SC2220 Lecture 2 2012

1. Eric C. Thompson
Semester 2, 2011/2012

2. Tutorials Announcement
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asap (at the break or after the lecture).

3. Outline: Today’s Lecture
 Facts about Human Sex and Sexuality
 Biology and Cultural Myth-making
 When does Biology matter Socially?

4. 1. A Few Facts about Sex

5. What is so good about Sex?
 Asexual (non-sexual)
reproduction relies on
mutation to create
variety.
 Sexual reproduction
creates new
combinations of DNA
every time.
 Variety: Speeds up
evolution, allows for
more rapid adaptation,
allows for emergence of
more complex
organisms

6. Asexual Reproduction (Example: Hydra)
Hydra are small creatures that live in water.
Hydra grow “buds” that drop off, grow
large, and grow their own buds. Hydra are (Note: This Hydra, a Mythical Greek
biologically immortal (they don’t age!). Beast, is not what I’m talking about!)

7. Sexual Reproduction (1):
Sequential and Simultaneous Hermaphrodites
Clown Fish: Male to Female Sex Change
Wrasse: Female to Male Sex Change
(Nemo’s deep dark secret?)
Hamlet Fish: Simultaneous Hermaphrodites Banana Slug: Simultaneous Hermaphrodites
(Take turns during extended, multiple mating Prefers to mate with partner, but self-
sessions, lasting several days) fertilizes if necessary.

8. Sexual Reproduction(2):
“Dedicated” Heterosexuals
Hoverflies
Homo sapiens sapiens
We are “dedicated”
heterosexuals, in the sense that
Rabbits from birth onward we remain

9. Human Sexuality Shapes Gender
 If asexual, we would have no basis for “gender” at all.
 If clownfish, gender would be an aspirational concept
(men would aspire to one day become female).
 Because humans are “fixed” (unchanging) as male or
female from birth, we think of gender as a fixed
attribute determined by our biology (even though it is
not).

10. Biology does dot Determine Gender.
 Different cultures create many different
interpretations of our biology (for example, two, three
or more genders).
 Different societies deal with biology differently (they
put male and female bodies to use in different ways).
 Gender is our cultural interpretations of and social
practices associated with our biological system of
sexual reproduction.

11. The Sex / Gender Distinction
 SEX: Is a biological construct. It is the product of
biological processes (reproduction, DNA
replication, mutation, selection, evolution, etc.).
 GENDER: Is a social and cultural construct. It is
the ways in which we organize our
society, interpret, and give meaning to the fact that
we are a sexually reproducing species.
 There are many, many different ways to organize
society around and many different ways to
interpret our sexual reproductive biology.

12. Sex at Different Levels
 Biological Sex is not a simple binary
 Genetic and Cellular Level
 XY and XX Chromosomes
 Hormonal Level
 Testosterone, Oestrogen
 Anatomical Level
 Genitals, Secondary Sex Characteristics
 See: Fausto-Sterling 2000, p.22

13. Male, Female, and Other
 Many types people are ‘intersexed’ individuals
 They do not follow “normal” sexual development
 Hermaphrodites (“five sexes”) only refer specifically to
“uninterpretable” genitalia.
 There are many other ways in which typically male and
female characteristics can be ‘mixed and matched’; many
are at all obvious.
 Approximately 1% to 2% of all people born are “intersexed”
in one way or another.
 At least 1 of every 100 people is intersexed in one way or
another (Fausto-Sterling 2000 estimates 1.7 per 100).

14. “Intersexed” (Hermaphrodites)
 A small percentage of all humans
born are hermaphrodites; or
“intersexed”
 Many, many varieties of
intersexed individuals (Reading:
“The Five Sexes” only scratches
the surface).
 Intersexed individuals are ‘fixed’ The Reclining Hermaphrodite
by modern medicine; but this is 1st century BCE sculpture
not always helpful to the
individuals involved.
 Intersexed bodies are required to See the Short Film
conform to cultural gender
beliefs. XXXY:
Intersex Genital
Mutilation

15. Human Sexes
 For every 1,000 people:
 491 are female
 491 are male
 17 are intersexed
 1 other?

16. Paths to Intersexuality
 Some people have extra chromosomes: XXY, XYY
 Others experience unusual development, for
example:
 In the womb, one set of processes “sexes” the body
 “Masculinization” of the body*
 Another set of processes “sexes” the brain
 “Masculinization” of the brain.*
 In the womb, sometimes a fetus experiences one
process but not the other.
*For technical reasons, becoming female is considered the ‘normal’
developmental sequence; and “masculinization” is a deviation.

