Middlesex blogpost #3

Yessenia Vargas

Ms. Reyes

May 3th, 2015

Middlesex blogpost #3: Current event

Brunce Jenner, a famous reality television star announced to his family that he will undergo sex change to become a woman. It has been speculated that Jenner has been in the process of changing sex long before but has never openly spoke about the issue. Jenner had his Adam's apple reduced, began taking estrogen, grew out his hair, and shaved his legs in order to enhance his feminine appearance. Jenner and Callie share a lot in common as both are undergoing a tremendous change. For instance Jenner, born a male after 65 years decides he wants to become a female. Callie's situation is more complex as she is born with both sex organs. Despite the fact that she is viewed as a female by those around her, her body is not undergoing the changes a woman should at her age. Since Callie is seen as a female, she attempts to undergo different procedures in order to feel or become more like a woman. For example, Callie goes to a salon to have her upper lip hair removed with her mother. Callie undergoes this procedure to feel like a woman because her body does not let her feel like one. The fact that she shared this experience with her mother and was around other woman, allows her to feel like a part of their clan. As Callie states, “I started shaving my legs and underarms” (311) which enabled her to feel more like a woman because woman are expected to do this, as it is more appealing to men and Callie is attempting to fulfill the social norms are female is require to. As the article states Jenner, “underwent a series of physical changes [such as] growing his hair long all contributing to his increasingly feminine appearance” having long hair is often associated as a feminine attribute, and is not surprising that Jenner will decide to grow his hair in order to enhance his feminine look. Callie compares her hair to chapter 11's and states, “not as long as mine, but still” (312) Callie's hair acts both as a shield and as a way to make her feel like a woman. Her long hair allows her to hide from the rest of the world, making her appear invisible. On the other hand her hair makes her feel like a woman. The fact that she compares her hair to Chapter 11's and says, “not as long as mine” is used to emphasize the fact that because her hair is longer than his it makes her even more of a female. Jenner after 65 years of being a male discoveries himself and comes to the realization that he wants to be a female. Callie born both sexes attempts her hardest to be the female others want her to be but in reality that isn't who she truly is. The fact that both Jenner and Callie have difficulties discovering who they are, reinforces a common theme in Middlesex, identity and discovering who you really are.