Sex and Gender, Biology and Culture

Abstract

As pointed out in Chapter 1, it has become commonplace for social scientists in their writing to draw a contrast or distinction between sex and gender, although they do not always do so consistently. Sex categories refer to features of human biology, to characteristics of our living, material bodies, while gender categories refer to matters of human culture and society. In this respect, there is a small set of sex features that are found among members of the species Homo sapiens, no matter what their culture or society. Gender features vary considerably across cultures and societies. Let me explain, with some examples. In the usual case, ignoring the products of modern surgical reconstruction, having a penis or a vagina is a matter of one’s biology or sex. It is conventional in biology to speak of such features as male or female secondary sexual characteristics. In contrast, hair styles and modes of dress are matters of gender categories and roles. In Australian society, women typically display a greater range of hairstyles and costume, but in the Huli society of Highland Papua New Guinea, it is men who wear elaborate hairstyles and fancy clothing and adornment (Goldman 1983: 240). It is conventional to speak of such gender characteristics as being masculine or feminine.