the concept of gender reassignment

This essay aims to comprehend the idea of gender reassignment in society as it is shown in the film Transamerica (2005). The goal of the essay is to investigate how gender reassignments are portrayed, how they affect people, and how they might be resolved in the future.
The terms "sex" and "gender" are used to distinguish between variations resulting from social, cultural, and psychological systems and those that are biological in nature. People who do not identify with the two traditional genders have grown in number in recent years and are now referred to as transgender. Gender reassignment is therefore the process or procedures involved where transgender individuals alter their existing physical and function sexual characteristics to reflect those of the gender they identify with.
This paper explores whether the film Transamerica reveals a positive or negative outlook on gender reassignment. The paper further examines the impacts of the representation on the society as well as whether there is any change in perspective from the filmic representation. The paper deploys both feminist and queer theory perspective in its examination of the cultural workings. Detailed evaluation of the films coupled with dissertation analysis to interpret the underlying messages within a selection of reviews of the films is also employed throughout the paper.

The analysis reveals society’s scepticism when perceiving gender reassignment. Consequently, mass media productions of the said groupings remain encapsulated by disapproval and misinterpretation. It is apparent that increased prominence of this ostracized society does not lead to increased acceptance. This perception is likely to remain unchanged until the prevailing discussion within the social order, open up to a new perception of gender. To a perspective that is not divided by the twofold categorisation model of what it means to be masculine of feminine.





Gender Reassignment in Transamerica Film.

The subject of transgenderism and gender reassignment has seen multiple interpretation and controversies in the last few decades. At a biological level there is a general agreement that men and women have obvious differences that support their chromosomes and reproductive capacities. However, there are various debates and controversy as to what degree that state of being masculine or feminine follows from their physical nature.

An array of conflicting sentiments and depictions from queer theory to queer cinema and trans identities have been a major staple for mass media production. Caroline & Gamman, (1995) explain that “representation is an arena in which meanings about gender can be and are contested and constantly renegotiated”. The increasing acknowledgment of trans-identity and gender reassignments especially in the film industry enables us to question the evolution of trans-gender issues in the society. The term (new queer cinema) has recently been used to describe any film that explores formal boundaries and narrow-minded classificatory thinking, resulting in more mainstream feature productions. As the filmic genre continues to push the limitations of societies understanding of gender, transgender and gender reassignment. There is so much to learn by looking at how films depict sex and gender. Seemingly it is not just about representation of truths but about new paradigm of examining the perceived “truths” and how they are constructed and maintained Cowan, (2009).

It is for this reason that the following analyses of Transamerica, aim to examine the cinematic portrayals of trans identity in relation to their resourcefulness to the aims and aspirations of trans lives’ and overall the cultural impact of these productions.

Transamerica (2005), is a perfect case of a film that has elicited a form of critical excess and a film that merits more recognition than it has generally been accorded. This is due to our tendency to lose sight of the far we have come on issues pertaining to gender and particularly concerning transgenderism and gender reassignment.

Transamerica follows the life, travels and travails of Bree Osbourne a southern Californian transgender. Bree formerly known as Stanley Chupak is about to undergo a gender reassignment. However, her therapist Margaret will not allow her to undertake the critical procedure without confronting her ghosts of the past.

Incidentally she receives a call from a hippie in New York named Toby Wilkins, who is in search of his biological father. Prior to the telephone Bree knew nothing about Toby, since he was a product of relations from his hey days as Stanley in college. Toby is a petty criminal and hustler who seems to be troubled with drugs and apparently lonely. He has nobody to look upon, since his mother had already committed suicide and he his estranged from his sexually abusive stepfather. He desperately needs someone to get him out of jail. Concealed as a Christian social worker Bree, bails Toby out of jail. Without disclosing her real identity or her transgender status, they set out on a journey to Los Angeles, where Toby hopes to reconnect with his biological father and fulfil his dreams of becoming a pornographic actor.

Through their journey Bree and Toby encounter numerous fascinating and perturbing experiences. On arrival at Toby’s stepfather place, Bree is dismayed by their relationship and opts not to leave Toby with him. They sojourn further to Bree’s parent where they are received to mixed emotions by section of the family. It is here that Bree discloses her identity to Toby. He is generally disappointed by Bree and leaves after stealing from Bree’s parents. Bree reconciles with her parents and she return to Los Angeles to conduct her gender reassignment surgery. Later on Toby reappears and they have a wonderful reunion.

The Transamerica film reinforces and challenges the contradictions emerging from sex and gender perceptions in our society. Traditionally transgender people were expected to mask their struggles and challenges. This film however looks to demystify this phenomenon by openly documenting Bree’s past and her need to reconcile with her past before her gender reassignment procedure. Bree struggles to blend in to this environment and is unsuccessful. at the beginning of the film, Bree tells the therapist, “I try to blend in, keep a low profile. I believe the slang terminology is living stealth.”

