There is nothing enlightened or progressive about ancient cultures being inclusive of eunuchs/effeminate men or allowing certain men to be grouped with women. Femininity was never about womanhood, it was always non-masculinity. A man can be degraded to femininity, but a woman, seen as naturally inferior scum, can never rectify her status.
As someone with an anthropology degree, it frustrates me how few people understand this. The concept of a "third gender" in other cultures is almost exclusively used as a place to "downgrade" a gay or otherwise non-traditional man into some lower but semi-useful (and often extremely objectified and "othered,") space in society. Women who are lesbians or non-traditional don't get to move into a "third gender" category. The rare instances where this has been seen, it's always strictly symbolic and very much to the woman's detriment. This cultural practice, where present, is entirely a result of homophobia and misogyny.

















