French Literature Reviews - 2026
A. Fausto-Sterling, The Five Sexes: Why Male and Female Are Not Enough
Philosophy, Anthropology and Ideas
The Five Sexes: Why Male and Female Are Not Enough
Anne Fausto-Sterling
Anne-Emmanuelle Boterf (Translator), Pascale Molinier (Preface)
PUBLICATION DATE: 10/04/13 PUBLISHER: Payot SERIES: Petite Bibliothèque Payot ISBN: 978-2-228-90885-6 EAN: 9782228908856 FORMAT: Pocket book PRESENTATION: Paperback NO. OF PAGES: 92 p.
Why should there be only two sexes, male and female? Is it not possible to be both a man and a woman? Here, finally translated, is the legendary and provocative essay that brought biologist Anne Fausto-Sterling international renown in the field of gender studies. Drawing on the case of hermaphrodites or "intersex" individuals, and radically reframing questions of knowledge and the violence committed in the name of social norms, she demonstrates with power and irony how bodies can be liberated from the grip of gender.
Anne Fausto-Sterling, a biologist, historian of science, and feminist, is a professor at Brown University (USA).
* * *
An article about this book can be read on the nonfiction.fr website:
Originally published as a provocative intervention in feminist science studies, this essay questions the rigid biological dichotomy of male and female by examining the lived realities of intersex individuals. The author, a prominent biologist and historian of science at Brown University, utilizes historical and medical perspectives to demonstrate how social norms shape clinical practices and bodily definitions. By challenging deeply ingrained assumptions about sexual dimorphism, the text opens vital pathways for rethinking the relationship between biological bodies and cultural categories, offering a foundational contribution to contemporary gender theory and the sociology of science.
This accessible pocket edition serves as an essential introduction for students, researchers, and general readers interested in feminist theory, the history of science, and queer studies. It provides valuable conceptual tools for anyone seeking to understand how medical and social institutions construct sexual identities. By questioning the necessity of a strict two-sex system, the work invites readers to reconsider the ethical dimensions of scientific knowledge and the ways in which human diversity is policed by normative frameworks. It remains a key reference for discussions on bodily autonomy and the deconstruction of gender binaries.