Transmasculinity and gender performance: reflections based on a case study

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Transmasculine identity consists of a gender expression that differs from the social expectations assigned based on biological sex. Individuals born with a vagina identify as men and wish to be recognized as such. However, society imposes the performance of femininity upon them from birth, which leads to prejudice and suffering. OBJECTIVE: This article aims to investigate how the masculine gender performance of a trans man is expressed and experienced in relation to the socially recognized heteronormative standard. METHOD: This is a case study whose participant was an adult trans man residing in the state of São Paulo, with whom we conducted a semi-structured interview. The data were analyzed based on Bardin's Content Analysis framework, drawing primarily on Judith Butler's concept of performativity and other writings from Queer Theory. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Four categories/themes emerged from the analysis: the participant’s childhood already transgressing dominant gender conceptions; adolescence and the lack of identification with socially imposed femininity; prejudice experienced within the trans community; and the participant’s current way of living and emerging possibilities. CONCLUSION: The findings suggest an ambivalence in gender performance resulting from social pressure; however, the interviewee has been reclaiming his existence and seeking spaces that do not challenge his identity.