[SIZE="2"]But that’s how people see us – we have all been stereotyped, my friends...
Years ago, fictitious Corporal (later Sergeant) Maxwell Q. Klinger could be seen every week on TV, and, unfortunately, I think he made an indelible impression on everyone. The good corporal, a fictional character in a popular sitcom (M*A*S*H*), was trying to gain a section 8 discharge from the Army. Being a heterosexual, he began to habitually wear women’s clothing to PROVE he was crazy. Naturally, being somewhat of a “family” show, the crossdressing was shown for comedic purposes only, indeed why else would this character (or situation) have been written into the script? After all, the idea of crossdressing, or “drag” if you must, is positively (or negatively) hilarious to the average American...
Of course Corporal Klinger, originally meant to be an effeminate male, morphed into a loveable non-passable crossdresser as his character developed. It could be no other way, under the comedic circumstances put forth. Since he was a “normal” guy under the female attire, everyone ignored Klinger’s attempts to have his fake mental instability recognized, in fact he was perhaps the most stable individual amongst the cast of characters. His crossdressing never got in the way of his duties, and he later gave up his discharge attempts altogether, in line with the TV show turning from comedy to drama over time. After all, there’s no need to crossdress in a drama, right?
Klinger was a crossdresser, but his crossdressing was simply a means to an end, done to exhibit “crazy behavior” unsuitable for the situation he found himself in. Apparently this character was based on Lenny Bruce’s earlier attempts to dodge military service by dressing as a WAVE. Then as now, it’s all about the absurdity of wearing the “wrong” clothes, since society feels there is something VERY wrong when a male wears clothes meant to be worn by females. This wrongness is reinforced when our beloved crossdressing is portrayed in this unfair manner and force fed, not so subliminally, to the masses via television. On the British show Blackadder Goes Forth, another military sitcom, the title character pretends to be crazy by wearing his underwear on his head and sticking two pencils up his nose, while crossdressing is presented (in other episodes) more sympathetically...
I notice such things, because they are meaningful to our situation as MtF crossdressers. People form opinions of our inexplicable behavior from what they have seen on TV – crossdressing, in America, is shown only for laughs, or as a blatant symbol of perversion or mental illness. This makes things that much more difficult for a crossdresser who is not mentally ill, does not engage in acts of perversion, and does not see anything funny about it. In the case of Cpl. Klinger, the show he was a part of was extremely popular, so millions of Americans learned to laugh at the comic CD relief he provided. He didn’t pass (joke), he was hairy (joke), and he was a guy in a dress (BIG joke)! Is it any wonder we MtF crossdressers are constantly swimming against the tide of opinion, or against unwarranted prejudice in this country?
This is corporal punishment, pure and simple – we, as MtF crossdressers, have had to absorb many body blows, and it really hurts. The people who watched the TV show in question may have a visual memory of Cpl. Klinger in his inappropriate clothing – he was a small part of a whole, a sympathetic, human character that nonetheless did something “crazy.” Afterwards, if a boy in a family begins to crossdress, the parents may only have these brief visual memories to fall back on for “information.” They may come to the conclusion that MtF crossdressing is inherently wrong, or it is evidence of something being wrong with the person who dresses. Think about it – the portrayal of CD’ing in America is tailored for American audiences by Americans, and its presence is purely there for laughs. If someone from this country comes on the site guilt-ridden and confused, you can thank this insistent brush-off crossdressing gets in the (American) media...
Like I said, these are BODY BLOWS, and they really hurt. First of all, MtF crossdressing is put forth as demonstratively crazy, as in “Why on Earth would a male do such a thing?” He MUST be insane, or in need of immediate, remedial attention. The sooner we nip this urge to wear women’s clothing in the bud, the better, right? Secondly, a man wearing a dress is FUNNY – it always has been, and it always will be, so it will be inserted in an otherwise unfunny situation to insure laughs (case in point – Cpl. Klinger on M*A*S*H*). Thirdly, crossdressing cannot be shown to be a beneficial thing, because that goes against all we’ve been taught, or told to believe. A CD’ing male who is a sympathetic, useful character (or person) cannot be shown in a dramatic context, so the crossdressing is gradually written out of the script until it disappears completely. They (the writers) missed a great opportunity here, but the uneducated, prejudiced American viewing public wouldn’t buy it in any event...
I’m sure everyone breathed a sigh of relief when the fictitious Corporal Klinger closed his closet and accepted his fate. He was born in a more liberal time, and died in a conservative TV era that reflected the current events of the early 80’s. Everything veered to the right, and everybody (briefly) breathed a sigh of relief – the crossdressers were pushed out of sight, where they belong (according to the majority), and we were left holding the purse. I wish to state that I don’t dress because I’m crazy, and I don’t dress to make others (or myself) laugh at the absurdity of it all. I dress because I HAVE to, because I WANT to, and it makes me feel GOOD. In my personal non-comedic situation, the MtF crossdresser is someone worth knowing – he doesn’t represent harm to anyone, he’s not there to upset anyone, and he’s not trying to unravel the fabric of society. He (make that SHE) is just trying to express a nearly un-expressible truth, namely that of a co-joined soul, closer to the ONE...
Have you ever seen a decent, realistic depiction of MtF crossdressing in this country? I haven’t...[/SIZE]
My name is Carol.
Originally Posted by Violetgray
