Sexiness is in the Eye of the Beholder.

What is it that makes women feel sexy? The feminist might say that the closer women get to achieving the image in the male fantasy, the more sexy women feel. But this ideal only applies when women are seeking men. But what about when a woman is not seeking a man? The woman who is in pursuit of another woman may not feel or project the same “sexiness” as one who is conforming to the heterosexual norms of society. Just because there isn’t a man in the relationship does not mean that power dynamics, dominance, pleasure, passion, and love have somehow dissolved. There is a sexiness in  Lesbian relationships, specifically the Butch-Femme relationship that has been unmasked by two courageous artists.

There was and still is a need for the correct representation of the lesbian woman in art, literature, film and most importantly in real life. Joan Nestle and Martha Coolidge wrote and produced about a topic that was highlighted in the 1950s but they both presented their views on an argument that stands the test of time. The Butch-Femme Argument requires the dissection of Nestle’s “Butch-Femme Relationships: Sexual Courage in the 1950s” as well as Coolidge’s film If These Walls Could Talk II in order to really have a well rounded understanding of the Lesbian fight. These two pieces speak to each other in so many ways, it’s as if Coolidge film was directly responding to Nestle’s article. The need for clarification lies in the misconception about Butch-Femme relationships in the 50s. It was believed that these women were imitating heterosexual relationships by assigning masculine and feminine roles to each other. It was easy for the outsider to identify which was which because of the difference in style of dress. If only one woman in the relationship was “dressed like a man”, that suggests to the world that sexiness doesn’t exist if a man is not involved. Nestle steps on this notion when she says, “Dress was a part of it: the erotic signal of her hair at the nape of her neck, touching the shirt collar; how she held a cigarette; the symbolic pinky ring flashing as she waved her hand…I enjoyed strong, fierce love-making, deep, strong givings and takings…” (Page 104). Nestle brings up sex not just to arouse her audience but to touch on the topic of love making and its existence in the butch-femme relationship. She suggests that Lesbians are not confused nor are they pretending to be men. In fact, it is the exact opposite. In the film when the femme character Linda goes to the butch character Amy’s house to return the shirt she borrowed the night before, they end up engaging in sex. During sex, Amy unwraps the elastic band around her chest revealing her breasts and the fact that she is a woman. This scene symbolizes empowerment because her style of dress doesn’t conceal her womanhood, it reinforces it. Amy embraced her womanhood by wearing a suit, tie, and coat and riding a motor bike. By breaking free of the male’s fantasy of a woman, she ultimately liberated her entire being.

Nestle writes, “In some sense, Lesbians have always opposed the patriarchy; in the past, perhaps most when we looked most like men,” (Page 106). This is such a significant line in the text because it solidifies the point Coolidge was trying to make with Amy. The Butch character who embodied a “male figure” the most in the film is the one who is really against the male’s version of female sexuality. Also, the Butch character is the one that society says is the most confused but the film shows that the Butch is the most, secure, confident and self-assured out of all the other lesbians. Towards the ending of the film, Linda returns to Amy’s house after her friends ridiculed her for wearing men’s clothing. This is where she admits that the sexiest thing about Amy is her fearless attitude and courageousness. Linda commends Amy for not hiding who she is and she aspires to someday be as free as she is. Nestle illustrates this sexy trait when she states, “Deeper than the sexual positioning was the overwhelming love I felt for their courage, the bravery of their erotic independence,” (Page 105). Nestle and Coolidge hit the nail on the head when they speak about the reality of the Butch-Femme relationship and they dismiss some of the misconceptions and false stigmas about lesbians. Their work has made it clear that there is a sexiness to the Butch lesbian that transcends physical appearance.