#James Barry

[assignedmale]

#trans history week #james barry

[drumlincountry]

Having some revelations at bookshops recently

#Me fein #Irish shit #Queer tag #James barry #What do you MEAN you don't have a biography of Casement. #Where's Kathleen Lynn. Where's eva gore booth

[grundoonmgnx]

Henrietta Harris, Portrait of Dr. James Barry (for the bookcover of The Surgeon's Brain), 2022

#henrietta harris #james barry #dr james barry

[variousqueerthings]

the funny thing about the obsession with "why" james barry lived as a man his whole life, is that people will go out of their way to invent reasons that just aren't documented anywhere -- anything from "running away to be with a soldier" to "dreading the confines of womanhood in that era and simply having no other option" to "actually it was all the rich dudes in barry's life who made it happen, without barry having any say"

and really the only stuff we have on it is that 1. barry at one point (pre-transition/as a kid) wrote in a letter that if he weren't a girl, he'd be a soldier, 2. that at some point barry began -- with support in high places -- to present and pass as a man throughout medical school and the army and 3. that barry was very insistent on his manliness -- specifically his gentlemanliness -- throughout his life

there aren't clues in there that he secretly missed being a woman, but simply had to go on for the sake of career, that he couldn't consent to his own lived experiences (the whole great-to-read-about thing about him is that he was so stubborn in his ideals that he frequently got into trouble), and the only person he may have slept with according to any evidence was the Lord Somerset of Cape Town, after they'd known each other for a bit (also Somerset called him "the most wayward of men" which is charming + speaks a bit to some of the political tensions in their relationship as well, and despite those they remained very very close up until Somerset's death)

what there are plenty of context clues for is that he really quite enjoyed being a man. he consistently described himself as a gentleman, apparently enjoyed very nice and polished uniforms, and wasn't shy about being seen and heard in terms of the work he did, the ideals he held, and simply the cultural spaces he was invited to (especially around Cape Town)

(there's also something in there about how he feels medicine ought to be practiced, which is a different post, but the way he -- somewhat snobbishly, but understandably, given the context of both his own life and the lack of oversight about medicine in Cape Town -- talks about himself through the lens of having studied medicine, also speaks to a pride in himself as a man who has forged his own destiny... this is me writing it a little over the top, but the suggestion is there in at least one of his letters. he doesn't sound upset/regretful about his choices, he sounds proud to have done the work that he did, and to be the person he is. if anything, barry's gender is specifically: 1. gentleman and 2. medical man)

like. it's wild that it's so difficult for so many writers to believe that barry liked being a guy, when that is the most obvious image that presents itself, based on his own letters and the way others described him while he was still alive

#james barry #we're back on it again #queer history #trans history #queer stuff #it's also interesting to see how people read his relationship with somerset #either they try to bypass it completely or they try to straighten it #but the act of gender non-conformity has already queered it so they end up doing the most fascinating gymnastics #this not so much about the fictional accounts #but the so-called non-fiction ones hooboy

[artschoolglasses]

Venus Anadyomene, James Barry, 1772

#venus anadyomene #venus #James barry #barry #1772 #1770s #1700s #18th century #painting #art #mythology

[actualmermaid]

Newest sticker design for the sticker shop (!!!) that I am trying to open next month, and newest Faithful Heretic Icon: Doctor-Saint James Barry, Holy Unmercenary Physician and Patron of Queer and Trans Healthcare

Iconography:

"Holy Unmercenary": this is a special title used (mostly in Orthodox Christianity) for healthcare practitioners who treat the poor for free. As part of his work as an army surgeon, Dr. Barry was in charge of public health and sanitation near imperial outposts. He consistently advocated for the poorest and most vulnerable segments of the population, even when it brought him into conflict with his peers.

Halo: Dr. Barry's halo is painted in Trans Pride colors. He was assigned female at birth, but began living a man's life in his late teens with the support of his family and open-minded family friends. He was known as a man for the rest of his life, until his body was examined (against his express wishes) after his death. His headstone commemorates him with his chosen name and military rank.

