Feminine Voice Research Articles

In a Different Voice: Women's Conceptions of Self and of Morality

As theories of developmental psychology continue to define educational goals and practice, it has become imperative for educators and researchers to scrutinize not only the underlying assumptions of such theories but also the model of adulthood toward which they point. Carol Gilligan examines the limitations of several theories,most notably Kohlberg's stage theory of moral development, and concludes that developmental theory has not given adequate expression to the concerns and experience of women. Through a review of psychological and literary sources, she illustrates the feminine construction of reality. From her own research data, interviews with women contemplating abortion, she then derives an alternative sequence for the development of women's moral judgments. Finally, she argues for an expanded conception of adulthood that would result from the integration of the "feminine voice" into developmental theory.

"Song - Ballets and Devil's Ditties"

X ß^?-, "Song -Ballets and Devil's Ditties" By WILLIAM ASPENWALL BRADLEY Commencement was over at Berea. The small town which has grown up about the college had subsided once more from its annual excitement, and at midnight hundreds of students, burdened with hand-baggage, were waiting, close packed, upon the platform of the country railroad station. It was a typical co-educational college crowd: shrill with feminine voices and boisterous with boyish high spirits—such as one might have seen almost anywhere. It was difficult to realize that we were in the very shadow of the romantic Kentucky Cumberlands—more difficult still to grasp the fact that most of these boys and girls with suit-cases, felt hats, loose coats and sweaters, college colors now darkly obscured in fluttering ribbon and flag, and all the other unmistakable insignia of American undergraduate life, were from those same mountains to which—and to the cabin and corn-field—they were now returning for their share in the summer's work. But on a soap-box against the sidewall of the station sat and old blind fiddler, white-haired beneath a battered hat. In the dark shadows, fitfully dispersed by the flaring of a torch whose staff was thrust into the ground so that the flame came only a few feet from his deeply lined face with its sunken, sightless sockets, he was sawing away, surrounded by a small circle of listeners. His voice, cracked and quavering, rose and fell rapidly in a nasal, monotonous sing-song. Yet the first words I heard arrested my attention. Suddenly all that had seemed familiar, conventional, and commonplace faded from the scene, and it would have been easier to fancy oneself in a corner of Defoe's London, listening to some peddler of broadsides proclaiming his wares, than on the edge of an American country college town in the twentieth century. For what the old minstrel sang was not some sentimental street song that had drifted down from the North, or a popular plantation melody. It was a very circumstantial account, crudely versified, of a local occurrence which, less than ten years ago, attracted the attention of the entire country to this eastern end of Kentucky . The assassination of the lawyer J. B. Marcum, in the court-house at Jackson, Breathitt County, brought to a climax the famous Hargis-Marcum feud; and for their share in it two men, Thomas White and Curtis Jett, were "penitentiaried" for life. The ballad to which we listened, related all the stages of this tragedy and its subsequent events. It began with the preparations, which were of the most deliberate 9 r¿r: 'S G^£ *~ Ni ^ 7·1 ? / 3,> "V ^->¡?! ^ ?,!. 1 IS SSs^nS 5D1KBJ *; r«. ira 2 u KK (-("«Ti 79»» 'S* SZ Sketch ofJackson, Kentucky, in "Bloody" Breathitt County sort, and painted the mood of expectancy which prevailed just before the fatal event. Then it described the actual killing itself: Marcum leaves a wife, To mourn all her life, And his little children stand it well and brave; But that little Curtis Jett, Thomas White, and others yet, Are the men who laid poor Marcum in his grave. As it happened, I had almost, as it were, a personal interest in the events that formed the theme of this epic minstrelsy. A friend had visited Jackson "town" just before the "killing"—never the "murder," in the mountains, —of Marcum, so I had often heard stories of his six weeks' sojourn in the county seat of "Bloody Breathitt," which a sensational preacher in the East once called "the wickedest place on earth" —a reputation of which this ramshackle mountain village is apparently proud. For its unique picture postcard, garishly colored, bears beneath its panoramic view the legend: "The Worlds (sic) Famous Jackson"; and if there is anything besides its feuds and assassinations for which Jackson is "world famous," we have yet to hear of it! My friend went there armed with a letter of introduction to the postmaster, who was a kinsman of Marcum's. 10 "I could send you up to Cousin Jim's," the latter said when he had read it. "He's well fixed to take...

Hilar cell tumor of the ovary: Diagnostic value of plasma testosterone by selective ovarian vein catheterization

The case report of a 64-year-old Jewish woman para 3 with menopause since age 50 is presented. Hirsutism of face but loss of scalp hair and hoarseness of voice had been noted for over 5 years. 5 months previously a basosquamous carcinoma was removed from her face. The patient was moderately obese and masculine in appearance. Blood pressure was 210/120 mm Hg. Glucose tolerance was diabetogenic. Vaginal cytology showed mostly basal and parabasal cells. Peripheral plasma testosteone was increased to 325 ng/100 ml (normal 15-70). Selective catheterization of right ovarian vein compared with that of inferior vena cava left adrenal vein and left ovarian vein showed a marked increase in testosterone to 635 ng/100 ml. A diagnosis of virilizing tumor of the right ovary was made. At laparotomy the right ovary was normal in size with a small protrusion on the surface. Total hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy were done. 7 days postoperation plasma testosterone fell to 13 ng/100 ml and urinary gonadotropins rose to 1320 mouse units. 8 weeks later a normal feminine voice returned and some hair growth in the bald area was noted but other symptoms were unchanged. The tumor of the right ovary was diagnosed as a hilar cell tumor. Reinke crystalloids were numerous in the tumor tissue specimens. Normal 17-ketosteroid excretion and markedly elevated plasma testosterone appear to be characteristic of hilar cell tumors of the ovary. Estrogen levels correlated with the histology of the endometrium and urinary gonadotropin levels. The dianostic value of selective ovarian and adrenal vein catheterization was shown.

