K.I.S.S., keep it simple stupid. Things should be straightforward and need not be complex, what you see should be what you get. If the child is a girl, she must like pretty colors, play dress up, be very emotional, and grow up to want to marry her prince charming. If it is a boy, he must love sports, all things rough, and grow up to be a tough strong man. If the child is born with both male and female genitals, then is makes more sense to simply make the child a female because she will have better reproductive capabilities.
Congratulations ma’am you have given birth to a________. It is so interesting how the word inserted in that blanks affects so many factors. From the onset there are also minute things which already show a privileging of a particular gender. Boys are given bricks, toy truck and other geometrically stimulating toys. So when they perform better in math and sciences, it is assumed they do better because males have that innate ability and boy’s and girl’s brains develop extremely differently.
Unfortunately, we run into problems and complexities which result from trying to lump things into simple categories. There is such a discomfort with the unknown or ambiguous that we search for answers in science, something we perceive to be infallible, concrete; yet science is also influenced by culture which is anything but infallible. So the reasons provided for how to understand intersex individuals, different sexual orientation and sexual expression is not as definite as they seem.
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Society seems to set itself up for all the complexities caused by wanting the world to be in black and white. The grey area is what causes the ideal guidelines to fail. As shown through Ma vie en rose, Ludo is in the grey area which is why his community labels him an outcast and his parents are troubled by what to do with him. Fortunately, Ludo's family's love for their son and brother outweighs the stigma against his desire to be a girl and they are able to overcome the taboo. This situation causes his family to have to adapt and begin to accept him for who he is. If only society was as forgiving and understanding as Ludo's parents seem to be and we could deal with differences.
As society continues to develop, and change, hopefully it will make it easier for those who are cannot be as easily defined by the black and white social customs. One day it may not be uncomfortable to tell a parent that their newly born child is transgender, or come out to your family and friends, or have to hide your sexuality in general. As many of the articles we read seem to suggest, society is on its way to making it easier for those who are different to easily integrate into society. I have faith that this will be the case and newer generations become more modernized.
You were right on when you wrote about developmental assumptions. We should not and cannot assume that men are born with an innate talent for mathematics and women with a talent for nurturing when we raise boys with blocks and girls with baby dolls. In addition, relegating people to strict categories not only harms their lives but closes off the beauty of their talents to the rest of the world. Imagine how many caretakers, designers, and dancers we are missing from the male world. What warrants even greater consideration is how many potentially brilliant female scientists, physicians, and politicians that history his stifled. Women in particular were, and in most countries still are, pushed into the mother-wife role as the sole representation of their character. I am immeasurably grateful to live a country and era where I can express myself through painting or firefighting, through raising a child or policing my community.
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