Content area
Full Text
Transgender individuals are people whose gender identity and/or gender expression does not converge with gender norms associated with assigned sex at birth. A sub-category of people who identify as genderqueer are exploring gender expression along a continuum beyond the confines of traditional binary definitions of either male or female. We suggest that individuals who undergo some form of physical transformation may experience a temporary liminal state as they transition from one gender identity to the other. Others who fall under the transgender umbrella but are not transsexual may not fully transition but rather remain somewhere in-between the binary categories of female or male. This phenomenon illustrates the transient and complex nature of gender identity formation. Our study explores the many ways that transgender individuals and people who identify with the transgender community are managing their journey and negotiating their identities. Interviews with 21 people in various stages of transformation/transition demonstrate that coming to grips with one's true gender identity is reinforced by ritual experiences along with the support of friends, family, and other social networks. [Article copies available for a fee from The Transformative Studies Institute. E-mail address: [email protected] Website: http://www.transformativestudies.org ©2015 by The Transformative Studies Institute. All rights reserved.]
KEYWORDS: Transgender, Gender Identity, Gender Expression, Sexual Diversity, Liminality.
INTRODUCTION
This research explores the experiences of a sample of gendernonconforming individuals who are attempting to achieve gender independence in a society that dictates gender identity based on genitalia and a rigid binary conception of male/female and woman/man. The expression of alternative forms of gender often meets with disdain and in some instances, violence. Individuals who change gender rules and refuse to conform in socially prescribed ways of gender expression often fall somewhere between female or male. In other words, they enter a liminal space. The term liminality was first coined by Victor Turner based on his field research in Zambia during the 1950s. We argue that at least for a time, some gender non-conforming individuals experience liminality as they transition from one gender identity to the other. Others may embrace this space and still others accept their liminal status with at least some amount of trepidation (Nestle, Howell, & Wilchins, 2002, pp. 98-99). For the purposes of this research project, liminality refers to an...