Leah DeVun (History, Rutgers) Lecture

March 28, 2019 - 4:30pm to 6:30pm

Heavenly Hermaphrodites: Adam, Eve, and the Creation of Sex

Leah DeVun (History, Rutgers)

This lecture examines how certain ancient and medieval thinkers claimed that “hermaphroditism” was the original condition of humanity, created by God and documented in the first chapters of Genesis. The idea that Adam was a hermaphrodite fueled medieval debates about sex and gender, as well as about human nature. In the modern world, objections to transgender and gender-nonconforming people often cite the bible, which is viewed as describing the division of humans into two distinct sexes. Historians and other scholars, I argue, should consider more carefully how Christian ideas about the sexed body emerged and developed – such histories have the power to disrupt our certainty about which sexes and genders are legitimate, natural, and deserving of human dignity.

Location and Address

CL 602