In Brazil, the lifestyle of a prostitute is not always ideal. Not ideal for a certain group of individuals who call themselves Travestis. These individuals left their homes at a very young age and moved into small rooms in buildings with many others like them because of their identity. Don Kulick traveled to Salvador, Brazil, and lived with Travestis to observe how their lives construct their perceptions of personal gender expression and sex. Through gender expression and attention to the details of their relationships with heterosexual men, Don Kulik of Travesti: Sex, Gender, and Culture Among Brazilian Transgender Prostitutes Travestis validate their relationship between sex and gender. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay When trying to understand the identity of a Travesti, you need to know the difference between sex, sexuality, and gender. Sex is what we were assigned at birth based on our genitals: biology. For example, a penis is assigned male while a vagina is assigned female. Sexuality is who you are attracted to sexually and romantically. Finally, gender, the complicated one, is the internal sense of being; how it feels if they are male or female. This can be demonstrated through outward appearances known as gender expression. Now, Transvestites identify as homosexual (sexuality) male (sex) and their gender is the hard part to define. As male prostitutes, they choose to use female pronouns, (she/her) have female names, and present themselves with female attributes such as wearing makeup and having long hair. Another part of Travesti culture is injecting silicone into their bodies to get bigger breasts or buttocks. Kulick asked, “Why do people who engage in these kinds of bodily practices do so?” (Kulick 84). They all had the same consent, they can modify their bodies as they choose, but they choose and will keep their penis. They modify their body to have more feminine attributes but not to be a woman. Thus, their gender identity is not considered transgender despite the book's title due to the lack of desire to change sex, “A travesti is not a woman and they can never tell each other, because God created them males” (Kulick 84). The Travestis also think that if someone in the community comes out and says they are a woman and wants to get rid of their penis, they are "mentally disturbed" (Kulick 84). Then, when we talk about Travestis, the two sexual orientations that emerge are heterosexuality: attraction towards the opposite sex and homosexuality: attractions towards the same sex. Kulick describes “This early homosexual desire is tied to performance or effeminate roles and it is the combination of these two factors…that appears to drive transvestites into their first sexual encounters, where they invariably take on the sexual role of the one being penetrated. .” (Kulick 52) They continue to describe themselves as “viados” and continue to explore their sexual interests and desires. They went looking for males who were older and willing to penetrate them not out of desire but to validate their gender: “But what is. more significant is that all these memories of becoming female are linked – indeed, are narratively preceded by – erotic interest in other males” (Kulick, 48 years old), the interest only strengthened and enabled them to find boyfriends. So, with their identity as males but with the desire to feel more feminine, they want to find that “perfect” man to satisfy that need. "Travestis are attracted to men who are classically masculine in thetheir appearance." (Kulick, 120). These boyfriends are always between 18 and 30 years old, heterosexual, tanned, muscular and more than always poor. Banana, a transvestite, said she is attracted to males with "big muscles" and beautiful qualities. Transvestites and boyfriends are almost always alive together and almost never monogamous with the same guy. With transvestites who earn from prostitution, to attract the attention of a male they will buy him lavish gifts and once they are in a relationship, the gifts. they keep coming.The question to ask is: why do they buy these gifts?When they find a potential boyfriend, transvestites will not immediately fall in love with him since they do not want males like them validation of these men who are not sexually and/or romantically attracted to the same sex, the gifts keep the interest alive and well with these men and make them want to stay in the relationship “So instead of trying to seduce at home through the sex appeal, a transvestite will travel a much more direct path to her man's heart...that path is paved with money and material possessions." (Kulick 109). Heterosexual men are always the point of desire because they don't want to "give ass", that is, they only have the desire to penetrate their transvestite girlfriend, not to be penetrated "...being a man, in The gender system invoked by the parodies is that a male classified as a man will not be interested in another male's penis. (Kulick 24). If boyfriends showed interest in a transvestite penis, they might become undesirable and the transvestite would in fact move on and find another boyfriend. At home, boyfriends know not to touch the transvestite penis because this, in the mind of the transvestite, will make them viados. The reason is that boyfriends are just there for show and to validate the gender of transvestites. From the point of view of disguises, they look for these boyfriends to make them feel like women, “a male is male because he desires a woman; a transvestite can 'feel like a woman' to the extent that she desires a man and is desired by him.” (Kulick 126). Even if they know and identify as male, transvestites want to feel the feminine side of being a woman. “Appropriate desires,” as Kulick puts it, arise from the practices and desires of transvestites. She wants to be penetrated by the male and never have to penetrate her boyfriend; ruins the façade of her desires, which is for her boyfriend to look and behave like a male. The only thing missing in the relationship is sexual attraction, or sexual desire. Since they support the sexual activity of a male, transvestites almost always go out in search of a boyzhino. A boyzhino is a male between the ages of 13 and 17 who is homosexual and has the desire to "give ass" no matter what. Travestis go out and find these young males to fulfill their sexual satisfaction. They also find sexual pleasure with their clients when they work on the streets at night for money. Keila states, “'A travesti doesn't get attached to anyone for sex, because a travesti doesn't need a boyfriend to come.'” (Kulick 132). Looking at all the information presented by Kulick, the main idea that continues to emerge is the concept of reassurance and validation. Meaning, the concept of dating straight men to make them feel like women. They inject silicone into their bodies to lure random male on the street and make money. The cross-dressing relationship between sex and gender is on opposite sides of the spectrum. The relationship between their sexuality and sex is more connected: they want a penis so they feel sexual attraction towards males. Now, sex and gender are not connected but can coexist with each other. A transvestite with female pronouns and names but without the desire to be a woman is not, and will not be.