I could hardly believe it when I read about these parents, who decided not to reveal the sex of their baby, Storm, to anyone outside the family. It's so—seventies:
Genderless Baby
The story immediately reminded me of the 1978 book X: A FABULOUS CHILD'S STORY, by Lois Gould (which that article mentions as an inspiration for Storm's parents). In that book, the toddler known only as X wears colorful overalls and a unisex haircut. He or she, portrayed as completely happy and healthy, opens the minds and hearts of his or her friends to the freedom of exploring the full range of our society's options for children, regardless of social gender.
Several professionals are quoted to the effect that bringing up Storm genderless will gravely confuse him or her. (That's a problem right there; since we don't live on the planet of LeGuin's LEFT HAND OF DARKNESS, what do we do about pronouns? And even LeGuin had a problem, using "he" instead of choosing to create a sex-neutral personal pronoun, because her alien characters inevitably came across as masculine despite her best efforts.) Storm will supposedly have self-concept problems because our sexual identity is such an integral part of our personality. Lois Gould's picture book stated that X knew whether X was a boy or a girl, and by the time it mattered everybody else would know, too. Presumably Storm will be in the same situation as he or she grows up. I do wonder how long a real-world toddler will be able to keep from letting the secret slip out, though.
As SF readers and writers, we're presumably more used to thinking about gender and sexuality in multivalent, innovative terms than the general public. Do you think Storm's parents are being "unfair" to their child by making the baby the subject of this experiment? Does Storm's case have any light to throw on the situations of transgender or intersex people? I've read that intersex conditions are more common than generally realized, and most of the people born with such biological ambiguities are forced to choose one sex or the other, or often have a sex assigned to them in infancy long before they can make a choice.
Margaret L. Carter
Carter's Crypt
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Margaret,
ReplyDeleteI studied Sociology, Psychology and Psychiatry at Cambridge University (Cant) in the 70s.
If a child was born with a very small penis, the child was adjusted and brought up as a girl.
My view is that these parents are kinder and more responsible to wait, and their privacy and that of the child ought to be respected.
It seems to me rather reprehensible for a parent or doctor to take a look at a helpless, speechless infant and decide to surgically determine what that child must be.
"My view is that these parents are kinder and more responsible to wait, and their privacy and that of the child ought to be respected."
ReplyDeleteI agree with respect to children who aren't born with physiologically "normal" genitals. In the case of the parents in the article, though, the baby is apparently a perfectly typical boy or girl (biologically), and they've decided to keep the sex a secret and raise the child gender-neutral.
Regardless, of course their privacy should be respected. :) (Although it seems as if they haven't shunned publicity.)
I think that I remember a time when babies were called "it", rather than "he" or "she".
ReplyDeleteIn our historical past, all babies wore gowns. Little Elizabethan boys were dressed just like girls until some time between the ages of 3 and 7.
See pictures
http://elizabethan.org/compendium/40.html
Not saying that the English in Elizabethan times were perfect, but there is a precedent.
Most children are aware of gender by age 3-4 and are quite astute about which club they belong to.
ReplyDeleteThe child will choose. There's not a possibility that the child "won't" gain a gender.
But it is a fascinating idea - to have genderless babies whose gender is only assigned later on in life. I think that's a plot bunny there for somebody!
"But it is a fascinating idea - to have genderless babies whose gender is only assigned later on in life. I think that's a plot bunny there for somebody!"
ReplyDeleteI've read or heard of one or more SF stories in which the members of a fictional culture do choose their own sexes at maturity, and in at least one case they switch genders at will throughout life. Unfortunately, I can't remember any titles or authors.
Margaret:
ReplyDeleteLeGuinn did the switching sexes thing in LEFT HAND OF DARKNESS which made Marion Zimmer Bradley bold enough to include her Chapter 13 (alien sex) in World Wreckers.
"LeGuin did the switching sexes thing in LEFT HAND OF DARKNESS which made Marion Zimmer Bradley bold enough to include her Chapter 13 (alien sex) in World Wreckers."
ReplyDeleteSure. But I wasn't thinking of LEFT HAND OF DARKNESS (in which the people are neuter most of the time, becoming male or female only during their monthly mating phase). The story that vaguely hovers in the back of my mind involves perfectly "normal" Earth-human men and women who can become either sex at will through very advanced technology. As in, someone checks into a medical facility and comes out as the opposite sex. Only it's painless and reversible.