Bitch: On the Female of the Species

by Lucy Cooke

These females teach us that sex is no crystal ball. It is neither static nor deterministic but a dynamic and flexible trait, just like any other, that’s shaped by the peculiar interaction of shared genes with the environment, further sculpted by an animal’s developmental and life histories plus a sprinkling of chance. Rather than thinking of the sexes as wholly different biological entities, we should consider them members of the same species, with fluid, complementary differences in certain biological and physiological processes associated with reproduction, but otherwise much the same. The time has come to ditch damaging, and frankly deluded, binary expectations because, in nature, the female experience exists on a genderless continuum: it is variable, highly plastic, and refuses to conform to archaic classifications. Our appreciation of this fact can only enrich our understanding of the natural world and empathy for one another as humans. Maintaining a dogged belief in antiquated sex differences only serves to fuel unrealistic expectations of women and men, foster poor inter-sexual relations and promote sexual inequality.