Gender Shock: Exploding the Myths of Male and Female

by Phyllis Burke

At a time when men are staying at home to parent and women are leaving to practice law, medicine, and politics, America is confused and anxious about what differences truly exist between the sexes. To question one's gender role is to invite chaos, the flux of identity, yet the question In a world of evolving roles for both sexes, how are "masculine" and "feminine" defined?  If women and men are created equal, how then do gender differences emerge?

In Gender Shock , Phyllis Burke explodes the many myths surrounding our rigid gender system of male and female by looking through three lenses of gender Behavior, Appearance, and Science. Combining the latest research in psychology, genetics, neurology, and sociology, Burke finds that gender (or behavior) is not the result of one's biological sex (the body itself); that gender and sexuality are separate elements of the self; that there are more variations within each sex than there are between the two; and finally, based on world-class biologist Dr. Fausto-Sterling's theory of the five sexes, perhaps the most surprising myth of all is that there are only two kinds of the male and the female.

The most shocking practice Burke encounters is the increasingly popular diagnosis of Gender Identity Disorder, in which children, as young as three years old, undergo "therapy" both at home and at school for not adhering to accepted notions of "girl" and "boy" behavior. Rather than punishing children and adults who do not conform to gender expectations, Burke urges the rejection of our rigid male-female system and the embrace of a "gender independent" culture, in which individuals adopt the best traits of both sexes, e.g. strong and nurturing, rational and   emotional.

An artful combination of investigative journalism, personal stories, and cultural criticism, Gender Shock , will forever redefine our understanding of gender.

Genres: Nonfiction, Feminism, Gender, Psychology, LGBT, Transgender, Gender Studies

308 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1996

Reviews

[Tonya Conway · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was phenomenal. Burke examined so many gender stereotypes that everyone has been trained to ignore and accept. I would recommend this book to everyone and anyone because of how profoundly it has changed the way I view things.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating and terrifying look into the history of conversion therapies for gender non-conforming kids.

[LucidStyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

The "shocking" aspect of this book was the numerous case examples of conversion therapies that were prevalent into the mid 1990s: the persistence of parenting and teaching styles that enforce societal norms on their kids rather than allow them to flourish and to be, and to discover who they are.

This book offers much food for thought. Gender studies have opened my mind to what a truly diverse society can be, though I'm skeptical that gender diversity will ever replace traditional sex ed, it would be beautiful if these differences could be acknowledged and accepted sooner. Most LGBTQ+ individuals I've met had always known something about themselves, but social rules prevented them from questioning and exploring their true sense of self. Flowers can't bloom in parched earth. I appreciate that this book is adding to that discussion and enriching a soil that can nourish countless varieties of selves.

[Nate Hendrix · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was in turns horrifying, interesting, and a little boring. The horrifying part is how psychologists are treating these children and that the parents allow it. Some of the research discussed in the book was interesting, but then it got repetitive.

[Shannon T.L. · Rating 1 out of 5]

this book was terrible. her work was obviously not impartial, she made conclusions that she wanted to make even when the science contradicted her. she contradicted herself over and over again. terribly, terribly done.

[Dan Trachtman · Rating 2 out of 5]

read half. not much I didnt already know. pretty basic