SCP-113, commonly referred to as “The Gender Switcher,” is a significant work of containment fiction that originated in 2008 on 4chan’s /x/ board, authored by pseudonymous user Robin Sure, and that currently exists on the SCP Wiki in a rewritten form.^[1]https://archive.ph/QNbYp#selection-21479.0-21527.1441^[2]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-113 The anomaly consists of a piece of red jasper that alters organisms upon contact by transforming X chromosomes to Y chromosomes or vice versa. Subsequent revisions significantly expanded the philosophical treatment of gender within the text.

SCP-113 has become both a rallying point and flashpoint for broader sociological discussions regarding gender and LGBTQ+ identity within the SCP community.^[3]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2410553^[4]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2715837^[5]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2962284^[6]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-3029848^[7]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-3031128^[8]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-3564414^[9]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-4066974^[10]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-4273240^[11]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-4726622^[12]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-4841727 It represents a notable example within containment fiction that reflects the evolution of sociological perspectives both on the SCP Wiki and in broader cultural contexts.

Historical Development

Origins (2008)

SCP-113 in an early form on EditThis, with original image.

SCP-113 first appeared on January 21, 2008, in thread #448755 on 4chan’s /x/ board, initially mis-designated as “SCP-16.”^[13]https://archive.ph/QNbYp#selection-21479.0-21527.1441 The original text described a small piece of red jasper that, when touched by living organic matter, would change color and alter the organism’s DNA to switch its gender. This effect was described as permanent but reversible through subsequent contact with the object after its 30-minute recharge period.

The item was later ported to the SCP-113 slot on EditThis on April 4, 2008, by an anonymous user and given the title “the gender switcher.”^[14]http://web.archive.org/web/20080409210737/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/SCP_Series^[15]http://web.archive.org/web/20080410224522/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/SCP-113^[16]http://web.archive.org/web/20080611035643/http://www.editthis.info:80/scp_wiki/?title=SCP-113&action=history During its time on EditThis, the article underwent several modifications, including terminology adjustments, more detailed descriptions of the genetic modification process, and additional research notes.^[17]http://web.archive.org/web/20080410224522/http://editthis.info:80/scp_wiki/SCP-113^[18]http://web.archive.org/web/20080415104451/http://editthis.info:80/scp_wiki/SCP-113

WikiDot Era and Revisions

The article was transferred to the WikiDot SCP Wiki by Lt Masipag on July 25, 2008.^[19]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-113 In October of that year, it was among the articles vandalized during the HAGGAR attacks.^[20]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-113, rev. 6

In September 2009, SCP-113 was included in a list of Series 1 SCPs considered for removal during the Mass Edit initiative, though it was ultimately slated for editing instead.^[21]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-181831/the-mass-edit-workbench-scp-100-199^[22]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-181831/the-mass-edit-workbench-scp-100-199#post-585246^[23]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-585205^[24]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-633556 When, in the discussion section, a user asks why this is on the list for the Mass Edit, DrGears replies:

“What was previously a serious (if a bit “light”) entry has been “nerfed” by many of the additional comments. some alterations to bring down the “wacky situations” factor would help.”^[25]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-585208

Following the Mass Edit decision, several modifications were implemented:^[26]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-597451 references to an O5 member exploiting the object were removed, as were portions detailing an individual employee’s misuse of the item. Additional cross-references to other SCP articles were added, and more detail was incorporated into the transformation process description, including references to both pleasure and pain, as well as the possibility of failed transformations.^[27]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-597638

Early criticisms of the article primarily focused on unscientific phraseology and uninspired redactions rather than its thematic content.^[28]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-1773999^[29]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-1474687

Gender Theory Evolution

Sex vs. Gender Distinction (2012-2013)

In June 2012, a commenter raised concerns about the conflation of gender and sex in the article, arguing that the object was more accurately a “sex changer” rather than a “gender switcher.” This sparked discussions about gender identity and intersexuality in relation to the anomalous object.^[30]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-1489440

The replies tend towards gender & maternal theory, posing thought experiments on gender identity and intersexuality post interacting with the SCP item.^[31]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-1794039^[32]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-1554062^[33]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-1787467^[34]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-1848832 A user recommends the article be renamed from “The Gender Switcher” to “The Sex Switcher.”^[35]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-1848837

In 2013, user thedeadlymoose (“moose”) received permission to rewrite the article.^[36]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-1709755^[37]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-1852191 The revision cleaned up problematic redactions, refined scientific terminology, adjusted negative effects, and addressed issues related to gender identity and intersex individuals.^[38]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-1910898

Despite suggestions to rename the object “Sex Changer,” moose retained the original title, reasoning that the object could be interpreted as working on a psychological level by changing sex to match gender.

The rewrite explicitly distinguished between gender and sex, replacing simplistic terms with more nuanced phrasing. It also addressed the effects on intersex individuals, noting unpredictable results influenced by the subject’s gender identity.

