Reflecting on the Experience

Referring back to my first posting, I have learned a great deal this semester on the process of the gender switch. My research (methodology) primarily involved literature written by transsexuals or social scientists, analysis of "Southern Comfort" (2001), examining case studies (such as Aleshia Brevard) online, and I had the fortunate opportunity of speaking with a transsexual individual, Gavi, who visited Wheaton and presented the attending audience with some interesting perspectives on sexual orientations and gender. I believe that it is extremely important to expose oneself to other cultures, communities, and types of people, and this encounter, for me, was very helpful in understanding exactly how a transsexual or transgendered person feels in a society that really has no acceptance nor tolerance of their differences. Truthfully, we are all different, and rediscovering this social fact has enabled me to see clearly how sexual orientation and gender identity differ from person to person and really are not black and white. For instance, I believe that there is a little bit of man and woman and heterosexual identity and homosexual identity in all of us; it just depends how much we identify with each aspect. I have become more open-minded and trusting of myself and I have discovered a whole aspect of the human condition that is so wrongly ignored.

Reflecting on our class, I specifically found the sections on "Inequality" and "Gender and the Body" helpful in putting my own study in context of the Anthropological field. Sexuality in different cultures is viewed very different; for instance, homosexuality is a common and accepted occurrence in other cultures, and this is hard to imagine coming from such a strict, conservative country. Learning about how humans express themselves through sex proves what many students already know; that, like every individual person, every individual culture differs and shapes what is and what is not acceptable to such an extent that our natural inclinations are suppressed. This study highlighted the different relationships between the physical characteristics of the human body and the natural gender and sexual identities. Understanding this and how our culture denies these different relationships has enabled me to view culture from a very unique position. Although I am uncertain if the gender switch can really be referred to as a cross-cultural encounter, I am sure that there are important similarities that can be drawn between the two to help people comprehend the feeling that a transsexual or transgendered person may not otherwise be able to explain. In essence, the "trans" body works almost like a new "culture," and in the process of changing their bodies, transsexuals and transgendered people experience a sort of cross-cultural encounter by discovering new social relationships that result out of their new look. Perhaps this is simply a better or easier way to look at the transsexual experience from an American perspective.

I wanted to note that although there are many similarities we can draw on between the gender switch and cross-cultural encounters, I must play devil's advocate and argue that there are certainly differences as well. The transsexual and transgendered community exists on a sub-cultural level in Amerian society (that is, the examples I have examined were American examples); therefore, we are not looking at the typical cross-cultural encounter. Many readers may have expected a different language, a unique way of dress, or new foods to emerge out of my cross-cultural encounter (and perhaps many bloggers from our class had these experiences), but I decided to go about this assignment in a very unusual way. I found that there were surprises among the transsexual/transgender community that occurred at the time of the gender switch about some of the social norms that non-transsexuals are unaware of because we are cultured at such an early age. Transsexuals and transgendered people are actually lucky (in my own opinion) to experience the physical characteristics and hormones of two genders in one lifetime: I imagine that many of us (the general population) has at one time or another wondered about the experiences of the opposite sex and this is truly brought to life in the circumstance of the transsexual experience.

Lastly, I would like to shed light on why this study may be of interest to other anthropologists (as in, why should they care?) and perhaps briefly explain my own expectations of how transsexuals and transgendered people may react to my blog. Anthropologists (specifically those who study sexual habits, gender identity, or identity in general) would be interested in this study because sex and gender are two very important aspects of the individual and the community. Many people shape their lives around their gender or sexual orientation, and especially in America, where our judgments of others are so conservative, these issues are of interest to social scientists because they are so suppressed. In addition to this, I hope that I have accurately depicted the sex change in a way that is clear to the transsexual community and the community of people that have not undergone this transformation. Perhaps this will be understandable to both perspectives, and I would hope that reactions would be positive or constructively critical. It is very difficult for me to assume that all individuals would react in a similar manner, but at least my interaction with Gavi was successful in that when I explained my project, he seemed very interested in looking at the sex change experience in this manner. By identifying the sex change as something similar to what many people are familiar with (cross-cultural encounters), examining the switch from man culture to woman culture will, perhaps, be better understood in this way. As I mentioned in a previous entry, the use of the terms "man culture" and "woman culture" was suggested by Gavi, in contrast to "male culture" and "female culture" which suggests more specifically the physical characteristics of an individual.

In conclusion, I have enjoyed comparing and contrasting the sex change and cross-cultural encounters, and in doing this, experienced another community (referring to the transsexual community as "culture" is still debatable). From researching Aleshia Brevard to my conversations with Gavi, I have a new respect for people identifying with the transsexual or transgendered communities. The story of Robert Eads, in "Southern Comfort" (2001), has not lost its impact on me and I have found, just like Lola suggested at the end of the film, that nature truly does "delight in diversity," and her words make me wonder how we can possibly overlook that.

Thank you for taking the time to read.

~ Katherine Niemczyk