Under Construction Journal Issue 6.1 UNDER CONSTRUCTION JOURNAL 6.1 | Page 70

Whether you think our identity is determined by an immaterial soul, our physical bodies, our
physical (or even non-physical) historical origins, or a stream of continuous conscious experiences, there
is still no compelling reason to hold that gender is essential to what we are. Yet, we live in a society in
which people still preserve gender roles through performativity and social conformity. That is why it is so
important to people and can have a seriously harmful effect on some people's lives. However, the attitude
is not backed up by rational philosophical reflection. So, gender, to a large extent, does impact our
personal identity significantly, not essentially but socially.
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