For a Low Cost Today!

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I knew that notions of feminism were looked down upon and swept under the rug in Asian cultures. This makes me want to investigate the implications of “mail order brides” on society by using the feminist writers we have read so far. The article I have chosen to write about today shows the trends of mail-order brides rising as the economy drops. Though this article focuses on the commodification of marriage in Europe, this type of human trafficking is a global issue. Women’s rights activists that we have discussed in class – especially the second-wave feminists like Brownmiller and Friedan who discuss silent, dissatisfied women – encourages me to use the feminist lens to analyze and tease out the types of inequalities the existence of mail-order-brides brings about in society and how it reifies patriarchy in the world we see.

In this MSNBC article released just last month, we can see that the fight for women’s rights still has a long road ahead of it. Like what Susan Douglas comments extensively about in her book Enlightened Sexism, we like to think that the fight for women’s rights is finished. We can pat ourselves on the back and say we did it. Hooray, now what’s next? Just as Douglas prescribes, I think we need to toss this mindset out sight and out of mind because right underneath our noses are women being put on the market for a role that has been socially constructed to please men. In fact, this article shows that the trends for this occurrence are rising in conjunction with the economy dropping. Proponents of this business say argue that it is merely an “international matchmaking industry” that helps those who have lost their marriages as a result of the poor economy. According to proponents, it is also bringing money back into the economy. In fact, this booming business wheeled in $2 billion this past year. Furthermore, some men find dating too hard and that this business alleviates that “pain” or burden of traditional dating. Some supporters of this business say that dating is too expensive and opts for this international matchmaking service because “$2,000 to get a beautiful women – [is] a bargain!” There is no harm in this business because it’s just international marriage or a matchmaking service.

What I’m hearing from the supporters of this newly rising business is somewhat of a Hefner argument as well. Proponents argue that they’re liberating men from the troubles of finding love and liberating international women from a non-American lifestyle that is assumed to be of poor standard. Though the argument is framed this way, in the end, this is just a story we tell ourselves to mask the ugly truth. We employ euphemisms. We abuse the thesaurus to make things sound better when the content itself is the same. A “softer version of human trafficking” is still human trafficking no matter how many ways you can say it. Just as Heffner’s plan to sexually liberate women turned into a market that turned women into sex objects and symbols, this business objectifies women and turns them into a commodity. Even the language used perpetuates the idea that women are marketable “items” like the reference to women as a “bargain”, a “service” or the dispatch of “agencies contracted to recruit women.” The company Hand-in-Hand even “estimates the potential savings of a homemaking wife at $150 per week.”

What needs to be looked at here is how these businesses use the word marriage. Even though it is common to think that marriage is for the sake of love in the great 21st century, this rising businesses of “international matchmaking” is using the word in economic terms. These establishments are trying to sell the idea that love can be bought and that one can do without the hassle of actually getting to know someone and proceed with traditional dating. Susan Brownmiller from the second-wave of feminism already criticized marriage as an arrangement to reaffirm women’s submissive roles in society (Levy, 47). This is exactly what is happening today. Betty Friedan in the 50s had already called for an emphasis in creative work and breaking routines to end women’s dissatisfaction with life because the perception that women gained fulfillment through marriage is false. Yet, the men this article quotes and describes are only interested in “buying” these brides so that she can cook, clean, iron for low price of $2,000. The fact that these customers of businesses like Hand-in-Hand, mentioned in the article, expect their newly purchased brides to do these chores proves Douglas’ point: the fight for women’s rights are not over. These assumptions and expectations of the roles of wives stem from a patriarchic mindset that clearly has not been overwritten with something more liberating for women. Though there very well could be, we haven’t seen burgeoning industries of mail-order grooms and we can probably guess at why this is so.

These types of issues are important to acknowledge and follow because they challenge the widespread belief that feminism is a done deal. There is obviously still a belief that men and women are inherently different – the men are from Mars and women are from Venus argument that Douglas also elaborates on. The entrepreneur being quoted in the beginning of the article believes that it is the true nature of men to covet a beautiful, younger woman. By looking at these types of issues we can challenge these ideologies taken to be true. The regurgitation of such a claim is merely reproducing the same unequal society we’re trying to move away from. How then, can we say gender equality has already been met? Would it take a literal bride in a box like the one depicted above to set off alarms in everyone’s heads?

