Fashioning Sapphism: The Origins of a Modern English Lesbian Culture

Between Men-Between Women: Lesbian and Gay Studies

by Laura L. Doan

An in-depth study of early 20th century social conditions and cultural trends in Britain that constructed the popular image of the "modern lesbian"

Genres: LGBT, History, Nonfiction, Lesbian, Sociology, Gay, Feminism

288 pages, Hardcover

First published December 27, 2000

About the author

Laura Doan is professor of cultural history and sexuality studies at the University of Manchester. She is the author of Fashioning Sapphism: The Origins of a Modern English Lesbian Culture and editor of Sexology in Culture: Labeling Bodies and Desires, among other books.

Reviews

[C. B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful. Doan’s monograph is centred around the obscenity trial of Radclyffe Hall’s The Well of Loneliness in 1928. This is not a straightforward narrative, however, but rather an intensely scholarly myth-breaking exercise.

Among other things, Doan argues that one could not assert that, prior to the trial, opinion about the book was overwhelmingly negative and virulently homophobic. On the contrary, until the book was reviewed by a hack sensationalist in the Sunday Express, it was received quite well — Hall’s attempt to aim for an upmarket audience had worked, initially. Moreover, there wasn’t a clear idea of ‘lesbian’ in the popular imagination, so reactions were diverse; even negative commentators concerned about ‘deviance’ did not have a monolithic, singular ‘lesbian’ social identity in mind, but rather diffuse images and perceptions. Doan argues that Hall partly created this image and lent her style to the future formation of ‘lesbian’ identity. Indeed, style is one of the great subjects of the book. The prominence of masculine styles in 1920s women’s fashion amply demonstrates that Hall’s image was not unique in the media; she was, conversely, a close follower of the latest trends.

There is also a wonderful chapter about sexology and its dissemination among people like Hall. Doan gives a very convincing argument that The Well is not, as many historians have portrayed, a mere reiteration of sexological ideas (particularly those of Havelock Ellis); rather, the book shows diverse influence from figures rarely mentioned in relation to Hall, such as Edward Carpenter. In short, Hall was negotiating sexological ideas in relation to herself and others, not just regurgitating them.

Although this book is very serious and straightforward, its erudition is astonishing; it is packed full with fascinating examples and makes a strong case for a more nuanced, contextualised appreciation of sexuality and gender in history.

[Sophie Schreiber · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was so helpful for my Radclyffe Hall essay I want to go back and read it more closely bcs yes early 20th century queers!

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The NYU library said it was missing. Then I Indiana Jones’d that shit. Now it’s mine

[Sandra Fulbright-myers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Would rate higher, but certain parts are repetitive, as if the author needed to pad out the text. Makes good points about how contemporary envisioning of past lesbian coding were affected by the public "outing" of Radclyffe Hall in the controversy over the publication of Well of Loneliness, that what we see as inextricably lesbian was actually part of a larger continuum exploring masculine expressions of femininity in the 1920s.

[Gwen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meticulously researched. That's all I have to say.