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Engaging with Society

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Becoming a Malaysian Trans Man

Part of the book series: Gender, Sexualities and Culture in Asia ((GSCA))

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Abstract

This chapter scrutinises the interactions of Malaysian trans men with other members of society as well as their struggles with disclosures of gender identity. An argument is made that engagements with family, friends and colleagues both disrupt and facilitate the becomings of trans men. In many instances, they condition the decisions made by trans men to conceal or disclose their gender identities. Societal interactions also frequently compel trans men to operate in stealth in order to avoid exposing the existence of a female history. A section of this chapter is devoted to a discussion on the public toilet as a site of oppression and empowerment.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Throughout this volume, I refer to this scholar and her works solely by the name ‘Raewyn Connell’.

  2. 2.

    I use this term to refer to parents, siblings and more immediate relatives.

  3. 3.

    As same-sex marriage is not legally recognised in Malaysia, the term ‘wives’ here is reproduced from the narratives of some trans men who refer to their female partners as their wives.

  4. 4.

    My research participants hardly mention their interactions with lesbian, gay, bisexual or queer Malaysians. Scholars highlight the importance of such friendships among many trans men (Galupo et al. 2014b).

  5. 5.

    I examine the relationship between gender identity and faith in ‘Performing Faith’.

  6. 6.

    Refer to ‘Grappling with Gender Dysphoria’ for an analysis of suicidal ideation in relation to Gender Dysphoria.

  7. 7.

    Consider my discussion on stealth later in the sub-section ‘“Simply Seen as a Man”: Stealth’.

  8. 8.

    More of the significance of the toilet is given prominence in the section ‘Revisiting the Bathroom Problem: Possibilities at Public Toilets’.

  9. 9.

    In ‘Engendering Identity’, I briefly discuss the problematics of using the terms ‘presenting’ and ‘passing’, due to connotations of deceit and superficiality associated with transgender subjectivities. As such, I use such terms in this chapter with some tentativeness.

  10. 10.

    This term is commonly spelled and pronounced as ‘aurat’ in Malaysia.

  11. 11.

    See the following section, ‘Problematising Disclosures’.

  12. 12.

    Navigate to ‘Embarking on Medical Transitioning’ for a fuller discussion.

  13. 13.

    It is common for Malaysians to address older female and male siblings, and non-siblings of a similar age in Malay as ‘kakak’ and ‘abang’ respectively.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Arts and Social Sciences, Monash University Malaysia, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia

    Joseph N. Goh

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  1. Joseph N. Goh
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Correspondence to Joseph N. Goh .

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Goh, J.N. (2020). Engaging with Society. In: Becoming a Malaysian Trans Man. Gender, Sexualities and Culture in Asia. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-4534-4_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-4534-4_3

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-15-4533-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-15-4534-4

  • eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)

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