Best of the Week: Sex and Gender

Gender: the behavioral, cultural, or psychological traits typically associated with one sex 

Sex: either of the two major forms of individuals that occur in many species and that are distinguished respectively as male or female especially on the basis of their reproductive organs or structures 

I learned something new past this week; Sex and Gender are different words, with different meanings. Surprised? Yea, I was too. For as long as I can remember, sex and gender have been used interchangeably and are the same thing and a female was a girl, and a male was a boy. And as far as I've known, genetically, anatomically, physically, and mentally, everyone's sex and gender have agreed with each other. Now I haven't been living under a rock, but I think I just didn't acknowledge these differences. It's not new that people have had conflicting feelings about their gender and sexuality, but suddenly this has been an issue that every presidential candidate has to have a stance on, and every normal person has their own opinions on too.  

So, when we discussed in class if there was a difference between sex and gender, I completely doubted that there was a difference between the two. I have absolutely nothing against the LBGTQ groups, but I didn't think anything of it. If your a male, your a male, if you're female, you're female. Every human being is biologically one or the other. No debates. It's scientifically proven. But, when we read the definitions of the words in class, I admit, I was wrong. You can't biologically or scientifically prove gender. It's based on thoughts and feelings. So does that mean, that if I filled out a survey that asked my gender and I wanted to say I was a boy, I could? And if a boy was filling out a survey, could he say he was a girl? Could someone be male, yet be a girl? Female, yet a boy? Am I ignorant to the obvious, or have the differences of the two words been masked from society? I think the ladder. I'm not pointing fingers, or blaming anyone, but I am sure that the majority of people don't recognize that sex and gender are not the same thing. It is not that they ignore this, they just don't know. 

Now that I know this information, I'm not going to suddenly start preaching that people use these words in the wrong context, or that they are not acknowledging that it might be a sensitive subject for someone. I think I'll let the two words create a meaning inside of me, and I can guarantee that every time someone uses either of the terms, I'll think about their true meaning.  Most of the time, a male is a male in both sex and gender, and a female is a female as well. The difference between the two words seem small because they don't apply to most people, but the difference is huge for some. How hard would it be to be a female boy and not have anybody understand? I can't exactly relate, but I think that now I have a better understanding of what the words mean and how they apply to people who truly have different sex and genders, it opens my mind to a plethora of subjects that surround around the disagreement of two simple words, and how I can help by knowing that sex and gender are different words, with different meanings. 

What If: Fictional Autobiography

So we've been reading Orlando by Virginia Woolf, and in this book Woolf plays with the idea of a fictional biography; she takes real people, and makes up fake stories about their lives, the main character being Orlando in particular. This type of writing has gotten me thinking. Virginia Woolf pictured their lives a certain way, she had complete control over what she wanted these characters to do and feel. Woolf got inside the characters heads. Thinking about this, I got into my own head. I have hopes, dreams, and plans for my future. What if, right now, I wrote a fictional autobiography?

I don't want to pat myself on the back, but I think this is kind of a genius idea. The autobiography wouldn't be totally fictional, rather it would be like writing your bucket list down in story form. If you wanted to, I guess you could alter the past, but that would sort of be wishing for something that can never happen. Ideally, I could write down my life story right now. A complete autobiography of the most exciting and intrigueing experiences in my life. My wishes, my dreams and my goals would all be bound together in a novel. It might sound ridiculous, but I guess if I wrote an autobiography it would drive me to make those things that I write about some true.

There would probably have to be some logic to it. The characters would be the people I currently know and love, and my experiences would have to be realistic (and by that I mean anything can happen) but this is creative liscense at its finest. The writer isn't just given the ability to make up words and sentences that are gramatically incorrect, they're given the right to create a story made of fantasy, and make it reality.

I think the best thing about this idea is that it's so ridiculous. I mean, let's face it, we all have ideas for what is going to happen down the road from now, when in truth, we have no idea what will even happen tomorrow. We could write down our entire future, plan it all out, but how accurate will it really be? If I wrote my own autobiography right now, it would probably include me living with the native tribal people of another country, climbing to the top of mount Kilaminjaro, joing the Peace Corps, and building an entire house with my own two hands in Africa. Will I actually end up doing these things? I really, truly, hope so.

Maybe I will write this fictional autobiography, and I'll pack it away up in the attic to collect dust. And one day, when I'm old and grey, I'll read it again. When I finish the book, I might be filled with satisfaction because I fufilled my own predictions, or maybe I'll lean back in the chair and laugh how naive i was, and maybe I'll scoff at myself for not being as adventurous as I predicted. I'm not one to live past the next few hours, but it just seems interesting. Virgnia Woolf took this character, and owned him. She gave Orlando life, and experiences. I have that exact same power to own myself; I can give myself these experiences only I have the complete authority to make them reality.

Fictional autobiography. Who knows, it could be fictional now, but it doesn't always have to be. The only person that can make that happen is myself.