Impact of a Doctor's Decision

            As I navigated my way through Bodies in Doubt: An American History of Intersex by Elizabeth Reis, I noticed how the public socialized people who were identified as intersex, rather than allowed intersex to be considered medical. In other words, doctors had to stick to strict guidelines of the societal perception of sex, male or female. If an individual did not “fit” into either sex, the individual had to undergo intersex surgery in order for the individual to be considered male or female. What would happen if a doctor corrupted this binary? Asked the patient if they even wanted to undergo the surgery? Of course, there would be a huge upheaval because the system would no longer be considered normalized. What did that mean for the doctors that asked the patient to choose? And most importantly what happens to the normative society once the doctors asked the defining question?

My questioning began in the section, “Consent and Challenges,” specifically between pages seventy-eight and eighty, of Bodies in Doubt. In 1903, “E.C., a twenty-year-old pseudohermaphrodite” approached Dr. J. Riddle Goffe with a medical request, to remove a “genital growth, as she called her enlarged clitoris” (Reis 78). Although Dr. Goffe obliged with her request, many other doctors disagreed with his decision because her “enlarged clitoris” was considered to be a penis therefore she should have been a male (Reis 78). E.C. identified as a woman and wanted her “enlarged clitoris” removed because she considered it “a great annoyance” (Reis 78). “Goffe’s case provoked physician debate over how much respect to give a patient’s own wishes” (Reis 79). He was one of the first doctors to ask “the patient what she wanted and then comply with her wishes” (Reis 79). This could also be translated to giving the patient a power that they once never had.

People who are identified as intersex were once seen as a monstrous creature, product of a sin. When Dr. Goffe complied with the patient’s choice, he was essentially identifying people of intersex an individual or equal rather than a creature, giving them a right that is granted to those who reside in either sex binary. Often, “many doctors used their authority to rectify ambiguity” (Reis 80). The doctors were always the ones who held control, who were privileged to have the authority to make these serious decisions. They were the ones who supposedly understand the meaning of “normal” and “abnormal.” The public chose to look the other way because the concept of this “creature” was unknown and worrisome. In Bruce Ryder’s article, “Straight Talk: Male Heterosexual Privilege,” he states, “such privileging of the norm accedes to its domination, protecting it from questions” (381; Katz qtd. in Ryder 381). Dr. Goffe corrupted this privilege, asked the hard questions, and did not fear the outcome of his decision. E.C. was able to feel comfortable instead of doctors ridiculing her body and sealing her fate. Although this time period was difficult to make changes, Dr. Goffe paved the way for future questions in regards to people of intersex such as individual choice and/or involuntary decisions of infants/adults identified as intersex.

            This also posed problematic to societal norms because it corrupted the traditional values instilled in various families. The public believed that people who were identified as intersex posed as a potential threat to the continuity of their existence. The traditional family consisted of a heterosexual female and heterosexual male that would eventually produce children, that was the norm and anyone who deviated from this was considered suspicious. With information, intersexuality is not suspicious. It is considered “normal”. It is actually more common than people think. According to David Salt’s article, “Intersex: The Space Between Genders,” published online in Cosmos, “for every 1,000 child born, 17 are intersexual in some way, that means an astounding 1.7 percent of the population are born intersexual” (David Salt, 2007). At some point in our lives, we could have crossed paths with a person with ambiguous gender. Like we have crossed paths with males and females.

             Dr. Goffe's decision was considered wrong by many doctors; however he did something that was never done in his time. Although uncomfortable to other doctors, Dr. Goffe did not make this type of decision based on his personal feelings, he based his actions on the patients desires and needs. 

Bibliography

Reis, Elizabeth. Bodies in Doubt: An American History of Intersex. Baltimore: The John Hopkins                         University Press: 2009. Print.

Salt, David. “Intersex: The Space Between Genders.” Cosmos: The Science of Everything. Web.

            30 Auguest 2007. < https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/08/>

Ryder, Bruce. “Privilege Axis Three: Heterosexual Privilege.” Oppression, Privilege, and

Resistance: Theoretical Perspectives on Racism, Sexism, and Heterosexism. Ed. Lisa Heldke     and Peg O’Connor. New York: McGraw-Hill. 368-387. Print.