Lesbian Lifestyles: Women's Work and the Politics of Sexuality

Britta Santowski is a freelance writer in Victoria, British Columbia.

In Lesbian Lifestyles, Gillian A. Dunne argues that lesbian
relationships transcend the heterosexist power structure ingrained in
every aspect of our social beings. According to Dunne, the rise of our
mandatory, pro-heterosexual establishment coincided with the increased
economic autonomy of women. “Until the twentieth century there was no
need to encourage women to ‘desire’ heterosexual relationships.
There was little choice in the matter: the social and economic world was
structured around the institution of marriage.” The first wave of
feminism introduced the desire for economic independence; the second
wave gave way to its (dubious) possibility. Economic autonomy for women
(as examined in a lesbian context) remains, however, an illusion for
women in a heterosexual-oriented world.

After some eye-opening insights into feminism, and into the theory and
methodology of her study, Dunne turns her attention to her 60 subjects.
Drawing support from contemporary research, she explores their
“childhood worlds,” educational backgrounds, and consequent
employment opportunities; she also considers the division of labor and
maintenance of power within lesbian relationships. In this book, we
witness women breaking beyond the traditional barriers of heterosexual
conditioning. At the same time, we discover that while women can become
financially independent, male-gendered jobs pay more than
female-gendered, and that men in these male-gendered jobs receive more
pay and are more likely to experiences career advancement than women in
the same jobs.

“When lesbianism is ... treated as ‘other,’” writes Dunne,
“the acquisition of heterosexuality identities remains unquestioned,
preserving the integrity of mainstream feminist theorising and the
illusion of heterosexuality as an unproblematic given. The findings of
this research suggests that, far from being marginal, an understanding
of lesbian experience can tell us a great deal about women’s
experiences more generally.” This profound, thought-provoking study
challenges the very foundation of our social laws and practices as they
affect numerous institutions, including education, employment, and
marriage.