Jake in Transition Essay Example for Free

Jake in Transition Essay The following essay is in response to the Jake in Transition exhibit which displayed the many psychological and physical stages Jake went through to change his gender from a woman to a man. The artist of the exhibition demonstrated different stages of Jake’s transition from female to male. As the artists discussed in his interview, he felt â€Å"awkward† at first when photographing Jake. This awkwardness is to be expected, society has socialized us to feel certain ways about gender, creating stereotypical feelings. Since the time an individual is born, they are taught by society what is expected of them as either a male or female. However, in some cases such as Jake’s, some individuals are born one gender and feel as though their gender is a wrong fit. In Jakes case, he was born a female but was so uncomfortable in his own body that he felt he had to physically change it to a male body in order to be comfortable. I believe Jake felt the need to conform to society’s gender ‘norms†; his body was female but he felt he did not demonstrate typical female attributes as depicted by society. Jake went to extreme measures to conform. Jake discussed how he felt being a woman, his fear of being considered a â€Å"freak† because he was trapped inside a woman’s body with the mentality and tendencies of a man are a result of society’s ideology of gender roles. Jake went against this ideology when deciding to take surgical measures to become a man. Jake demonstrates his â€Å"natural† male instincts after his surgical procedure when he marries the woman he loves. Other activities he enjoys, such as, horse riding and playing the guitar are not typically attributed to either gender; as both men and women enjoy partaking in such activities but Jake however feels these are masculine activities. The exhibit displayed Jakes surgery photos, which caused me antagonistic feelings at first. I had not expected to be effected by this, breast surgeries are broadcasted on the television daily. Jake however, was removing her female identity, I am still unsure if this is a personal feeling or one that I have been trained by society to believe is wrong. I am leaning towards the latter, since I can not identify with Jake’s unhappiness with his born gender. I can not say I agree with changing ones gender through surgery. I do however understand Jake’s need to share his experience, in hopes to find acceptance in a society with such rigid gender norms. I question the underlying factor that caused Jake to go through such extremes as to remove all traces of femininity. I feel there must have been a deep resentment of his female body for him to go against nature and wipe out his female gender. If it were just a matter of sexuality, that Jake was attracted to females, I doubt it would have led to him getting surgery. I was deeply disturbed by the story of â€Å"x†. It disgusted me that anyone could have given birth to a baby for the sole purpose of using it for an experiment; and inevitably ruining its future. Baby X was raised without an identity. Gender roles, while drastically influenced by society, gives an individual a purpose. Jake was confused by his feelings which he did not associate with being female and thus changed his physical image to match his feelings of masculinity. X however, had no basis in which to judge its feelings. X was not socialized in a way that would help him understand his identity. Although we are not told what happens to X past elementary school, I foresee him having extreme emotional problems; more specifically, a lack of identity. Jake felt he did not fit in with females but X has no reference in which to judge if he fits in or not. Society influences how we see â€Å"normal† gender roles. Many, if not all, cultures have an essentialist view of what roles are contributed to males and females. While some individuals may feel that they do not conform to this ideology; Jake took drastic measures in which to conform. I think this says a lot for the extreme influence society has on gender roles. Jake wanted his body to look as masculine as he felt; so he would not feel like a contradiction to societies norms.