Anthropologist Profile: Dr. Eric Plemons, Medical Anthropologist & Transgender Medicine and Care

Dr. Eric Plemons giving a lecture (Source: Eric Plemons's professional website)

 

Today’s blog post is dedicated to discussing the research of Dr. Eric Plemons.  Dr. Plemons is an Associate Professor at University of Arizona School of Anthropology and the Co-Chair of the Transgender Studies Research Cluster.  He was awarded a National Endowment for the Humanities Public Scholar award in 2022-2023, as well as served as a Faculty Fellow out of Stanford University.  He is also a forerunner in the study of transgender issues within medicine and greater sociocultural contexts.

 

Dr. Plemons research focuses on transgender medicine.  He has conducted archival/historical and ethnographic research in Belgium, Argentina, and the United States, the latter of which is where the bulk of his research has been completed.  His first study concentrated on facial feminization surgeries, which modification surgeries of the facial hard and soft tissues meant to make the face look more feminine.  During the course of his research he realized that medical professionals based the standards for “feminine faces” off of White women’s features, and when they conducted these surgeries on People of Color (POC) there was an erasure of ethnic and racial qualities of the patient.  Plemons argues that medical professionals should expand their understandings of facial femineity standards to be more inclusive of all racial and ethnic types, thereby not biasing the ideal femineity standards to White women.  The results of this research have been published in his book titled, The Look of a Woman.

 

His current research seeks to expand on transgender medical procedures, specifically focusing on genital sex reassignment surgeries.  Through an investigation of historical and archival sources concerning transgender medical care and ethnographic study of medical professionals and transgender patients and individuals Plemons seeks to understand the expanding medical and ethical concerns of these surgeries, particularly as medical professionals’ opinions on the value of transgender bodies change.  This is occurring as transgender individuals seek to have specific organs or body parts removed so their physical bodies match their gender.  As transmen elect to have hysterectomies (to remove their uteruses) and transwomen opt for penis removal medical professionals are exploring the opportunities to donate these organs and tissues to cisgender patients who may need them (e.g., individuals who cannot have children or military personnel who succumb significant injury to their genitals).  What is being overlooked is the implications of these options on the transgendered individuals who are opting to have their organs and/or tissues removed, who have not been consulted or asked if they wish to have their body parts used in such manners.  Plemons seeks to bridge this gap through his research, particularly given the expansion of such medical procedures and needs among both cisgender and transgender patients. 

 

Additionally, his research also addresses the mental health needs and concerns of transgender patients.  Medical professionals note that their transgender patients feel distress from having a body that does not match their gender.  This leads medical professionals to advocate for surgical interventions that change the physical form of the body, which is assumed to automatically alleviate and remove the distress.  This, however, not been fully investigated, but Plemons’s research does delve into this necessary area of inquiry, as well.

 

Ultimately, Plemons’s research seeks to better understand and expand transgender medical care and access throughout medicine, among medical professionals, and transgender patients and individuals.  He seeks to understand the complex dynamics at play in medicine, healthcare, and society and produce equitable environments across all medical institutions for the benefit of medical professionals and transgender patients and individuals.

 

References

College of Social & Behavioral Sciences Press . "Medical Anthropologist Examines Ethics and History of Transgender Medical Procedures." 17 October 2022. College of Social & Behavioral Sciences News. Electronic. 9 May 2024.

Northwestern University Press Writer. "Dr. Eric Plemons presents research on whiteness and facial feminization surgery." 9 May 2019. Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing. Electronic. 9 May 2024.

Plemons, Eric. Eric Plemons, PhD. 2013. Electronic. 9 May 2024.

 

 

The Kathoey: Thailand’s Third Gender

 

Kathoey pageant participants (Source: The TransAlly Blog)

Sex is defined as the biological aspects of an individual, whereas gender is the sociocultural expectations, values, beliefs, etc. associated with an individual.  There are many who believe there is a strict and narrow connection between sex and gender, limited both concepts to only existing in two types.  There has, however, been cultural groups over the millennia who not only recognize but believe in multiple types of gender identities, which are typically classified under the umbrella term of “third gender”.  Today’s blog post will address the third gender category that continues to exist in Thailand: the Kathoey.

 

The term Kathoey traditionally references individuals who do not fit into the traditional gender categories of man or woman within Thai contexts.  Typically, Kathoey classifies men who identify as women, or what Westerners conceive as transgendered or trans-women.  There is some debate among scholars regarding the idea that the Kathoey also did represent trans-men (women who identify as men), but this seems to be unlikely due to Thai taboos against such notions.  The term Kathoey was also used to reference intersexed individuals in the past, although this is less common today. 

 

The term Kathoey is often used interchangeably as a slur in popular cultural contexts within Thai culture.  Individuals who identify as Kathoey do not associate their gender identity with their sexuality, and Thai homosexuals feel it is derogatory to be called Kathoey.  This is in part because of the long history of respect and tolerance of the Kathoey as a third gender category.  The term Kathoey is often incorrectly translated into the English phrase, “Ladyboy” or “Lady Boy”.  Contemporary Kathoey hold a distinct disdain for this English translation since it conjures up ideas of deviance and illegal activities.  Again, Thai culture does not view the Kathoey gender as taboo or wrong.

