Essay - Sexuality of Hermaphrodites Human Beings are an Incredibly Diverse Species...

Sexuality of Hermaphrodites

Human beings are an incredibly diverse species within itself - race, ethnicity, geography, family, gender are all variables, just as DNA, fingerprints, and retinas ***** combine to create absolutely unique creatures - no two exactly alike. The other thing about people, is that there are infinite variations created by subtle differences in DNA and in our physical development, ***** our psychology, our emotional development and our self-concept. Because these variables produce an infinite range of possibilities how we define people, according to "traditional" categories such as black, white, male and fe*****, straight and gay are all open to variation ***** interpretation. Every***** that makes us who we are does so in degrees. ***** most basic distinction we have made since history began is the dif*****rence between the genders. Virtually all species of animal on Earth has two genders and ***** species are maintained by sexual interaction between the ***** genders. Therefore, gender, perhaps more than any other human characteristic, has *****d our identities from the beginning of our genetic *****. Th*****, though defining gender is increasingly difficult as there are certainly multiple factors involved in def*****ing us as human beings. But, taken one step further, it *****n't j*****t important to define people by their sexuality so that we may know ***** to personally relate to them, we must also ***** ourselves in terms of our own sense of *****. For the biologically sexually ambiguous person, all of ***** determinations are made ***** much harder.

********** his*****ry ***** hermaphroditism is largely the h*****tory of the struggles over the 'realities' of sex - ***** nature ***** 'true' sex, the proper roles of the sexes, ***** question of what sex can, should or must mean," (Dreger). Biologically, hermaphroditism, "is when an ***** has both testicular ***** ovarian tissues," (Gilbert). Because ***** gender ***** exist, identification of a gender cannot be properly made- thus the term ambiguous is applied to ***** child. "Classifying newborn infants as to whether they are male or fe***** is usually straightforward. One looks at the phallus and sees whether it is a penis (long) or ***** cli*****ris (short). ***** looks to see if there are two labia (vaginal lips) or if they have fused into a scrotum," (Gilbert).

Herm*****phrod*****es are found in nearly every species and are considered to be the result ***** a failed ********** determination within the DNA. ***** of this, ***** are hermaphrodites who actually have both sets of male ***** *****male designate chromosomes (XXXY). "In humans, "true" gonadal hermaphroditism—a person's having ***** ovarian and testicular tissue—is rare. However, it is estimated that about 1% of the population ***** have "pseudohermaphrodit*****m," conditions where ***** phenotype is not the ***** expected from the gonads." (Gilbert)

***** referred to as "intersexed," ***** have ***** caused the medical profession a great deal of "stress." Doctors created a system for categorizing people's gender using "pseudo-" in the lablel. As in, "female pseudo-hermaphrodite" for a person who has non-st*****ard sex anatomy and ovaries; ***** "male pseudo-hermaphrodite" for non-standard