17. Some Terminology
 Intersexed (or “Hermaphrodite”) – Having both
typically male and typically female genitalia
 Transexual or transsexual – Crossing from one sex to
another biologically (e.g. sex change)
 Transgender – Crossing from one gender to another
culturally (e.g. cross-dressing or “transvestite”)
 Homosexual – Same sex sexual practice or identity
 Heterosexual – Cross sex sexual practice or identity
 A major problem is that our vocabulary for talking
about these things is limited, vague, and inconsistent

18. 2. Biology and Cultural Myth-making
or How We Turn Ambiguous Biology
into Cultural Truth

19. Heterosexed Individuals
 Most individuals are
substantially “heterosexed”; they
follow a standard developmental
sequence (they are “normal” – in
a statisical sense)
 Even then, discounting ALL the
many unusual cases. There is
tremendous overlap in almost
every respect between
individuals who follow a
standard female developmental
sequence (i.e. women) and
those who follow a male
developmental sequence (i.e.
men).

20. Why are we obsessed with Biological Sex
Differences?
 They seem (are) more easy to observe – so they seem
more “real” than socialization or culture.
 They give us the comfortable illusion of permanence.
 So, we look obsessively for biological sex differences,
for example . . .
 We define ourselves and others to a significant degree,
based on only “One-percent of the burn chart” (one-
percent of our total outward appearance).

21. “Sexing the Brain”*
 Studies showing difference in brain structures: 13*
 Studies showing no difference in brain structures: 95*
 Question: Why focus on difference correlated with sex?
What is the specific purpose of the research?
 Left-handed & right-handed people exhibit as great or
greater differences.
 Focusing on sex/gender difference and highlighting the
(minority of) studies that find differences, reinforces
cultural sense of difference.
*See Fausto-Sterling, Sexing the Body (2000) Chapter 5
(This is among the supplementary readings)

22. Ok, so there is a lot of misleading of scientific information, BUT
men and women are still different in many ways, on
average, right?
ABSOLUTELY TRUE!
 Men are on average:  Women are on average:
 Faster  Less susceptible to illness
 Stronger (esp. Upper Body)  Better descriptive memory
 Better with directions  Better at listening/recall
 Better with math (maybe)  Better with language
But, what does “average” mean?
Is everyone pretty much average?

23. Problem with Averages
 Studies are repeatedly used to claim “men and women
are different”
 Average differences are always cited.
 But, the range is almost never cited; without that, the
meaningfulness of the “average” is useless.
“Even when scientists themselves are cautious… popular renditions of new
scientific findings dispense with linguistic subtlety” (Fausto-Sterling pg.236)

24. How big is the difference?
Example of a test of physical ability; emphasizing
upper body strength.*
80%
FEMALES
20%
MALES
80%
In US Army physical tests: top 20% of women had
the same average as bottom 20% for men.
(These statistics then get used both for and against women in the military)

25. How much can you lift?
Udomporn Polsak (Female, Thailand,
Height 150 cm, Weight 53 kg):
Lifted 125 kg*
Tang Gonghong (Female, China,
Height 172 cm, Weight 120 kg):
Lifted 182.5 kg
Halil Mutlu (Male, Turkey,
Height 150 cm, Weight 56 kg):
Lifted 160 kg
Hossein Reza Zadeh (Male, Iran,
Height 185 cm, Weight 160 kg):
Lifted 262.5 kg
*All results for “Clean & Jerk”
2004 Olympics

26. “Strong Masculine Bodies”
 In many cultures, domestic work is considered more
appropriate for women than for men.
 In Samoa, Fafafini are considered excellent at domestic
work because of their strong masculine bodies.
 Bodies can be (and are) used and interpreted in many
different ways.

