Quote Originally Posted by Rynjin View Post
If the story were going n any way ABOUT trans issues, this might be relevant. As-is I see little reason it would ever come up in the story, and if it did...simplified answers work fine.

It's exactly the same way not every story featuring a black character needs to deeply explore black social issues. No story can be about everything.
Oh, I would never argue the story needs to be ABOUT trans issues.

But issues of gender, gender expectations and gender roles are pretty essential to the story, and that's why people are left with questions about trans people. I completely agree simplified answers work fine.
For me it seems only reasonable that one of the hundreds of Aes Sedai we see in the tower is a trans woman.
If someone wants a simple answer, this would be the simplest of answers: Egwene walks through the tower and sees an Aes Sedai that looks like man but channels Saidar. She if confused but someone explains the Aes Sedai is a woman who just happens to have a male-looking body.
This takes maybe four sentences, or five seconds of screen time? It acknowledges that - like intended - humans work the same in Randland as in the real world, trans people exist, they channel according to their gender, no issues whatsoever.

If you don't like the idea of the Aes Sedai being so tolerant and nonchalant, have the transwoman pop up among the Kinswomen. Those are used to criticise the Aes Sedai anyway. "Even though I channel Saidar I wasn't allowed into the tower because I look like a guy."
Three sentences top, fits the narrative of Kinswomen complaining about the Tower, done.

I'm sure some people would complain about wokeness and tokenism, but hey.