Sex or Sex Assigned at Birth (n): A person’s assignment at birth, based upon a medical provider’s perception of one’s bodily characteristics (genitalia, chromosomes, hormones, etc.) as male, female, or intersex.
Gender Identity (n): A person’s inner understanding of the gender(s) with which they identify. This is each person’s unique knowing or feeling, and is separate from a person’s physical body or appearance (although often related).
(definitions from Keshet's LGBTQ Terminology handout)
- Using the above definitions, what are some differences between sex and gender? What are they each for? Are they useful? (yes, the word 'sex' is in this packet, so get your giggles out and move on.)
- Which of the words below are about gender and which are about sex? Are any about both?
Clothing; hairstyle; favorite color; mother; hormones; names; chromosomes; pronouns- Through the rest of the source-sheet, I will underline more words for you to identify as being about gender or about sex.
"Gender doesn’t merely distinguish between male and female bodies; it gives this difference meaning, assigning different roles and characteristics to people with male and female bodies." -Joy Ladin
(26) And God said, “Let us make Adam in our image, after our likeness. They shall rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the cattle, the whole earth, and all the creeping things that creep on earth.” (27) And God created Adam in God's image, in the image of God, God created him; male and female God created them. (28) God blessed them and God said to them, “Be fertile and increase, fill the earth and master it; and rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and all the living things that creep on earth.”
Reread the above texts (the Genesis one and Joy Ladin one) slowly, and then discuss the following:
- Restate what Joy Ladin said in your own words. Make sure you understand it, it will be important for the rest of the sources.
- What is/are Adam? What do you know about Adam from the text?
- Does Adam have gender yet? How do you know?
We now move to the second creation story, which occurs in Genesis 2. Unlike Genesis 1, in which 'male and female' are created at the same time and called Adam, Genesis 2 describes the creation of a male 'Adam/Human' which is followed by the female, named 'Woman' and eventually 'Eve'. In this story, the Human is made from the dust of the earth, created before the animals, and placed in the Garden of Eden to till it.
(18) The LORD God said, “It is not good for the Human to be alone; I will make a fitting helper for him.”
- According to the text above, what are reasons for G-d doing what G-d is about to do?
- How alone is the Human? In what ways?
(19) And the LORD God formed out of the earth all the wild beasts and all the birds of the sky, and brought them to the Human to see what he would call them; and whatever the Human called each living creature, that would be its name. (20) And the Human gave names to all the cattle and to the birds of the sky and to all the wild beasts; but for Human no fitting helper was found.
- Why do you think G-d begins with animals? (hint: what was/wasn't already in the world?)
- What do you think is it about animals that causes them to fail in being a "fitting helper" (literally, “the helper who is his opposite") for the Human?
(21) So the LORD God cast a deep sleep upon the Human; and, while he slept, God took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that spot. (22) And the LORD God fashioned the rib that God had taken from the Human into a woman; and God brought her to the Human. (23) Then the Human said,
“This one at last
Is bone of my bones
And flesh of my flesh.
This one shall be called Woman,
For from man was she taken.”
(24) Hence a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, so that they become one flesh.
- How is the Woman created? Why do you think she succeed when the animals failed?
- Thinking back on the Joy Ladin quote from before, do the man and woman have gender now? If so, what is it and how did it come about? How do you know? (hint: look at v.23-24 closely)
- Now that 'Woman' exists, what has changed for the Human?
- What was the purpose of Adam establishing gender? What did it allow him to do? Think about why G-d created Eve in the first place.
- Why might it matter to us today that Adam and Eve existed as people before gender existed?
The following is a famous midrash about the first creation story, in Genesis 1, where "male and female" are created at the same time and called Adam.
(א) וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹקִים נַעֲשֶׂה אָדָם בְּצַלְמֵנוּ כִּדְמוּתֵנוּ (בראשית א, כו)...אָמַר רַבִּי יִרְמְיָה בֶּן אֶלְעָזָר בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁבָּרָא הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא אֶת אָדָם הָרִאשׁוֹן, אַנְדְּרוֹגִינוֹס בְּרָאוֹ, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (בראשית ה, ב): זָכָר וּנְקֵבָה בְּרָאָם. אָמַר רַבִּי שְׁמוּאֵל בַּר נַחְמָן, בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁבָּרָא הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא אֶת אָדָם הָרִאשׁוֹן, דְּיוּ פַּרְצוּפִים בְּרָאוֹ, וְנִסְּרוֹ וַעֲשָׂאוֹ גַּבִּים, גַּב לְכָאן וְגַב לְכָאן. אֲתִיבוּן לֵיהּ וְהָכְתִיב (בראשית ב, כא): וַיִּקַּח אַחַת מִצַּלְעֹתָיו, אֲמַר לְהוֹן מִתְּרֵין סִטְרוֹהִי, הֵיךְ מָה דְאַתְּ אָמַר (שמות כו, כ): וּלְצֶלַע הַמִּשְׁכָּן, דִּמְתַרְגְּמִינַן וְלִסְטַר מַשְׁכְּנָא וגו'.