 

The reason that the Kathoey are accepted within Thai culture is because of the strong influence of Buddhism among the Thai.  Buddhist principles claim that there are four sexes/genders (note, traditionally the Thai did not differentiate between sex and gender, hence the wording): male/men, female/woman, intersexed, and homosexual.  Because Buddhists believe that anyone can be kathoey in this, a past life, or a future life the Kathoey are not seen as wrong or immoral.  They are just a part of the natural order.

 

Today, the Kathoey are most often recognized as transwomen (men who identify as women).  They take on female appearance and are often indistinguishable from cis-women.  They are identified by a variety of traits, including appearance (e.g., dressing as women and wearing makeup), occupation (e.g., performing in cabarets or beauty pageants), and language.  Today, the Thai government sponsors are variety of Kathoey cabarets/performances as a means of showcasing the foreign tourists traditional Thai culture, but not all Kathoey participate in this occupation.  They can and do find employment in various areas throughout Thailand.

 

Works Cited

Expósito Barea, Milagros. "From the Iron to the Lady: The Kathoey Phenomenon in Thai Cinema." Sesión no numerada: Revista de letras y ficción audiovisual (2012): 190-202. Print.

Käng, Dredge Byung'chu. "Kathoey “In Trend”: Emergent Genderscapes, National Anxieties and the Re-Signification of Male-Bodied Effeminacy in Thailand." Asian Studies Review (2012): 475–494. Print.

Totman, Richard. The Third Sex: Kathoey: Thailand's Ladyboys. United Kingdom: Souvenir Press, 2011. Print.

 

Fight Like A Girl: Iron Age Female Warrior Burial Discovery

Figure 1: Sword and mirror found in the Bryher burial (Source: Historic England)

 

One of the dominant narratives that continues to exist today is that men are aggressive and often act as warriors, meting out violence.  Women are characterized as meek and mild, often becoming the victims of that violence.  There are challenges to this paradigm, supported by evidence that shows women can and do serve outside of these roles (e.g., being hunters or fighting in wars).  Today’s blog post will feature another one of those challenges by way of evidence of a female warrior from the Iron Age.

 

The discovery of this female warrior was the Bryher burial site on the Isle of Scilly in southwest Britain.  The island has a long history of human occupation, dating as far back as the Neolithic (New Stone) Age, but there is substantial evidence of Iron Age and Roman activity throughout the island, as well.  Iron Age people built a cliff castle on the northern part of the island, but they appear to have used the southern part of the island for burials, which is where the Bryher burial is located.  It was discovered by accident by a farmer who was cultivating potatoes.  When his equipment got stuck and immediately sank into a small sink hole, he discovered a stone lined pit.  He entered it and recovered a sword.  This led him to contact local museum staff, who immediately identified the sword as being from the Iron Age.  This discovery was met with much fanfare from the media and the British crown (as then Prince Charles visited the site).  The attention led to the immediate identification and quick excavation of the site to recover and preserve the material and physical remains of the burial.

 

The subsequent analysis of the burial determined that it contained one individual who was badly decomposed.  Only fragmentary remains of the deceased were able to be recovered, which included pieces of long bones and two crowns of mandibular molars.  Several of the burial goods were also severely deteriorated, but metal pieces were recovered, including the sword, remnants of a shield, elements of a belt to affix the sword to the deceased’s body, a brooch, spiral ring, and a mirror with sun motifs (Figure 1).  The burial dated to the first century BC (between 100-50 BC).

 

Despite the poor condition of the human remains several analyses were attempted to learn more about the deceased individual.  DNA analysis was the first to be done, but the results were inconclusive as the bones were in too poor a condition to recover an ample DNA sample to test.  Isotopic analyses were more successful, demonstrating that the deceased’s diet was a combination of terrestrial resources and seafood.  Macroscopic analyses of the remains were also attempted.  There were too few skeletal elements to rely on skeletal sexing methods, but examination of the molars led to a conclusion that the deceased was a young adult (aged between 20 and 25 years of age) at the time of their death.

 

Without DNA the individual’s sex could not be positively identified, leading to researchers to infer gender identification based on the grave goods.  The sword and shield are commonly found among male Iron Age period burials, so they were assumed to represent the deceased was a man.  The presence of the ring and the mirror, however, were commonly found among female burials, demonstrating that the deceased was a woman.  This led to a complication in accurately assessing the sex and possibly the gender of the individual. 

 

A little over two decades later, though, advancements in chemical analyses of sex had advanced, allowing for the testing of the teeth to determine the sex of the Bryher individual.  The analysis relied on sourcing a specific protein that showed the presence of either an X (female) or Y (male) chromosome.  When the investigation was completed it was discovered that the Bryher individual was a biological female!  The researchers returned to the presence of the grave goods and the ethnographic evidence of the roles of men and women in small-scale societies, and they concluded that this individual was most likely a woman who was a warrior.  Not only that but the quality of the mirror probably meant that she was a military leader.  This conclusion is in line with more recent analyses of other past populations (e.g., the Shield Maidens of the Vikings and Scythians), and it has led to a renewed interest in the role of women in the past, particularly when it pertains to warfare.   

 

Bibliography

Davies, C. (2023, July 27). Isles of Scilly remains are iron age female warrior, scientists say. The Guardian.

Johns, C. (2002). An Iron Age sword and mirror cist burial from Bryhers, Isle of Scilly. Cornish Archaeology, 1-79.

Mays, S., Parker, G., Johns, C., Starks, S., Young, A., Reich, D., . . . Hale, K. (2023). Sex identification of a Late Iron Age sword and mirror cist burial from Hillside Farm, Bryher, Isles of Scilly, England. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports.