Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: Narratives of Autogynephilic Transsexualism

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Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: Narratives of Autogynephilic Transsexualism
Author Anne Lawrence
Language English
SeriesFocus on Sexuality Research
Subject Autogynephilia, transgenderism
Published New York
Publisher Springer Publishing
Publication date
2013
Publication place United States
Media typePrint
Pages242
ISBN 9781461451815
OCLC 802321578
Website https://annelawrence.com/book/

Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: Narratives of Autogynephilic Transsexualism is a 2013 book on the subject of autogynephilia and transgender women written by sexologist Anne Lawrence. [1] In the book, she discusses autogynephilia, a paraphilia in which a person is sexually attracted to and aroused by the thought or image of themselves as female. [1] [2] It is defined as an erotic target location error, as a self-directed form of gynephilia, and as a sexuoromantic orientation. [1] [3] [2] Autogynephilia has been theorized by some academics, such as Lawrence, Ray Blanchard, and J. Michael Bailey, to be the motivating etiology for a subset of transgender women. [1] It has also been theorized to be the cause of the feelings and behaviors of certain non-transgender males, including non-transitioning autogynephiles (sometimes called "crossdreamers") and erotic crossdressers ("transvestites"). [1] [4] In respect to the latter, transvestism has been defined as a subtype of autogynephilia. [1] Lawrence herself is a transgender woman and self-identifies as autogynephilic. [1] However, Blanchard's etiological typology of transgender women and autogynephilia are highly controversial subjects and are not accepted by many other transgender women and academics. [5] [6] The book was published in 2013 by Springer in New York. [1]

Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: Narratives of Autogynephilic Transsexualism is 242 pages in length and has 12 chapters. [1] Its chapters include "Men Trapped in Men's Bodies", "Theory and Case Histories", "Narratives by Autogynephilic Transsexuals", "Confronting Autogynephilia", "Developmental Histories", "Manifestations of Autogynephilia", "Autogynephilia and Heterosexuality", "Sex with Men", "Other Aspects of Autogynephilic Sexuality", "Debating the Meaning of Autogynephilia", "Narratives by Nontranssexual Autogynephiles", and "Autogynephilic Transsexualism in Perspective". [1] It includes 249 first-person narratives of autogynephilia by transgender women and 52 narratives of autogynephilia by non-transgender males (301 narratives in total) that were submitted to and collected by Lawrence. [1] This followed earlier collections of the same kinds of narratives that Lawrence had published in 1999. [1] [7] [8] Besides the book, Lawrence has published a number of literature reviews on autogynephilia. [9] [2] [10] [3] [5]

The book has a similar title to a 1998 essay published by Lawrence in Transgender Tapestry called Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: An Introduction to the Concept of Autogynephilia [11] and to a 1999 essay presented by Lawrence at the 16th Harry Benjamin International Gender Dysphoria Association (HBIGDA) symposium known as Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: Autogynephilic Eroticism as a Motive for Seeking Sex Reassignment. [1] [12] [13] Both of these essays were also previously published on Lawrence's website, [1] [11] [13] in addition to her earlier 1999 collections of autogynephilia narratives. [7] [8] The book's title is also similar to the title of a chapter called Men Trapped in Men's Bodies in J. Michael Bailey's 2003 book, The Man Who Would Be Queen: The Science of Gender-Bending and Transsexualism , with this chapter title being inspired by and taking after the titles of Lawrence's earlier essays. [14] The phrase "men trapped in men's bodies" refers to the fact that transgender women are often described as "women trapped in men's bodies", yet autogynephilic transgender women are said not to resemble women in terms of their behavioral characteristics and life histories but instead to be more similar to men in these areas and to have an intense desire to become women due to their autogynephilic feelings. [1] [14] Hence, these transgender women, relative to pretransition, could, in a sense, alternatively be described as "men trapped in men's bodies" per Lawrence. [1] [14] Ray Blanchard has stated that Lawrence initially startled even him with the phrase and the forthright titles of her essays. [1]

Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: Narratives of Autogynephilic Transsexualism has received several published book reviews, including by psychologist Richard Lippa, [15] psychiatrist Stephen B. Levine, [16] sexologist Kevin Hsu, [17] psychologist Richard Carroll, [18] and psychologist Margaret Nichols. [19] It has been regarded by Ray Blanchard, who wrote the foreword of the book and developed the concept of autogynephilia, as the definitive text on the subject of autogynephilia. [1] He has compared it favorably to Magnus Hirschfeld's classic 1910 work, Die Transvestiten: Eine Untersuchung über den Erotischen Verkleidungstrieb (Transvestites: The Erotic Drive to Cross-Dress). [1]

