The Intersexes


Book Description

The Intersexes: A History of Similisexualism as a Problem in Social Life (1906) is a work of nonfiction by Edward Irenaeus Prime-Stevenson. Written while Prime-Stevenson was living as an expatriate in Europe, The Intersexes is a defense of homosexuality grounded in scientific and historical research. Throughout his career, Prime-Stevenson sought to dispel falsehoods surrounding the history and social acceptance of homosexuality. Writing under the pseudonym Xavier Mayne, Prime-Stevenson took great care to insulate himself from the reprisal common to the period in which he worked. Despite his limited audience—copies of his works numbered in the hundreds—Prime-Stevenson is now recognized as a pioneering advocate for the rights of the LGBTQ community. “Between a protozoan and the most perfect development of the mammalia, we trace a succession of dependent intersteps...A trilobite is at one end of Nature's workshop: a Spinoza, a Shakespeare, a Beethoven is at the other. [...] Why have we set up masculinity and femininity as processes that have not perfectly logical and respectable inter-steps?” Seeking to defend homosexuality as a natural result of human evolution, Prime-Stevenson offers his theory of intersexes, of which he identifies two while leaving room for more to be defined in the future. To do so, he rejects the binary of masculine and feminine, both of which fail to describe the vast majority of humanity, in favor of a broader spectrum of sexual identity. Using the terms Uranian and Uraniad, which align with gay and lesbian respectively, Prime-Stevenson attempts to define these types, call attention to historical examples, and critique the societal condemnation and persecution of such individuals as “degenerate” or “criminal.” This groundbreaking study, perhaps the first to approach homosexuality from a scientific, historical, personal, and legal point of view, is recognized today as a landmark in queer literature by academics around the world. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Edward Irenaeus Prime-Stevenson’s The Intersexes: A History of Similisexualism as a Problem in Social Life is a classic work of queer literature reimagined for modern readers.




Lessons from the Intersexed


Book Description

Focusing on intersexuality, having physical gender markers that are neither female or male, the author examines the social institutions that are mobilized to maintain the two seemingly objective sexual categories. She argues that we need to rethink the meaning of gender, genitals and sexuality.




Hermaphrodites and the Medical Invention of Sex


Book Description

Punctuated with remarkable case studies, this book explores extraordinary encounters between hermaphrodites--people born with "ambiguous" sexual anatomy--and the medical and scientific professionals who grappled with them. Alice Dreger focuses on events in France and Britain in the late nineteenth century, a moment of great tension for questions of sex roles. While feminists, homosexuals, and anthropological explorers openly questioned the natures and purposes of the two sexes, anatomical hermaphrodites suggested a deeper question: just how many human sexes are there? Ultimately hermaphrodites led doctors and scientists to another surprisingly difficult question: what is sex, really? Hermaphrodites and the Medical Invention of Sex takes us inside the doctors' chambers to see how and why medical and scientific men constructed sex, gender, and sexuality as they did, and especially how the material conformation of hermaphroditic bodies--when combined with social exigencies--forced peculiar constructions. Throughout the book Dreger indicates how this history can help us to understand present-day conceptualizations of sex, gender, and sexuality. This leads to an epilogue, where the author discusses and questions the protocols employed today in the treatment of intersexuals (people born hermaphroditic). Given the history she has recounted, should these protocols be reconsidered and revised? A meticulously researched account of a fascinating problem in the history of medicine, this book will compel the attention of historians, physicians, medical ethicists, intersexuals themselves, and anyone interested in the meanings and foundations of sexual identity.




