Is it a boy or a girl?

[Mindfire]

Gender identity is about what people feel themselves to be, not about their bodies.

Not trying to provoke an argument, but I don't agree with this. I have no desire to discuss the political and social issues lurking just beneath the surface of this discussion, but I think acknowledging that we have a difference of opinion will help avoid potential misunderstandings. With that said, back on topic.

Using "it" would be insulting - taking away humanity of one part of this entity or the other.

Now here's the thing: that's exactly the point. As I said, in this situation, I would use "it" to emphasize that the individual's humanity has been violated. Think of the gebbeth from Wizard of Earthsea, or the un-man from C.S. Lewis's Perelandra. I would intentionally use "it" to make the creature seem more inhuman. Because it's not human. It's a posessing spirit masquerading as a man (or a woman in this case). It's a thing using someone else's body as a puppet.

 

[Steerpike]

Not trying to provoke an argument, but I don't agree with this.

There's really nothing to argue about. What Chilari stated is, in fact, the definition of 'gender identity.' Arguing over it would be like arguing over the definition of the world 'blue.' It is also a useful distinction from the physical sex of a person.

 

[Mindfire]

There's really nothing to argue about. What Chilari stated is, in fact, the definition of 'gender identity.' Arguing over it would be like arguing over the definition of the world 'blue.' It is also a useful distinction from the physical sex of a person.

What I mean is, I don't agree with a great deal of gender identity theory, so I'm coming into this discussion with very different beliefs and assumptions than many people on this forum. This may cause my statements to seem rather confusing unless this difference of belief is known.

 

[Steerpike]

What I mean is, I don't agree with a great deal of gender identity theory, so I'm coming into this discussion with very different beliefs and assumptions than many people on this forum. This may cause my statements to seem rather confusing unless this difference of belief is known.

Aha. I understand what you meant, then.