A brain stuck between isn’t really either and then of course after birth the body will bath the brain in hormones according the physical sex.
That’s the most bizarre eisegesis I’ve ever seen for that verse.
Well, I pose the question because from what I understand the fetus in a MTF gets an appropriate dose of testosterone, but the the fetus’s brain is blocked (for some unknown reason) from receiving that same proper dose of testosterone. If that is the case, than the person was supposed to be a man, not a woman. It does not change anything for the person because they “feel” like a female, yet they should have been fully male. So, instead of being a woman “trapped” in a man’s body (as many say), it would be a man with a woman’s brain (or some slight variation of that).
I’m not at all offended that you thought I was male. No need to apologize, but I accept it. It doesn’t really matter, so no worries.
Some people identify as being “between” genders. Perhaps their brains are somewhere in between. Other transsexuals like myself identify as female. I don’t feel as though my brain is stuck between, but rather, it’s firmly on the female side. If an androgen receptor is broken or not expressed in the brain, then it doesn’t matter what the levels of hormones are, they won’t penetrate into the brain. Having lots of keys doesn’t matter if there is no doorknob to unlock.
Determining if someone is “XY or XX genetically” isn’t nearly as easy as you might think. First of all, the required test, a karyotype, costs thousands of dollars. Second, in mosaicism, one cause of intersexuality and transgenderism, it can take scores of karyotypes to find out which cells have XX and which have XY, and in what proportion. And if the mosaicism occurs only in the brain, it would require a biopsy, which I believe requires a dead patient. And these tests don’t necessarily prove anything anyway. So, how many more tests will you require before granting an individual her own agency and freedom to choose her path?
What I find bizarre is that taking Christ’s teachings literally would earn me disparagement from a Christian.
Some people identify as being “between” genders. Perhaps their brains are somewhere in between. Other transsexuals like myself identify as female. I don’t feel as though my brain is stuck between, but rather, it’s firmly on the female side. If an androgen receptor is broken or not expressed in the brain, then it doesn’t matter what the levels of hormones are, they won’t penetrate into the brain. Having lots of keys doesn’t matter if there is no doorknob to unlock.
Determining if someone is “XY or XX genetically” isn’t nearly as easy as you might think. First of all, the required test, a karyotype, costs thousands of dollars. Second, in mosaicism, one cause of intersexuality and transgenderism, it can take scores of karyotypes to find out which cells have XX and which have XY, and in what proportion. And if the mosaicism occurs only in the brain, it would require a biopsy, which I believe requires a dead patient. And these tests don’t necessarily prove anything anyway. So, how many more tests will you require before granting an individual her own agency and freedom to choose her path?
What I find bizarre is that taking Christ’s teachings literally would earn me disparagement from a Christian…
Where did you get the authority to tell someone else what gender they are “supposed to be” or “should have been?” Why are you opposed to anyone thinking of themselves as a woman with malformed genitalia? And why do you believe the mind is of secondary consideration to some features of the body?
It is a bizarre mindset to think that a person born with perfectly formed genitalia could possibly be of the opposite sex. There is no reason to think like that.
You answered that yourself. “Thinking of themselves as a woman” when reality indicates otherwise is faulty thinking. Common sense would indicate that a healthy baby born with perfectly formed male genitalia is, in fact, a male and not a female with malformed genitalia.
Because if the body is healthy, then the mind is the problem area causing the confusion.
Certainly such people really do exist but it seems to me they are rare. And ambiguity does not in any way challenge the existence of the two sexes. Deformities do not either. We have no problem recognizing man has five fingers on each hand despite the fact that some have four or six or some other number.
No sex is not dependent on the presence of the genitals. Genitals is just the primary indicator of sex. If a man has both legs amputated so he can no longer walk on two legs he is still a man. He doesn’t become another species.
I believe it is an artificial construct and not something really observed in the world. I believe that the word gender is property of nouns in some languages and not a property of man.
