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Gender play is the subject of this
lengthy section, which explores transgenderism in depth.
The overview chapter analyzes and discusses the distinctions
among types of gender dysphoria. In "Playing on the Gender
Line," transvestites and transsexuals discuss their lives
and their sexuality and how they integrate transgenderism
with D&S. "Erotic Combat and Gender Heroics" explores the
worship of heroic female and masculine physiques. It is
the only in-depth discussion of female combat, gay erotic
wrestling, and Amazon worship available in book form.
Chapters described below.
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Chapter 21 ~ Chapter
22 ~ Chapter 23
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21. Transgenderism
"The differences between the sexes and the urge to
bridge them have always occupied a corner of the human imagination.
Expressing a personality which seems to be at odds with one's
sex is not really one but many phenomena with a diversity of
expressions and behaviors."
Contents:
Quick cuts from our interviews:
Dr. Roger E. Peo...
...is a gender counselor in Poughkeepsie, New York. He received
his Ph.D. from the Institute for Advanced Study of Human Sexuality
and is certified by the American College of Sexologists. Dr.
Peo is a diplomate in sex counseling of the American Board of
Sexology and a fellow of the American College of Clinical Sexologists,
a member of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sex and
of the Harry Benjamin Gender Dysphoria Association. [Note: Dr.
Peo died in 1994.]
"Cross-dressing is a gender statement with erotic
overtones, not a fashion statement.... Neither transsexualism
nor the desire to cross-dress has been eliminated by any clinical
approach, so one might theorize that there is some biological
basis....The 'typical' male cross-dresser is strongly heterosexual
[and] married. He [also] may often have engaged in hypermasculine
activities in an attempt to prove his masculinity and-or to
submerge the cross-dressing feelings."
Christina...
...is 35-year-old male-to-female transgenderist and is single.
Christina works as a computer-systems analyst.
"Many people in more conventional sexuality areas
tend to think that cross-dressers and any [so-called] deviant[s]
are strange and to be shunned. I think we're a lot healthier
than many of the other types of mainstream sexualities, in the
sense that we recognize that we have these feelings, and we
don't deny them. We try to be honest with ourselves."
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22. Playing on the Gender
Line in D&S
"For many D&Sers, uninhibited exploration of gender
roles is an important component of erotic play. Men as well
as women perceive the chance to experiment with 'the other side'
of the gender line as an opportunity to express fully complex
and often hidden aspects of their personalities."
Contents:
Quick cuts from our interviews:
Deirdre...
...is 43 years old and married. He works in manufacturing and
medical supplies.
"If you'd asked me 10 years ago whether I would find
a woman who would accept my cross-dressing and be willing to
play D&S games with me, I would have said, 'Naw, it'll never
happen.' So, as the saying goes, 'Never say never.'"
Cheryl Haggerty...
...is 35 years old and married. He owns a consulting business.
"The role of the French maid appeals to me for a variety
of reasons. One, it accommodates many different fetishes: the
petticoats, the corsetry, the heels, the very, very short skirts."
Gypsy...
...is 49 years old and a divorced mother. She is a teacher and
lives with a male-to-female transvestite.
"I enjoy playing with men who are into worshipping
me, wishing to please me. They feel like putting the female
on a pedestal.... And for those who cross-dress, dressing in
female attire may allow them the soft side of themselves that
they can't show when they're male."
This chapter also features interviews with a female-to-male
pre-op transsexual and his gay master.
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23. Erotic Combat and Gender Heroics
"While D&S sexuality is a highly ritualized and
controlled expression of primal energies, erotic combat
is the drama of championship played out in blunt physical
terms."
Contents:
Quick cuts from our interviews:
Thomas Gramstad...
...is 30 years old. He is founder, publisher, and editor
of "Amazons International," an electronic forum for female-wrestling
and -boxing fans. He lives in Norway, where he works as
a geneticist.
"I think [an interest in erotic combat] is a part
of the natural processes of human development--in particular,
the development of sensuality, the need for somebody to
admire, the need for testing one's own strength and for
finding appropriate ways of expressing energy and aggressive
impulses."
Ellen M....
...is 28 years old. She is an editor of software manuals.
"It's frustrating to [wrestle] with someone who
outweighs me or is much stronger than me, because I like
to feel as though I've got some chance of winning the conflict."
Ramon...
...is a 43-year-old novelist and professor who lives and
works in New York.
"I would say that the whole wrestling scene is
one very specific [though] possibly tangential way of expressing
the fundamental urges that are expressed in D&S activities.
I know that in many circles this is a heresy...but I'm convinced
of it."
Keith...
...is 28 years old. He is a computer engineer.
"The physical contact and the struggle with a
powerful woman are very erotic for me."
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