Androgyny As A Gender Identity

The purpose of this essay is to define androgyny – psychologically as a gender identity and expressive self representation, and as a physical classification by differentiating androgyny from mainstream culture through the aspects of individuality and person. While doing so, the essay will also look at the influences of androgyny on fashion, subculture and mainstream culture and how these factors have influenced the shaping of the contemporary definition of androgyny. The essay will attempt to analyse how the concept of androgyny can elicit a more diverse identity as it liberates personality development from the limitation of gender binary. To do so, it will examine how androgyny has been practised in the past and present subcultures to communicate