Boston Marriages: Romantic but Asexual Relationships among Contemporary Lesbians - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0870238752 ISBN 13: 9780870238758

Publisher: University of Massachusetts Press, 1993

Synopsis

For decades the term "Boston marriage" was used to describe single women who lived together and shared their lives. The presumption then was that these partnerships were nonsexual. In recent years, however, the opposite assumption has prevailed, causing some women involved in such relationships to hide the asexual nature of their attachments in the lesbian community.

Convinced that Boston marriages are both legitimate and important, Esther D. Rothblum and Kathleen A. Brehony argue that in a society that defines intimacy by the occurrence of sexual activity, we have no word for--and thus no understanding of--the intensely romantic but asexual relationships that some lesbians form. By bringing these relationships "out of the closet" and discussing them openly, the editors and other contributors to this volume challenge our views about lesbianism and address larger questions concerning the construction of sexuality and sexual identity. How, for example, do we define a lesbian relationship? What constitutes a romantic involvement? If a couple does not engage in sex, are they still considered lovers?

This book includes ten personal accounts by women involved in Boston marriages as well as theoretical essays by Lillian Faderman, Marnie Hall, JoAnn Loulan, Suzanna Rose, Debra Zand, Marie Cini, and Laura Brown.

About this title

About the Author:

Esther D. Rothblum is professor of psychology at the University of Vermont. She is editor with E. Cole of Loving Boldly: Issues Facing Lesbians and Closing the Cycle of Sexual Knowledge. Kathleen A. Brehony is a psychotherapist in private practice in Virginia.

From Library Journal:

This collection of theoretical essays and personal stories is not just about "Boston marriages," a term referring to two women in a nonsexual but nonetheless deeply committed relationship. As the book so well concludes, there is no language for this type of relationship, not just for lesbians but for anyone--gay, straight, male, or female--who relates to others outside the traditional roles of friend, lover, spouse, or relative. Living in a society that invalidates a love that has not been sexually validated, the women subjects of this book speak passionately about relationships they have kept hidden even from their own lesbian community; the essays by well-known writers in the area of lesbian studies pale in comparison. This book's apparently specific nature should not deter academics and others interested in the study of human relationships. For academic libraries and women's studies collections.
- Patricia Sarles, Brooklyn P.L.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Massachusetts Press
• Publication date: 1993
• ISBN 10: 0870238752
• ISBN 13: 9780870238758
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 216
• Editor: Rothblum Esther D., Brehony Kathleen A.