Gender Euphoria in Cosplay
What is Gender Euphoria?
Gender euphoria is part of the transgender experience, even if it may not be the first word that comes to mind when thinking about the transgender experience. Dysphoria might come to mind instead, especially for someone closeted or not fully out. Add misgendering to the mix and the overall heteronormative standards of modern society, and achieving gender euphoria can seem far off in the distance or entirely impossible.
Dysphoria in terms of gender is the stress someone can feel because of their gender identity and their sex assigned at birth does not match. Body dysmorphia can go hand in hand with this since there’s a disconnect from the body. This can complicate into a deadly extreme with disheartening statistics. There’s a higher rate of suicide within the transgender community and those with gender dysphoria in comparison to the rest of the population. A multitude of support groups have sprung up due to this and Trans Lifeline is one of them.
Gender euphoria is the exact opposite of gender dysphoria. It’s the happiness and comfort that comes with knowing their gender identity is their own. It can be either physical (the way the person dresses or if they’ve gotten gender reassignment surgery) or the way they’re treated by the people around them. Gender euphoria doesn’t focus solely on the body. It can be as simple as not being misgendered.
Where does cosplay come into this?
Cosplay is the art of becoming someone else, of putting on a performance. It’s not the same thing as being in the closet. This is stepping away from whatever mantle of compulsive heteronormativity is forced on a person and letting it all fall away. There are few expectations of gender in cosplay.
Though, drag and cosplay are not to be confused even if they are similar and there can often be overlap. Both are performance arts, but there is a key difference. With cosplayer, the performer becomes the character they want to portray. Drag, on the other hand, is expressed through gender. There are those who combine both, like the now-retired Phi Phi O’Hara.
Cosplay Central has also featured drag cosplayers on their Facebook as well as featuring an article about how there are more and more drag cosplayers in the community.
There’s a few terms used when a cosplayer cosplays a character who isn’t their gender. Crossplay, a portmanteau of “cosplay” and “crossdresser”, is used to describe this type of cosplay. Derogatory stereotypes have risen up from this and there have been parodies of cosplayers who blur the lines of genders from outside of the cosplay community.
But within the cosplay community?
It’s a common enough sight. For some, it could even be a safe form of gender exploration in an otherwise highly structured and heteronormative world. There are silicone chests, both masculine and feminine, available for cosplayers. Chest binders have become easy to access and there are various tutorials on safe chest binding. Gender euphoria, in cosplay at least, is an easy reach.
