Cross dressing

The act of cross dressing consists of dressing up in clothing and accessories typically associated with the gender opposite that of the person cross dressing. In many cases there is ambiguity on what exactly constitutes cross dressing. The majority of crossdressers are men. This may merely be that women dressed in casual mens clothing are less apparent.

Mild examples may be carrying an item of the opposite sex, like a lipstick or hanky while major examples would include shaving of arms and legs as well as padded bras and makeup and wigs to appear as a member of the opposite sex.

Crossdressing may be an indicator of gender confusion or a fetish. It is considered a psychiatric disorder. (Fetishistic Transvitism).

It is a required stage before gender reassignment surgery is considered.

Theater

Cross-dressing (also known as 'drag') has been associated with the theater for hundreds of years. In Shakespeare's England, women were not allowed to appear on stage, so female roles were played by boys dressed in women's costume. In Spanish theater at the same time, women were allowed to perform, and the plots of playwrights such as Tirso de Molina and Lope de Vega often called for female characters to disguise themselves as men, particularly in comedies.

In the present day, cross-dressing is still a feature of some traditional theatrical forms such as pantomime, where dames are played by men in exaggerated female costume and leading male roles are often played by women as well (eg the eponymous hero in Dick Whittington).

Religious Views

Cross dressing is an abomination in the eyes of God.

References

• Handbook of Psychiatry By Michael Shepherd