| Unzipping Gender: Sex, Cross-Dressing and Culture Contributor(s): Suthrell, Charlotte (Author), Eicher, Joanne B. (Editor) |
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ISBN: 185973720X ISBN-13: 9781859737200 Publisher: Berg Publishers OUR PRICE: $158.40 Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats Published: April 2004 Annotation: How does culture shape notions of sexuality and gender? Why are transvestites in the West so often seen as "deviant" or "perverse," while they are accepted in other societies? Is transvestism motivated primarily by sex or gender? What are the implications for the categories of "male" and "female" when considering transvestism? "Unzipping Gender" compares transvestism across cultures and considers how emotion, mythology, imagery, and beliefs influence ideas about sex and gender. Suthrell challenges the straightforward binary divide that dominates Western theories of gender. She argues that sex and gender are really so closely connected that we need a more sophisticated response to the complex practice of transvestism. In order to gain a deeper understanding of sex and gender issues, it is imperative to examine underlying social and symbolic structures. This unique study across cultures leads the way. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Social Science | Gender Studies - Social Science | Anthropology - Cultural & Social - Social Science | Popular Culture |
| Dewey: 306.77 |
| LCCN: 2004006545 |
| Lexile Measure: 1540 |
| Series: Dress, Body, Culture |
| Physical Information: 0.72" H x 6.28" W x 9.42" (1.08 lbs) 224 pages |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: How does culture shape notions of sexuality and gender? Why are transvestites in the West so often seen as deviant or perverse, while they are accepted in other societies? What are the implications for the categories of male and female when considering transvestism? Transvestism, and its cultural practice, is a useful lens through which we can view and thus debate models of sex, gender and sexuality. Drawing on primary fieldwork, Unzipping Gender offers a cross-cultural study of transvestism through an examination of transvestites in Britain and the Hijras of India. The author tackles the critical question of whether or not transvestism is motivated primarily by sex or gender, and she challenges the straightforward binary divide that dominates Western theories of gender. Taking into account the importance of material culture, she also pays close attention to the detail of dress and considers the artefactual nature of the construction of the self through clothing. Highlighting the differences between the two groups and drawing on further cross-cultural perspectives, Suthrell illustrates the social construction of sex and gender. She considers the roles that emotion, mythology, imagery and belief systems play in influencing ideas about sex and gender in different cultures. Since sex and gender must inevitably be intertwined, Suthrell argues for a more sophisticated response to the complex practice of transvestism. In order to gain a deeper understanding of sex and gender issues, it is imperative to examine the underlying social and symbolic structures. This unique study across cultures leads the way. |
Contributor Bio(s): Eicher, Joanne B.: - Joanne B. Eicher is Regents Professor Emerita at the University of Minnesota. Joanne is Editor-in-Chief, Encyclopedia of Dress and Fashion (Bloomsbury and OUP); Series Editor, Dress, Body Culture (Bloomsbury); Author, Editor, Co-Editor, The Visible Self, (Fairchild); Dress and Gender (Berg); Dress and Ethnicity (Berg); Beads and Beadmakers (Berg); Mother, Daughter, Sister, Bride (National Geographic); a wide variety of published articles in professional journals and chapters in books. |