Clare Bright, Honors 394 A

Question #1
ID# 1230835

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Through time and throughout human rights movements, the origins of gender and sexual
orientation have been widely debated. Gender and sexuality have a strong impact on every
persons identification and the views on these issues vary greatly. This comes from our innate
need to understand the differences between our nature and what has been instilled from
socialization. A convincing viewpoint on both issues should encompass all identities, not just
within the traditional binary. This will be the most effective in gaining widespread support from
all groups, for all groups, and will result in the most fundamentally unoppressive society, which
is the true goal of all movements. I believe that the most satisfactory viewpoint on gender and
sexual orientation is a combination of biological and social influences, which in both cases, lies
on a dynamic spectrum. Rather than agreeing with one specific movement from our studies, I
align with a combination viewpoint for gender and sexual orientation.
With regards to gender, I believe that there are concrete biological differences between
men and women, but it cannot be fully understood how they contribute to gender expression
because we cannot completely isolate people from their environments. This viewpoint aligns
with the liberal and socialist feminists, in that I believe that these biological differences are not
significant enough to warrant differences in treatment. Rather, these differences strengthen
society as a whole, providing a full range of viewpoints for our species benefit. I also believe
that biology influences gender in a similar way that it influences ones personality, but that this
does not occur in any clear alignment with a male and female binary. Instead, socialization
shapes which aspects of ones gender are expressed based on societal norms of masculinity and
femininity. Through this socialization ones gender expression is usually forced to fit with the
norms of their sex, unless one is brave enough to choose otherwise. In alignment with queerism,
that there are no stable identities, I believe that gender can also be a dynamic trait because,

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depending on internal and external variables a person may choose to express more masculine or
feminine traits on any given day, or they may choose to be more consistent in their expression
from day to day.
My stance on sexuality connects with my perspective on gender, in that I believe that
sexuality also falls on a spectrum and can be dynamic, but that it is influenced by biology and to
some respect, society. This idea draws on ideologies of queerism and the radical gays, in that a
person does not necessarily have a stable identity and may engage a certain amount of choice
about their sexuality. A person, biologically, may fall at a certain point on the spectrum of
sexuality, such as gay, straight, etc., but from this point a person is socialized to desire certain
traits in a partner that may be more masculine or feminine. These traits could be expressed within
one gender, such as attraction to a more feminine straight man, or could range across genders,
like pansexuality. Socialization can change throughout a persons life, creating the dynamic
nature of sexuality.
Liberal feminism argues that there are biological differences between women and men,
but that it is unclear exactly what these differences encompass and that the differences do not
justify differential treatment (Lecture 2/10/15). The liberal feminist viewpoint fits with my
understanding of gender, except that I think the definition needs to expand to encompass the
understanding that gender is a spectrum rather than a binary and that it can be fluid based on
socialization. This argument has its basis in the understanding that both men and women are
human beings and that other traits beyond this do not justify discrimination (Friedan 117).
Biological differences, such as childbearing, are not a womans sole purpose in society, so they
do not justify differential treatment (Friedan 117). The characteristics that define genders in
todays society are constructed socially and culturally, which prevents us from truly

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understanding the extent of biological differences (Friedan 115). Liberalism sees judgement and
justice as the foundations of advanced society and since all humans, men and women, have the
ability to reason than women have all necessary skills to be equal members of society (Jaggar
173-174). Foundationally, the liberal feminist perspective on gender is satisfactory, but it needs
to be expanded to encompass everyone on the gender spectrum.
Liberal feminists rarely comment directly on sexuality, as they are focusing on gaining
rights for women, usually more for those who often fit in the privileged categories of race,
sexuality, and class. They do, however, discuss a goal of seeing a broader spectrum of sexual
relationships without the socialized roles that are present today, which can be taken to be more
inclusive of nontraditional romantic relations (Friedan 116). They see that any form of sexual
behavior where an individual finds meaning can be seen as valuable to society (Jaggar 179-180).
The contemporary NOW resolution does discuss ending conversion therapy in Washington State,
clearly indicating that liberal feminists today support equal rights for gays (NOW 2). The liberal
feminist movement must take a stronger stance on sexuality, as the absence of discussion
weakens their overall ideology for the pursuit of equality.
Socialist feminists view of gender differences is similar to liberal feminists, that there are
differences between males and females, but that these are irrelevant in their ability to contribute
to society (Lecture 2/12/15). The socialist perspective analyzes how historically the primitive
society required all to work for the survival of the group until the development of technology
separated the sexes as the power dynamic flipped, showing how gender roles are historical and
dynamic rather than absolute (Radical Women Manifesto 4-5). The social construction of
womens work historically gave women a different role than men, but was one of equal
importance (Davis 224). This has manifested into how todays society views womens work,