27. Turning Averages into Absolutes
 Physical strength, especially upper-body strength is the
most significant known difference between human males
and females (aside from childbearing).
 Most other differences have much greater overlap.
 The science of averages is often turned into absolutes in
popular discourse (which in turn guides public policy)…
“Science” as myth-making… in modern societies, when we
call something “scientific” it gains credibility.
In almost every case, the abilities of woman and men overlap.

28. 3. Sex Differences that Matter in
(Some) Social Contexts
*Reproductive Strategies
*Sexual Competition
*Hormones

29. Reproductive Strategies
 In mammals (including humans), females are far more
limited in the number of offspring compared to males.
 This inclines females toward “quality” and males
toward “quantity” in sexual reproduction and practice.
 Females are more “selective” (and in this sense, more
active in driving human evolution; Hrdy 1981)
 Note also: Social systems play a strong role in
reproductive strategies… social and cultural systems of
gender affect biology as much as biology shapes
gender.

30. Sexual Competition
 Sexual Competition (over access to mates) occurs
between men and between women; NOT between
men and women.
 Men compete with other men to make themselves
attractive to women (based on what women want;
or what men think women want).
 Women likewise compete with other women.
 At the same time, groups of men and groups of
women often cooperate.

31. Some Consequences of Reproductive
Strategies and Sexual Selection
 Physical dimorphism (men being on average larger than
women) is an outcome of competition between men.
 Men’s larger size did not come about in order to physically
dominate women; but in some cases it results in physical
domination (violence or abuse).
 Male competition focuses on sexual access to women.
 Female competition focuses on access to the excess
resources men produce (meat, money, etc.).
 Some of the social and cultural consequences of these
differences will be discussed later in the course…

32. Testosterone (Hormone) Theory
 Male dominance is often attributed to testosterone (e.g. Steven
Goldberg, 1993).
 Testosterone has effects that are important to understanding
gender socialization – but they are oversimplified and
exaggerated culturally.
 The oversimplified, exaggerated testosterone explanations
perpetuate gendered outcomes and are often inaccurate excuses
for gender discrimination.
 For example: Goldberg (1993) concludes that because testosterone
(may) incline men to be more competitive therefore women should
never compete with men.

33. A Few Facts about Testosterone
 Both men and women have testosterone.
 Testosterone levels are affected by environment.
 Levels of testosterone rise during competition (e.g. sports) – among
participants and fans. The members and fans of a winning team
have spike in testosterone after the game; testosterone levels in
losing teams and fans drop.
 Men’s testosterone levels fall after marriage and rise after divorce.
 Boys have spikes in testosterone at various stages of childhood and
adolescence.
 Testosterone affects the body and emotional responses.

34. Social Effects of Testosterone
 Testosterone makes boys more “aggressive” (agitated).
 Boys and girls respond equally to physical/aggressive activities, but boys
are more likely to initiate them.
 Aggression contributes to different play styles.
 Different play styles contributes to self-segregation by gender
(boys play with boys, girls play with girls)
 Segregation leads to different socialization (girls learn from each
other ‘how to be girls’; boys learn from each other ‘how to be
boys’)
 The socialization is responsible for the greatest differences; the
testosterone is a “catalyst” but not a “cause” (Testosterone would
have no effect in the absence of socialization processes).

35. Beyond Testosterone
 Testosterone is just one example of the complex
interactions of biology (hormones), society and
cultural contexts.
 Interactions between sex (biology) and gender
(society, culture) are always similarly complex.
 Correlation between a biological fact and a social and
cultural one can never be taken as proving that one
causes the other.
 Reducing gender to biology is myth-making; not
science.

36. Summarizing…
 Sex is a biological construct; Gender is a social and
cultural construct.
 Sex and human heterosexual biology are a basis for
gender… but do not determine gender.
 Ambiguous “facts” (such as average differences) and
ambiguous biology is regularly transformed into
cultural “truths” (belief taken to be “natural” and
unquestionable).
 Bodies and biology do have effects socially; but in
complex, sometimes counterintuitive ways. And
society and culture can shape biology too!

37. Final Thoughts…
 How have this lecture and reading changed your
understanding of human sex and sexuality?
 Is anything here new to you?
 What questions do you have?
 Bring them to tutorials!!!!!