Quote from: Jane Emily on February 11, 2017, 12:09:07 AM
I'm curious what your thought are on the biological need to procreate?
Do you then accept that gender and sex are totally separated from this phenomenon?
i.e. men attracted to women, and vice versa, for the purpose of wanting to reproduce offspring.
I wouldn't call reproduction a "need" exactly. It's necessary for the survival of the species and I'm sure for some people, it is a need - I accept some people will never be happy without kids - but I think the majority of the sex going on in the world is happening because it feels good, rather than for reproductive purposes.
As Kylo pointed out, for many people, procreation is absolutely not a need - for some, it's their worst nightmare
Sexual desire is the need most of us are fulfilling when we have sex - reproduction is more of a want (depending on the individual). For the survival of the species, it's a need, but we're talking about individual people with individual identities and desires. And we're also talking about humans - who have evolved to the point that life, for most people, is about a lot more than survival of the species.
Identity is one thing we have that other animals probably don't (if they do, it doesn't appear to be as developed) and so discussing aspects of identity in terms of "this is how animals generally work" doesn't make much sense to me. The human condition is unique to humanity, and isn't always logical. It's also very individual, so generalising doesn't really work.
Like Dena said, sexual desire and the desire to have children are not one and the same. People (and non-human animals) generally have sex because it feels good, and sex feels good because nature wants us to procreate. But much of human nature is about transcending nature to the best of our abilities. Hence birth control.
To answer your question, I do see gender as totally separate from procreation. It's an aspect of identity. Sex, as in the reproductive organs you possess, is relevant in that without the right combination, you can't procreate (at least without turning to science). And sexuality is individual - nature wants us to procreate, so nature has set us up to be significantly more likely to be attracted to the opposite sex, speaking in terms of the species as a whole.
But speaking in terms of the individual: gay or straight, some people want kids, some people don't. Gay or straight, some people (including some trans guys) want to get pregnant, some people don't. Most people want to have sex either way.
So, in my opinion, an individual's sexuality is totally separate from their desire to procreate. The sexuality trends of the population as a whole are the result of nature's desire for us to procreate, but we are individuals with free will.
Hope I'm making sense and not rambling too much, I haven't had any hot chocolate all day and I actually might die.
Oh, and to answer the original question - I don't believe transition changes your sexuality. But being trans can make it extra confusing to figure out. I thought I was asexual until I accepted I was trans, then instantly realized I was gay. Up until that point, the idea of being with a man made me feel physically sick.
And a trans friend of a friend identified as a lesbian up until he accepted he was trans, then realized he'd never been sexually attracted to girls - he just liked how masculine he could feel around them. He identifies as gay now.
Our sexual orientations never changed - both of us were gay all along, we just couldn't see it until we accepted who we were.
A child who transitions and goes through the correct puberty from the start may have a less confusing time figuring their orientation out, but they'll be whoever they were born to be.
