Cross-dressing in Relation to Gender and Sexuality

Cross-dressing is a practice in which a person dresses in attire that is usually or socially appropriate for the opposite sex. This is exemplified by Peggy Shaw’s performance in the play “Menopausal Gentleman.” Sexuality is described as the degree of readiness to engage in carnal knowledge or the desire to attract or be attracted to other parties. Gender refers to whether an individual is male, female, or neuter. This is determined by the individual’s sexual activity and makeup. It may be physical or neurological in nature. Physical examination is undertaken by physicians in order to determine the sex of an individual (Alcoff and Caputo). Physiological aspects are majorly portrayed from the hormonal determination that is undertaken to determine the quantity and type of hormone that is secreted by the body of a given individual. This is done when someone portrays character traits of the opposite sex while s/he has the physical character properties of a different gender. The usage of gender has been confused many times with sexuality. Numerous scholars have tried to elaborate on the demarcation between them. The aspect where the sexuality influences gender and vice versa is referred to as the point of intersection (Alcoff and Caputo)

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Intersection of Sexuality and gender

Sexuality and gender tend to inform and constrain one another. At no singular moment that one can discuss one and then avoid the other. The social significance and construction of one cannot be understood without alluding to the other. The social norms and code of conduct dictate what one does with who. Otherwise, the individual is labeled based on the level of deviation from the customs. Gender identity is the innate sense of one being female or male or both. Sexual orientation enshrines the ability of one to create attractions with fellows or the capacity to derive pleasure from the relationships one makes with peers. Both sexuality and gender have a deep link. They affect one another at various scales because human beings are social animals. They never live in isolation as in a social vacuum. For instance, there can be a woman who has a life-partner who is a woman. She may call herself various names such as lesbian, gay woman or dike or even bisexual depending on her taste, fashion and preference. Culturally, she will be considered as a lesbian (Robbins 65-66). This will, of course, attract a lot of castigations, ridicule, side-lining and all manner of marginalization due to the stereotypic perceptions and transphobia that is exacerbated by the societal norms and traditions. The couple would want to interact with as many lesbians as possible so as to avoid the hostile environment that is posed by the intolerant society as far as same-sex communities are concerned.

But then a case crops up where one of these same-sex couples feels uncomfortable to stay as a female and that she may decide to transition to male, and at the same time continue to stay intact as couples as before. After the transition, he may decide to refuse to be identified as lesbian anymore. The members of the public who never knew their mode of relationship would identify them as heterosexual couples. Their personal relationship may take a different dimension in post-transition. This is because the social gender role will come into effect after the transition. The partner who transitions may be ready to embrace the roles and responsibilities that come with the change in gender. The freedom to transition from one gender to the other has provided an open platform such that one can live as one wishes without any further restrictions. This has modified the general meaning of given terms that relate to genders and it has further superimposed the aspects of equal rights and freedoms to despite their sexual orientation or gender. We find that Shaw does cross-dress and then she exploits all her full potential in his new form. He does not lose his identity as a man but she instead insinuates that she was born a “butch.” She never learned that in theater school. This she says is quite obvious as the character speaks volumes of itself. She never regrets. She tries to extrapolate the impact of being a female though (Robbins 65-66). She elaborates on the female menopausal arc in a more detailed and animated manner. That is why she says that she has a tiger inside her. She wonders why the female sex is internal while the one for males is on the outside. Actually, she draws an analogy to her body inside the suit and then explains further that she feels at home in that suit. She says that she stays alone because she sweats and that she is all wet. She does not sleep. Cross-dressing has a great impact on the sexuality. This is because an individual completely understands that she is a ”man” and yet she may have phenotypic traits of a woman. This leaves the individuals confused. They are faced with myriad challenges in their quest for identity. They have to incur the loss of friends and relatives and sour relationships in their journey to discover their identity.