(1)God said: Let us make Adam in our image, in our shape: R' Yirmiyah ben Elazar said, when the Eternal created Adam initially, he was created as an androgynos; thus is it written, "male and female did God create them." (Genesis 5:2) R' Shmuel bar Nachman said, when the Eternal created Adam initially, God created him with two faces, one on each side, and [when God made Eve,] God split him along the middle, forming two backs. They [the other Rabbis] challenged him: but it is written, "And God took one of his ribs!" (Genesis 2:21) He said to them, ["mitzalosav" doesn't mean 'his rib', it means] one of 'his sides', similar to that which is said, "and to the 'tzela' of the Tent," (Exodus 26:20) ["the side of the Tent."]
- Reread the story and summarize it with your hevrutah, because texts like these are difficult.
- Why do you think the Rabbis would write a text like this one?
- Stories like the above have been found in other cultures too. Do you think there's something universal to a story like this? What might it be?
(ו) וַתֵּ֣רֶא הָֽאִשָּׁ֡ה כִּ֣י טוֹב֩ הָעֵ֨ץ לְמַאֲכָ֜ל וְכִ֧י תַֽאֲוָה־ה֣וּא לָעֵינַ֗יִם וְנֶחְמָ֤ד הָעֵץ֙ לְהַשְׂכִּ֔יל וַתִּקַּ֥ח מִפִּרְי֖וֹ וַתֹּאכַ֑ל וַתִּתֵּ֧ן גַּם־לְאִישָׁ֛הּ עִמָּ֖הּ וַיֹּאכַֽל׃ ...(טז) אֶֽל־הָאִשָּׁ֣ה אָמַ֗ר הַרְבָּ֤ה אַרְבֶּה֙ עִצְּבוֹנֵ֣ךְ וְהֵֽרֹנֵ֔ךְ בְּעֶ֖צֶב תֵּֽלְדִ֣י בָנִ֑ים וְאֶל־אִישֵׁךְ֙ תְּשׁ֣וּקָתֵ֔ךְ וְה֖וּא יִמְשׇׁל־בָּֽךְ׃ {ס} (יז) וּלְאָדָ֣ם אָמַ֗ר כִּֽי־שָׁמַ֘עְתָּ֮ לְק֣וֹל אִשְׁתֶּ֒ךָ֒ וַתֹּ֙אכַל֙ מִן־הָעֵ֔ץ אֲשֶׁ֤ר צִוִּיתִ֙יךָ֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר לֹ֥א תֹאכַ֖ל מִמֶּ֑נּוּ אֲרוּרָ֤ה הָֽאֲדָמָה֙ בַּֽעֲבוּרֶ֔ךָ בְּעִצָּבוֹן֙ תֹּֽאכְלֶ֔נָּה כֹּ֖ל יְמֵ֥י חַיֶּֽיךָ׃ (יח) וְק֥וֹץ וְדַרְדַּ֖ר תַּצְמִ֣יחַֽ לָ֑ךְ וְאָכַלְתָּ֖ אֶת־עֵ֥שֶׂב הַשָּׂדֶֽה׃ (יט) בְּזֵעַ֤ת אַפֶּ֙יךָ֙ תֹּ֣אכַל לֶ֔חֶם עַ֤ד שֽׁוּבְךָ֙ אֶל־הָ֣אֲדָמָ֔ה כִּ֥י מִמֶּ֖נָּה לֻקָּ֑חְתָּ כִּֽי־עָפָ֣ר אַ֔תָּה וְאֶל־עָפָ֖ר תָּשֽׁוּב׃ (כ) וַיִּקְרָ֧א הָֽאָדָ֛ם שֵׁ֥ם אִשְׁתּ֖וֹ חַוָּ֑ה כִּ֛י הִ֥וא הָֽיְתָ֖ה אֵ֥ם כׇּל־חָֽי׃ (כא) וַיַּ֩עַשׂ֩ ה' אֱלֹקִ֜ים לְאָדָ֧ם וּלְאִשְׁתּ֛וֹ כׇּתְנ֥וֹת ע֖וֹר וַיַּלְבִּשֵֽׁם׃ {פ}
(6) When the woman saw that the tree was good for eating and a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable as a source of wisdom, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave some to her husband, and he ate...[They make themselves clothes and hide from G-d. G-d discovers that they have eaten the forbidden fruit and begins doling out punishments.](16) And to the woman God said, “I will make most severe Your pangs in childbearing; In pain shall you bear children. Yet your urge shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you.” (17) To Adam God said, “Because you did as your wife said and ate of the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ Cursed be the ground because of you; By toil shall you eat of it All the days of your life: (18) Thorns and thistles shall it sprout for you. But your food shall be the grasses of the field; (19) By the sweat of your brow Shall you get bread to eat, Until you return to the ground— For from it you were taken. For dust you are, And to dust you shall return.” (20) The man named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all the living. (21) And the LORD God made garments of skins for Adam and his wife, and clothed them.
- More gender is created here! What is it? In other words, what roles have now been set out for Adam and Eve based on their bodies? What are they each expected to do and be?
- Are these new gender roles equal? (hint: no.)
- Is the inequality of the gender roles presented as a good thing? Why or why not?
- Did this inequality exist before? Go back and read Gen. 2:21-24 again and check.
- Is this inequality presented as being a curse just for women, or for everyone?