Gender Roles In Middlesex

Jeffrey Eugenides, Middlesex not only shows Cal’s transformation but also shows the “world’s transformation into a completely different entity”(a conversation with Eugenides 2007). Over time science has gained more power and in modernity scientific ideas are seen as more valuable than tradition. However, there are some questions raised in people’s minds about whether science is always accurate. The mistaken labeling of Cal’s gender in Middlesex models our concerns about the insufficiency of science. The characters are most likely adapted to the modern American society, and they have faith in the science. They trust science more than anything else, but all of a sudden a question is raised in Cal’s mind. He decides to go against science, and

In this case her grandmother, Desdemona is not sure about her gender. However, Doctor Phil, their family doctor, and famous sexologist Doctor Luce define her as girl after a variety of examinations. One day she finds out that sciences are inaccurate and they are very powerful. Eugenides shows that Desdemona’s dangling spoon over mother is more accurate than Dr. Phil and Dr. Luce examination. The Eugenides’ characters are modern American; therefore, they will believe more in science than another thing. In people's minds science is more accurate than anything else, but many people do not know the hidden facts between the science. For instance, science is no longer one hundred percent accurate. Scientists could be wrong, but no can find their mistakes because they are extremely powerful. According to James Michael Nichols in a video about what it is like to be intersex, “intersex people have to deal with biological characteristics… Some intersex

Although she is not sure about Cal’s gender by dangling a spoon over his mother stomach, other times she is always right. When she is trying to find Cal’s gender, “she opened the silkworm box and she gets the silver spoon, then she dangled the spoon over my mother and me to identify my gender… the most interesting thing is Desdemona have a perfect guess record and she is correct twenty-three times” (Eugenides, p.5). This shows there are a variety of different comparisons between modern ideas and traditional ideas. In contrast, science is behind because the doctor made mistakes in determining a person’s sex even though they use science, but Desdemona can do that by her own ideas without science. When Desdemona labels Cal as a boy “Milton told his mom that your spoon was wrong and Desdemona asked him how you know so much? To which he replied what many Americans of his generation have: It’s science” (Eugenides, p.6). Milton has more faith in science than his mother’s spoon theory because his mother’s spoon theory is not based on science, but Milton did not understand that science is not always accurate. Unfortunately, in this case science is proven wrong because Desdemona was right later on in the story. Cal is a boy, but the doctor wants him to continue raised as a girl because there was a mistake with his