Was Joan De Ark a man?

[joona]

I've recently had a suprising revelation in medieval history, through a friend who has a degree in medieval literature. We got into a discussion about Joan De Ark. He proposed this, which made obvious sense to me. I have forgotten some key elements about the history and legend behind her, but I will tell you what I can remember off the top of my head.

What he proposed was that Joan was actually a John. He had been reading about a very rare disorder in males, where in fetus formation the testicals and penis do not descend from inside the body. The result is what looks like a slit, a vagina. The person is still male, lacking any female sex organs, but with the testicals inside the body they produce more estrogen, resulting in very small but visible breasts. This condition also causes schizophrenia in most cases, and a profound ringing in the ears, notably the left. He couldnt remember the name of the condition, but I have heard of it before.

Therefor, joan de ark could very well have been a man. Here is what adds up. Joan d'Ark never menstruated at all. She had no period and was believed to have been saintly because of this. Joan d'Ark is reported to have had very small breasts, by those soldiers she led. She also heard voices starting around her late teens, which she believed to have been the voice of god. Schizophrenia starts showing signs at the late teens, and it most commonly accompanied by hearing voices. She is also recorded as saying that she always heard the bells of heaven in her left ear when god spoke to her.

Does this not add up? Has no one thought of this before? What are your opinions?

[YZGI]

Originally Posted by joona

I've recently had a suprising revelation in medieval history, through a friend who has a degree in medieval literature. We got into a discussion about Joan De Ark. He proposed this, which made obvious sense to me. I have forgotten some key elements about the history and legend behind her, but I will tell you what I can remember off the top of my head.

What he proposed was that Joan was actually a John. He had been reading about a very rare disorder in males, where in fetus formation the testicals and penis do not descend from inside the body. The result is what looks like a slit, a vagina. The person is still male, lacking any female sex organs, but with the testicals inside the body they produce more estrogen, resulting in very small but visible breasts. This condition also causes schizophrenia in most cases, and a profound ringing in the ears, notably the left. He couldnt remember the name of the condition, but I have heard of it before.

Therefor, joan de ark could very well have been a man. Here is what adds up. Joan d'Ark never menstruated at all. She had no period and was believed to have been saintly because of this. Joan d'Ark is reported to have had very small breasts, by those soldiers she led. She also heard voices starting around her late teens, which she believed to have been the voice of god. Schizophrenia starts showing signs at the late teens, and it most commonly accompanied by hearing voices. She is also recorded as saying that she always heard the bells of heaven in her left ear when god spoke to her.

Does this not add up? Has no one thought of this before? What are your opinions?

Try this.
Testicular feminization syndrome definition - Medical Dictionary definitions of popular medical terms easily defined on MedTerms

[Clodhopper]

I think it is possible - never heard of the syndrome before, but it does fit the case. HOWEVER, just because something is possible, doesn't mean it definitely happened. Since the body was destroyed, we have no way of proving it and it remains an interesting speculation.

Still, interesting point. Cheers!

[OpenMind]

Tinnitus - ringing in the ears.

An interesting theory.

[Accountable]

Never really been interested in lil' Joanie. I know that top female athletes sometimes start menstruating later than normal. Something about the strenuous exercise suppressing some hormone or something.

[Nomad]

It took you this long to figure that out?

[gmc]

So if the voices in her head were due to schizophrenia and not the voice of god does that apply to all the other saints as well?

[michaelross]

could be a man.. or a woman having that certain kind of disease..

[AussiePam]

Joan of Arc - Jeanne d'Arc - is one of the three patron saints of France. She got caught up in a political game in the early fifteenth century and came a cropper. Many tried to blacken her name at the time (they carbonised her), and much is still being written about whether some underlying medical condition could give a "rational" explanation to her behaviour.

She does always look a bit uncomfortable astride her horse and if Joanie on the Pony did actually have undescended testicles and was really a man I suppose that could explain her faraway grimace.

Anyway - the Maid of Orleans was a rallying force against those nasty English invaders and so a reasonable symbol of Gallic cross-channel nose thumbing.