CROSSDRESSING

MADE BY :
NAVELI DIXIT
NISTHA
MANI SOOD
KUMARI KOMAL
KOMAL
PRERENA
RADHIJKA JOLLY
POOJA MAHESHWARI

WHAT IS CROSSDRESSING??
Cross-dressing refers to the act of wearing
clothing commonly associated with the
opposite sex within a particular society.
Cross-dressing has been used for
purposes of disguise, comfort in modern
times and throughout history. It does not,
necessarily indicate transgender identity.
Nearly every human society throughout
history had distinctions between males
and females by the style, colour, or type
of clothing they are expected to wear,
and likewise most societies have had a
set of social norms, views, or even laws
defining what type of clothing is
appropriate for each gender.
Cross-dressing can also be called

The term "cross-dressing" denotes an action or a behaviour

without attributing or implying any specific causes for that
behaviour.
Some people automatically connect cross-dressing
behaviour to transgender identity or sexual, and
homosexual behaviour, but the term itself does not imply
Gender
disguise has been used by women and girls to pass
any
motives.
as male in society and by men and boys to pass themselves off
as female. Historically, some women have cross-dressed to
take up male-dominated or male-exclusive professions, such as
military service.
Conversely, some men have cross-dressed to escape from
mandatory military service.

There are many different kinds of

cross-dressing and many different
reasons why an individual might
engage in cross-dressing behaviour.
Some people cross-dress as a matter
of comfort or style, out of personal
preference for clothing associated with
the opposite sex.
In this case, a person's cross-dressing
may or may not be apparent to other
people. Some people cross-dress to
shock others or challenge social
norms..

Drag is a special form of

performance art based on
the act of cross-dressing.
A drag queen is usually a
male-bodied person who
performs as an
exaggeratedly feminine
character, in heightened
costuming sometimes
consisting of a showy dress,
high-heeled shoes, obvious
makeup, and wig.
A drag king is a
counterpart of the drag
queen : A female-bodied
person who adopt a
masculine persona in
performance or imitates a

The historical associations of

maleness with power and
femaleness with submission and
frivolity mean that in the present
time a woman dressing in men's
clothing and a man dressing in
women's clothing evoke very
different responses. A woman
dressing in men's clothing is
considered to be a more
acceptable activity.
Culture can be very skewed about
cross-dressing. A woman who
wears her husband's shirt to bed
is considered attractive while a
man who wears his wife's
nightgown to bed is considered

HISTORY OF
CROSSDRESSING

GREEK
In punishment for his murder of Iphitus,Heracles/Herculeswas given to

Omphaleas a slave. Many variants of this story say that she not only
compelled him to do women's work, but compelled him to dress as a woman
while her slave.
InAchilles on Skyros,Achilleswas dressed in women's clothing by his
motherThetisat the court ofLycomedes, to hide him fromOdysseuswho
wanted him to join the Trojan War.
Athenaoften goes to the aid of people in the guise of men inThe Odyssey.
Tiresiaswas turned into a woman after angering the goddessHeraby killing

a female snake that was coupling.

In the cult ofAphroditus, worshipers cross-dressed, men wore women's
clothing and women dressed in men's clothing with false beards.

HINDU
TheMahabharata: In theAgnyatbaas("exile") period
of one year imposed upon thePandavas, in which
they had to keep their identities secret to avoid
detection,Arjuna crossdressed asBrihannalaand
became a dance teacher.
The goddessBahuchara Mata: In one legend, Bapiya
was cursed by her and he became impotent. The
curse was lifted only when he worshiped her by
dressing and acting like a woman.
Devotees of the godKrishna: In the region of

IN FOLKLORE
Balladshave many cross-dressing heroines. While some (
The Famous Flower of Serving-Men) merely need to move about
freely, many do it specifically in pursuit of a lover (
Rose Red and the White LilyorChild Waters) and consequently
pregnancy often complicates the disguise. In the Chinese poem
theBallad of Mulan,Hua Mulandisguised herself as a man to
take her elderly father's place in the army.

Occasionally, men in ballads also disguise themselves as women,

but not only is it rarer, the men dress so for less time, because
they are merely trying to elude an enemy by the disguise, as in
Brown Robin,The Duke of Athole's Nurse, or
Robin Hood and the Bishop. According toGude Wallace,
William Wallacedisguised himself as a woman to escape capture,
which may have been based on historical information.