The Cost of transgressing gender lines

Cross-dressing has numerous trade-offs. It is not easy to interact freely with other fellows because of the stereotypes existing in the minds of people. The cultures and norms of a given community have an immense impact in the way people relate, dress, talk and interact. This makes people be more inclined to avoid the people who practice what is contrary to the customs. The isolation that ensues denies the crossdressers the bliss that they derive from life. It makes them be withdrawn from life (Robbins 65-66). Their source of plight is diverse. It ranges from both parents and peers. For instance, Shaw claims that she was considered a real bother to her parents because she always questioned everything. She could not relent on her quest for her real identity. The parents had become exhausted in trying to talk to her on her gender issue. They miss a lot from the environment (Matsuzaka 1-14). One loses friends and relatives on a large scale because they cannot identify with them. They consider them weird, strange and social misfits. This makes them overtax themselves in trying to strike relationships amongst the members of the society. They stoop too low in all their transactions to be absorbed by their peers. For instance, if you get a married crossdresser who is a man, he has to hide all this so that he cannot offend the spouse. This makes the life of the individual miserable and unpleasant. He has to go an extra mile in order to be integrated into the prevailing system. There is colossal opposition met during the process of trying to maneuver one’s way as denoted in the part of the play in Menopausal Gentleman. Shaw has to beg the audience not to leave her. She moves around from one person to the other, greeting them. She strives to make them undertake the kind of events she had gone through. She tries to make them understand the pivotal and vital role that they play in her life. She gives an animated description of her longing to them until she draws the masses into a dance (Shaw and Dolan). She disappears into the darkness in that frenzy and the only thing visible is the light from the torches tied to her arms. He does all that just in order to appease the ill feelings from the fraternity around her. Crossdressing makes people raise a lot of concern over the individual. They begin dubbing them names just because they do not understand them (Matsuzaka 1-14). They spread propaganda like bonfire about their misconceptions about a given individual. This detaches the victims even more and thus separating them from the other people. This sort of adds an insult to an injury.

Transitioning from one gender to the other comes with given roles that were not there before. For example, Shaw tries to elaborate on how the menopause arc occurs. She gives such a crystal-clear description that we can visualize the process itself. She likens it to a beast on fire inside her which makes her sweat as it keeps growling and prowling. She explains the discomfort she undergoes. She does not sleep but instead, she keeps awake from dusk to dawn. She explains the way the menopause attacks one suddenly but he says that she is like a fifty-four-year-old grandmother who passes for a thirty-four-year-old young man. She keeps young because of the youth (Shaw and Dolan). This implies that menopause is not a limitation to the normal biological functions. The activities that one enjoys are available any point in life. One is at liberty to explore, exploit, and discover his or her potential. None should be intimidated or discouraged from giving their best and being themselves. That is she says that she did it her way” and the regrets are always ”ahead of you.” This is one of the ways that she is striving to divulge some hints as to how people who are marginalized on the basis of gender can get to live a normal life despite the challenging environment they may be living in (Matsuzaka 1-14).

Conclusion

Sexuality and gender intersection is a crucial aspect that we need to conceptualize in our lives. It is paramount to understand the reason for cross-dressing and hence try to understand individuals who do so. We should get to learn that being one’s original version is the sole essence of life. This suggests that we should strive to be our best no matter what others say. It is all about unlocking and unleashing our ”tigers in us” and then letting that spill over to other people.

Works Cited

 Alcoff, Linda, and John D Caputo. Feminism, Sexuality, And The Return Of Religion. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2011. Print.

Matsuzaka, Sara. ”Transgressing Gender Norms In Addiction Treatment: Transgender Rights To Access Within Gender-Segregated Facilities.“ Journal of Ethnicity in Substance Abuse (2017): 1-14. Web.

Robbins, Christa Noel. ”Transgressing Gender In 1960S Abstract Sculpture.“ Art Journal75.4 (2016): 65-66. Web.

Shaw, Peggy, and Jill Dolan. A Menopausal Gentleman. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press, 2011. Print.