Blog # 25--Exceptions to Sexual Stereotypes

Blog #25 –Exceptions To Sexual Stereotypes, by Jack Tuttle http://dreamtime3.wix.com/jacktuttlebook

Exceptions in Nature are more common than we realize. Kevin Helliker reports in the January 12, 2015 edition of the Wall Street Journal about a female deer with antlers. Killed in the Wichita area, the doe had female genitalia and was capable of reproducing offspring, but it also had 8-point antlers. It is fairly rare to find this anomaly in white-tailed deer, but a female with horns simply has more male hormone testosterone flowing through its arteries than others.

Hyenas may be the most extreme example of this phenomenon. Hyenas live in matriarchal societies with a dominant female in charge and the males submitting to her. The female clitoris protrudes seven inches outside her body, thus looking and functioning like a penis at most times.

Only during mating can a smaller, less aggressive male dominate the female temporarily to achieve coitus. It takes a great deal of practice before a male figures out how to accomplish the mating since access to the female’s womb is through the small opening in her penis. And imagine the pain for the female when giving birth via the same path.

Earthworms are known as hermaphrodites, meaning they have both sexes. When two earthworms mate, they impregnate each other. Humans also occasionally produce offspring with a mixture of both sexes, although many are in denial about this reality. A relative of mine was vehement against the notion. He feared the world might not be as black-and-white as he wanted it to be. His fear proved the point.

Many of the human babies born with ambiguous gender are surgically altered to appear female when young. This may visually disguise the original genetic blueprint, but it is counterproductive for at least some of the surgically altered children. After all, their gender orientation might be male despite appearing female, and vice versa. Bi-sexual, transsexual and transvestite individuals are other examples of how various mixtures of male and female hormones within a person can produce exceptions to normal stereotypes.

We love to assume males and females of all species are opposites. That way, we can continue to argue over whom is better or worse and engage in all sorts of unequal treatment against those we classify as inferior. In reality, we are all mixtures of the same cosmic soup. Infinite combinations are possible.

Judging someone to be only male or only female does each a disservice. We cannot exist without an equal mixture of both opposite energies. Whether we look female or male is immaterial. As they say, “the proof is in the pudding.” It is how we behave that determines our place on the continuum connecting females and males. And that orientation may or may not have anything to do with reproduction.

So what if a female deer has antlers? So what if a human female has both large breasts and a penis? Nature guarantees exceptions, and they have as much right to exist as others. We all have the same creator, and we all have a purpose. Recognizing all the variations makes it harder for us to judge others. And that’s a good thing.

Comments and questions can be directed to dreamtime@insight-books.com