IN LITERATURE
In the myth of theTrojan War,Achilles' motherThetiswanted to
keep him from joining the Greek forces (and thus dying in battle
as was prophesied), so she dresses him in women's clothes and
hides him among a cloister of women. When the Greek envoy
arrives to fetch him for battle,Odysseusis suspicious of Achilles'

absence and concocts a scheme to reveal the deception: he offers

gifts to all the women, including among them a sword and shield.
Then he has an alarm sounded, and when Achilles instinctively
grabs the weapons to defend himself, the ruse is revealed and he
must join the Greek army and fight at Troy.

InLudovico Ariosto'sOrlando Furioso,Bradamante, being a

knight, wears full-plate armor; similarly,Britomartwears full-plate
armor inEdmund Spenser'sThe Faerie Queene. Intentionally or

not, this disguises them as men, and they are taken as such by
other characters. InOrlando Furioso, Fiordespina falls in love with

IN MUSIC
(I) IN OPERA

An entire cross-dressing genre of operatic roles, called "

pants roles", "trouser roles", or "travesty roles". These are male

roles performed by women, typically mezzo-sopranos but

occasionally by sopranos. Some female opera singers specialize in
these types of roles.
A major artistic reason for "pants roles" was that some storylines
required young boy characters, but the actual performance
required an adult's vocal strength and stage experience in addition
to a high, boyish voice. Women were thus better suited to these
boy roles than actual boys. Some examples of these boyish pants
roles are Cherubino in "The Marriage of Figaro," Siebel in
"Faust," and Hansel in "Hansel and Gretel". Other pants roles
were created due to the need for an adult male character to seem
other-worldly (Orpheus in "Orfeo ed Euridice") or unmanly
(Prince Idamante in "Idomeneo"). During the Grand Opera era,
women typically worn voluminous dresses onstage. Some male
operatic roles originally written to be sung in the voice range of
castrati(men castrated in boyhood, whose voices never descended

(II)

IN MODERN MUSIC

Arnold Layne, first released single by British psychedelic rock

group,Pink Floyd. About a transvestite who steals women's
clothes from washing lines. (The song was written bySyd Barrett
who supposedly cross-dressed at a later point in his life when
going through a mental breakdown.)
Nicky Wire, bassist of theManic Street Preachers, has cross
dressed throughout his career.
The Kinks' 1970 hit "LOLA" is a song about an encounter with a
transvestite.
Pete Burns, the lead singer of theNew WavebandDead or Alive
, cross-dressed in the bands' music videos, performances, and in
his appearances on TV. However, Pete Burns is dismissive of the
term 'cross-dressing' to describe his style, as said in numerous
television interviews and in his autobiography.
The late actor and singerHarris Glenn Milsteadbecame known
for his drag persona, Divine.

CROSS DRESSING CHARACTERS

William Shakespearemade substantial use of cross-dressing for female

characters who take on masculine clothing to carry out actions difficult for
women. In Shakespeare's playThe Merchant of Venice,Portiaand her maid
dress as men to plead in court on the merchant's behalf, and are quite
successful in their ruse; in the same play, Shylock's daughter Jessica dresses
as a man to elope with her Christian lover.Twelfth Night, or What You Will
deals extensively with cross-dressing through the female protagonist Viola.
She disguises herself as Cesario and immediately finds herself caught up in
a love triangle. She loves Duke Orsino who loves Countess Olivia who
loves Cesario. Luckily, all is resolved when Viola's presumed dead twin
brother Sebastian comes along. We only see Viola as Viola in one scene;
for the rest of the play she is dressed as Cesario.

Animation, cartoons and anime

Bugs Bunnyfrequently cross-dresses in his cartoons for either comedic

effect, or to confound a male opponent. Notable examples include "
Rabbit of Seville", "What's Opera Doc" and "Rabbit Seasoning", all in
attempts to deceiveElmer Fudd.
Doctor N. Ginfrom theCrash Bandicootseries wears aballerinadancer
outfit inCrash Tag Team Racing. The tutu, obtained through one of