NEWS FLASH: Women in Egypt Uprising

This news flash is in response to an NPR radio show aired on February 4, 2011. The recording and transcription are hosted here: http://www.npr.org/2011/02/04/133497422/Women-Play-Vital-Role-In-Egypts-Uprising

The uprising in Egypt has dominated our newspapers and pundit discussions for weeks now. Everyone is constantly discussing how the protests and the end of Hosni Mubarak’s term as President will affect the Egyptian people. Some are discussing how it will affect the West’s relations with Egypt and the Middle East. Others choose not to concern themselves with it at all. But National Public Radio recently aired a discussion that considered the Egyptian situation in a slightly different light. Recognizing the historically consistent trend of one liberation movement “piggy-backing” on the momentum of another, NPR asks what role women are playing in the uprising and how it may affect them after the dust settles. Even in Western nations Egypt is at the heart of a hot topic of discussion on women’s rights simply due to its location in the world and some cultural traditions. Considering how women are becoming active in this rebellion and how it might affect their futures provides an interesting case study on contemporary women’s activism and a fresh way to approach a story that has almost monopolized our media.

First, it must be acknowledged that most of these women have their hands in more than one social struggle at all times. The NPR interview focuses on the Egyptian youth, a demographic that is highly represented at the protests and in the uprising more generally. It is no different for women. Much like the identity struggles that Lorde discusses in her article, these women are constantly fighting a battle for the equal treatment of their sex, even as they seek recognition as a new political generation. The two efforts become inextricably linked, although they two do not always support one another.

NPR Correspondent Mona Eltahawy keeps her finger on the pulse of the women’s movement in Egypt by paying close attention to social media, a means of networking that has undoubtedly played a major role in building the momentum of the uprising. Eltahawy notes that female protesters are forced to discuss an issue that male protesters do not need to concern themselves with; sexual harassment towards women becomes an unfortunately common occurrence in these settings. This made me think about how applicable McIntosh’s argument is in this case; the men of this uprising have the privilege of not being distracted or discouraged by their sex when they feel strongly about politics. Women, however, may face more direct harassment or violence and a society that is generally less open to their opinions. As the demonstrations become more polarized and pro-Mubarak forces come into closer contact with the protesters, women have been encouraging each other via Twitter and other web updates to wear extra layers of clothing in case one gets torn off. The social media is littered with recommendations regarding how to tie head scarves so that they are secure and other suggestions to keep women safe and respected.

Eltahawy expresses that this type of communication and the high volumes of it that she has been exposed to is a bittersweet message. It means that women are definitely taking a role in these new politics, it means that they want to be heard, and it means that they will not give up easily. Unfortunately, it also means that abuse within this unstable environment is a very real threat to Egyptian women. Eltahawy explains that she personally encountered hostility and groping from officers at a similarly publicized event in 2005. She claims that she has always known Egyptian women to be eager participants in the political culture in Egypt, the social media and networking has allowed them to be more prepared for the sometimes hostile reception they meet.

Perhaps the most powerful evidence that this abuse has not deterred women is the video that arguably instigated the January 25^th protest. The YouTube clip (translated here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgjIgMdsEuk) shows a woman named Asmaa Mahfouz rallying support for the government protest at Tahrir Square. The fact that this major world event centers on an average female citizen’s YouTube video is remarkable in itself. The speech she delivers on camera offers an even more intriguing glimpse into the gender dynamics of the Egyptian uprising. At one point in the video she says, “Whoever says women shouldn’t go to protests because they will get beaten, let him have some honor and manhood and come with me on January 25.” Later, she repeats the sentiment by saying, “If you have honor and dignity as a man, come. Come and protect me and other girls in the protest.” These statements definitely carry the undertones that women typically hold a secondary status in the political realm; at the very least, Mahfouz is acknowledging that a woman’s presence at a protest is notably different than a man’s. But Mahfouz’s statements seem to acknowledge this only out of necessity; her words simultaneously empower women to make a difference while encouraging men to hold their social position of authority by exerting their own power at the protest. Considering that her goal is to rally support and maximize participation, this was probably a good strategy because her words do not ostracize anyone. It is very interesting, however, to consider how carefully Mahfouz had to word this very courageous video in order for it to be well received. Undoubtedly, if this inspirational speech were coming from a man it would sound very different, particularly in this cultural setting.

The big question (especially as Mubarak has stepped down since this interview aired on the radio) is how women will guide the shaping of a new government and how they will avoid replacing one oppressive regime with another. Eltahawy expresses extreme confidence that the government will not simply fall into the hands of another oppressor; she thinks that the Egyptian people have made a strong enough statement that the world knows they wont allow dictatorship. It seems logical that Egyptian women would be opposed to a candidate from the Muslim Brotherhood, but Eltahawy claims that there is a fair amount of support from men and women for the Brotherhood in Egypt. There have been no claims that the Muslim Brotherhood will enter presidential candidates or seek parliamentary majority, they claim that this uprising was a movement of the Egyptian people not their organization (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/12/world/middleeast/12egypt.html).