Many transgender women reject autogynephilia as an explanation for their feelings and consider the concept to be offensive. [5] [6] Criticisms have been lobbied against the construct of autogynephilia on a variety of grounds. [20] [21] [22] However, some people, most famously Lawrence herself, identify with autogynephilia and find that it accurately describes their experiences. [1] [23] [24] That some individuals identify with autogynephilia is also evidenced by the 301 narratives of autogynephilia by transgender and non-transgender people that were submitted to and published by Lawrence. [1]

Related Research Articles

The World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), formerly the Harry Benjamin International Gender Dysphoria Association (HBIGDA), is a professional organization devoted to the understanding and treatment of gender identity and gender dysphoria, and creating standardized treatment for transgender and gender variant people. WPATH was founded in September 1979 by endocrinologist and sexologist Harry Benjamin, with the goal of creating an international community of professionals specializing in treating gender variance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transfeminism</span> Branch of feminism

Transfeminism, or trans feminism, is a branch of feminism focused on transgender women and informed by transgender studies. Transfeminism focuses on the effects of transmisogyny and patriarchy on trans women. It is related to the broader field of queer theory. The term was popularized by Emi Koyama in The Transfeminist Manifesto.

<i>The Man Who Would Be Queen</i> 2003 book by J. Michael Bailey

The Man Who Would Be Queen: The Science of Gender-Bending and Transsexualism is a 2003 book by the American psychologist J. Michael Bailey, published by Joseph Henry Press.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Androphilia and gynephilia</span> Sexual orientation to men or women

Androphilia and gynephilia are terms used in behavioral science to describe sexual orientation, as an alternative to a gender binary homosexual and heterosexual conceptualization. Androphilia describes sexual attraction to men and/or masculinity; gynephilia describes the sexual attraction to women and/or femininity. Ambiphilia describes the combination of both androphilia and gynephilia in a given individual, or bisexuality.

The gender binary is the classification of gender into two distinct forms of masculine and feminine, whether by social system, cultural belief, or both simultaneously. Most cultures use a gender binary, having two genders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ray Blanchard</span> American-Canadian sexologist (born 1945)

Ray Milton Blanchard is an American-Canadian sexologist who researches pedophilia, sexual orientation and gender identity. He has found that men with more older brothers are more likely to be gay than men with fewer older brothers, a phenomenon he attributes to the reaction of the mother's immune system to male fetuses. Blanchard has also published research studies on phallometry and several paraphilias, including autoerotic asphyxia. Blanchard also proposed a typology of transsexualism.

The American-Canadian sexologist Ray Blanchard proposed a psychological typology of gender dysphoria, transsexualism, and fetishistic transvestism in a series of academic papers through the 1980s and 1990s. Building on the work of earlier researchers, including his colleague Kurt Freund, Blanchard categorized trans women into two groups: homosexual transsexuals who are attracted exclusively to men and are feminine in both behavior and appearance; and autogynephilic transsexuals who experience sexual arousal at the idea of having a female body. Blanchard and his supporters argue that the typology explains differences between the two groups in childhood gender nonconformity, sexual orientation, history of sexual fetishism, and age of transition.

Gender incongruence is the state of having a gender identity that does not correspond to one's sex assigned at birth. This is experienced by people who identify as transgender or transsexual, and often results in gender dysphoria. The causes of gender incongruence have been studied for decades.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transgender sexuality</span> Sexuality of transgender people

Sexuality in transgender individuals encompasses all the issues of sexuality of other groups, including establishing a sexual identity, learning to deal with one's sexual needs, and finding a partner, but may be complicated by issues of gender dysphoria, side effects of surgery, physiological and emotional effects of hormone replacement therapy, psychological aspects of expressing sexuality after medical transition, or social aspects of expressing their gender.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transgender</span> Gender identity other than sex assigned at birth

A transgender person is someone whose gender identity differs from that typically associated with the sex they were assigned at birth. Some transgender people who desire medical assistance to transition from one sex to another identify as transsexual. Transgender is also an umbrella term; in addition to including people whose gender identity is the opposite of their assigned sex, it may also include people who are non-binary or genderqueer. Other definitions of transgender also include people who belong to a third gender, or else conceptualize transgender people as a third gender. The term may also include cross-dressers or drag kings and drag queens in some contexts. The term transgender does not have a universally accepted definition, including among researchers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transsexual</span> People experiencing a gender identity inconsistent with their assigned sex

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transmisogyny</span> Intersection of transphobia and misogyny, experienced by transfeminine individuals

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Erotic target location error (ETLE) is a hypothesized dimension for paraphilias, defined by having a sexual preference or strong sexual interest in features that are somewhere other than on one's sexual partners. When one's sexual arousal is based on imagining oneself in another physical form the erotic target is said to be one's self, or erotic target identity inversion (ETII).

