Intersex, in humans and other animals, describes variations in sex characteristics including

chromosome A chromosome is a long DNA molecule with part or all of the genetic material of an organism. In most chromosomes the very long thin DNA fibers are coated with packaging proteins; in eukaryotic cells the most important of these proteins ar ...

gonad A gonad, sex gland, or reproductive gland is a mixed gland that produces the gametes and sex hormones of an organism. Female reproductive cells are egg cells, and male reproductive cells are sperm. The male gonad, the testicle, produces sp ...

s, sex hormones, or

genital A sex organ (or reproductive organ) is any part of an animal or plant that is involved in sexual reproduction. The reproductive organs together constitute the reproductive system. In animals, the testis in the male, and the ovary in the female, a ...

s that, according to the UN

Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, commonly known as the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) or the United Nations Human Rights Office, is a department of the Secretariat of the United Nati ...

, "do not fit typical binary notions of

male Male (symbol: ♂) is the sex of an organism that produces the gamete (sex cell) known as sperm, which fuses with the larger female gamete, or ovum, in the process of fertilization. A male organism cannot reproduce sexually without access to ...

female Female ( symbol: ♀) is the sex of an organism that produces the large non-motile ova (egg cells), the type of gamete (sex cell) that fuses with the male gamete during sexual reproduction. A female has larger gametes than a male. Fema ...

bodies".

Intersex Intersex people are individuals born with any of several sex characteristics including chromosome patterns, gonads, or genitals that, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical b ...

people and themes appear in numerous television episodes. Representations have often lacked realism, and in some cases described as stigmatizing or garbage by intersex advocates, with some examples of "everyday social types" but many cases of medical dilemmas, murderers, and ciphers for discussions about sex and gender.

Intersex representations in drama

Intersex people have been portrayed in fiction as monsters, murderers and medical dilemmas. Canadian sociologist

Morgan Holmes Morgan Holmes is a Canadian sociologist, author, and a professor at Wilfrid Laurier University, Ontario. She is also an intersex activist and writer, and former member of Intersex Society of North America. Holmes participated in the first public de ...

, a former activist with the (now defunct)

Intersex Society of North America The Intersex Society of North America (ISNA) was a non-profit advocacy group founded in 1993 by Cheryl Chase to end shame, secrecy, and unwanted genital surgeries.Matthews, Karen (Oct 22, 2000). Debate Grows Over Using Surgery on Infants with Amb ...

describes fictional representations of intersex people as monsters or ciphers for discussions about sex and gender. Academic and filmmaker Phoebe Hart suggests that television representations of intersex people fulfil "sensational and unsubtle" stereotypes: the Australian drama ''All Saints'' portrayed a woman with

androgen insensitivity syndrome Androgen insensitivity syndrome (AIS) is a difference in sex development involving hormonal resistance due to androgen receptor dysfunction. It affects 1 in 20,000 to 64,000 XY ( karyotypically male) births. The condition results in the partial ...

as both "superwoman" and "genetic glitch", while ''Grey's Anatomy'' failed to adequately inform audiences about intersex in an episode that explored gender identity and medical disclosure. Hart highlights ''Faking It'' and ''Freaks and Geeks'' for presenting realistic characters, or everyday social types. She suggests that other television representations have been more controversial, and sometimes potentially harmful.

Documentary episodes

Intersex was discussed on British TV for the first time in 1966, and became a topic of interest for broadcast TV and radio in the United States and other countries from 1989.

Drama episodes

An intersex murderer plot twist trope has been repeated in the TV programs ''

Nip/Tuck ''Nip/Tuck'' is an American medical drama television series created by Ryan Murphy that aired on FX in the United States from July 22, 2003, to March 3, 2010. The series, which also incorporates elements of crime drama, black comedy, family dra ...

'' (

Quentin Costa The Carver is a fictional character on the television show ''Nip/Tuck.'' Introduced during the second season, he became the primary antagonist of the third season. Background The Carver is introduced in the episode "Naomi Gaines" as a masked s ...

), '' Janet King'', and ''

Passions ''Passions'' is an American television soap opera that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1999, to September 7, 2007, and on DirecTV's The 101 Network from September 17, 2007, to August 7, 2008. Created by screenwriter James E. Reilly and ...

'' (

Vincent Clarkson Vincent Clarkson, also known by the alter ego Valerie Davis, is a fictional character from the American soap opera ''Passions''. Created by the soap's founder and head writer James E. Reilly, Vincent was portrayed by Phillip Jeanmarie from 2006 ...

). Examples of a medical dilemmas trope include the 2010 ''

Childrens Hospital ''Childrens Hospital'' (originally titled ''Children's Hospital'' as webisodes) is an American black comedy television series and web series that parodies the medical drama genre, created by and starring actor/comedian Rob Corddry. The series ...

