ABSTRACT
The birth of intersexed infants, babies born with genitals that are neither clearly male nor clearly female, has been documented throughout recorded time. In the late twentieth century, medical technology has advanced to allow scientists to determine chromosomal and hormonal gender, which is typically taken to be the real, natural, biological gender, usually referred to as "sex." The time-consuming nature of intersex diagnosis and the assumption, based on gender identity theory that gender should be assigned as soon as possible thus present physicians with difficult dilemmas. Medical personnel are committed to discovering the etiology of the condition in order to determine the best course of treatment, which takes time. The equation of gender with genitals could only have emerged in an age when medical science can create credible-appearing and functioning genitals. And an emphasis on the good phallus above all else could only have emerged in a culture that has rigid aesthetic and performance criteria for what constitutes maleness.
