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Look right, I like a lot of things about the foundational 2007 text Whipping Girl by Julia Serano. But if you've ever been told to read this book without any qualifiers, I'd like to apologise on behalf of the trans community.

lenin-tea

Obviously the concepts of traditional and oppositional sexism, the idea of transmisogyny, Serano's analysis of media depictions of trans women, and more are all superb and well worthy of praise. However, Serano is a land of contrasts, as AcidSmiley so concisely put it. She's read both Leslie Feinberg and Kate Bornstein's works, and writes this extremely salient quote:

We must also stop pretending that there are essential differences between women and men. This begins with the acknowledgement that there are exceptions to every gender rule and stereotype, and this simply stated fact disproves all gender theories that purport that female and male are mutually exclusive categories.

Despite all that, Serano has a perspective that's utterly mired in exorsexist* binary-only assumptions, with language to match. On own, describing someone taking estrogen as "hormonally female" or her body prior to hormone replacement therapy as "physically male" would be unpleasantly cisnormative, but just that. I respect fully that the intent of this book is to analyse the ins and outs of being trans in the gender binary, and so the text is focused in that direction. When Serano writes goofy shit like "mtf spectrum" though, you wonder if she wouldn't be better served by thinking a little outside of the two-genders box.

She doesn't want to, though; Julia Serano circa 2007 (the text has not been meaningfully updated to my knowledge) is a brave warrior going against the grain of non binary domination :citation to defend our poor, repressed binary genders. She's taking down those woke non-binary moralists from their ivory towers:

There are many different (but often overlapping) forms of gender entitlement and gender anxiety. For example, one of the most frequently discussed forms of gender entitlement is heterosexism, the belief that heterosexuality is the only "natural," legitimate, or morally acceptable form of sexual desire. Heterosexist gender entitlement ean lead to homophobia, which is an expression of gender anxiety directed against those people who engage in same-sex relationships. Similarly, the gender-entitled belief that all women are (or should be) feminine and men masculine-which some have called cisgenderism-gives rise to transphobia, a gender anxiety that is directed against people who fall outside of those norms. While homophobia and transphobia have both received mainstream attention, thinking in terms of gender entitlement and gender anxiety also allows us to consider less well- known (but just as disparaging) forms of gender and sexual discrimination. For example, many gays and lesbians who believe that all people are "naturally" either homosexual or heterosexual often express biphobia, a gender anxiety directed toward bisexual people because they challenge the presumption that people can only be attracted to one sex or the other. I have also met some people in the transgender community who feel that identifying outside of the male/female binary is superior to, or more enlightened than, identifying within it. Such people often express gender anxiety (binary- phobia?) at people who identify strongly as either female or male.

I would be laughing if I weren't actually really mad about this classic, foundational transfeminist text featuring tons of brainworms about anyone outside the binary. It's a punchline, the phrase "binary-phobia" is perfect to sit right next to "heterophobia" or "cisphobia". It's right up there alongside white westerners claiming to be victims of racism when someone calls them a cracker, even. It should be plainly self-evident how ridiculous a claim this is. I want to ask Serano circa 2007 to tell me which genders have legal recognition - binary or non-binary ones?

It is truly incredible that a woman can write so sharply about the cultural/societal hedgemony of cis gender and heterosexuality, about how the concept of anything being inherently gendered is antithetical to feminism, and then turn around and write a deeply unserious aside about how non-binary people are apparently smug moralists commiting discrimination against people of binary gender due to the same gender anxiety**--in itself a smart concept about how queer people disrupt assumed gender/sexual normality--that drives cis people to be transphobes!! I am for real left somewhat speechless.

I don't think Whipping Girl is a book nobody should read, obviously. But I scoured the bearsite to see if anyone had dome criticism of or even qualified their recommendation of Whipping Girl, and I found nothing. Part of me wonders if anyone has made a concerted criticism of this book before, but surely someone has before me. I yap exclusively for your benefit! I wonder if Sexed Up or Excluded are better, but frankly I'm just disappointed and angry. Truly a joke.

--

*Exorsexist, I learned today, is discrimination against people outside the gender binary!

**Serano describes gender anxiety as "the act of becoming irrationally upset or being made uncomfortable by the existence of those people who challenge or bring into question one's gender entitlement." In turn, she describes gender entitlement being "an arrogant conviction that one's own beliefs, perceptions, and assumptions regarding gender and sexuality are more valid than those of other people". She is more or less insinuating that non-binary people are befuddled supremacists who cannot stand... adherence to the gender binary. Cool.

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[โ€“] imogen_underscore@hexbear.net 15 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (2 children)

GOOD post never read the book the worst thing I've heard about it is that it's "somewhat dated" but some of this stuff is real bad and I'm glad you took the time to write up some critique! you're so right as usual order-of-lenin

edit i think i understand the context fairly well, but the framing is asinine even for the time and worthy of critique, of course Serano is someone i am willing to give some leeway to but this does read as enbyphobic and should be revised. i think ash has done a good job of that critique here.

[โ€“] ashinadash@hexbear.net 11 points 2 months ago (1 children)

I was appalled to see absolutely no critique or discussion of this anywhere on the bearsite. Thank you! doggirl-thumbsup

[โ€“] imogen_underscore@hexbear.net 9 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (1 children)

glad you took the time to do some! your effortposts are always good, encourage you to keep doing them! sorry that you got some angry replies but i think you prompted some good discussion too, always nice to see that outside of the mega especially.

[โ€“] ashinadash@hexbear.net 8 points 2 months ago (1 children)

I appreciate it, sincerely trans-heart I am trying to keep a lid on it but it's infuriating to see like ten threads of the same "no it is about this secret thing that doesn't exist promise, please ignore all the language and the entire statement" thing...

I hope this will lead to more good discussion.

[โ€“] imogen_underscore@hexbear.net 7 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (1 children)

yeah i have to agree there was some hand wavey dismissal of how poorly (even offensively) the text comes across going on. Serano isn't above criticism...

[โ€“] ashinadash@hexbear.net 7 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Do you remember the bit in Nevada where it talks about how Serano has a bunch of fans online that will come to you if you criticise her? I assumed that was a bit written by a grumpy trans lady. Not a big fan.

[โ€“] imogen_underscore@hexbear.net 5 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (1 children)

yeah, lol. there are definitely these like pillars of the community that some folks act like are above critique or like, constantly misinterpret good faith critique as trying to "cancel" the author or whatever. tiresome and non dialectical!

[โ€“] ashinadash@hexbear.net 6 points 2 months ago (1 children)

A little unserious, even. Although I will admit, I'm now compelled to delete my copies of Sexed Up and Excluded. The author herself seems unwilling to admit "yea I posted cringe" which is a huge L.

[โ€“] imogen_underscore@hexbear.net 8 points 2 months ago (1 children)

yeah the refusal to revise the book does seem like a big L, especially given the esteem it's held in and like you said the way the issues with it seem to fly under the radar... wonder why that could be hmmm it's almost like enbyphobia is the real intracommunity materially damaging force and "binaryphobia" is a joke.

[โ€“] ashinadash@hexbear.net 8 points 2 months ago

che-smile No way, and that would never be the subtext of the entire post either...