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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

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Original poster

"I don't have a gender. I don't see why I should have a gender"

31 replies

drspouse · 02/08/2017 19:54

Feminist statement or the ultimate in denying that biological sex means anything?

This is the statement of a young adult I have come across, who appears more male than female but I think is probably biologically female. Of course, wearing stereotypically male clothing does not mean you are no longer biologically female As Any Fule No.

Discuss!

OP posts:
user1498662042 · 02/08/2017 20:38

Or the person could be confusing sex and gender, which many people seem to do these days

What is the difference? Is sex just the anatomical fact of your bits and bobs and gender everything else? I'm not sure I get the distinction myself.

glenthebattleostrich · 02/08/2017 20:31

I reject gender and refuse to acknowledge or accept it. I'm a woman because of my sex.

hingedspeculum · 02/08/2017 20:12

If the person accepts the relationship between biological sex and gender as the social construct interpreting sex as a stereotypical phenotype, then that is basically a core tenant of feminism in understanding women's oppression and disadvantage.

If the person equates gender with sex, then I think I would say that is incompatible with feminism.

RiverTam · 02/08/2017 20:07

Gender is not the same as biological sex, so that's not necessarily what this person is meaning - however, they need to understand that biological sex most certainly does have meaning and that certain things are rightly segregated according to sex - but not gender. So she can be as masculine as she likes, but that doesn't stop her from being female (a woman).

AssassinatedBeauty · 02/08/2017 20:05

They may well not have a gender but they certainly have a sex. Did they have any thoughts about biology, or was it all about identity being more important than physical reality?

Seachangeshell · 02/08/2017 20:04

Feminist statement from the face of it. The statement she? made doesn't say anything about biological sex. Gender is a made up thing.
Or the person could be confusing sex and gender, which many people seem to do these days, in which case she might mean that she doesn't see why she should be male or female. In that case, it wouldn't be a feminist statement, just one that doesn't make sense.