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which degrades the sex and prevents women from accessing their full potential through the
capitalist economic system which creates a need for domination. Socialist ideology calls on an
analysis of gender oppression using a class analysis, which adds another layer to the liberal
ideology because it explains how the social norms were formed and examples of how they have
not always existed (Bellin 1). This strengthens my viewpoint that women should be treated as
equals, even though there are some biological differences between the sexes. Like the liberal
feminists, the socialist feminists also leave out the idea of a gender spectrum, focusing only on
the female. Other than this addition, the socialist feminist understanding of gender, combined
with the views of liberal feminists, is very persuasive because it takes into account the
socialization process that has overwhelmed the equal strengths of women and men.
Similar to liberal feminists, socialist feminists also do not directly assess the foundations
of sexual orientation, only hope for a society where there is freedom of sexuality, including gay
rights (Radical Women Manifesto 5). They see the patriarchal nuclear family as a function of the
capitalist society that is focused on power (Radical Women Manifesto 9). These power dynamics
serve the economic benefit of men and prohibit women of all races and sexual orientations from
living to their full potential (Radical Women 13). The movement would benefit from a more
declaratively inclusive stance for all sexual orientations, as their current stance on the issue is not
convincing.
Radical feminists believe that humans are androgynous, meaning that the spectrum of
human qualities are contained within every person, but that socialization restricts which of these
are displayed (Lecture 2/17/15). This is explained through the idea that an essential core drives a
persons potential and personality, which involves the need to be accepted and loved (Kreps
237). This desire to be included in society forces a person to shape themselves to fit into society,

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and places women in an oppressed role. Essentially, socialization only defines women in a role
that is dependent on man, but biologically there is no defined male or female essence, only
human essence (Kreps 235-236, 239). The weakness in the radical feminist stance on gender
comes from the dismissal of obvious differences between men and women biologically, which
makes it less powerful as a movement. The radical feminists struggle with this, having to justify
that biological differences cannot be denied, but that the socialization makes one a man or a
woman (Kreps 235). While we cannot know the extent to which biology or socialization alone
influence gender, both factors must be considered and recognized in order to see the movement
accepted by the public, and to fit with our scientific understandings of human nature.
Radical feminists beliefs on sexuality have been debated within the movement and
throughout time. The movement holds the general belief that humans are polysexual, but lesbians
were once pushed out of the radical feminist movement which led to the formation of the
separatist movement (Bunch 49; Lecture 2/17/2015). Since this time the movement has adjusted
to expand the term feminist to include women from all backgrounds and sexual orientations,
creating a more intersectional mindset (Bunch 54). The belief that humans are polysexual
somewhat aligns with the satisfactory viewpoint presented here, in that it recognizes that
sexuality can fall on more of a spectrum. However, the ideology is limited in its belief that
humans are solely polysexual. This alienates those who feel a strong orientation towards one
particular sexuality, and makes the movement less effective overall.
The feminist separatist movement stance on gender deviates greatly from my definition
of the satisfactory viewpoint. They believe that the sexes are naturally difference, with men
being parasites to the womens strength, energy, and nurturance (Frye 99). They argue that
women have unique abilities that men lack, such as the ability to give back energy and nurture

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others, without which men fall into depression and sickness (Lashof and Thorne 79; Frye 99). In
contrast to the view of all other feminists, that socialization has created the gender roles, the
separatist women believe that the institutions of society have been designed to allow access to
women for men so that they can utilize womens biological strengths (Frye 106-107). The
separatist movement comes to this conclusion because they believe that gender oppression has
existed before all systems were constructed, thus, rather than being culturally formed they are
biologic (Lashof and Thorne 78-79). This argument is less credible because it does not explain
why some cultures have had women as the head of household, and ignores positive relationships
that exist between men and women. It also does not account for where a transgendered person
would fall, or which society they would have to live in, female or male. This viewpoint is too
limited by not taking into account both natural and socialized factors, and sticking to a very rigid
gender binary.
Similar to the separatist movements perspective on gender its perspective on sexual
orientation is alienating and thus not satisfactory. The separatist movement takes the fact that
institutions feed off womens natural strengths and then places this on sexuality as well by saying
that heterosexuality is forced on women by men through the institutions of accessibility such as
marriage and motherhood (Frye 108). The movement argues that instead, women need to make
the choice to be a lesbian in order to live in a separate society. Sexuality is particularly used as a
political choice in this instance. In order to separate from the patriarchal society heterosexual
women must become lesbians, an act termed political lesbianism (Levy 32). Here women are
drawn to lesbianism as an ideology. This is an unsatisfactory stance because it denies the
biological draw that one may have towards a certain sexuality, particularly on a basis of love. It
controls a persons behavior in a similar way to our current society, only in the opposite