Medical kit: Something like this would have been Dr. Barry's toolkit and his constant companion on his travels. In a very real way, he was "married to the job." It is marked with his name and a simple cross. Little is known about his personal religious devotion (if he even had one), but he would have been familiar with Anglican rites and ethics. Many modern Anglicans still keep their faith private, and prefer to let their actions speak for themselves.

Dueling pistol: I wasn't sure whether to include this, since firearms are not common in iconography. I decided to include it for a couple of reasons. 1) Dr. Barry was a known duelist. Dueling with flintlock pistols was the height of masculine performance for gentlemen in his culture. Dueling pistols weren't very accurate and deaths weren't very common, but using them in a highly ritualized duel was a demonstration of manly discipline, skill, and honor. 2) Dr. Barry was willing to fight for what he thought was right, and he was constantly fighting. By laying his pistol between the viewer and his medical kit, he demonstrates that comprehensive queer and trans healthcare must be defended with force, if necessary. 3) It's worth reminding ourselves that Anglicanism, as the imperial religion of Britain, originally spread around the world at the end of a musket.

"Respect trans folk or I shall identify as a f--king problem": this is a "poshed up" version of a slogan on a banner carried by pro-trans-healthcare protestors in my city recently. I think it started as an internet post, but I can't remember where I first saw it.

Hagiography:

By most accounts, Dr. Barry was a brash, aggressive, and unpleasant person, especially when someone had challenged him. He kept his personal life very private. Nevertheless, he was highly respected as a professional and was said by his female patients to have a reassuring and respectful bedside manner. He even performed something that arguably counts as a miracle: the first verified C-section, by a Western doctor, in which the mother and child both survived.

A "saint" is a holy person, not necessarily a "nice" or "polished" person. In his role as a British army surgeon and public health officer, Dr. Barry would have seen and worked in some of the most miserable and depraved conditions you can imagine. Medical treatments were risky, painful, and often experimental. His environment shaped his character, but did not erase the gentle, compassionate spirit he demonstrated with his patients.

After Dr. Barry's death, the British government was embarrassed by the fact that he was a trans man, and they sealed his service record for the next 100 years. It was rediscovered by scholars in the 1950s, and more recently by the general public of people interested in queer history.

#christianity #saints #anglican #episcopalian #lgbtq history #trans #james barry

[phosphorusab]

How I imagine the argument between Irish FTM surgeon James Barry and British sapphic nurse Florence Nightingale went down, while they were serving in the Crimean War

#james barry #florence nightingale #transgender history #crimean war #chainsaw man #gay history

[hyperions-fate]

James Barry, 'Satan and his legions hurling defiance toward the vault of Heaven', Illustration for Paradise Lost (c. 1792-1795)

#James Barry #John Milton #Paradise Lost #Irish art

[portraituresque]

James Barry - Self portrait

James Barry RA (11 October 1741 – 22 February 1806) was an Irish painter, best remembered for his six-part series of paintings entitled The Progress of Human Culture

#james barry #self-portrait

[metmarfilart]

I’m working on a graphic novel about James Barry!  He was an extraordinary person, the surgeon who managed to achieve the third successful cesarean registered in history in which both the mother and baby survived. He was also recognized for implementing huge improvements in the health system in many countries that were under British colonization, specially focused on under represented and marginalized groups. He also had an affair with the governor of Cape Town in 1817, Charles Somerset. Some would say the best improvements to ever happen by that time in a land marked by foreign invasion precisely happened when those two crossed their paths. Determined to make a difference he overcame every adversity on his way, including being a transgender man in the austere regency era.   If you want to support the creation of this graphic novel and see early sketches and sneak peaks please consider joining my Patreon

#James Barry #Incision The James Barry Journey #Incision #Graphic Novel #transgender #transgender man #regency era #adventure #romance #historical #biopic

[mynamebringstyranny]

Does anyone know of a biography about Dr. James Barry that isn't transphobic? He clearly identified as a man, but many of the more popular books about him use she/her pronouns (one even refers to him as a woman in the title!) or try to insist that he was intersex (which is possible) while entirely refusing to acknowledge the possibility of him being a trans man. I just want to read about a talented and compassionate doctor without the author trying to invalidate his identity.

