Women, Men, and Classical Music
As more women embraced music as a profession, more men became worried that the world of the orchestra was losing its masculinity.
The Disappearance of Japan’s “Third Gender”
Gender roles in Edo Japan recognized an in-between position for young men, called Wakashu, that was erased as Japan westernized.
Separate Spheres On Narrow Boats: Victorians At Sea
On the North Atlantic, the ships were small and the trips were long, making it difficult to maintain the land-based social distinctions.
Ham Radio and Gender Politics
During its heyday in the 1950s, ham radio was predominantly a hobby for middle-class men, based in suburban homes.
The Sorry History of Car Design for Women
A landscape architect of the 1950s predicted that lady drivers would want pastel-colored pavement on the interstate.
The Bengali Religious Traditions That Transcend Gender
The Baul and Fakir lineages understand the cosmos through pairs of opposite essences, including male and female.
Policing Intersex Americans’ Sex and Gender
Assigning one sex to people with ambiguous genitalia has a long history in medicine and law.
The “Deviant” African Genders That Colonialism Condemned
European travellers and anthropologists found that their gendered worldview didn’t easily map onto the societies they encountered.
Ernest Hemingway and Gender Fluidity
Despite his reputation for hypermasculinity, the author was fascinated by different forms of gender expression.
How the Gender Binary Limits Archaeological Study
One case study demonstrates how contemporary assumptions about gender in ancient societies risk obscuring the larger picture.