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direction. Another flaw in this ideology is its complete diversion from the belief of sexual
orientation as a spectrum. It leaves bisexuals and pansexuals adrift, creating more prejudice. The
most satisfactory movement should not alienate individuals, but rather work to include all in its
ideal society.
Liberal gays address sexual orientation as biological, but do not put any emphasis on the
foundations of gender outside of sexual orientation. They very strongly state that sexuality is not
a choice (Powell 2). They justify this through the understanding that gay sex is natural, seen
throughout time and across all species (Cruikshank 51). As human beings, all peoples, regardless
of sexual orientation should be respected and treated with dignity (Birch 286, 288). This liberal
perspective is very strong in terms of gaining political support, as it is very difficult to argue
against human rights for traits that are out of ones control for biological reasons. However, the
idea that people have the right to self-determination and to decide on what sexual behavior suits
them can be sometimes left out of this perspective. Opposition groups could thus argue that if
sexuality is solely biological there should be a marker in ones life, such as puberty, by which
one must know that they are gay. With the idea that sexuality is solely natural, one may not feel
that they have the any freedom to be questioning their identity or dynamic in sexuality. This ends
up being less inclusive for this reason, making it nearly impossible to change ones identity with
life experience.
The Radical Gay ideology ties gender closely to sexual orientation. The movements
understanding of gender is very similar to that of radical feminists, believing that humans are
naturally androgynous and then shaped into normative gender roles (Engel 42). Even with this
ideological foundation the movement has struggled to adequately handle gender amongst its
members, failing to understand the dual oppression faced by lesbians in the movement (Engel

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45). These heterosexual sex roles of the nuclear family form the basis for discrimination with
regards to sexual orientation (DEmilio 56). From this the radical gay understanding of sexual
orientation is formed as the idea that being gay is to be sexually free and natural (Freedman and
DEmilio 251). However, unlike other movements, being gay is not simply falling on the
hetero/homo binary, which is also a construction of society (DEmilio 57; Wittman 2). Instead, it
is to not have a fixed or given set of sexual categories, to be free to love and express oneself
without thought to orientation (DEmilio 57). The idea of relationships as a flow of love between
consenting individuals, without specific roles, creates a convincing argument for the ideology of
the radical gay movement (Wittman 5). This stance is convincing because it seeks true and full
equality for all types of loving relationships (Beyond Same Sex Marriage 4). It is the most
inclusive of all discussions of sexual orientation, allowing a person to grow and change
throughout their life, which does not leave any oppressed communities behind and breaks down
heteronormative sex roles. The inclusive nature of this stance makes it the most convincing with
regards to sexual orientation.
Queer theory understands gender and sexual orientation as dynamic parts of a persons
identity, and seeks to be inclusive of all in the LGBTQIAA community (Brown 293). This
mobile identity looks towards an appreciation of the differences between humans rather than
trying to find those with the same non-normative difference (Duggan 162). Through this
understanding the power structure can be overturned (Cohen 223). Queer theory sees gender and
sexual orientation as being products of the social context that we live in, as we cannot know what
is natural and we will always work to have an identity accepted by society (Butler 7). The gender
and sexuality binaries alienate anyone who does not specifically identify as gay or straight. The
understanding of fluidity and the openness towards all on the spectrum contributes greatly to my

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understanding of the satisfactory definitions. Queerism falls short when it fails to address the
biological influenced traits in all humans. This shortcoming and its very difficult ideological
background in post-modernism, make it less likely to be rapidly accepted by the public. For this
reason, queer theory alone is not the most convincing movement, but paired with other
movements it stands to create the most inclusive and equitable society.
The analysis of many movements allows me to see that the subjects of gender and sexual
orientation are multi-faceted and involve many variables. The most convincing arguments are
those that recognize biological and social factors, while still maintaining the idea of a fluid
spectrum rather than a binary. With respect to gender the radical and socialist feminists present
the most convincing argument and for sexual orientation, the radical gays are the strongest. In
both cases the ideology must be combined with the theory of queerism to be fully satisfactory.
These are inclusive of all identities and allow people to discover more about themselves, and
accordingly adapt their identity as they progress through life.

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