Feminization, stigma and the facial gender: the moral construction of the female gender through facial feminization surgeries for transgender women

The objective of this article is to analyze gender discourses constructed around the so-called facial feminization surgeries, both by the scientific biomedical discourse and by clinics offering such procedures, which became very popular among transgender women. From a bibliographical survey made on the Google Scholar website, I present an initial analysis of scientific biomedical articles that seek to construct an idea of gender - or a gender identification - through the set of facial features. This biomedical literature provides the bases from which professionals and medical clinics will construct discourses and practices on the “ need ” and, consequently, the desire of this type of intervention for transgender women. Then, I analyze how this discourse is embodied in the description and technique of the surgical procedures of the so-called facial feminization from the ethnographic material of a doctoral thesis on “ Miss T Brasil ” , a beauty pageant for transgender women. The results shows that both the biomedical knowledge and the practices surrounding such surgeries are based on the ideals that constitute a “ naturalness ” in facial features and the preservation of a recognized personal identity. A certain femininity for transgender women is thus constructed and made visible, which seems to correspond to personal desires to achieve a normatively and socially accepted feminine ideal, as it promotes the concealment of a stigma by allowing them to “ pass ” ...

Source: Saude e Sociedade - July 16, 2018 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research