Analysis Of Homosexuality In Alison Bechdel's Fun Home

On pages 74 through 77 of Fun Home, Alison Bechdel chronicles her full realization that she is a lesbian in her own “bookish” way. Moving on from the clinical dictionary definition of the word “lesbian” that she discovered in her early adolescence (page 74, panel 3), Bechdel turns to works of fiction and chronicles of others’ experiences with homosexuality which she finds in books at her college’s library, as opposed to exploring her sexuality on her own in the real world. This is consistent with how Bechdel approaches most situations- not necessarily that she experiences everything vicariously through published fiction, but she and her family often relay life experiences passively, such as in the form of typewritten letter (as with her coming
Instead of immediately involving herself with the LGBT+ organizations on her college campus at age 19, she “researches” homosexuality in a strictly solitary way before putting what she feels into practice. For her, it is necessary to immerse herself theoretically through books, letters, and anecdotes – whether this applies to her sexuality, her parents’ past relationship, and her father’s childhood - before confronting these subjects head-on. She name-checks several works of literature which were instrumental to her growth of identity as a lesbian- The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe Hall, Our Right To Love by Ginny Vida, and Delta of Venus by Anais Nin, to name a few. Reading these, for Bechdel, is as much of a part of her exploration as actually acting upon her sexuality. When she comes out to her parents (page 77), her father states, “Everyone should experiment. It’s healthy,” which is ironic because at that point, Alison hasn’t actually experimented at all. Bruce’s direct communication (a phone call) in support of Alison’s sexuality is starkly contrasted by Mrs. Bechdel’s: she continues the cold Bechdel tradition by condemning her daughter’s “choice” in a typewritten