#dr james barry #james barry #biography #ligbtqia history #book recommendations #trans rights

[pep-the-artemis]

Amongst other things she said Dr Barry was a female & that I was a pretty doctor not to know this & that she would not like to be attended by me. I informed her that it was none of my business whether Dr Barry was a male or a female

D R McKinnon (23rd August 1865)

on the topic of his recently deceased friend Inspector General Dr James Barry who was secretly an afab trans man.

#history #james barry #transgender #trans #trans history

[alexpenname]

Y'all I just did this amazing Pride Tour one of the Edinburgh tourist traps is putting on and it was actually pretty good and anyway I just discovered that Dr. James Barry and I have something in common.

(Namely: he also came to this university and immediately transitioned to male while becoming a doctor, though his experience was, uh, clearly much more dire.)

Anyway now I'm looking for book recs: does anyone know of a biography that handles his gender identity respectfully? I'm not necessarily looking for "proof this person was trans" since I'm not a fan of that approach to historical figures, but an examination of facts under a modern queer lens would be amazing. Please, please nothing that portrays him as a girlboss.

Articles, adaptations, biographies-- anything. I'd really like to read more.

#lgbt book recs #james barry #dr. james barry #trans book recs #lgbtq literature

[variousqueerthings]

I think trans people should be less apologetic about how we trans historical people who’ve had dozens of books written about their gender outlawism as if it’s impossible to read in a transgender way, I think we should meet their mythologisation with our own

anyway, it’s not historically impossible for james barry to have gotten top surgery, I think dr james barry got top surgery

#dr james barry #james barry #trans stuff #trans history #before we were trans is a very good book for this btw #(not that it mythologises people -- it simply discusses the trans possibilities of history + what a trans lens offers to the conversation) #queer stuff

[artschoolglasses]

Fall of Satan, James Barry, 1777

#fall of satan #James barry #barry #1777 #1770s #1700s #18th century #print #art #satan

[lanceinwonderland]

Apparently Ann Heilmann once discussed that while both d'Éon and Barry provoked anxiety and queerphobia in their own times, they are received so differently in our time. Her impression is that d'Éon is often discussed as an early trans figure but Barry is continually framed as a woman.

I mean yeah I guess that might be true in some academic circles? But it's not like there isn't a book that explicitly says the author will use masculine pronouns for d'Éon throughout to "remind the readers of this person's anatomy". That's just like. So gross beyond words.

Anyways. We aren't still doing that men are from mars women are from venus shit are we. I think any researcher that exclusively focuses on only AFAB/AMAB gender variant people will have some major blind spots on the trans experience. We're so different but yet so alike at the same time.

Unfortunately I feel the bullshit notion of "AFAB solidarity" or whatever the fuck that is still exists among many scholars of gender/queer studies, which is a very cis women dominated field. Even when they're trans supportive, they still subconsciously try to insert their own experience with gender into their understanding of trans men, while refuse to acknowledge the similarity between trans and cis womanhood. I don't think Heilmann is particularly guilty of this but oh man so many are.

Makes me think of how different Asian men's experience with racism in western countries and that of Asian women can be. But like you can't only study one side and represent it as "being Asian in the West". That. Is. Not. True. Or. At. Least. Very. Incomplete. Same goes for whatever demographic we're talking about really.

(On a side note, I think Barry likely would've heard of d'Eon at least in passing - considering that there was another huge wave of news reports after she died in 1810.)

#james barry #chevalière d'éon #trans #trans history #racism #subtle transphobia #the whole point of using amab/afab is to signify how arbitrary that is #and now some are using it to replace male/female or men/women altogether #that doesn't make any fucking sense