The Five Sexes, Revisited - Fausto-Sterling - 2000 - Article

Instead of a commonly used two-sex system, there should be a five-sex system. In this five-sex system, there are males, females, “herms” (which are known as true hermaphrodites, as they are born with both an ovary and a testis), “merms” (male pseudohermaphrodites, as they are born with testes and some form of female genitalia), and “ferms” (female pseudohermaphrodites, as they are born with ovaries and some form of male genitalia). Since the publication of this article, the definition of sex has become even harder to define as more variations have been discovered.

What is this article about?

Instead of a commonly used two-sex system, there should be a five-sex system. In this five-sex system, there are males, females, “herms” (which are known as true hermaphrodites, as they are born with both an ovary and a testis), “merms” (male pseudohermaphrodites, as they are born with testes and some form of female genitalia), and “ferms” (female pseudohermaphrodites, as they are born with ovaries and some form of male genitalia). Since the publication of this article, the definition of sex has become even harder to define as more variations have been discovered.

What is an intersex and how many categories of sex exist?

The two-sex model assumes that men have XY chromosomes and women have XX chromosomes, and that human beings are divided exactly between these two types of beings. It is not well known that there are actually many more variations of different hormones, chromosomes, gonads, sex structures and genitalia. It are those humans that are born with variations outside of the exact male and female binary structure that are known as intersexual. It is estimated that anywhere from 1.7 percent to 4 percent of all individuals are intersexual.

How is ‘intersex’ defined?

Physicians have usually been the ones who have determined whether children are intersexual. Generally, intervention has normally happened when a child has been born with mixed genitalia. If it is only the chromosomes that are unusual then there usually is no intervention. Most clinics treating mixed genitalia in surgery have made their decision based on what makes the most sense surgically. Parents were then recommended to raise their child depending on the assigned gender. However, this is very controversial and there are many cases in which this has not been effective. These failed reassignments of gender have led to a re-examination of genital surgery with intersex children. Academics and ethicists have argued that irreversible assignments should be minimized and surgery should only occur if the child’s life is in danger. Instead of surgery as the main form of treatment, it is argued that the emphasis should be on therapy.

In addition, it has also been argued that all forms of intersexuality should be classified as normal, as they are not actually diseases. They are not just stuck between the two poles of male and female because sex is a continuum. Rather, sex and gender could be seen as more of a multi-dimensional space, including all sexes and gender variations. Gender identity is presumed to emerge from these different aspects and combinations occurring at the cellular level, the anatomical level and the hormonal level.

What might happen in the future?

Modern society has moved beyond the ‘five-sexes’ idea as it has recognized that gender variation comes in forms far wider than genitals alone. Kessler has argued that sexual identities and characteristics are far wider than the influence of genitals and that the gender that is performed is far more than whatever is under the clothes. However, the legal system relies far too much on the binary structure of male and female which makes it difficult for intersexual or transsexual people, especially in combination with the social stigma that comes with that difference. Thus, there is still a lot to do in expanding the binary structure of male and female to account for the multi-dimensional space of sex and gender.