A significant addition was a paragraph addressing how SCP-113 interacts with gender identity, stating that while the object doesn’t typically alter gender identity, it produces positive psychological effects in subjects with nonstandard gender identities and negative effects in those with standard gender identities.

Further Critiques and Discussions (2015-2021)

In January 2015, WikiDot user inkwat criticized terminology such as “biological sex” and “opposite sex” as products of binary thinking, arguing that sex classification should not be based solely on external genitalia or chromosomes.^[39]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2220210

In an ensuing debate, a dissenting commenter (VAElynx) notes that even if it does not capture the subtleties of gender fluidity, “that doesn’t mean that the SCP won’t use some sort of internal logic to shoehorn them to some opposite according to absurd but rigidly fixed logic.”^[40]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2220286 User inkwat further classifies the article as a product of binary thinking, and recommends another user look into transness and gender theory, and accuses a user who disagrees as cissexist.^[41]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2220240^[42]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2220292

Moose replies to inkwat and concedes that biological sex is socially constructed, but clarifies; “this piece of rock isn’t actually looking at what your “biological sex” even is (but largely, what you think it is).”^[43]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2337587

The discussion, and Moose’s comment in particular, became a gathering point for transgendered individuals, who praised Moose’s efforts with one user noting they as a male-to-female post-surgery transgendered individual were not offended by the language in this version of SCP-113, and another celebrating that transgender representation was not only within articles on the SCP in the modern day, but in the site’s administrative staff.^[44]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2715837^[45]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2962284^[46]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2842154

The article would come into friction with later gender theory and with cultural advancements in LGBTQ+ normativity. In 2021, user Habdash writes:

“I want to upvote this, but I can’t get over the phrasing that trans/nonbinary identities are “nonstandard”. It’s not quite as bad as the all-too-common trope that cis is “normal” and trans is “weird”, but it’s close enough that I’m novoting this one.”^[47]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-5058588

Trivia

• Archives of both the original /x/ thread and the EditThis talk page contained no derogatory or bigoted criticism of the article’s subject matter.^[48]https://archive.ph/QNbYp^[49]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/448755.html^[50]http://web.archive.org/web/20080714175948/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/Talk:SCP-113
• The initial image was removed in 2014 for non-compliance with Creative Commons licensing.^[51]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-1986291
• SCP-113 was featured in an “Escape from Site-19” card game.^[52]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-679931/escape-from-site-19-last-update-22-7-2014^[53]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2083358
• In 2017, SCP-113 was temporarily locked from edits after a user threatened to “[fix it] to focus either on chromosomes or “self-identity.”^[54]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-2503191/non-disc-record-starrelecture#post-3030130
• Early /x/ SCPs frequently incorporated gender philosophy. In addition to SCP-113, an early version of SCP-042 mentions, “042 cannot tell the difference between a woman and a man of nontraditional gender roll.”^[55]https://archive.ph/QNbYp#selection-22651.1052-22651.1138
• Modern SCP Wiki staff have declined to update terminology in certain articles to be more politically correct, such as the use of the word “retarded” in SCP-597.^[56]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-135415/scp-597#post-5395706
• In June 2023, WikiDot user Waterbaste rewrote SCP-113 as “The Gender Splitter” for Confic Magazine to celebrate Pride Month.^[57]http://aoeldatabase.wikidot.com/scp-0113 In this version, an amoral researcher named “Dr. Luminax” manipulates a colleague using SCP-113 and gender-fluidity concepts, potentially serving as commentary on a former SCP administrator who was banned for predatory behavior.^[58]https://www.conficmagazine.com/post/scp-0133-the-gender-splitter This followed a “rewrite” convention started by WikiDot user UraniumEmpire with SCP-0166, a modern take on the old SCP-116 “Teenage Succubus”.

Notable Quotes

“Man, this article’s perception REALLY shifted over time, huh.”^[59]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-5252117

“The SCP is fairly clear that intersex conditions cause ‘unpredictable’ results. From the Foundation’s POV (as things stand in the article), it seems largely random, except for the fact that for people with non-standard identities (aka, in non-Foundation speak, trans people), it’s usually an improvement. The object’s effect varies depending on how you think of yourself. If your worldview is a binary one, you will always get the “opposite” gender, period. If not, then the results become unpredictable from the outside. Again: The only reason this thing appears to work on binary logic is because that’s how most humans think, including the people who re-purposed this thing from its original purpose.”^[60]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2337587

“What a long, strange trip it’s been for this article. I remember this was one of the first “silly” things I found on the site. It proved to me there was a since of humor hiding amidst everything that scared the bejeezus out of me. Congrats are in order for ALL who worked on revising this into it’s current form. It too now scares me.”^[61]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2150485

“I do have to laugh about “but it’s not good — it causes pain when you use it!” Like major surgery doesn’t? And this does a perfect job as long as you follow the directions. The current version doesn’t even honestly seem to have a downside, which is probably why the Special Containment Procedures allow it to be used by approved personnel (to wit, trans staff members whose pain from dysphoria interferes with their work).”^[62]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-5315361