Who determines manhood or womanhood? : the biomedical and legal definitions of man and woman in relation to transsexualism

L. Gooren, C. Doorn

Our definitions of sex are incomplete or deficient; our self-constructed criteria of manhood and womanhood are unable, unfit to encompass the phenomenon of transsexualism. These definitions were drafted, with the best intentions, at some point in time in agreement with the state of knowledge at that time. There should be no escape for medical and legal authorities that these outdated definitions ought to be corrected and updated when new information becomes available, particularly when they bring suffering to fellow human beings.