Cross-dressing actors and actresses

InRenaissance Englandit was illegal for women to perform in
theatres,[4]so female roles in the plays of Shakespeare and his
contemporary playwrights were originally played by cross-dressing
men or boys. (See alsoStage Beauty.) Therefore the original
productions of the above-mentioned Shakespeare plays actually
involved double-cross-dressing: male actors playing female
characters disguising themselves as males
Cross-dressed female actors are referred to as playing "trouser
roles," a historical example of an actress famous for trouser roles
isJulie d'Aubigny, aka "La Maupin" (16701707).
In the late 19th century, one of the most famous actresses was the
cross-dressing womanVesta Tilley. She grew up working in a music
hall from age 5 well into her fifties. In the lat 1890's, she was the
highest paid woman in Britain. What made her so famous was her
tendency to dress as a man and act out "masculine" scenes and
roles.[6]
In all versions ofHairspraytheoriginal film, thestage musical,
and thefilm adapted from the musicalEdna Turnblad is played by

MISCONCEPTIONS
ABOUT CROSS
DRESSERS

Only Males Cross Dress

Afewpeoplebelievethatonlyamalewrappedinwomen'sclothingand
otheraccountrementshappenstobeacrossdresser,whichiscertainly
nottrue.Theirisnothingdenyingthefactthatascomparedtomales,
onlyafewwomencrossdress,perhapsthisisduetotherelative
latitudethatthesocietygrantstowomeninmattersofdressandself
expression.Also,itisdishearteningtoseethatwhenamaledressesas
afemale,heissupposedtocomingdownonthesocietalladder
whereaswhenafemaledressesasamale,sheisbelievedtobeclimbing
highontheroutetorespectandacceptance.

Crossdressers Dislike Men or

Women
The truth is that for most males, rather than
shying away from women, they are as married
or looking for a relationship as any cross
section of men across the world. "There is
even some advantage to being a heterosexual
crossdresser, " says Dr. Stayton, "When
dressed they often become more sensitive
and understanding to the women in their
lives. Their wives tend to find them delightful
and often it can become a real enhancement
to marital relations." However that
"enhancement" can only come if the woman

Crossdressers Are Gay

Gender is traditionally represented as male or female.

Many people unconsciously accept this binary and don't
give gender a second thought; however gender is much
more complex then male or female. People associate
crossdressing with effeminacy and being gay but the fact
is that most of them are not gay. They are very definitely
heterosexual. It is something as normal as the very
process of living because if someone feels that he/she is
more comfortable in the skin of the other gender then
he/she should be allowed to do so because that's what
adds meaning to their life. In fact sometimes, one of the
most difficult areas for crossdressers is how to deal with
the women/men with whom they want to be involved.

Crossdressers Dress For

Sexual Gratification
Relaxation and relieving stress are the feelings that
most cross dressers associate with their act of
cross dressing. However the truth is that all human
beings are sexual creatures. Many cross dressers
have accepted that while early on the act does
seem sexually stimulating, as time goes on, the
sexual factors appear to become less prominent. It
doen't remain a concept as narrow as that of
sexuality, but transforms into the broader concept
of personality and becomes a part of who they are.
For many, the need to cross dress becomes a part
of self, just as musicians need to play music or
writers need to write. A life without crossgender
expression is to some as tragic as the life of a
musician forced to live without music.

Crossdressers Always Wear

Women's Clothes
Dresssing up as the opposite sex at all
times is not possible due to their
personal inhibitions about not being
accepted in the society. Thus, most
men only dress once a month or once
every six months. Many men don't
ever even reach the point of fully
dressing but feel the same relaxed
feeling by just wearing women's
clothes under their suits. Again the

Crossdressing Develops in
Adulthood
Another misconception associated with cross
dressing says that people begin to practise it during
adulthood. It is important for people to understand
that their is no particular age for someone to
understand that they are trapped in the body of a
wrong gender. It can start as and when one
discovers the discomfort of living a fake life under
the gender assigned to him/her at the time of birth.
So, its time we understand that gender bending and
blending is nothing new and that it is more akin to a
broad spectrum the belief of which is as unique to
an individual as a fingerprint.

Crossdressers Have Weird Sexual

Habits
Another misconception associated with
cross dressers is that their sex lives are
full of weird encounters with them
replicating the looks and clothing of their
partner in bed which indeed is not true
because mostly it creates discomfort for
their partner. Thus, in order to respect
the sentiments of their partners, cross
dressers suppress their desires.