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Anne Alexandra Lawrence is an American psychologist, sexologist, and physician who has published extensively on gender dysphoria, transgender people, and paraphilias. Lawrence is a transgender woman and self-identifies as autogynephilic. She is best known for her 2013 book on autogynephilia, Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: Narratives of Autogynephilic Transsexualism, which has been regarded by Ray Blanchard as the definitive text on the subject. Lawrence is one of the major researchers in the area of Blanchard's etiological typology of transgender women and has been one of the most major proponents of the theory. While Blanchard's typology and autogynephilia are highly controversial subjects and are not accepted by many transgender women and academics, some, such as Lawrence, identify with autogynephilia. Lawrence's work also extends beyond Blanchard's typology, to transgender women and to transition more generally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alice Dreger</span> American bioethicist, historian, and author

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The medicalisation of sexuality is the existence and growth of medical authority over sexual experiences and sensations. The medicalisation of sexuality is contributed to by the pharmaceutical industry, along with psychiatry, psychology, and biomedical sciences more generally.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Anne A. Lawrence (2013). Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: Narratives of Autogynephilic Transsexualism (PDF). Focus on Sexuality Research. Springer Science & Business Media. doi:10.1007/978-1-4614-5182-2. ISBN   978-1-4614-5182-2. OCLC   910979847. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-03-23.
  2. 1 2 3 Lawrence, Anne A. (2007). "Becoming What We Love: Autogynephilic Transsexualism Conceptualized as an Expression of Romantic Love" (PDF). Perspect. Biol. Med. 50 (4): 506–520. doi:10.1353/pbm.2007.0050. PMID   17951885. S2CID   31767722. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2023-12-11. Retrieved 2024-05-15.
  3. 1 2 Lawrence, Anne A. (2011). "Autogynephilia: An Underappreciated Paraphilia" (PDF). Advances in Psychosomatic Medicine. 31: 135–148. doi:10.1159/000328921. ISBN   978-3-8055-9825-5. ISSN   1662-2855. PMID   22005209. S2CID   16143265. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-03-23.
  4. ↑ Webb, M.A. (2019). A Reflective Guide to Gender Identity Counselling. Jessica Kingsley Publishers. p. 38. ISBN   978-1-78450-733-6 . Retrieved 28 April 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 Lawrence, Anne A. (2017). "Autogynephilia and the Typology of Male-to-Female Transsexualism: Concepts and Controversies" (PDF). European Psychologist. 22 (1): 39–54. doi:10.1027/1016-9040/a000276. ISSN   1016-9040. S2CID   151624961. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-04-24.
  6. 1 2 Dreger AD (June 2008). "The controversy surrounding "The man who would be queen": a case history of the politics of science, identity, and sex in the Internet age". Arch Sex Behav. 37 (3): 366–421. doi:10.1007/s10508-007-9301-1. PMC   3170124 . PMID   18431641.
  7. 1 2 Lawrence, A. A. (1999), "28 narratives about autogynephilia", annelawrence.com, archived from the original on 2000-08-16
  8. 1 2 Lawrence, A. A. (1999), "31 New Narratives About Autogynephilia: Plus Five Revealing Fantasy Narratives", annelawrence.com, archived from the original on 2000-08-16
  9. ↑ Lawrence, Anne A. (2004). "Autogynephilia: A Paraphilic Model of Gender Identity Disorder" (PDF). Journal of Gay and Lesbian Psychotherapy. 8 (1/2): 69–87. CiteSeerX   10.1.1.656.9256 . doi:10.1080/19359705.2004.9962367. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-03-23. Retrieved 2024-05-14.
  10. ↑ Lawrence, Anne A. (2009). "Transgenderism in Nonhomosexual Males As a Paraphilic Phenomenon: Implications for Case Conceptualization and Treatment" (PDF). Sexual and Relationship Therapy. 24 (2): 188–206. doi:10.1080/14681990902937340. ISSN   1468-1994.
