Passing (gender)
Passing [ ˈpɑːsɪŋ ] (from English to pass for / as , to pass through / pass / apply) denotes - based on the USA - with regard to gender identity, the ability of a person to be accepted or assessed as a member of the gender with which they are identifies itself or that it shows to the outside world. Typically, passing involves a combination of physical gender characteristics (e.g. hairstyle or clothing) or physical appearance (e.g. skin color) and certain behaviors that are culturally associated with a specific gender or population group. Many experienced crossdressers assure that, regardless of appearance, self-confidence is far more important than external characteristics for passing .
Related terms
Gender assignment
Gender assignment is the process by which an observer decides which gender to assign another person. Once an observer has assigned a person to a particular gender, it is often very difficult to change that mind and assign them to the opposite sex.
Passing between the sexes
If a person fails to get through as the desired gender, this will be referred to as being read ("to be read (AE) / clocked (BE)"). The process of being read is known as "read".
You are much more likely to be able to “read” someone from the same ethnic group, but less likely to “read” someone from a different ethnic group. It is generally assumed that this is so because the gender characteristics of one's own ethnic group can be recorded more quickly than those of other ethnic groups. Some people choose to leave their country of origin because gender characteristics can vary widely between countries. Vocal pitch, physique, hairline shape, facial structure, behavior and clothing styles are just a few of the reasons put forward.
Depending on the appearance, a person can be "read" by anyone. More important than whether a person is recognized is the reaction of the other who read the person. Some researchers believe that many transgender people who believe they will get through are in fact recognized by many observers, but they do not confront them and the transgender is not even aware that they have been recognized.
The term stealth is used to refer to a person who can get away with the desired gender at any time and who has broken off contact with anyone who knows the true gender history. Therefore, nobody in the person's environment knows that he or she did not always belong to the specified gender. They are effectively invisible within the population of their current gender. To live unrecognized, you have to be extremely "passable".
history
There have been circumstances throughout history where people have impersonated the opposite sex for reasons other than gender identity. The most common reason for women to pose as men in order to become a soldier or to avoid the risk of rape.
Times of war
→ Main article: List of female military personnel disguised as men
There are reports of women doing this in the American Revolutionary War and the Civil War , e. B. Mary Anne Talbot and Hannah Snell.
Two of the most famous examples of women posing as men to fight in the war are Joan of Arc , who fought for France in the Hundred Years War against England, and Hua Mulan , who, according to legend, replaced her elderly father in the Chinese army captured.
Modern environment
Today, passing is most commonly practiced by crossdressers and transsexuals . Since most performers, drag queens and drag kings are often open about their birth sex and not really trying to appear as the opposite sex, the term passing is usually not applied to them, although some might be able to. While many crossdressers venturing out in public try to get through, unlike transsexuals, they (usually) don't make permanent physical changes or try to live in their assumed gender full-time to make getting through easier.
Conversely, almost all transsexuals try to live and work in their preferred sex and to be fully accepted as that sex rather than their birth sex. Therefore, passing is not just a possibility for them, but is seen by many as a necessity. The majority who have undertaken gender reassignment measures or are behind the transition phase usually do not describe themselves as “passing” as they now really consider themselves to be that gender. Those who are fully accepted after the changeover often choose to keep their gender of birth secret and live undetected.
Transgender people who describe themselves neither as crossdressers, transvestites nor as transsexuals may have different attitudes towards passing. For example, they may not try to “fit” at all, may consciously send mixed signals, or they may get through but do not hide the fact that they are transgender. Personal views on passing and the need or need to “fit” are independent of whether one has been under medical treatment or legally changed one's gender.
In the transgender community, those who can't "fit" sometimes look at those who can with envy. Therefore, for some who “fit” there may be a tendency to avoid those who are easily recognized. There is a belief, among many, that when a person is read, everyone around that person is in return assumed to be transgender too. This is one reason why people who live unrecognized rarely, if ever, interact with other transgender people.
