Literature, Life-Writing, and Identity

Introduction

“Our genders are as unique as we are. No one’s definition is the same, and compartmentalizing a person as either a boy or a girl based entirely on the appearance of genitalia at birth undercuts our complex life experiences.” Janet Mock¹

“It’s a boy!”  or “It’s a girl!” These are the words that parents await when they are expecting a baby. From the sonogram at four or five months, parents begin their preparation during the remainder of the pregnancy in which they may paint a room blue or pink, purchase color-related clothing, and begin to think about the toys their future child – boy or girl – may play with. Lately, “gender reveal” parties are hosted by the soon-to-be parents in which they, along with their guests, discover if their child is a girl or boy even before its birth. A variety of ideas allow for this: pink or blue streamers escaping out of an air cannon, or biting into a cupcake or cutting a sheet cake which reveal the color associated with boy or girl. The use of color coordinated balloons, confetti poppers, and piñatas, among other ideas enable everyone at the party to finally yell out those three magical words. Yet, this is actually a huge misconception. Gender is not being revealed, the sex is. There is a difference between these two terms. Chaz Bono’s words, “Gender is between your ears and not between your legs[,]”² give us a better perspective of what this means.

Over the course of this seminar, I have come to better understand how wrapped up our gender is with the idea of identity. During our time together, we have read stories about a variety of peoples. We have seen how identity is interwoven into these stories even just by whether they tell their own story or someone else tells it. From Shelley’s description of Frankenstein’s creature’s struggle to Janet Mock’s memoir, these readings have helped me to better grapple with the questions of Who are You? and Who am I? in relation to gender. In reading and discussing these stories, I have reflected on how ingrained gender is in our society, and in our everyday lives.

Although we discussed many aspects of this multi-layered idea of identity, this unit will focus on the social construction of gender to include an understanding of the difference between sex and gender, how gender is socially constructed, and what are the causes and consequences of this classification system, as well as the formulation and evaluation of personal reactions to the topic of gender.