As a new government is formed, Eltahawy is confident in the Egyptian women and the country’s youth to speak out for justice. But I think that road is going to be difficult and particularly complicated for women. A new government does not guarantee a stop to the hardships women have endured for years in the Middle East. If Mahfouz’s video and women’s large-scale participation in this uprising show us anything, it is that women have a strong desire for change. Unfortunately, it has also been made clear that women must tread carefully in their quest for change and be aware of the dangers they may face as they confront well-established norms and expectations in their society, regardless of the ruling government.

Response Post 2.17

In class on Tuesday we spent some time discussing how, when encountered with an intersex newborn, physicians will make a decision about their sex, perform surgery, and declare the baby and boy or a girl. The class discussion and Anne Fausto-Sterling’s chapter “Of Gender and Genitals” both suggest that the doctors are doing something wrong by “choosing” the sex of the baby. I know that there are complicated effects of essentially assigning a sex to a baby. The child will inevitably have a hard time growing up, because he may have been “created” into a baby boy, but perhaps the internal neural and hormone system is quite female. I am not denying the fact that it would be incredibly hard to have a sex forced on you if you were born intersex.

However…I argue that the psychological affects of being intersex into today’s modern American society would be far worse than having a certain sex forced upon you. Imagine if an intersex baby remained intersex, neither a male nor a female. What would people refer to this child as? A he or a she? As humans, we have a natural tendency to categorize. When babies are born, girls usually receive a pink hospital bracelet and/or cotton hat, while boys receive blue bracelets and hats. Categorization of sex (with only the male and female option) is so engrained into our society that newborn baby girls receive a pink bracelet minutes after being born. What color bracelet would an intersex baby receive? What color would the parents paint an intersex baby’s room? What would be baby’s birth certificate say, if the hospital could not check the male or female box?

I’m not saying that there should only be two sexes. I don’t think it’s right that someone who is born as intersex is automatically made into either a male or a female. However, until society can accept “intersex” as a third category of sex in addition to male and female, I think it would be impossible to grow up as an intersex child. Because our society is so concerned with sexual identity, the psychological effects of being intersex would be extremely debilitating and would prevent this child from leading a happy life.

I’m going to conclude with an example. Let’s say a baby is born, and this child happens to have 6 fingers on one hand. The sixth finger does not present any medical emergency and the child would be perfectly fine with that sixth finger. However, the parents and the doctor decide to amputate the sixth finger so the child can lead a more normal and easier life. In elementary school, children learn to count to 10 on their 10 fingers, when you get married there is a specific wedding finger, etc. A child with six fingers would face difficulties in society due to his or her abnormality. Therefore, it would be silly to leave the sixth finger there when it could easily be amputated.

I think that this example relates to intersexuality, although sex is definitely different than a simply sixth finger. Similarly though, a child who is intersex would face so many problems growing up in our society. I think at this moment in American society, it would be irresponsible of parents and doctors to allow a child to remain intersex, because it would be promising a very hard life to this newborn baby.

Response Post Feb. 17

Gender and Genitals & Should There Be Only Two Sexes

While reading these chapters and thinking about our perceptions of “proper” medical practice at birth, I could not help but wonder if this dilemma can ever be solved with any amount of medical knowledge or legal specifications. In my opinion, it falls into the strange category of parenting and government that involves making decisions for people without a voice. I suppose you could say it isn’t too different from the cultural practice of circumcision. What began as a religious ritual turned into a medical practice because it was believed to promote health; but now it is relatively accepted that the decision to circumcise is purely for the benefits of fitting in. This idea about society making decisions for others (the unborn or newborn) often enters on the pro-life side of the abortion debate. The abundance of these arguments and dilemmas around how infants are cared for medically shows how dynamic and constructed our society truly is. It is also a testament to how quickly we begin to be acclimated to the society. Undoubtedly, I think an endless search for understanding and a sincere dedication to communication is key to having any semblance of order in these complicated areas of our society.

