Sex Is a Spectrum

The Biological Limits of the Binary

Agustín Fuentes

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Hardback

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English

Princeton University Press
06 May 2025

Social issues & processes; Psychology of gender; Sexual behaviour; Popular science; Human biology

Why human biology is far more expansive than the simple categories of female and male

Being human entails an astonishingly complex interplay of biology and culture, and while there are important differences between women and men, there is a lot more variation and overlap than we may realise. Sex Is a Spectrum offers a bold new paradigm for understanding the biology of sex, drawing on the latest science to explain why the binary view of the sexes is fundamentally flawed

and why having XX or XY chromosomes isn't as conclusive as some would have us believe.

In this lively and provocative book, leading biological anthropologist Agustn Fuentes begins by tracing the origin and evolution of sex, describing the many ways in the animal kingdom of being female, male, or both. Turning to humans, he presents compelling evidence from the fossil and archaeological record that attests to the diversity of our ancestors' sexual bonds, gender roles, and family and community structures, and shows how the same holds true in the lived experiences of people today. Fuentes tackles hot-button debates around sports and medicine, explaining why we can acknowledge that females and males are not the same while also embracing a biocultural reality where none of us fits neatly into only one of two categories.

Bringing clarity and reason to a contentious issue, Sex Is a Spectrum shares a scientist's perspective on why a binary view of sex and gender is not only misguided but harmful, and why there are multitudes of ways of being human.

By: Agustín Fuentes
Imprint: Princeton University Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 216mm, Width: 140mm,
ISBN: 9780691249414
ISBN 10: 0691249415
Pages: 216
Publication Date: 06 May 2025
Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , General/trade , Primary , Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Agustn Fuentes is professor of anthropology at Princeton University. His books include Race, Monogamy, and Other Lies They Told You: Busting Myths about Human Nature; The Creative Spark: How Imagination Made Humans Exceptional; and Why We Believe: Evolution and the Human Way of Being.

Reviews for Sex Is a Spectrum: The Biological Limits of the Binary

""Reproductive anatomy is more variable than commonly understood, according to this eye-opening study....The raft of research convincingly debunks the idea that sex anatomy has much consequence on behavior, character, or cognitive ability...and the illuminating discussions of animal biology demonstrate the profound diversity of sex expression in nature.... [Sex is a Spectrum is] a resounding refutation of the idea that there’s anything natural about the gender binary."" * Publishers Weekly * ""Fuentes . . . flexes his considerable powers of communication to lay out the argument that human gender cannot be understand as binary. . . . [Sex is a Spectrum] is a highly readable popular science investigation of sex and gender, rich with 'did you know' moments for those who love the extraordinariness of nature and human bodies."" * Library Journal * ""Fuentes does a good job of summarizing what we know about the evolution of sex.... Sex Is a Spectrum will be important for introducing a wide readership to the nuances of scientific understandings of variability in sex and of the biocultural constitution of humans... there is much for biologists to appreciate in the book as well.""---Malin Ah-King, Science