It should be noted that the use of the term “passing” in relation to sexual orientation means “hiding” one's identity while using it among non-gendered people (as noted above) acceptance and alignment with one's inner feeling the desired gender identity. However, it is for this reason, and because transgender people who live full-time in their desired gender identity, see their previous attempts to hide their identity and to be accepted in socially accepted and desired roles as a real artistry that they have constructed and protected , some call their previous gender normative and secretive behavior “passing”.
methodology
Individuals trying to get through as a sex other than their birth sex will necessarily try to hide or cover features that are specific to, or more common in, their birth sex, while at the same time emphasizing or artificially creating features that are gender indicative are they are trying to represent.
Passing as a woman
For those who are born male, passing typically involves wearing a wig or hair styling typical of women, removing or hiding whiskers, and wearing makeup to make their face appear feminine, changing body shape to suit resembling a woman, wearing feminine clothing and accessories, speaking in a voice that matches her appearance, and adopting feminine behaviors.
Changes to make the face and body appear feminine fall into two categories: temporarily applied or worn objects and surgical procedures.
Temporary change in body structure
A variety of materials and methods are used to alter current body measurements to create the illusion of a female figure.
Some form of breast prosthesis is usually used. If the clothing worn reveals the cleavage , a kind of cleavage extension is also used.
Various methods are used to achieve a female waist-to-hip ratio , either by reducing the waist size or by enlarging the hips or buttocks. Garments such as corsets , girdles or figure-shaping tights are often used to reduce the appearing waist size and / or to flatten the stomach area. Sometimes hip and buttocks padding is used to increase the supposed size of the hips and buttocks.
Permanent change in body proportions
Transsexuals who permanently live as women often use cosmetic surgeries , including breast augmentation , liposuction, and buttock augmentation. The use of female hormones also changes the body, including the distribution of body fat .
Passing as a man
For trans men , drag kings , or any female body trying to get through as a man, this includes tying the breasts to create a flat-chested appearance, adopting more masculine behaviors, and wearing masculine clothing. Loose or loose clothing is usually preferred because it obscures particular feminine features such as breasts and rounded hips.
Packing
Often a “packer”, a penile prosthesis , is worn in the crotch to resemble the size and shape of the flaccid male genitalia. Trans men typically "packing" on a daily basis for the rest of their lives. Other trans- men practice packing for their personal wellbeing or for drag events as needed.
The vast majority of packers are said to look and feel like sagging genitals. In recent years, however, two companies have launched medical grade prostheses that can be used for normal use as well as intercourse.
There are medical grade prostheses that can be attached with medical adhesive, other prostheses are held in place by clothing or (less often) by special straps.
Setting
A real looking male breast can be achieved in many ways. There are special commercial sanitary napkins available around the world, as well as those used for the treatment of gynecomastia . Both are safe and effective at compressing breast tissue and allowing most people to breathe.
Other methods of tying include compression bandages, back braces, duct tape, modified clothing, very tight sports bras, and tight-fitting shirts. These methods are more popular with young people who have not yet come out as trans or who have limited funds.
Dangerous binding methods
Tying off with tape or elastic / compression bandages can cause serious injury and even death from suffocation . If used incorrectly, they can compress the chest so tightly that normal breathing becomes impossible.
Passing between populations
In the USA the expression is also used in the sense that descendants of the Afro-American minority leave their typical demographic appearance to be considered 'whites'.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Julia Serano : Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity , Seal Press, 2007. ISBN 978-1-58005-154-5
- ↑ Polare 63: A Crossdressing Perspective ( Memento of the original from September 9, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ IJ TRANSGENDER - Special Issue on What is TransGender? - Who put the "trans" in transgender? ( Memento of March 3, 2009 in the Internet Archive ).
- ↑ a b Jennifer Anne Stevens. From Masculine to Feminine and All Points in Between , Different Path Press, 1990. ISBN 0-9626262-0-1
- ↑ A CD glossary | The Cornbury Society
- ↑ Glossary ( Memento of the original from September 30, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Griffin S. Boyce. Implications of Location on Gender Perception , Ladies and Gentlemen, 2007.
- ↑ MTF passing tips - MTROLwiki
- ↑ FTM Passing Tips ( Memento of October 10, 2002 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ http://www.ftmprosthetics.com/