The Intersexes


Book Description




Intersexuality in the Animal Kingdom


Book Description

When Richard Goldschmidt' coined the term "intersexuality" in 1915, he intended it to apply to normally dioecious species which exhibit some kind of mixture between male and female characters. However, as knowledge of the bewildering variability present in the sexual orga nization of members of the animal kingdom has increased, the original meaning of the word has changed. Today many authors define inter sexuality as "the presence of both male and female characteristics, or of intermediate sexual characteristics, in a single individual".2 This more extensive and widely accepted concept justifies the title of our book •. Among all the anatomical and physiological features of living organisms the reproductive system has a unique importance for the perpetuation of the species. Conversely, reproductive processes are of little or no account for the viability of the individual. Therefore, within the framework of general biology reproduction has all too often been looked at solely from the point of view of genetics. Lively discussions about genotypic versus phenotypic sex determination long dominated the sci entific literature on sexuality in animals; this one-sided emphasis has tended to obscure many important facets of an organism's ability to reproduce. Recent developments in current biological research have brought the classic problem of sex differentiation into focus again, and the rapid progress being made in comparative endocrinology has added a new di mension to the study of reproductive biology.




"I Want to Be Like Nature Made Me"


Book Description

"This report examines the physical and psychological damage caused by medically unnecessary surgery on intersex people, who are born with chromosomes, gonads, sex organs, or genitalia that differ from those seen as socially typical for boys and girls. The report examines the controversy over the operations inside the medical community, and the pressure on parents to opt for surgery"--Publisher's description.




Sex/gender


Book Description

Anne Fausto-Sterling's Sex/Gender is the only interdisciplinary book for undergraduate courses to explain sex and gender from a biological, social, and cultural perspective.




Transgenderism and Intersexuality in Childhood and Adolescence


Book Description

Presents an overview of the research, clinical insights, and ethical dilemmas relevant to clinicians who treat intersex youth and their families. Exploring gender development from a cross-cultural perspective, scholar Cohen-Kettenis and practitioner Pfäfflin focus on assessment, diagnosis, and treatment issues. To bridge research and practical application, they include numerous case studies and definitions of relevant terminology. The volume begins with an overview of typical and atypical development with regard to sexual differentiation and gender identity, then goes on to discuss the clinical management of intersex conditions and gender problems. Legal issues relating to intersexuality and transsexualism also are discussed.




Sex Chromosomes


Book Description

Sex Chromosomes focuses on the study of sex chromosomes, including human chromosomal abnormalities, behavior and characteristics of chromosomes, and cell division. The book first offers information on the chromosomal basis of sex determination, as well as development of the cell theory, mitosis, fertilization, meiosis, and discovery of sex chromosomes. The publication also ponders on the mitosis, meiosis, and formation of gametes. Discussions focus on the special characteristics of sex chromosomes, abnormalities of cell division, and sexual differentiation. The manuscript reviews sex chromosomes in plants, Drosophila, and Lepidoptera. The book also examines sex-chromosome mechanisms that differ the classic type; sex chromosomes in fishes, amphibia, reptiles, and birds; and sex chromosomes in man. Discussions focus on normal human sex chromosomes, Turner's syndrome, Klinefelter's syndrome, true hermaphrodites, testicular feminization, and pseudohermaphrodites. Sex chromosomes in mammals other than man, including monotremata, marsupialia, insectivora, rodentia, and carnivora, are discussed. The publication is a dependable reference for readers interested in the study of sex chromosomes.




Genetics of Sex Differentiation


Book Description

Genetics of Sex Differentiation intends to help readers understand the genetic basis of sex differentiation. The book focuses on explaining how the sex chromosomes affect the process of sex differentiation by influencing the rates at which cells divide. The book is composed of seven chapters. It provides overviews of classical genetics and structure of cells. It also explains the chromosomal basis of sex determination and sex determination using Drosophila. Polygenetics and continuous and quasicontinuous variations are also discussed. The book also discusses sex factors, determination, and disorders. Moreover, it explains the heterochromatin, embryological basis of sex differentiation, and triploidy and autosomal effects. In addition, it discusses the relationship of genes, chromosomes, growth, and sex. The book is an excellent ""bedside book"" for students in biology, specifically in genetics and developmental biology. Lecturers and professionals in biology and genetics will also find this book invaluable for their practice.