Safety and health should always come first. This is obvious. It is ignorant to assume that any given individual would want to undergo a rash gender assignment surgery without weighing options, emotions, risks, etc. But, rather than speak vaguely on my opinions which are likely to agree with most of my classmates’, it may be more interesting to try to argue the opposite:

One could argue it is equally as presumptuous to assume that a child would not want these decisions to be made early. Unfortunately, it seems almost inevitable in our current society that a child born with ambiguous genitalia, or even if they just show ambiguous gender traits, will encounter adversity. One could argue that making the decision for a sexually ambiguous newborn affords them (as unfortunate as it may be) a higher chance at social acceptance (which is undeniably important to human psychological health). One could argue that the gender assignment decision has the chance of being “right,” that it will align with the individual’s personal gender identification and allow them to lead a much less complicated life. One might even argue that drawing attention to the issue of gender assignment only further ostracizes those that are born under these circumstances, and that by condemning all gender assignment decisions people are also condemning those who feel they have lived happier lives because of it.

These are just a few counterpoints I could think of. Naturally, they have flaws and this issue is endlessly complicated; but this is my attempt to understand all sides of the issue.

Leading Post: Of Gender and Genitals & Should There Be Only Two Sexes

Anne Fausto-Sterling – Of Gender and Genitals

This chapter is very informational with descriptions of the 4 different types of intersexuality: CAH, AID, XO, and XXY. Sterling also sheds light on how physicians respond when they are encountered with a sexually ambiguous infant. Sterling shows how infant genital surgeries are rash and impulsive decisions and are based off of baseless standards such as penis size. What is more outraging is how the decision can be made based on which surgery is easier for the surgeon. The manner in which physicians approach intersex infants supports our society’s strong disapproval for anything that strays away from the norm and even the health of these intersex patients are insignificant, thus, arbitrary medical decisions are acceptable.

Another problem is how uninformed physicians want the parents to be. The parents are not told the whole truth and are not given enough time to deliberate and make a decision. Surely, not enough time is given to the child to choose for him or herself. Sterling’s description of how physicians operate in this type of situation makes me wonder about malpractice and if society even cares if this is seen as malpractice…

Anne Fausto-Sterling – Should There Be Only Two Sexes?

Sterling proposes her 3-step plan towards positive change in this chapter.

1.) A change in medical management of intersexual infants and a cessation of unnecessary infant genital surgeries
2.) An assignment of a provisional sex
3.) Provide long-term counseling for the parents and the child.

I like Anne Fausto-Sterling’s 3 steps towards change, especially the first one regarding the cessation of infant genital surgery for cosmetic reason and social results. I think that it is outrageous for physicians, who ostensibly have our best interests in mind, to disregard the high failure rate of such surgeries, the happiness and well-being of the patient, as well as the function of specific body parts in order to please the two-gender system.

The medical argument about aesthetics over function makes me think about the second wave feminists and the fight for sexual revolution. This entire argument over the clitoris and the belief that male sexual pleasure is more important fits right into the agenda of second wave feminists. This is something that should be given more attention to because physicians are basically inducing lifelong physical and mental pain to their patients. Some patients say that they never truly recover from a clitorectomy, vaginoplasty, or phalloplasty. Patients suffer from dense scarring, hypersensitivity, and even the inability to achieve orgasm. If the medical field exists to heal people and maintain the health of people, the medical field’s response to intersexual infants does not reflect this philosophy. Someone needs to be called out because something has got to change.

I like that Fausto-Sterling embraces in discussion with multiple facets of our society. I think it has been a trend in our reading, and in academia in general, to focus very specifically on a central thesis within one aspect of feminism, or media, or science. But Fausto-Sterling spreads her argument to apply to the multiple forms through which our society’s “norms” manifest themselves, which I think strengthens her points rather than making them unfocused or disorganized. Using our society’s need for strict gender and sex definitions is a good way to show how norms are constructed from the moment a person enters the world. I remember learning about a few counter examples in an Anthropology class I took abroad. For example, there are some pacific island cultures in which families will raise male children as women if they have not had any female children; it is a third gender called fafafini. This allows them to stay home and help around the house, but the males selected to be females are completely accepted members of society and are not seen as strange or non-normative. They are sexually active and revered for their ability to have both masculine and feminine attributes. There are a number of examples like this that support Fausto-Sterling’s argument that gender is a construct and can be approached differently if the society so chooses.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EronVtKYr0c&feature=player_embedded#at=28

Main Post: Feb. 14

Chapter 1: Dueling Dualisms

In chapter 1 of Sexing the Body, Anne Fausto-Sterling opens with a discussion of Maria Patino’s experience in the 1988 Olympics. This Spanish athlete failed the “sex test” at the Olympics. Patino thought she was a female her entire life, but apparently she lacked overies and a uterus. Patino’s case was debated for almost three years, and eventually the IAAF reinstated her and she was able to complete in the olympics again. Patino serves as an example for one of Fausto-Sterling’s biggest questions in her chapter: why is it so important to define sex in our society?