When someone says they know they are or are not a gender they are saying they know what it means to be a gender. This definition is typically suggested to be some sort of mental or spiritual state. The obvious question is how does one know that. I’m a man. But I dont claim to know what it is to be the male ideal or even what the male ideal is. I certainly dont claim to know what it is like to be a female. All I know is what I experience. How would I have a reliable way to know what the ideal is? And how would I know which aspects are male or female?
If you can’t understand what it is like to be a man how can you be sure you are not one?
This wasn’t over a long period of time and the facts were obvious to almost everyone before, during, and after that period of feminism. The ancients didn’t need scientific studies to note the obvious differences between men and women. It took a modern to invent a convoluted theory that imagined no distinctions.
I apologize, truly, I was not trying to tell anyone how they should think. I am asking questions.
Thank you for that reply. I am not trying to tell anyone how they should think of themselves–who am I to do that?
irishpatrick, I didn’t mean to be argumentative and I apologize for sounding that way. You’re asking the correct question, but I disagree with your conclusion. Yes, trans women could hypothetically have had a lack of testosterone, for whatever reason, in the developing brain. That’s a smart insight and my own experience lead me to that premise. However your conclusion - that trans women are primarily men - places the sex organs as more important than the brain and mind. I disagree with that view. The most important determinant of gender is the most important organ in the body - the brain. The mind, not what’s between our legs, tells us which gender we are. At least that’s my view as a woman with some unwelcome male body parts.
For a while I was confused why people frequently say things like “but they are rare.” I think now I understand that to be a justification keeping general rules which apply to most people in spite of the exceptions. In other words, rare exceptions are not necessarily a good reason to overthrow general rules which tend to work. I tend to agree with that view, but I think there needs to be more sympathy to those who do not fit into gender rules.
Forgive me for snipping your quote, but I’m a bit puzzled by what appears to be a contradiction. Personally, I think gender has elements of biology and social construction. If I were trapped on a deserted island for the rest of my life, I’d still be attached to femininity as much as possible within the confines of maintaining survival. I suppose in some ways gender expression is a luxury provided by our advanced society, yet there do appear to be some biological inclinations towards certain gendered behavior. I am no expert in this topic.
From what I have learned of the qualities of masculinity, it is obvious to me that I have a considerable deficit. In contrast, from what I know about femininity, it feels quite natural to identify in such a way. If I were forced to choose between having an “ideal” masculine body and an “ideal” feminine body, I’d choose the feminine body because that’s what feels natural to me. Obviously neither of those ideals really exist, but I’m trying to think of ways to explain how I think.
I personally would gladly trade these magic male benefits for being a woman, but I can’t and since there is no way to really become a woman there is no reason to worry about it.
Why do you believe you can’t? Worrying about it isn’t a choice for those suffering from gender dissonance.
Many people feel ill at ease in their own body, surgery to make you look how you want to be is the coward’s way out, despite looking different you are still the same person underneath hiding from yourself. Being yourself can be substantially tougher, but is ultimately much more rewarding as it yields self mastery and restraint.
For some people “being yourself” requires surgery to pass as their desired gender. So you’ve made a false dichotomy. It can be very brave to undergo such surgery and this could even be thought of as a “self-mastery.” I know I am terrified of surgery and would prefer never have it again.
Sure it’s true that gender rules change, but many stay the same. We all need to find our place in our gendered civilization. It would be nice if people were less hateful towards those who feel more comfortable in a gendered state which society might find unusual.
Anxiety is what Xanax and wine are for.
I always felt like I was a rich person trapped in a poor person’s life. Brb surgery.I always felt like I was a cow trapped in a human’s body. Brb surgery.
It seems to me ‘gender’ is defined entirely by social constructs. Sexual attraction is said to be unrelated to one’s sex. So with sex organs and attraction removed from ‘gender’ what other than social constructs can be used to identify this?