  11. 1 2 Anne A. Lawrence (1998), Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: An Introduction to the Concept of Autogynephilia, vol. 1, pp. 65–68, archived from the original on 1999-10-11
  12. ↑ Bailey JM, Triea K (2007). "What many transgender activists don't want you to know: and why you should know it anyway". Perspect Biol Med. 50 (4): 521–34. doi:10.1353/pbm.2007.0041. PMID   17951886.
  13. 1 2 Anne Lawrence (1999), "Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: Autogynephilic Eroticism as a Motive for Seeking Sex Reassignment", Presented at the 16th HBIGDA Symposium, London, UK, August 20, 1999, archived from the original on 2000-01-18
  14. 1 2 3 Bailey, J. Michael (2003). "Men Trapped in Men's Bodies". The Man Who Would Be Queen: The Science of Gender-Bending and Transsexualism (PDF). Washington, D.C.: Joseph Henry Press. pp. 157–176. ISBN   978-0-309-08418-5. OCLC   51088011. OL   9756152M. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-27. Retrieved 2024-05-15.
  15. ↑ Lippa, Richard A. (2015). "Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: Narratives of Autogynephilic Transsexualism: By Anne A. Lawrence. New York, Springer, 2013, 242 pp., $129.00 (hardcover), $49.99 (softcover), $39.99 (ebook)". Archives of Sexual Behavior. 44 (5): 1511–1514. doi:10.1007/s10508-015-0553-x. ISSN   0004-0002.
  16. ↑ Levine, Stephen B. (2014). "What is More Bizarre: The Transsexual or Transsexual Politics?: Men Trapped In Men's Bodies: Narratives of Autogynephilic Transsexualism. By Anne A. Lawrence, New York Springer, 2013. 242 pp. $129 (hardcover). ISBN: 978-1-4614-5181-5". Sex Roles. 70 (3–4): 158–160. doi:10.1007/s11199-013-0341-9. ISSN   0360-0025.
  17. ↑ Hsu, Kevin J. (2014). "The "Auto" (Self) in Autogynephilic Transsexualism: Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: Narratives of Autogynephilic Transsexualism . By Anne A. Lawrence. New York, NY: Springer, 2013, 242 pages. Cloth, $129.00". The Journal of Sex Research. 51 (2): 234–236. doi:10.1080/00224499.2013.842354. ISSN   0022-4499.
  18. ↑ Carroll, Richard A. (2014). "A Review of "Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: Narratives of Autogynephilic Transsexualism": by Anne Lawrence . New York: Springer, 2013. 242 pages, $109 (hardcover)". Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy. 40 (1): 73–75. doi:10.1080/0092623X.2013.854561. ISSN   0092-623X.
  19. ↑ Nichols, Margaret (2014). "A Review of "Men Trapped in Men's Bodies: Narratives of Autogynephilic Transsexualism": by Anne Lawrence . New York: Springer, 2013. 242 pages, $109 (hardcover)". Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy. 40 (1): 71–73. doi:10.1080/0092623X.2013.854559. ISSN   0092-623X.
  20. ↑ Serano, Julia (2020). "Autogynephilia: A scientific review, feminist analysis, and alternative 'embodiment fantasies' model". The Sociological Review. 68 (4): 763–778. doi:10.1177/0038026120934690. ISSN   0038-0261.
  21. ↑ Serano, Julia M. (2010-10-12). "The Case Against Autogynephilia". International Journal of Transgenderism. 12 (3): 176–187. doi:10.1080/15532739.2010.514223. ISSN   1553-2739.
  22. ↑ Moser, Charles (30 June 2010). "Blanchard's Autogynephilia Theory: A Critique". Journal of Homosexuality. 57 (6). Informa UK Limited: 790–809. doi:10.1080/00918369.2010.486241. ISSN   0091-8369. PMID   20582803.
  23. ↑ Singal, Jesse (2023-11-21). "The rage behind Transgender Map". UnHerd. Retrieved 2024-04-28. What appears to have curdled her is the work of Ray Blanchard, the sex researcher who proposed the theory of autogynephilia, which posits that some trans women are motivated to transition by sexual arousal at the thought of being a woman. It is seen by some trans people as offensive because, in their view, it pathologises and/or sexualises their identity. An apparently smaller group of individuals, most famously Anne Lawrence, believe it accurately describes their own experiences.
  24. ↑ Illy, P. (2023). Autoheterosexual: Attracted to Being the Other Sex. Houndstooth Press. ISBN   978-1-5445-4144-0 . Retrieved 16 May 2024.
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