Fausto-Sterling then launches into an interesting discussion the many spheres of her life. She interacts frequently with biologists, people on a listserve (loveweb), and feminists. Fausto-Sterling’s three different spheres give her writing more credibility, I think, because she shows that she has been exposed to many different perspectives. I admire the way that she is able to navigate through these three different worlds.

Next, Fausto-Sterling discusses the history of sex and gender, and the differences between the two. One of the most compelling ideas is that our society feels the need to strictly define sex and gender. If a child is born with multiple genitalia, the doctor (and parents) usually make a decision and remove something in order for the child to be a defined “sex”. Additionally, on the U.S census, we can only check “male” or “female”, which poses a huge problem for individuals who are born with ambiguous or multiple genitalia. She discusses gender and sex differences in Ancient Greece and throughout history. The “nature or nurture” debate is also present in this chapter. I think the most interesting point here is that sexual behavior can be driven by an “impulse” or by a social construction. Finally, the author discusses the importance of dualisms in our everyday analysis of society, and how dualisms reinforce social constructions (such as gender).

Chapter 2: The Sexe Which Prevaileth

In chapter 2 of Sexing the Body, Fausto-Sterling discusses “hermaphrodite history”. Following from my comment about the U.S census and its strict gender definitions, I think that this chapter is an important one. The author explains a history of how hermaphrodites have been treated in society, suggesting that they have been regarded as “rebellious, disruptive, or even fraudulent” (34). In Europe, strict distinctions between males and females were part of the legal and political systems throughout history. This was due to rights of inheritance, judicial punishment, the right to vote, etc. Therefore, hermaphrodites encountered a huge problem: their “inter-sex” made it hard to know their legal and political rights. The title of the chapter comes from Sir Edward Coke who was a jurist in England: “an Hermaphrodite may purchase according to that sexe which prevaileth” (36). Hermaphrodites chose a sex with the help of medical and legal experts, and once the choice was made there was no going back.

Luckily, as society has progressed, scientists have come to better understand the “modern intersexual”, and they can usually be identified immediately at birth. Additionally, the idea of intersexuality has contributed greatly to the argument about sex and gender. Doctors today tend to want to make a decision about a child’s sex if they are born intersex. This is because there is a general assumption in society that there should only be two sexes, that heterosexuality is the norm, and that gender roles define the man and woman (44). These conventions shape society’s view on intersexuality and gender.

Response: Anne Fausto-Sterling

After spending the past weeks talking about gender, Fausto-Sterling’s excerpt on sexual identity helped me further see the differences between sex and gender. In addition, this excerpt also problematized arguments about sex. I thought that sex was relatively easy to determine because physical characteristics are easier to determine than gender identity. However, Sterling shed light to the reality that sex, just like gender, is not dichotomous; there are many shades of gray in between. Sterling points out that sex is also constructed – by physicians and especially in the Age of Conversion.

What causes this problem is our obsession with oversimplification. This makes it harder to break away from thinking in terms of binaries and only binaries. We like order, and we like definite answers, but by categorizing everything, we end up forcing labels on things that cannot be defined by a simple label. This applied to things even outside of gender. If we go to the bookstore, we can see books erroneously labeled. We see self-help books that fall under the category of pseudoscience in the Psychology shelves. We see hybrid genres like Spielberg’s Maus causing problems for people who do the labeling because labeling Maus as a comic book dismisses the fact that it also incorporates a biography, a historical event, and even an auto-biography. Now, we face the consequences of oversimplifying sex. Even if we are able to get physicians to acknowledge the multiplicity of sexes, I think that’s only half the battle. The other half entails society to accept that reality.

What really stuck with me after finishing the reading was Sterling’s observation that our sexual organs seemed to dictate who gets rights in our society. When she puts it this way, it seems silly that if one has a penis, they get more pay, more political rights and gain more societal benefits. Also, I was really interested in the debate on nature versus nurture in determining sexuality. I don’t know where I stand on this debate because I don’t think I have enough background on both sides to take a stance. Regardless, I think that it’s very fascinating. However, I don’t think this should outweigh the debate over the variety of sexes that exist. Should we continue to live in a society that allows physicians to choose your sex if it’s questionable? Should a choice even be made?