The Forbidden Secret of Lesbianism - Movie Review Example

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