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--Selected
readings on transvestism, transsexualism and related subjects
Compiled
by JoAnn Roberts & Dallas Denny
Renaissance Transgender Association |
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The bibliography presented is divided into two major categories: professional and popular publications. The professional category contains objective scientific research literature, whereas the popular category contains works of a more general nature, some of them very subjective. Because transsexuals and transvestites cross the line between gender roles, works discussing femininity and masculinity are also included. Not all of the works listed here present transvestism or transsexualism in a positive manner. This bibliography is by no means complete and suggestions for additions are welcome. Please include all pertinent information about any addition you suggest. |
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Man Into Woman: An Authentic Record of A Change of
Sex,
N. Hoyer, New York, E.P. Dutton, 1933.
The
story of Dane Einar Wegener, recipient of the first recorded sexual
reassignment surgery.
The Transsexual Phenomenon,
Harry Benjamin, New York, Julian Press, 1966.
This
book is not only considered the landmark work on transsexualism, but
Benjamin's distinction between transsexual and transvestite still stands
today. Currently being reprinted by the Outreach Institute and
Renaissance.
Transexualism & Sex Reassignment,
Richard Green & John Money, (eds.). Baltimore, Johns Hopkins Press,
1968.
This is the first in-depth account of the psychological and physical process of sex reassignment as performed at the Johns Hopkins University Medical Center. The book includes illustrations from surgeries undertaken in the 1960s. |
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Understanding Crossdressing,
Virginia Prince, California, Chevalier Press, 1971.
A
series of papers by Dr. Prince which discuss various aspects of male
heterosexual crossdressing.
The Transvestite and His Wife,
Virginia Prince, California, Chevalier Press, 1971.
This
book examines the relationships between heterosexual crossdressers and
their spouses and is the foundation work for the Society for the Second
Self (Tri Ess).
Sexual Signatures: On Being a Man or a Woman,
Money, J., & Tucker, P. (1975), Boston, Little, Brown & Co.
It
cannot be said better than the authors in the first chapter: "This
book is a road map to show you where you are now as a man or a woman and
how you got there." There is considerable discussion of
transsexualism and crossdressing.
Transvestites and Transsexuals: Mixed Views, Deborah
Feinbloom, New York, Delacorte Press, 1976.
Contains
various chapters on the wide spectrum of gender dysphoria, including the
transformation of "Phil" to "Helen."
Emergence: A Transsexual Autobiography,
Mario Martino, New York, Crown Publishers, 1977.
The
autobiographical account of a female-to-male transsexual, one of the few
such accounts published.
Gender: An Ethnomethodological Approach,
S. Kessler and W. McKenna (eds.), New York, John Wiley & Sons, 1978.
In
the opinion of one scholar this is one of the most intelligent, clinical
and empathetic books on the subject. It includes a lengthy appendix which chronicles the two-year
transformation of a male-to-female transsexual.
Mirror Image; The Odyssey of A Male-to-Female
Transsexual,
Nancy Hunt, New York, Holt, Rinehart Winston, 1978.
A
highly personal story about the journey from man to woman by a Chicago
Tribune reporter and the story of her relationship with a woman who
supported Hunt's crossdressing but who could not accept Hunt's growing
urge to change his gender.
Dressing Up, A History of Transvestism and Drag.
Peter Ackroyd, New York, Simon and Schuster, 1979.
This
is a well written and often entertaining work with very good historical
references to famous and infamous crossdressers. It is somewhat flawed by the author's acceptance of many
misconceptions about transvestism and transsexualism.
Mother Camp: Female Impersonators In America,
Esther Newton, Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 1979.
An
anthropologist's view of the American subculture composed of female
impersonators, both as entertainers and as a minority component of the gay
community in the Midwestern United States.
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The Transsexual Empire: The Making of the She-Male,
Janice G. Raymond, Boston, Beacon Press, 1980.
