Alternative Gender Roles-Week 3- Discussion 1
For this week's discussion I have chosen “ The Hijra”. Some societies have more than two gender categories, such as hijra (Crapo, 2013). Serena Nanda (1985, 1990) has described the hijra, a socially recognized third gender in India. The Hijras are men that dress and act like women, which are often defined as eunuchs (castrated males). Even the Hijras, described themselves simply as "neither man nor woman." Nanda argues that Hindu thinking allows for overlapping--even contradictory--categories, thus accommodating flexibility in gender roles (Nanda, 1990).
“What is noteworthy about the hijras is that the role is so deeply rooted in Indian culture that it can accommodate a wide variety of temperaments, personalities, sexual needs, gender identities, cross-gender behaviours, and levels of commitment without losing its cultural meaning.” (Nanda, Neither Man nor Woman: The Hijras of India 19-20). Because hijras are able to identify with different figures in Indian mythology, they are tolerated and were traditionally much respected as the third sex. Also, as Serena Nanda points out, hijras do not have to conform to one set of norms since they are a very diverse group and have room for such diversity in their community. Although most hijras transform themselves, dressing and acting like women, adopting their clothes, hairstyles and accessories, their behavior, imitating woman’s walk, gestures, voice, facial expressions and languages, as well as their occupations and roles in society, wanting to be seen as objects of men’s desires; they engage in activities that would be considered inappropriate for Indian women such as dancing in public. They almost seem to be a caricature of women because hijras wear their hair long and wear saris and other traditional female dresses, whereas, in modern subcontinental society, the upper and middle class women cut their hair and wear western “male” clothes. Hijras also sing and...