Behavioral treatment of deviant sex-role behaviors in a male child.

This study demonstrated reinforcement control over pronounced feminine behaviors in a male child who had been psychologically evaluated as manifesting "childhood cross-gender identity". The clinical history of the subject paralleled the retrospective reports of adult transsexuals, including (a) cross-gender clothing preferences, (b) actual or imaginal use of cosmetic articles, (c) feminine behavior mannerisms, (d) aversion to masculine activities, coupled with preference for girl playmates and feminine activities, (e) preference for female role, (f) feminine voice inflection and predominantly feminine content in speech, and (g) verbal statements about the desire or preference to be a girl. The subject was treated sequentially in the clinic and home environments by his mother, trained to be his therapist. The mother was taught to reinforce masculine behaviors and to extinguish feminine behaviors, by using social reinforcement in the clinic and a token reinforcement procedure in the home. During this treatment, his feminine behaviors sharply decreased and masculine behavior increased. The treatment effects were found to be largely response-specific and stimulus-specific; consequently, it was necessary to strengthen more than one masculine behavior and weaken several feminine behaviors, in both clinic and home settings. A multiple-baseline intrasubject design was used to ensure both replication and identification of relevant treatment variables. Follow-up data three years after the treatment began suggests that the boy's sex-typed behaviors have become normalized. This study suggests a preliminary step toward correcting pathological sex-role development in boys, which may provide a basis for the primary prevention of adult transsexualism or similar adult sex-role deviation.

The behavioral treatment of a "transsexual" preadolescent boy.

Behavioral treatment procedures were developed to suppress feminine sex-typed behaviors and to increase masculine sex-typed behaviors in an 8-year-old boy with “childhood cross-gender identity.” The boy's clinical history paralleled the retrospective reports of adult transsexuals, including (1) feminine voice inflection and predominantly feminine content in speech, (2) verbal self-reference as “sissy” and “fag” and statements about his preference to be a girl, (3) feminine hand and arm gestures and “swishy” gait, (4) an aversion to masculine play activities, (5) a strong preference for girl playmates and taking a feminine role in play and role-playing, and (6) improvised cross-dressing. With a multiple-baseline intrasubject design across stimulus environments and across behaviors, the subject was treated sequentially in the clinic, at home, and in the school. The boy's mother was trained to administer a token economy program in the home, and the school teacher was taught to apply a response-cost procedure in the classroom. The initial treatment effects were found to be largely response specific and stimulus specific, necessitating treatment for a number of behaviors in the three major environments. Followup data 12 months after treatment termination suggest that the boy's sex-typed behaviors have become essentially normalized. This treatment holds promise for correcting pathological gender identity development in boys and for relieving the associated emotional adjustment problems.

Gonadal dysgenesis with isolated clitoromegaly, XY karyotype, and bilateral gonocytoma with massive Leydig cell hyperplasia

M. N., 16 years old, was admitted to the hospital on June 9, 1969, because of primary amenorrhea and retardation on sexual development. The patient had been brought up as a woman. Onset of pubic hair growth was noted at age 12, and at that time she noticed that her clitoris was enlarged. She had satisfactory coitus on several occasions. On examination the patient was tall and eunochoidal (height 1.73 m., lower segment 1, span, 1.75). Body weight was 57 kilograms. She had a feminine voice but was noted to he muscular with a generally masculine habitus. The breasts were prepuberal, and axillary hair was absent. Pubic hair of the female type was abundant (Fig. 1). The clitoris, penis-like, measured 6 cm. with a well-formed glans. The urethral opening was located at the base of the phallus. The uterus was extremely small, and the adnexa were not palpable.

Hangman's Break

I opened my eyes and was met by a blinding white glare. I tried to fight my way through the brightness. Blinking, I attempted to focus. The blur receded and I saw a dull painted ceiling surrounding the dome light above me. A classroom clock read 7:40. I stared unbelievingly. It should have been about 3:15. Where did the hours go? "Let's get that sweater off him!" I was beginning to remember. I had been in the mountains skiing. It was 3:15 P.M. when I loaded my car with boots, poles, and skis. What happened after that? As a man in white pulled the turtle neck sweater over my head intense pain again blurred my vision. "That shoulder must be painful." I heard a muffled feminine voice. The next time I opened my eyes, I saw a tube leading to a bottle hanging above me. Several men were bending over me, speaking in harsh voices. They were clamping my arms and legs.