Raymond
attacks men in general and male-to-female transsexuals in particular in
this challenging and infuriating manifesto. She sees transsexualism as a harsh dramatization of all the ills of
sex role stereotyping in which men "rape women's bodies by reducing
the real female form to an artifact, appropriating this body for
themselves." Her most
stinging venom is reserved for transsexual lesbian feminists who, Raymond
sees as patriarchal imposters in the lesbian community.
Herculine Barbin,
Introduced by Michael Foucault, New York, Pantheon Books, 1980.
The
memoirs of a 19th Century French hermaphrodite who was raised as a female
and was ruled to be a male when in his 20s are presented along with
excerpts of report from the the autopsy performed after his suicide. The book also includes "A Scandal at the Convent," a
fictional account of the Barbin story written some years after his death.
Boys Will Be Girls: The Hidden World of the
Heterosexual Male Transvestite,
John Talamini. University Press of America, Lanham, Md., 1982.
A
"unified field" theory of heterosexual male transvestism in
which Talamini discusses the phenomenon in an historical, sociological,
and psychological context.
Second Serve, Renee Richards (with John Ames), New York, Stein
and Day, 1983.
Perhaps
the most famous transsexual after Christine Jorgensen tells her story
including the numerous setbacks in her quest to become a woman. She also tells how she decided that she must end her strict
privacy and become a public symbol for other transgendered people.
The Uninvited Dilemma,
K. Stuart, Lake Oswego, N.Y., Metamorphous Press, (with a separate
Research Supplement available from the publisher), 1983.
Using
interviews with over one hundred transsexuals, transvestites and
homosexuals from the San Francisco area, the author presents a primer on
transsexualism, including some observations on gender.
Men In Frocks, Kris Kirk and Ed Heath, London, GMP Publishers,
1984.
An
illustrated survey of the various modes of British crossdressing, ranging
from Army camp shows during World War II to today's rock musicians. Dozens of crossdressers are extensively quoted telling their own
stories.
Femininity, Susan Brownmiller, New York, Simon and Schuster,
1984.
An
examination of what it means to be a woman and to be feminine, both in
today's culture and in days past. Chapters
are divided into categories such as body hair, voice, etc. The implications of each aspect are thoroughly discussed. Includes
profusely cited references.
A Finer Specimen of Womanhood: A Transsexual Speaks
Out,
Sharon Davis, New York, Vantage, 1985.
As
an African American woman who was once an African American man, Ms. Davis
offers an enlightened and very personal account of her transition. She has appeared on television and radio to speak on transsexual
issues, and is presently president of an AIDS outreach program.
Lovemaps,
John Money, New York, Irvington Publishers, 1986.
Dr.
Money coined the term lovemaps to describe the mental template that is
expressed in every individual's sexuoerotic fantasies and practices. A large portion of the book deals with paraphilias and their
concomitant, distorted lovemaps. Both
transvestism and transsexualism are examined in relation to their
respective lovemaps.
Transexualism & Sex Reassignment,
William A.W. Walters & Michael W. Ross (eds.). Oxford, Oxford
University Press, 1986.
A
general overview of transsexualism which the editors hope will achieve a
better understanding "of this problem in society." Chapters address personal feelings, causes of gender
dysphoria, psychological issues, endocrine aspects, medical/surgical
procedures and ethical and legal aspects.
Venuses Penuses, John Money, Buffalo, N.Y., Prometheus Books,
1986.
A
collection of selected reprints from the large body of work by Dr. Money. Also included is a complete bibliography of Dr. Money's published
work.
Conundrum, Jan Morris, New York, Henry Holt and Company,
1986 (second edition).
A
highly introspective survey of what it means to be a man and a woman in
the 20th century, and why the author, a renowned writer, believes she
failed in one role and succeeded in the other.
The Spirit and the Flesh: Sexual Diversity in
American Indian Culture,
Walter L. Williams, Boston, Beacon Press, 1986.
Native
Americans believed that men who crossdressed and performed in the role of
women (often while fulfilling male roles) had special spiritual gifts. The importance these men played in the Native American civilization
is recorded here for the first time.
