Colette Chiland – författare

The word 'transsexualism' was coined in 1953 and although transsexuals and intersexed people had existed for much longer, surgery to reassign one's sex is a relatively recent phenomenon. Transsexuals feel that the opposite sex to their biological one is their true identity - their true body and self. The idea of 'hormonal and surgical sex reassi

It is well known that Freud laid great emphasis on sexual matters. In the years that followed, a distinction was drawn between sex and gender, and the idea of gender identity was introduced. Human beings do not spend every minute of their lives copulating, but at every minute of their lives their gender identity is present. Sex Makes the World

Transsexualism is a stimulating, proactive and important book. Colette Chiland does not back away from difficult issues. She forces all of us to look at our assumptions about t5ranssexualism and to re-examine what gender and sex really mean' - Christine Ware, author of Where Id Was: Challenging Normalization in Psychoanalysis

'In a nutshell, the book offers a much-needed alternative view of transsexuality from a psychiatric and European point of view… Chiland's interesting and well presented book is a valued reminder of how different the same topic can appear in an alternative perspective' - Transgender Tapestry

Colette Chiland exhibits a masterful and encyclopedic knowledge of transsexualism, drawing together the insights of depth psychology, psychoanalysis, history, anthropology and sociology for rethinking transsexualism in terms of identity, subjectivity and the wider socio-historical world. This book is written with considerable precision on complex, technical issues, whilst at the same time keeping the broader question of the relationship between transsexualism and society firmly in mind.

In the case of sexuality and gender, can whatever is in the mind be changed, perhaps with help of psychotherapy or otherwise, rather than opt for external surgery? Is psychotherapy treatment powerless in the case of transsexuals?This intriguing volume is a work by a French psychoanalyst who has worked with many transsexuals. It is a useful addition to the debate on transsexuals and the definitions of sex and gender. The word 'transsexualism' was coined in 1953 and although transsexuals and intersexed people had existed for much longer, surgery to reassign one's sex is a relatively recent phenomenon. Transsexuals feel that the opposite sex to their biological one is their true identity - their true body and self. The idea of 'hormonal and surgical sex reassignment' appeals to them; it would biologically put right what they already know to be right and true in their minds. The author discusses the problems of 'reassigning' one's sex and argues that surgery cannot fix the situation. Transsexualism as a result of interaction with environment in infancy is seen as more shameful option compared to something biological happening to the body while in utero. If this condition is seen as something merely biological, it doesn't mark the person in question as psychologically ill or unbalanced.This introductory text helps in looking at this difficult, even taboo, issue from various angles. It acknowledges the difficulty of the subject and warns the readers against judgements being made without being informed of all the sides of the story.'Transsexuals put us to the test. We cannot remain indifferent to their suffering, nor can we stay aloof as they challenge us with the question that means so much to them. We respond with our own subjectivity: to say that any one human being is a man or woman is initially a statement about surface criteria; conformity to social criteria that vary according to cultural patterns; deep-down psychological criteria that vary according to the expectations each of us has.The various kinds of discourse that surround transsexuals are part of the diversity of the universe of discourse, in which, whatever our willingness to do so, we can never find common ground. We have no choice but to make a personal choice.'- From the Introduction

It is well known that Freud laid great emphasis on sexual matters. In the years that followed, a distinction was drawn between sex and gender, and the idea of gender identity was introduced. Human beings do not spend every minute of their lives copulating, but at every minute of their lives their gender identity is present. Sex Makes the World Go Round implies that sex is everywhere, provided that we take into account both sexuality and gender identity. This book continues to develop Colette Chiland's work concerning sexuality and gender identity. There are two main themes which run through the whole of this book. The first is the distinction, established by Freud and based on clinical data, between the two currents of sexuality: tenderness and sensuality. The other is that women have always been treated as inferior beings. They have always lost out whenever sexual wanderings have been uppermost.