Have lesbians been expunged from history by academics and biographers who wish to deny their existence? The authors of Not a passing phase certainly believe so. Written in 1989 by the Lesbian History Group, this lively and contentious collection of essays attempt to redress this imbalance. As Sheila Jeffreys writes in her introduction, there are numerous reasons why writing lesbian history is so difficult. ‘Lesbians do not usually leave records of their lives…even where the documents exist, their suppression may begin immediately after the author’s death.’
Re-examining the passionate friendships of writers such as Charlotte Bronte, George Eliot, Edith Simcox, Vera Brittain and Winifred Holtby; uncovering invisible networks between women; and exploring the fate of lesbians within the professions; they offer new insights into a range of literary and historical movements, and present a political approach to historical research. The feeling you’re left with after reading this book is that it’s miraculous that lesbian women’s voices have survived all these attempts throughout history to repress them. And sadly this repression is by no means a thing of the past. Because of this, we should all make sure we take the time to listen to what they have to tell us.
Why not check out some other books that might be of interest during LGBT history month?
The trials of Radclyffe Hall by Diana Souhami
The lesbian menace: ideology, identity and the representation of lesbian life by Sherrie A. Inness
Changing our lives: lesbian passions, politics, priorities by Veronica Groocock
Passions between women: British lesbian culture 1668-1801 by Emma Donoghue
Odd girls and twilight lovers: a history of lesbian life in twentieth-century America by Lilian Faderman
