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EPQ Essay: How is lesbianism represented in literature, in comparison with male homosexuality, within a heteronormative Western society and how does this reflect society through time?£10.49
EPQ Essay: How is lesbianism represented in literature, in comparison with male homosexuality, within a heteronormative Western society and how does this reflect society through time?
In this Extended Project Qualification essay, I explore how lesbianism has been represented in literature throughout time. I then position this in the context of an ever patriarchal society and explore the ramifications of this through texts such as The Bible, Sappho's poetry, 'Girl Meets Boy' and ...
How is lesbianism represented in literature, in comparison with male homosexuality, within a
heteronormative Western society and how does this reflect society through time?
To identify early lesbian literature, which often took the form of hagiography, there has to be an acknowledgement that
this can only be identified through a postmodern viewpoint as, though the term ‘lesbian’ has etymology from the 6th
Century BC, it did not evolve to define a relationship between two women until the mid nineteenth century when
George Saintsbury wrote a critique of Charles Baudelaire’s ‘Les Fleurs du mal’1 collection (which was originally
going to be titled ‘Les Lesbiennes’). In this criticism he associated the term lesbian with the ‘passion of Delphine’-
thus this became the first literary example where it was associated with female homosexuality, not just the island of
Lesbos. Now, critics are familiar with this definition and can recognize the loving imagery used in devotional
literature to be resemblant of earthly love for another woman. These texts include those written by Beguines to the
Virgin Mary which often concerned her ‘maternal functions’2. The representation and sexualisation of the Virgin Mary
caused dramatic impacts on how women’s bodies were viewed in wider society, including between women
themselves. This caused women to be increasingly concerned with other women’s appearances, perhaps creating some
of the earliest examples of female gaze even within a deeply patriarchal society.
Furthermore, in Biblical texts God is largely described using male pronouns, giving power to the patriarchy and the
illusion of heterosexuality- yet God is a genderless figure so this supports a revised queer postmodern interpretation
that does not conform to a gender binary. Other Biblical texts feature LGBTQ+ themes and characters including the
Book of Ruth which uses the Hebrew word ‘dabaq’, meaning ‘to cleave’, as well as ‘one flesh’- this is the same
language used in Genesis to describe the relationship between Adam and Eve yet in this text it is used for Ruth and
Naomi’s relationship.
There have been attempts to conceal evidence of an LGBTQ+ presence in Biblical texts, most notably the King James
Bible in 1611 when, among other changes, a phrase prohibiting paedophilia was purposefully mistranslated to infer a
condemnation of homosexuality. Now, the most widely accepted version of this verse is ‘thou shalt not lie with
mankind as with womankind: it is abomination’. Though at first glance this seems clear- men should not sleep with
other men- those who are familiar with scripture understand that King James- who was widely speculated to be gay-
1
"The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Flowers Of Evil, by ...."
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/36098/36098-h/36098-h.htm. Accessed 11 Jul. 2020.
2
"The Virgin Mary in Late Medieval and Early Modern English ...."
https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/virgin-mary-in-late-medieval-and-early-modern-english-literature-and-popular-c
ulture/0863F68A635B32F8C211AFB2C7281E3B. Accessed 21 Jun. 2020.
, deliberately chose ‘abomination’ rather than ‘sin’, meaning unlike the other rules outlined in leviticus this verse
merely describes homosexuality to be ‘unclean’3. This alteration is not only a reflection of the ramifications of
heteronormativity- as this verse is often used to justify homophobia- but is also a demonstration of sexism and lesbian
erasure. Leviticus is directed at male readers but since King James’ reign more women have gained the rights to learn
to read and one of the first texts they were taught was the Bible- meaning a woman reading this verse actually reverses
the meaning, condemning heterosexuality and encouraging lesbianism. This clearly was not the aim of the translation,
but it did mean that for most of modern history lesbian women were not condemned to the same severity as gay men.
Unfortunately, this was not the first time lesbian erasure was perpetuated. Sappho of Lesbos- a now iconic figure of
lesbianism- was a popular poet of early ancient Greece, largely writing lyric poetry concerning fictional romantic and
sexual endeavors and estimated to have produced ten thousand lines of poetry yet only ‘Ode to Aphrodite’4 remains in
its full and original form. Many Renaissance thinkers speculated that this was due to her explicit depiction of women
in sexual relationships, meaning they were censored, however there is a lack of evidence to support this and if they
were deliberately censored, due to the time period it would have been an issue of explicitly sexual imagery rather than
of lesbianism. Most likely, the poems were discarded and lost throughout time due to the niche archaic language5-
Lesbian-Aeolic- used by Sappho- this was also used by Alcaeus, who is suspected to have written ten books, none of
which have survived- though his male authorship would have undoubtedly have been given more consideration.
Unlike much of her poetry, Sappho’s legacy will not be forgotten, her name is now synonymous with lesbian
relationships and many young women in modern day society now identify as ‘sapphic’ rather than the more
constrictive label of lesbian in honour of her ambiguous sexuality. She became a role model for the ‘New Woman’ in
the 20th Century and an icon of Feminism due to texts such as ‘The Picture of Sappho’, furthermore her hypersexual
characterisation was, and still is, used as evidence for female sexuality therefore empowering women around the
globe.
3
"Leviticus - Bible Abuse Directed at Homosexuals." https://www.stopbibleabuse.org/biblical-references/leviticus.html.
Accessed 7 Sep. 2020.
4
"The Poems of Sappho: Sapphics: Ode to Aphrodite - Sacred ...." https://www.sacred-texts.com/cla/pos/pos08.htm.
Accessed 7 Sep. 2020.
5
"Did Christians Really Burn Sappho's Poetry? - Tales of Times ...." 14 Dec. 2019,
https://talesoftimesforgotten.com/2019/12/14/did-christians-really-burn-sapphos-poetry/. Accessed 7 Sep. 2020.
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