Crossdressing Needs To Be Cured

Another major misconception on how people
see cross dressers comes from their
perception that slots cross dressing as a
disease that needs to be cured. Wicked
by fear and guilt, some cross dressers even
seek therapy but the only possible cure is to
make them accept their real self without any
hesitation. And on the contrary, sometimes
the cross dressers find thmselves educating
the therapists on the issues related to their
behaviour rather than getting their help. So
clearly, there is no cure for cross dressing
& most cross dressers don't even want one.

MISCONCEPTIONS
ABOUT CROSS
DRESSERS

Only Males Cross Dress

Afewpeoplebelievethatonlyamalewrappedinwomen'sclothingand
otheraccountrementshappenstobeacrossdresser,whichiscertainly
nottrue.Theirisnothingdenyingthefactthatascomparedtomales,
onlyafewwomencrossdress,perhapsthisisduetotherelative
latitudethatthesocietygrantstowomeninmattersofdressandself
expression.Also,itisdishearteningtoseethatwhenamaledressesas
afemale,heissupposedtocomingdownonthesocietalladder
whereaswhenafemaledressesasamale,sheisbelievedtobeclimbing
highontheroutetorespectandacceptance.

Crossdressers Dislike Men or

Women
The truth is that for most males, rather than
shying away from women, they are as married
or looking for a relationship as any cross
section of men across the world. "There is
even some advantage to being a heterosexual
crossdresser, " says Dr. Stayton, "When
dressed they often become more sensitive
and understanding to the women in their
lives. Their wives tend to find them delightful
and often it can become a real enhancement
to marital relations." However that
"enhancement" can only come if the woman

Crossdressers Are Gay

Gender is traditionally represented as male or female.

Many people unconsciously accept this binary and don't
give gender a second thought; however gender is much
more complex then male or female. People associate
crossdressing with effeminacy and being gay but the fact
is that most of them are not gay. They are very definitely
heterosexual. It is something as normal as the very
process of living because if someone feels that he/she is
more comfortable in the skin of the other gender then
he/she should be allowed to do so because that's what
adds meaning to their life. In fact sometimes, one of the
most difficult areas for crossdressers is how to deal with
the women/men with whom they want to be involved.

Crossdressers Dress For

Sexual Gratification
Relaxation and relieving stress are the feelings that
most cross dressers associate with their act of
cross dressing. However the truth is that all human
beings are sexual creatures. Many cross dressers
have accepted that while early on the act does
seem sexually stimulating, as time goes on, the
sexual factors appear to become less prominent. It
doen't remain a concept as narrow as that of
sexuality, but transforms into the broader concept
of personality and becomes a part of who they are.
For many, the need to cross dress becomes a part
of self, just as musicians need to play music or
writers need to write. A life without crossgender
expression is to some as tragic as the life of a
musician forced to live without music.

Crossdressers Always Wear

Women's Clothes
Dresssing up as the opposite sex at all
times is not possible due to their
personal inhibitions about not being
accepted in the society. Thus, most
men only dress once a month or once
every six months. Many men don't
ever even reach the point of fully
dressing but feel the same relaxed
feeling by just wearing women's
clothes under their suits. Again the

Crossdressing Develops in
Adulthood
Another misconception associated with cross
dressing says that people begin to practise it during
adulthood. It is important for people to understand
that their is no particular age for someone to
understand that they are trapped in the body of a
wrong gender. It can start as and when one
discovers the discomfort of living a fake life under
the gender assigned to him/her at the time of birth.
So, its time we understand that gender bending and
blending is nothing new and that it is more akin to a
broad spectrum the belief of which is as unique to
an individual as a fingerprint.

Crossdressers Have Weird Sexual

Habits
Another misconception associated with
cross dressers is that their sex lives are
full of weird encounters with them
replicating the looks and clothing of their
partner in bed which indeed is not true
because mostly it creates discomfort for
their partner. Thus, in order to respect
the sentiments of their partners, cross
dressers suppress their desires.

Crossdressing Needs To Be Cured

Another major misconception on how people
see cross dressers comes from their
perception that slots cross dressing as a
disease that needs to be cured. Wicked
by fear and guilt, some cross dressers even
seek therapy but the only possible cure is to
make them accept their real self without any
hesitation. And on the contrary, sometimes
the cross dressers find thmselves educating
the therapists on the issues related to their
behaviour rather than getting their help. So
clearly, there is no cure for cross dressing
& most cross dressers don't even want one.