Primary Femininity, Bisexuality, and the Female Ego Ideal: A Re-Examination of Female Developmental Theory

Abstract

While the concept of primary femininity advances our understanding of the girl's developmental experience, a number of contradictions and problematic assumptions are at the present time contained within this concept. I propose that we use the phrase "primary sense of femaleness" to refer to the girl's earliest sense of self deriving from the mental representation of her body. In addition, I argue that the concepts of a primary sense of femaleness and of a bisexual matrix are not mutually exclusive; an early sense of self located in a female body can co-exist with the fantasy of potential unlimited by gender. Finally, I examine the role of the mother as ego ideal for the girl.