S/He Brain: Science, Sexual Politics, and the Myths of Feminism

During the 1960s, Margaret Mead’s argument that gender identity is almost entirely a product of learning in particular cultural contexts was incorporated into the sex/gender system in feminist theory. In this system, sex refers to physiological differences in the domain of the body, and gender refers to learned behaviour in the domain of the mind. This two domain distinction allows sex-specific bodies to be viewed as separate and distinct from gender-neutral minds. The distinction also legitimates the idea that biological reality is wholly independent of gender identity. In this book, Nadeau argues that, far from bringing about an armistice in the war between the sexes, the gender/sex construction has escalated the conflict. His intent in S/He Brain is to show, first, that the gender/sex construction is not in accord with biological reality and, second, that an improved understanding of the relationship between sex and gender could enlarge the bases for meaningful dialogue and lead to new standards of sexual equality.