Beyond The Binary
Chapter 3 of Beyond the Binary takes us way back, to ancient Greek philosophy and biblical creation stories—to show how long people have been trying to explain the differences between men and women. At first, it might seem like these old ideas don’t matter anymore, but the chapter explains why they still affect the way we think about sex and gender today.
We start with Aristotle, who tried to explain why males and females are different. His thinking was complicated, but it came down to this: males and females are part of the same species, but they have different “matter.” In simple terms, he believed the male body had something active and powerful that the female body lacked. He even said women were like “underdeveloped men” and couldn’t pass on form or essence the way men could.
To support this, Aristotle believed that only men produced the active reproductive fluid (which he called “concocted blood”), and that women were just the containers. This sounds ridiculous today—especially now that we know both men and women contribute to creating life equally—but back then, it was considered science.
Later, other thinkers like Thomas Aquinas built on Aristotle’s ideas. Aquinas even suggested that when a female child was born, it might be an “accident” of nature—not a mistake, exactly, but not the goal either. That idea really shows how deeply sexism and ableism were built into their thinking. Female children and disabled children were seen as failed versions of the ideal healthy, male offspring. That’s not just wrong—it’s harmful.
The chapter then moves into the biblical creation stories in Genesis. It compares two versions: one where men and women are created equally, and one where Adam is made first and Eve is made from his rib to help him. In the second story, Adam even names Eve, which shows he holds more power. The text points out that naming something usually means you have authority over it, like parents naming their kids or countries naming places. So by naming Eve, Adam is put in charge, even though they were both created by God.
What’s interesting is that the Bible includes two different stories, and they don’t totally match. One makes men and women equal; the other makes the man the boss. This shows that even religious texts reflect the culture and values of the time they were written in—not some perfect truth.
Finally, we hear from St. Augustine, who tried to mix Greek philosophy with Christian beliefs. He argued that men and women both reflect God’s image, but he still gave men the “higher” role. Women were seen as more emotional and practical, while men were seen as more logical and spiritual. That way of thinking still influences gender roles today, especially in religious or traditional communities.
This chapter really opened my eyes to how long these ideas have been around. Even though we’ve moved past a lot of this thinking, some of it still shows up in how people talk about gender, leadership, and ability. Knowing where these ideas come from helps us question them and build something more equal.