'' episode ''Show Me on Montana'', the 2012 ''

Emily Owens, M.D. ''Emily Owens, M.D.'' is an American medical drama television series created by Jennie Snyder Urman. It was picked up by The CW on May 11, 2012. It premiered on The CW on October 16, 2012, and aired on Tuesdays at 9:00 pm Eastern/8:00 pm Central. ...

'' episode "Emily and... the Question of Faith", a 2009 episode of ''

House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air cond ...

'' entitled "

The Softer Side The fifth season of ''House'', also known as ''House, M.D.'', premiered September 16, 2008 and ended May 11, 2009. It began to air in a new time slot from September to December: Tuesday 8:00 pm. Starting January 19, 2009, ''House'' moved to Monday ...

", and ''

Masters of Sex ''Masters of Sex'' is an American period drama television series that premiered on September 29, 2013, on Showtime. It was developed by Michelle Ashford and loosely based on Thomas Maier's biography '' Masters of Sex''. Set in the 1950s through ...

'' episode 3 in season 2, "Fight". The MTV series '' Faking It'' marked the first intersex series regular in a TV show, Lauren Cooper, and also the first intersex character played by an intersex person, Raven.

''All Saints''

Season 9 of Australian medical drama '' All Saints'' included a woman with

in an episode entitled "Truth Hurts".

''Children's Hospital''

In the 2010 ''

'' episode "Show Me on Montana", Drs. Flame and Maestro try to convince an intersex child which gender to choose, with each doctor vying for their own gender.

''Emily Owens, M.D.''

The 2012 ''

'' episode "Emily and... the Question of Faith" featured an intersex baby.

''Faking It''

In the first 2014 episode of '' Faking It'', "The Morning Aftermath", one of the main characters, Lauren, is revealed to be intersex.

''Freaks and Geeks''

In the 2000 ''

Freaks and Geeks ''Freaks and Geeks'' is an American teen drama, teen comedy-drama television series created by Paul Feig and executive producer, executive-produced by Judd Apatow that aired on NBC during the 1999–2000 United States network television schedul ...

'' episode "The Little Things", Ken has to deal with the discovery that his girlfriend had been born with ambiguous genitalia.

''Friends''

'' The One with the Rumor'', season 8 episode 9 sees a rumor spread that Rachel is a "hermaphrodite". ISNA described the episode as "degrading".

''House''

In the 2009 episode of

entitled "

", a teenager with

genetic mosaicism Mosaicism or genetic mosaicism is a condition in multicellular organisms in which a single organism possesses more than one genetic line as the result of genetic mutation. This means that various genetic lines resulted from a single fertilized ...

that is unaware of his (the gender his parents choose for him) condition develops

dehydration In physiology, dehydration is a lack of total body water, with an accompanying disruption of metabolic processes. It occurs when free water loss exceeds free water intake, usually due to exercise, disease, or high environmental temperature. Mil ...

and is admitted to Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital.

''Janet King''

The character Peta was revealed as intersex in the final episode of the second series of Janet King.

''Masters of Sex''

'' episode 3 in season 2, "Fight", sees Bill Masters delivers an intersex infant. The circumstances of the infant are used as a plot device for Masters to question the nature of masculinity.‘Masters of Sex’ Recap 2×3: ‘Fight’
,

New York Observer New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

, July 28, 2014.

''The New Normal''

"The Goldie Rush", episode 12, uses a person born intersex as an object of derision during a flashback sequence of failed dates.Because Racism Is So Last Year, The New Normal Is Making Fun of Intersex People Now
, Nico Lang in The Huffington Post, October 17, 2013

''Nip/Tuck''

'' season 3 featured the character

, revealed to be man with 5-alpha-reductase deficiency. It used an intersex variation and plot device of

incest Incest ( ) is human sexual activity between family members or close relatives. This typically includes sexual activity between people in consanguinity (blood relations), and sometimes those related by affinity ( marriage or stepfamily), ado ...

that were previously employed in the book ''Middlesex'' by

Jeffrey Eugenides Jeffrey Kent Eugenides (born March 8, 1960) is an American novelist and short story writer. He has written numerous short stories and essays, as well as three novels: ''The Virgin Suicides'' (1993), ''Middlesex'' (2002), and'' The Marriage Plot'' ...

''Offspring''

Offspring In biology, offspring are the young creation of living organisms, produced either by a single organism or, in the case of sexual reproduction, two organisms. Collective offspring may be known as a brood or progeny in a more general way. This ca ...

'' season 7 has a character revealed to have Mayer–Rokitansky–Küster–Hauser syndrome.

References

{{LGBT fiction Intersex-related lists