Both of his stories lend themselves to the narrative of trauma. The most important aspect of this is his characters are their voices which not only express the trauma they have suffered but allow the reader to also experience this trauma. In an interview that Eugenides did for the Guardian he says that he took 9 years to write his epic Middlesex. He admits that it took so long to write the novel because, “The triumph of the novel - and the reason it took so long to write - is its voice” (Bedell). Cal’s point of view about the world shapes his experience and ultimately how he views himself. Cal commonly refers to himself as a hermaphrodite despite the existence of more inclusive language. In an article by Merton Lee it explains this distinction as, “Whereas “hermaphrodite” is still freighted with connotations of the unnatural, “intersexuality,” as a neologism, attempts to naturalize various sexes, which themselves are naturally occurring. …show more content…
This use of the term “hermaphrodite” shows the internal struggle that Cal has to face, as he is raised believing in only two genders and believes for the first 14 years of life that he subscribes to the female gender. His turmoil with this is recounted throughout the book as he tries to find his place in the world. Some criticize Eugenides for this choice as to some it may seem as if he is trying to show being intersex as unnatural. Cal later says in the novel, “I happen not to be a political person. I don’t like groups. Though I’m a member of the Intersex Society of America, I have never taken part in its demonstrations” (Eugenides