I finished
Whipping Girl this morning. It was, in a word, phenomenal. I learned so many new concepts, words/terms, ways of thinking, and gender/queer/trans theories. I got mad, because Julia Serano doesn't always make sense, but luckily she does make sense about 95% of the time. That's better than most people I know. I got upset, because there were a lot of things I was unaware of that are pretty awful and it always sucks to hear about something awful and new, then learn that isn't really new; you've just been ignorant of it.
She also talked about how a lot of people foster certain types of ignorance, which made me feel better, but also more upset because I am/was part of the fostering.
Let's get a few things straight:
1) I don't know enough about transgender folks to talk about how people perceive them or how they perceive things in life.
2) I can probably say statement #1 about any group of people, and while this book made that clear in general, it mostly hit home for various sexuality/gender groups in which we place people.
3) We really need some gender neutral pronouns. I should really call them "gender free pronouns." Or, even better, just "pronouns." And then call the ones we normally use "gendered pronouns."
4) It's weird being called cissexual and cisgender, but I think if people thought of themselves as having labels, too, a) they'd be less weirded out when they hear labels applied to others (transsexual, pansexual, femme) and more importantly b) they'd be less likely to pop labels on other people just for the sake of needing to label something unfamiliar to them.
I think transgender folks will one day be as accepted as the LGB community is now (not that they're openly welcomed by everyone, but if you hear someone's gay, you don't usually have a barrage of questions for them about their past and their personalities). Maybe Serano thinks so, too, but that doesn't come across well at all in her writing. I know it must be difficult, frustrating, infuriating, and downright miserable to be asked about the state of your genitals (among other questions) if you cross, appear to cross, or admit that you've crossed some gender boundary. But a lot of us cissexual, cisgender people are just so dang unfamiliar with some things that we can't help but be like, "You want to surgically reformat your genitals? Really?"
And for that, I feel bad. Transsexuals are really targeted and played up by the media for the silliest reasons, and I have no other excuse than this: We're really just kids until we learn to grow up. Children have no shame because they have not yet learned that their curiosities can offend people. And I don't mean the whole "sneakily putting eggshells under your feet" people. I mean that it's rude to ask anyone about the state of their genitals, or if they have a "before" picture of themselves to share with the crowd. It's rude and wrong. And a lot of us just haven't learned to control our curiosities and respect those people who are brave enough to be open about the very personal life paths they have experienced.
I seriously doubt anyone reading this post will actually go read
Whipping Girl, but I'd be overwhelmed with joy and appreciation for you if you did. It's not solely about transsexuals, although your skull would have to be pretty thick for you to read this book and not learn a ton about them. Serano's main message targets "the scapegoating of femininity," as she phrases it in the book's subtitle. She talks a lot about how FTM transsexuals as well as feminine men (gay or otherwise) and cissexual females are targets of anti-femininity sentiment. Other topics include gender entitlement, the many mindsets of sexism, the many ways anyone who pushes gender boundaries (especially toward the feminine side) are sensationalized, and the forced mystification of women and their ways. All are incredibly interesting, and surprisingly easy to understand since they are regularly ignored in daily life by most of us. It's like Serano deftly points out that your heart is beating, and makes you think about it. You know it beats, but you're so used to it beating that it becomes natural. Well, it's like that, except with those topics I mentioned above.
What I liked most about
Whipping Girl was that it all seems reasonable, and in some cases, her critiques and analyses were so cleanly put forth that the results made me sad. "Why haven't I heard this before???" I don't like it when I read an analysis of a concept or period of history and can easily tear holes in the author's hypotheses. Serano's education and wit combine to make her points easily understandable and almost painfully logical at times. I did feel chastised (as much as a book can chastise people), but I think that's to be expected anytime one ventures into an area of history or social science with which they are not intimately familiar. It's even more probable if you're part of many majorities like I am (middle class, cissexual female). I predict that many more people have read the first 40 or so pages of this book than have read the entire thing, simply because her style and attitudes are seemingly harsh enough to drive away readers who are not willing to take a few lashes to their egos and mindsets in order to understand Serano's case as she presents it. I say "seemingly harsh" because she is simply being honest, and from her perspective, there are many things that need saying; she is not willing to mince words in order to spare feelings. After all, her feelings have been brushed aside in many situations, and even if they had been considered, I feel like her points are necessary, and received better from a terse speaker than from a calm, explaining one.
I think that's enough for now.
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