Saturday, July 9, 2011.
Sorting Gender: The End
Segregating genders/sexual orientation/gender identification into clearly defined groups does not work, just like trying to discover specific separating details that keep men and women apart. There are and will always be exceptions to any rules you make. Society and scientists too often solve this set of messy classifications through denial, hiding, ignoring, and sometimes even killing the exceptions to reach a conclusion.
Sorting gender the other way around by trying to find similarities will always work because then there are no exceptions.   more »

Friday, July 8, 2011.
Sorting Gender 4: Relations
Throughout our youth we search for companionship, and a bit later in life many of us search for a partner. That companionship, the person we want to bond with: who is that? What makes us meet?   more »

Thursday, July 7, 2011.
Sorting Gender 3: Expression
When we first meet someone, what registers initially is that person’s gender, no matter the setting or circumstance. So, the foundation of who we are—“our true selves”—is based on gender, whether we like it or not. And deep down this assessment is about perception, of ourselves and others. But we can’t always trust our basic senses. So what can we know?   more »

Wednesday, July 6, 2011.
Sorting Gender 2: Perception
When we talk about self-perception, we seem to need to determine a very specific place that it comes from, something concrete that generates it. Some scientists say that gender and gender identity are determined by a spot in the brain, and that that small blob of jelly is anatomically different for men and women. If that’s so, and if we consider what I’ve talked about so far linking gender so closely with identity, is that jelly blob all that we are?   more »

Tuesday, July 5, 2011.
Sorting Gender 1: Identity
After I scrapped labels that suggest who groups of people are, I found myself quite empty handed. It suddenly appeared to me that all we are in society and in relation to others is based on labels, and if I scrap all this there’s nothing left … like, do we even exist? So, from where do I start to sort gender if there are no references?   more »

Monday, July 4, 2011.
Sorting Gender / Introduction
Generally, when we discuss gender and gender identity we talk about differences and discrimination, but not about what gender and gender identity really are. We explore the topic of sex in almost limitless mediums and at great length, and we debate that women and men do (or do not) receive equal rights. But what about what “gender” really means? This chapter aims to dig in and sort out the gender issue the emotional way.   more »