5 Questions
How do societies and cultures define what is considered 'normal' in terms of sexuality?
Through situated cultural norms that construct what types of sexuality are considered 'normal' and which types are considered 'deviant'.
Who have played a key role in defining heterosexuality and its boundaries?
Sexologists and medical doctors.
What is the implication of defining heterosexuality as 'normal' and other sexualities as 'deviant'?
It is an expression of power that constructs what types of sexuality are considered 'normal' and which types are considered 'deviant'.
How is heterosexuality socially constructed?
Through the definition of its parameters by sexologists and medical doctors.
What is the impact of defining certain sexualities as 'deviant'?
It means that all sexual desire and expression outside the parameters of heterosexuality are considered 'deviant'.
Study Notes
Gender and Sex
- Gender assignment is based on the appearance of genitalia at birth, but gender identity is a person's internal sense of being a man, woman, or other gender.
- Some people assigned male at birth identify as women, and some people assigned female at birth identify as men.
- Transgender people, or individuals who do not identify with the gender they were assigned at birth, challenge the idea of a single sex/gender identity.
- Trans women, for example, may have bodies assigned male at birth but identify as women.
Gender Pronouns and Identities
- Some people identify as non-binary, gender fluid, or genderqueer, and may use gender-neutral pronouns such as ze/hir or they/them.
- Trans communities have created procedures for communicating gender pronouns, which involves verbally asking and stating one's pronouns.
Intersex and Sex Variations
- Intersex describes variations in sex characteristics, such as chromosomes, gonads, sex hormones, or genitals.
- Gender theorists argue that sex, like gender, is socially constructed and that there is no underlying "sex" to a person.
Sex and Social Construction
- The definition of "sex" varies throughout history in law and medicine, and different social institutions have not come to a consistent or conclusive way to define sex.
- The biological designations of "male" and "female" are social constructions that reinforce the binary construction of men and women.
This quiz covers the basics of gender and sex, including gender assignment, transgender and intersex individuals, and the differences between gender identity and biological sex.
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