Transvestism and marriage

Abstract

It is perhaps significant that, while attending a large transvestite gathering in the USA, Beigel (1969) found that the number of divorced men was nearly double the national average, and almost all admitted that the reason for divorce was their wives’ opposition to their cross-dressing. Their wives objected to their secret masturbation and their sexual demands as well as to the strain imposed on the family budget by the maintenance of an extra wardrobe. This latter aspect is highlighted by Beigel’s report of the angry and horrified reaction of a woman who had accompanied her husband to the gathering and was highly distressed at seeing his new, expensive clothing bought with her earnings but without her knowledge. The husband’s response was simply that transvestism worked for him as a form of therapy and relaxation, so she would have to put up with it.

‘I don’t actually know why I feel like I do.’

(Polly, married to a transvestite)