Evolution's Rainbow. Layne Simpson's notes.

Joan Roughgarden is a male to female transgendered person and a Professor of Biological Sciences at Stanford University. Her book is a good example of standpoint theory.

Standpoint Theory - A standpoint is a place from which to view the world that dertermines what we focus on as well as what is obscured from us. Standpoint theorists suggest that societal inequalities generate distinctive accounts of nature and social relationships. So what people "know" depends upon which group they are in and the majority groups control recieved knowlwedge. People at the top of the societal hierearchy have the power to define others. Each person can only achieve a partial view of reality from the perspective of his or her own position in the social hierarchy, and minority/subordinate group accounts may be more complete than privileged group accounts. This view contrasts sharply with the claim that "truth" is value-free and accessible to any objective observer (see Sandra Harding, Julia Wood).

Roughgarden's basic question is how does biology account for such a huge population of gays, lesbians, transsexals, transgendered, and intersexed persons. Her general conclusion is that each academic discipline simply ignores the diversity which exists in nature and in people. The most controversial part of the book is Roughgarden's rejection of Darwin's theory of sexual selection, instead arguing that its not always the strongest males which get to reproduce. Choice is not about finding the best, most attractive, or the strongest male to mate with, but finding the best match to both mate and raise a family. Additionally, the purpose of sex isn't reproductive as such. Its often for pleasure. You can see this in the animal world as well as in the human world. This opens up a great many possibilites for sexual behaviors and partnering for both animals and people.

Biological Literature on Nonhumans:

1. The most common body form among plants and in perhaps half the animal kingdom is for an individual to be both male and female at the same time, or at different times during its life.
2. In lots of species, especially fish, the female is bigger than the male.

 

3. In many species the female deposits the egg in the pouch of the male, who incubates them until birth. In many species, males not females tend the nest.
4. In birds, including domesticated poultry, females have XY chromosomes and males have XX. In many other species, male and females show no difference in chromosomes.

 

5. Many species have three or more genders with individuals of each sex occurring in two or more forms.
6. In some species, males and females are almost indistinguishable. In other species, males occur in two or more forms, one of which resembles a female.
7. The spotted hyena female has a penis-like structure externally identical to that of males, and the fruit bat males have milk producing mammary glands.

 

8. In some species, females control males and in many, mating is a dynamic interaction between females and choice.
9. Depending on the species, either or both males and females may "play around." Lifelong monogamy is rare, 90% of bird species are monogamous at least for one breeding season. In contrast, 90% of mammal species are polygyous with one male for many females.

II. Gender/Sexual Diversity in Humans

Both sexes possess and respond to male and female hormones. Everyone possesses testosterone, estrogen, and all the other "sex" hormones. But making hormones is half the story; the other half is whether cells have receptors for them. The stereotypical view of how testosterone affects men is that men become energized, lustful, angry, violent, etc. Women, on the other hand, become irrational, monsters as victims of their monthly cycle.

Transgendered people have much to contribute on how hormones feel. Transgendered people speak of a great variablility in hormone sensations, probably reflecting a great variability in hormone receptors. We have unanimous reports from transgendered men that testosterone calms them. Transgendered women, on the other hand, say testosterone is annoying, making them edgy and nervous. Female hormones have a calming effect on transgendered women.

III. Cultural Diversity in Gender and Sexuality

I was going to cover homosexuality and transgender in the bible but we never got that far.