StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

The Forbidden Secret of Lesbianism - Movie Review Example

Summary
The paper "The Forbidden Secret of Lesbianism" highlights that the question of truth is too often handled by people in an “it goes without saying” way. But as the film leaves intelligent viewers grasping at straws, so does the truth not always appear as commonsensical or obvious…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER95.6% of users find it useful
The Forbidden Secret of Lesbianism
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "The Forbidden Secret of Lesbianism"

The Forbidden Secret of Lesbianism Martha Dobie and Karen Wright had a short argument after the latter revealed the news about her marriagewith her fiancé. For some reason, her long time friend and co-founder of a girl’s dormitory school was not as excited as she is. At the peak of the argument, Martha’s iron falls and makes a loud noise, startling Mary Tilford, a student of the dormitory school who is a known troublemaker. The two shortly reconciled, with Karen placing a kiss on Martha’s cheek before leaving. The scene showed the hesitance of Karen to leave without a kiss. There is also a third person watching the scene in the person of Mary Tilford, whose close-up face was shown in cutaways. She was shown looking strained into the camera, or possibly in the direction of the room where Karen kissed Martha. It was concluded as Karen goes into the background and Mary shows at the screens right side. Wittig said that “A lesbian is not a woman” (135). The concept is simply more of a promotion of heterosexual affairs, and in fact it was mainly the reason why the rest of the characters felt terribly affected by the so-called scandal. They want to force Martha and Karen to become what they “really” are: women. But the concept of being a “woman” is not so much applicable to Martha and since people fear what they do not understand, instead of venturing outright and consider her a lesbian, they do not say it aloud, because it will no longer promote the heterosexual concept. The scene where Karen kissed Martha would have been nothing more than simply a friendly and innocent one if not for the importance given to the presence Mary in the same scene. Her voyeurism gave her the seeming power as the bearer of truth. It also became a way for the rest of the characters to know about and thus create a venue for Martha to eventually consider herself as a lesbian subject. Although the whole affair started when two students heard Martha’s aunt accuse her of being too attached to her friend, Karen, it was the simple, friendly peck-on the-cheek that gives the strong suggestion, abetted by Mary’s stare, of Martha and Karen’s homosexual relationship. The strange thing was that the subject of the accusation seems to be unaware of the charge. What this possibly means is that she did not acknowledge such emotions until later. People will always want the labels to be neatly stacked in their favor. Additionally, Wittig said that the discourses of heterosexuality cause oppression in the way that they prevent homosexuals from speaking unless they speak in the straights’ terms (131). In so doing, they will force the subject to believe that she is “unnatural” because their definition of what is “natural” about a “woman” does not agree with her actions, perceived or real. The rivalry between Martha and Karen’s fiancé, Joe, might be real or it might simply be imagined, but the viewers were pushed to believe that it is real and unnatural. It might have been easier for them to accept if Martha was all masculine about it, with short hair and muscles. Erhart said that “the body was what caused male and female homosexuality” (88). Only few people, Freud included, who thinks it is not so. People “searched the body for symptoms of homosexuality’s presence” (Erhart 88). When people did not find any, they become even more agitated: if it is not seen on the body, how will they be recognized? They might as well add that the purpose for such is so others can be wary of them because they act “unnaturally” and are even more of a danger, as pedophiles are, because no one can readily recognize them. But Martha is a “woman,” and the community’s definition of it is a vague but powerful insinuation of what she “should” be. It was a powerful drug that lulled her all throughout that she is merely acting what comes naturally as a woman. She did not consider it “unnatural” or strange because, for all she knows, she was just doing what a “normal” woman tends to do: it was just regular female homosociality. She did not suddenly decide that she is a lesbian, nor was there any strange marking on her that made her think so. Unfortunately for her, she became even more of a spectacle because everyone “knows” what she is, even though she didn’t. Everyone accuses her of not acting to her nature as a woman, which is nothing less than compulsory heterosexuality. Even more unfortunate is that the people were not very clear that they are accusing her of being a lesbian and she finds herself unable to defend against vague accusations. However, there are still questions to be asked: If the community did not sustain such an idea about her and supported her eventual coming-out, would she eventually realize her homosexuality much later or will it completely dissolve it out of ignorance? Would she eventually end up living the rest of her life wondering why she was agitated when her friend announced her news about her marriage or would she get over it and be simply happy for Karen? Upon accepting her homosexuality, does that mean that her life prior to that point has been a lie and a fantasy, or was it as real as her current life after she has accepted it? These are questions that the movie leaves behind: a series of “what ifs” that no viewer will be able to answer on his or her own. Even the question of her homosexuality seems to have been forced on her and finally led her to accept it. But why would anyone at all still want to think of herself as homosexual after facing all the hardships that came with simply being accused of it? It leaves the feeling that there is a hidden story in the film. Perhaps something that will make it clearer as to the nature of Martha and her relationship with Karen prior to the events that led her to believe, or accept, that she is indeed a lesbian. The question of truth is too often handled by people in an “it goes without saying” way. But as the film leaves intelligent viewers grasping at straws, so does the truth not always appear as commonsensical or obvious. As viewers look around for answers, they will eventually realize that both her straight and lesbian feelings have been true; as true to her as it can ever be. Works Cited Wittig, Monique. The Straight Mind. Beacon Press, 1992. Print. Erhart, Julia. "She Could Hardly Invent Them!" From Epistemological Uncertainty to Discursive Production: Lesbianism in The Childrens Hour. Camera Obscura, 1995. Print. Read More

