You’re saying gender is a social construct. People who are transgender say they are born with their gender. Being born with something is incompatible with it being a social construct. Since you don’t see a tension here, are you saying gender is a social construct for everyone except transgender folk? In other words, do you think transgender people are the only ones born with their gender? That seems like an odd view to me.
The feelings/emotions/sensations are legit and are a complex mix of nature and nurture that you can’t really change voluntarily. They exist in the body and mind.
The grouping of those feelings into a rather large container-terms that also includes social roles, looks, expressions and a host of other stuff IS a social construct.
Like, a gemstone can be red, triangular and opaque, and those are objective properties. But calling it pretty is a social thing. The big difference is that “this is red” is a whole lot simpler to put into words than anything gender related.
I basically agree with you except for one caveat. I would call the “grouping” that you describe as gender expression. Whether men where kilts or pants is mostly based on societal expectation. But the unchanging gender identity is not a social construct (in my view).
That said, I raise the question because I am open to having my views changed. They’ve certainly changed in the past.
I don’t see how that contradicts my statement.
You’re saying gender is a social construct. People who are transgender say they are born with their gender. Being born with something is incompatible with it being a social construct. Since you don’t see a tension here, are you saying gender is a social construct for everyone except transgender folk? In other words, do you think transgender people are the only ones born with their gender? That seems like an odd view to me.
The feelings/emotions/sensations are legit and are a complex mix of nature and nurture that you can’t really change voluntarily. They exist in the body and mind.
The grouping of those feelings into a rather large container-terms that also includes social roles, looks, expressions and a host of other stuff IS a social construct.
Like, a gemstone can be red, triangular and opaque, and those are objective properties. But calling it pretty is a social thing. The big difference is that “this is red” is a whole lot simpler to put into words than anything gender related.
I basically agree with you except for one caveat. I would call the “grouping” that you describe as gender expression. Whether men where kilts or pants is mostly based on societal expectation. But the unchanging gender identity is not a social construct (in my view).
That said, I raise the question because I am open to having my views changed. They’ve certainly changed in the past.