Critics argue that the film places too much weight on the labelling of Bree’s condition and on her desire for surgical transition and incidentally disregarding a window to depict trans identities as a norm. The general feeling advanced by the film is that failure to conform to the normal is viewed as development failure and illogical deviation. From her therapist perspective Bree is suffering from gender identity disorder which is until today considered an illness according by the Diagnostic Statistical manual of mental disorder. For this she has to take medication.

The suppressing of one’s biological sex in cultural history, as opposed to the film,

according to Ryan, (2009) helps in ensuring ‘trans subjectivity as totally invisible and as a

fleeting mode of being that indicated passage from one physical state to another’. However, Transamerica also establishes itself within the traditional twofold framework of male and female. The film’s success demonstrates, that transsexuals who aspire to cross and pass are widely accepted by main stream media. Bree does not want to live as a trans person forever. This therefore calls into question the safe and comfortable classifications of male and female. The continuation of Bree’s journey towards gender reassignment surgery is augmented through a collective personal progressive narrative, stories of origin and completion- from wrong bodies to right ones, tales of professional and personal success, Agid, 2006). Accounts of switches from male to female and vice versa are portrayed as daring progressions of discovery and naming of one’s self. A subtle departure from epiphany to acceptance, pronouncement and obligation to transform. This transition is the personification of a renaissance and the early stages of new life and passing. It is during this process that some form of gender stability is required, along with an assuagement of the apprehension and discontent of gender dysphoria, (Nataf, 1996).

The media have been partly or largely responsible for promoting the idea of transsexualism as a genuine condition for which gender reassignment surgery is an appropriate response. ‘The movies have so popularised the idea of sex-change that the patient may come to the psychiatrist already sure of his diagnosis and treatment.

In one scene Bree stumbles upon her former friends who are in a transgender grouping and seem to be at ease with their alternative gender. This instance mirrors the angsts and worries that many transsexual people face around concealing their birth gender and transitioning to their preconceived genders. In this respect to the above illustrations, Transamerica highlights a true-to life depiction of one’s trans issues. Bree like any other individual is trying to cut her niche and find a good and better life for herself.

The Transamerica is not so much a transgender film but a film on family. After some devastating incident, Bree has to look up to her parents – the only people in the area that she knows. She is faced with challenge of reaching out to her non-supportive and indifferent family to offer her support. This a scene well known to many trans people whereby one parent is reconciliatory and accepting while the other won't accept you and younger siblings caught in the middle.

Bree's mother is the quintessence of a dominant; a person who can't understand Bree’s actions and can't bring herself to respect their predisposed orientation. After meeting Toby, she's ecstatic since she feels she has the opportunity to raise a normal son. an opportunity that she feels Bree robbed from her when she took off from home. Sydney, Bree's sister, captures the "overindulged yet loveable sibling" personality succinctly. She recognizes her mother is behaviour and temperaments towards Bree. Despite feeling a sense of loss over the transformation of her big brother she is always ready to lend a sympathetic ear.

From the film one can also clearly deduce that there are significant issues of acceptability within the society. Bree is forced to take jobs that do not involve much of contact with the outside world in order to conceal her identity. She feels like she is not entirely normal and has to seek the help of her therapist to make the all-important choice of transitioning from male to female. This revelation reflects on a bigger challenge for trans people to try and fit in within the society preconceived notions of gender.

The film also present gender reassignment as a moment of self-discovery and realisation. Before the sexual reconstruction, Bree has to reconcile with her past in order to reinvent herself. She takes up the challenge of connecting with his son Toby. She also explains herself to her family who were initially disapproving his transition from male to female. At the end of the film we encounter a stronger and reassured Bree unlike the character we met at the beginning. This acceptance depicts that societies are rapidly moving away from the traditional roles of man and woman. That Bree’s family finally accept her position as trans individual and embrace her serves to show that others too through patient persuasion and sensitization can accept this as normal.



It would appear that continuous skewed representations of specific social groupings have a relationship with their social status and power, (Goldstein, 2009.) However, despite trans people being more visible in popular culture than they were ten years ago, they still have a long struggle ahead in resituating and re-educating society when it comes to matters of gender alternatives. Which the society as a whole has continuously stigmatized and repulsed primarily as a result of fear and ignorance.



However, as Angel Lin (2008) stated ‘As long as there is social inequality and as long as the powerful groups of people in society continue to fix essentialist identities for others (or conversely, ignore or deny the existence of others who are different from them), there will still be the need for identity struggles and identity politics’ (Angel, 2008 p213).

Whilst the media continue to battle and come to terms with the uncertainty and destabilizing that trans identities induce, we should never forget that changes in the media don’t necessarily equal changes in life.

In conclusion, this paper has clearly examined the portrayal of gender reassignment in the film Transamerica. The paper has also gone on an in depth analysis of the impacts of gender reassignment on families, societies and individual. While offering concluding resolutions on the development of this social issue.





























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