The Homosexual Matrix,
C.A. Tripp, New York, Meridan, 1987 (second edition).
Although
primarily concerned with homosexuality, Tripp also explores the nature of
femininity and effeminacy apart from sexual orientation.
Masculinity and Femininity: A Basic Prespective,
June M. Reinisch, Leonard Rosenblum and Stephanie Sanders (eds.), New
York, Oxford University Press, Kinsey Institute Series, 1987.
This
work looks at the meanings and implications of masculine and feminine
behavior from seven distinct but interrelated perspectives:
psychobiologic, neuroscientific, evo- lutionary, behavioral,
developmental, psychological and cultural.
Sexual Landscapes; Why We Are What We Are, Why We
Love Whom We Love,
John Money & James D. Weinrich, New York, Scribner, 1987.
The
author's particular area of interest in the field of sexology is gender
transposition, or "the transposition of masculine and feminine in
comparison with the typical pattern." In this work he posits "a general theory of human sexuality
and sexual arousal" and explains "other people's theories."
The Sissy Boy Syndrome,
Richard Green, M.D., New Haven, Conn., Yale University Press, 1987.
During
what he thought would be an investigation into the origins of
transsexualism, the author instead discovered that boyhood effeminacy is
often a marker for later homo- sexuality. But the author does not claim that effeminacy leads to
homosexuality. The case histories show that while the two phenomenon are
related, they are not connected.
The Wolves of Heaven;
Cheyenne Shamanism, Ceremonies and Prehistoric Origins, Karl H. Schleiser,
Norman, Okla., University of Oklahoma Press, 1987.
A
thorough examination of the hemaneh (half-man, half-woman) of the Cheyenne
tribe and their involvement in Cheyenne thought, religion, history and
custom. Coming under particular scrutiny is the Massaum ceremony which was
last performed in 1927.
Transvestites And Transsexuals: Toward A Theory of
Cross-Gender Behavior,
Richard F. Docter, Plenum Press, New York, 1988.
Richard
Docter has created a milestone work that uncovers new territory concerning
cross-gender behavior. He
correctly identifies cross-gender behavior as a dynamic process rather
than a static state. This
book also contains important observations about pseudo- or secondary
transseexualism. Docter
continues his research toward a "gender" scale.
In Search of Eve: Transsexual Rites of Passage,
Bolin, A. (1988), South Hadley, MA, Bergin & Garvey Publishers, Inc.
Bolin's
book was long overdue and has unfortunately been under-appreciated by
clinicians. Her doctoral
thesis, which grew into this book, was a study of a group of
male-to-female transsexual persons in the midwest, whom she observed in a
non-clinical setting. Her
findings clearly show the bias and shortsightedness of much of the
clinical literature, and some serious problems with a treatment paradigm
in which transsexual persons mold themselves to sexist notions or
perceived sexist notions of clinicians in order to obtain treatment.
Gender Blending: Confronting the Limits of Duality,
Devor, H. (1989), Bloomington, Indiana University Press.
Gender
Blending is a psychological and sociological treatise on women who are or
who have at some time in the past been frequently mistaken for men. Although several of the women had flirted with the notion of sex
reassignment, none were seriously interested in actually becoming men.
My Husband Wears My Clothes,
Rudd, P. (1989), Katy, TX, PM Publishers.
The author explains her reaction to and adjustment to her husband's crossdressing. |
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I believe this book should be added to your list. It is well written and well documented (although it could use a proper bibliography.) More to the point, it is also extremely interesting and thought provoking. Although the book could and likely will be seen as taking a critical view of the "transsexual phenomenon," it is certainly not "anti-trans," as that term would commonly be understood. Ultimately, it is a fairly original take on the 「idea」 of gender, and the 「history of」 the idea of gender, and as such should be brought to the attention of those who think about such things -- fools though they may be! The book is certain to annoy many T people -- "Gender Outlaw" or "Tula, Volume II" it is not -- but, well... that's OK. (Thanks to Detourn for this review.) |
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