Sex and Gender 2

[TonyJollans]

One of my pet hates is the ever-more widespread use of Gender to mean Sex.

There are two sexes: male and female. Each of us is either male or female.

There are two genders: masculine and feminine. Each of us has qualities of both masculinity and femininity predominantly, though not exclusively, reflecting our sex. Nouns may also have gender.

When reviewing documents, I always highlight incorrect usage of these terms but no longer say, as I once did "Nouns have Gender, People have Sex"; I have found too many people completely lacking in humour.

Why are we so coy?

Enjoy,
Tony

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[entaroadun]

English is an evolving language, but I believe that using gender for sex is still correct usage.

The distinction was really developed by the feminist movement to hammer home the fact that physical sex and cultural gender are not the same. Many social conservatives still refuse to accept that concept.

I'm pretty sure that back in the 1930s, the word 'sex' would have been used exclusively for the physical act, and 'gender' meant both physical sex and cultural gender. In Western culture, the two were the same. In the US seventy years ago, women were arrested for wearing pants. We forget how far we've come.

However, we haven't become so PC that using the word 'gender' to mean 'sex' is incorrect. It's more of a liberal faux pas.

BTW, more radical theories assert that there are seven physical sexes and that gender, as a loose collection of personality traits, doesn't really exist. How do we refer correctly to the intersexed?

 

[chrissie1]

well in the beginning we are all without gender and sex and then the trouble begins.

and yes there are at least seven physical sexes and one possible but never found well not yet anyway), and that is if you leave siamees twins out of the equasion, so that makes it eight. now should their be a corresponding gender for each of them or do we concatenate the existing ones to reflect the physical sexe.

Christiaan Baes
Belgium

If you want to get an answer read this FAQ faq796-2540
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[entaroadun]

It's fascinating to watch from a linguistic standpoint. The direction of the words "sex" and "gender" in US English depends on who wins the culture wars over the next fifty years.

 

[SQLSister]

Ok I have to ask. What seven possible physical genders?


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[sleipnir214]

I'd like to second SQLSister's motion.

The only thing I could find was this entry from the University of Washington article on a speech to be given by UW professor Dr. Lois McDermott:

Tonight Lois McDermott, UW psychology professor, will surprise most of her audience with the theory that there are five sexes, seven genders and 400 sexual orientations.


And there's this article by Anne Fausto-Sterling which reads, in part:

In 1993 I published a modest proposal suggesting that we replace our two-sex system with a five-sex one. In addition to males and females, I argued, we should also accept the categories herms (named after "true" hermaphrodites), merms (named after male "pseudohermaphrodites"), and ferms (named after female "pseudohermaphrodites"). [Editor's note: A "true" hermaphrodite bears an ovary and a testis, or a combined gonad called an ovo-testis. A "pseudohermaphrodite" has either an ovary or a testis, along with genitals from the "opposite" sex.]


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[ESquared]

Hmmm... I could speculate.

Besides XX female and XY male, there are people who have XXX, XXY, and possibly other combinations.

Also are people who are genetically XY but turn out more-or-less female in body because of things like AIS (Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome). People with AIS may only learn of their condition when they fail to experience the normal 'symptoms' of puberty for a female, as late as age 18 or so.

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[chrissie1]

my theory

male xy (normal)
female xx (normal)
male xx (less normal but not so uncommon)
female xy (less normal but not so uncommon)
herms with xx
herms with xy
none of the above

and now for number eight

Christiaan Baes
Belgium

If you want to get an answer read this FAQ faq796-2540
What a wonderfull world - Louis armstrong

 

[entaroadun]

There's many ways to define physical sex, since there are many aspects to it.

Chromosomal
Genetic
Phenological (Gonadal and Penis/Clitoris Size)
Hormonal Response

The Intersex Society of North America (

http://www.isna.org)

has more information. The generally accepted estimate of the incidence of intersexuality is 1 in 1000, though figures vary because of disagreements over the definition of intersex.


Chromosomes:

The majority of human beings have 46 chromosomes, which come in 23 pairs of 2. One pair is sex related. We inherit these from our parents; their sex cells each contribute 1 of each of the 23, which results in our having 23 pairs of 2.

Sometimes the gametes (sex cells) are missing a chromosome or have a full pair of a chromosome. The resulting child will then have 1 or 3 in a set of chromosomes.

Normally, this results in a fetus that won't anchor to the womb. If the child survives, abnormal development usually results. For example, Down Syndrome is caused by the presence of 3 of a particular chromosome (I think #21).

For sex, the mother usually contributes a big chromosome (known as X). The father contributes a big chromosome or a little chromosome (known as Y). XX is chromosomally female. XY is chromosomally male.

If the child just has an X, she is considered chromosomally female with Turner syndrome. If the child has XXX, she is considered chromosomally female with TriplioX syndrome. If the child has XXY, he is considered chromosomally male with Klinefelter syndrome. Y will abort (at least an X is necessary for survival). XYY is not possible.


Genetic

Sometimes, the chromosomes are missing the genes that determine sex. For instance, Y, which signifies male, may be missing the genes necessary for male development. Therefore, a person with XY (chromosomal male) would develop as someone with X (chromosomal female with Turner syndrome). This is one example of a person with conflicting definitions of physical sex.


Phenological

This is usually the most telling sign in the doctor's office, since it's what our eyes can see. Usually, the doctor checks for the presence of a penis or penis-like structure. If it is over a certain length, the child is declared male (phenologically). If it is under another length, the child is declared female. Sometimes, the length is in between. Then the child is considered intersex.

Beyond that measure, though, is the state of the gonads. A child may have a penis with ovaries. Or undescended testicles and a penis, but a vulva instead of a scrotal sac. Or a child may have ovaries and a vulva, but no vagina. If you can name it, it probably exists.


Hormonal Response

Sometimes a chromosomal male will lack the genes necessary to respond to androgens (male sex hormones). This is Androgen Insensitivity (AIS). This individual is XY, with small testes, no uterus, no penis, and perhaps a short vagina with no cervix.


The confusion arises because of conflicting signs. A person may be chromosomally male but have genitals that appear completely female.

The large number of physical sexes account for these variations. They are simply names given to each observed combination. I don't know them and don't think they really matter. I don't believe that have conflicting signals about sex should imply the existence of a completely new sex.


Just to reiterate, intersexuality is in 1 in 1000 children. Klinefelter, or XXY, is the most common chromosomal abnormality.

BTW, the intersexed don't consider the term "hermaphrodite" to be PC.

 

[sleipnir214]

All this speculation and discussion is interesting.

[Wait for the "but". You know there's one coming...]


But what does any of this have to do with grammar and rhetoric? Are there people out there that expect the structure of the English language to reflect chromosomal, structural, or hormonal anomalies?


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[entaroadun]

It's simply an interesting example of how our language changes with our culture. The meaning of the two words has changed significantly over the past 50 years. It reflects a concerted effort by special interests to change people's social and political positions by changing the way words are used. It's fascinating, like the advent of the terms "date rape" and "partial birth abortion".

 

[gbaughma]

Speaking of doctors asking about sex, etc.

The best one I ever pulled was:

Doctor: "Do you have any sexually transmitted diseases?"

Me: "Yes. Two sons and a daughter!"

<smile>



Just my $0.02

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--Greg

 

[SteveGlo]

Do the coiners of words use metadatum as well as metadata - I cannot recall seeing it yet ?