Queer Lit

In this, the second post on queer lit, I want to refer to a classic of the field, Radclyffe Hall’s The Well of Loneliness. It was published in 1928 and was one of the first unapologetically out novels that was read by both queers and straights. For its historical importance, we must salute it.

It’s an easy read, because it’s well-written and it’s easy to sympathise with Stephen Gordon, the main character. She (yes, despite the name, Stephen is female) has a privileged upbringing, pampered by her loving father although she can’t quite form a connection with her chilly mother, and as she enters adulthood, Stephen gradually realises that she is an “invert” (which is how people used to refer to homosexuals).

I won’t spoil the book by telling you what happens next. However, I can point out that many early queer texts (and even some queer books today) tend to end in one of the following ways: the invert dies (by suicide or an accident), the invert goes straight (and generally has a better sex life and a brighter future because of it), the invert is put into a mental hospital, or the invert relinquishes (or is forced to relinquish) the love of his/her life in order to release the beloved from the pain of being queer. Alas, Hall’s novel falls into the unhappy camp. We can’t forget that that reflects the time period, though.

Despite that, I’d recommend it. It has influenced generations of gays (especially lesbians) and generations of queer writers. Hall was brave to write about a lesbian during a time when that wasn’t generally an acceptable topic for serious literature.