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF The Forbidden Secret of Lesbianism

The Prime of Life and the Brodie Set by Muriel Spark

Muriel Spark has gained immense amount of critical acclaim for her novel titled ‘The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie'.... The novel is set in a puritanical, all-girl school called Marcia Blaine that follows the life of six ten-year old girls, who are taken under the titular character Miss Brodie's wings as she tries to mould them into the ‘crème de la crème' of the school....
12 Pages (3000 words) Essay

The Picture of Dorian Gray: The Sinful Consequence of Eternal Youth and Beauty

"The Picture of Dorian Gray: The Sinful Consequence of Eternal Youth and Beauty" paper focuses on the story of a young man who learns that beauty are the highest ideals to which he can aspire.... The respected men of his society, including artists and nobility, admire him solely for his good looks....
11 Pages (2750 words) Essay

Lesbianism and Sex Industry

2According to Sally Munt in his book Heroic Desire: Lesbianism and Cultural Space talks about the Hero of lesbianism and the versatility of a lesbian culture.... In this discussion the cause and developments of lesbianism are not discussed and instead of that making general the expression of lesbianism is discussed.... To treat lesbian patients, psychoanalytic therapists should turn away from the present formulations of lesbianism....
8 Pages (2000 words) Essay

Is Lesbianism A Sickness

artrell surveys the history of lesbianism by looking at its history of psychological evaluation.... Criticism of this psychological methodology led to advances in the study of lesbianism from a psychological perspective, and thus a better understanding of the phenomenon itself.... One effective tool of promoting prejudice and discrimination against such practices as lesbianism has been to point to psychology and psychiatry.... Freud, like in many of his examinations, created an elaborate explanation for lesbianism, using a series of his concepts....
4 Pages (1000 words) Essay

Hate Groups

Farrakhan is the author of The secret Relationship Between Blacks And Jews that portray Jews as proprietors of black slavery faulted by history.... This group holds that intermarriages or race mixing should be forbidden.... The discrimination is based on their culture, religion, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation or gender....
2 Pages (500 words) Research Paper

How Do Constructions of Race Relate to Construction of Sexuality

"How Do Constructions of Race Relate to Construction of Sexuality" paper states that the society we live in at the moment has objectified sex.... Sexuality has become a topic that defines most societies around the world.... Racism on the other hand is still thriving within the confines of many societies....
13 Pages (3250 words) Essay

The Representation of Landscape in King Solomon's Mines

This report "The Representation of Landscape in King Solomon's Mines" presents the analysis of the role of landscape in "King Solomon's Mines" written by Haggard.... In the book, the diamond mines represent female sexuality, the source of treasure, and the site of imperial contest.... ... ... ... The relative absence of females has been very distinctly marked in King Solomon's mines when the narrator Allan Quarter main points out in the opening chapter that he can safely say that 'there is no petticoat in the entire history....
15 Pages (3750 words) Report

Awfully Devoted Women: Lesbian Lives in Canada by Cameron Duder

To show that this kind of lifestyle existed, Cameron points out that historians have shed light on the secret lives of the upper-middle class romantic friends and the working class butch women who regularly visited bars in the Cold War era.... This essay considers the book Awfully Devoted Women: Lesbian Lives in Canada by Cameron Duder....
9 Pages (2250 words) Book Report/Review
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us