On Male Femaling: A Grounded Theory Approach to Cross-Dressing and Sex-Changing

Abstract

This preliminary report is a study in grounded theory based on eleven years of qualitative sociological research with male cross‐dressers and sex‐changers in the United Kingdom. It reviews the cognate literature from the standpoint of grounded theory and re‐conceptualises the research area in terms of the basic social process of ‘male femaling’. ‘Male femalers’ are males who wish to ‘female’ in various ways, in various contexts, at various times, with various stagings and with varying consequences. Three major modes of ‘male femaling’ are introduced: ‘body femaling’, ‘erotic femaling’ and ‘gender femaling’, and set within a phased ‘femaling’ career path. Typical features of each phase are detailed, indicating oscillations between the major facets of sex, sexuality and gender frequently confronted in each phase. Particular reference is made to the inter‐relations between the three modes of ‘femaling’, to the categorisations ‘transvestite’ and ‘transsexual’, and to the constitution of ‘femaling’ self and world as being variously sexed, sexualised and gendered.

Attraction and Sex Symbol of Males in the Eyes of Malaysian Male-to-Female Transsexuals

“…Transsexualism is one of the new social identities in Malaysia that has resulted in the reworking of social space and culture, and has to be experienced with conflict and contestation, especially in the established culture that forbids transsexualism [2]. Most significant is the male same-sex relation -homosexualitywhich involves erotic and sexual behaviors as main passions and self-gratification [3]. [4] Suggests that one type of gender dysphoria or transsexualism manifests itself in individuals who are exclusively attracted to men, referred to as homosexual transsexuals.…”

Watching a Singapore Drag Comedian: A Semiotic Analysis of Kumar in a YouTube Video

“…Their drag acts appropriate a special type of gender femaling (Ekins, 2002), which sets them apart from contemporaries such as Jack Neo and Dennis Chew. Current efforts to theorize transgenderism may beneit from the family resemblance model to (re)conceptualize it along a male-female gender polarity (cf.…”

Being A ‘Kothi’: An Ethnographic Interrogation with A Male Transgender in Kolkata, India

“…Many recent works thoroughly documented the presence of diverse expressions of same-sex sexuality in African traditional societies 20 . Sociological research on transsexuals 21 studies on how the body is used in doing and attributing gender (Bolin 1988;Ekins 1997;Garfinkel 1967;Kessler and McKenna 1978) or managing stigma and passing (Feinbloom 1976;Kando 1973) or how the physical body is surgically altered (Billings and Urban 1982;Hausman 1995;Raymond 1979) tell us about the relation of gender and sex and gender related social obstacles.…”

“…They also addressed sexuality and gender as the cultural phenomena, e.g. berdache 13 or xaniths 14 , female husbands 15 , "boy inseminating rituals" 16 , "age-structured sexuality" 17 or different other forms 18 , Hijra 19 . Many recent works thoroughly documented the presence of diverse expressions of same-sex sexuality in African traditional societies 20 .…”