A POSTGENDER MASCULINITY
“I think that both terms have very ideal energies that they can bring,” says 21-year-old Ethan, noting how strength and dominance which are traits of masculinity are traits he strives to possess, on the other hand, being kind, gentle and nurturing are traits of femininity which he too strives to have. This makes the point that an individual can have traits of either binary gender at once. Ethan’s statement is relatable to many of the people interviewed for this article. E Reng, who appears straight-passing is open to exploring other aspects of himself that may or may not fall into the category of masculinity. Zaq may embrace a feminine appearance, but he shows traits of independence and assertiveness as well.
21-year-old Keran may be a feminine woman, but she also possesses traits associated with masculinity such as courage, being driven and being very capable, all of which add up to strength. Keran notes, “maybe in the end it was never in black and white, femininity and masculinity has always been a spectrum. I don’t have to be fully feminine I can just be somewhere in between.” Indeed, having traits of the opposite binary gender should not make anyone lose their identity of who they are.
From a postgender perspective, strength, courage, expressiveness and nurturance are important traits to have in every human being. Some may argue that a man can have certain traits and be grounded by his wife with her feminine traits, but this also means that a male is capable of adopting feminine traits. In that case, why have we not learnt it from our mothers or other significant female influences at a younger age?
Looking at masculinity and femininity from an essentialist perspective, there are definitely differences between biological males and females in terms of physical attributes and perhaps even the way we think. To categorise traits that are inherently adoptable by people regardless of their gender makes the growth of a person's character pointless because disregarding traits of a different gender is expected of them. Perhaps it is time we should view these traits from a gender-neutral perspective. A strong, independent woman does not mean they want to be a man and a kind, compassionate man does not mean they want to be a woman.
“Maybe in the end it was never in black and white, femininity and masculinity have always been a spectrum. I don’t have to be fully feminine I can just be somewhere in between.”
-Keran, 21
