However, later she notes the predators can really be either sex, especially when it comes to sex and sexuality. Because she had a fantastic body, some of her female lovers abused her and used her too, and in fact, it was her first lover, "Jan" that said she had a body good enough to model with and earn money.
It must be remembered that Faderman had few choices as a young girl growing up in the 1950s, especially if she was gay. Maury the counselor told her if she was not going to marry, she was going to have to work, so she needed an education, so the attitude was still that a woman's real career option was to marry and have children. Feminist author Monique Wittig writes, "Lesbians should always remember and acknowledge how 'unnatural,' compelling, totally oppressive, and destructive being "woman" was for us in the old days before the women's liberation movement" (Wittig 555). Thus, Faderman did not have that many options open to her to get what she wanted, and choosing to use her body may have been the most logical option for the time.
It is extremely brave of her to share that time in her life when she has risen to a position of power in the California educational system, and brave of her to share the photos in the book, as well. She literally lays herself bare for criticism, but in fact, she is an inspiration for other feminists, because she clearly illustrates that women are not their bodies, they are much, much more, as her adult life clearly shows.
However, the many women in her life influence Faderman, as well. While she works as a stripper...
She says, "The Cornell professor found that all the women in his study came from the lower socioeconomic classes and were rejected by their fathers" (Faderman 257). Thus, her mother turned on her when she found she was posing nude, her lover berated her for her job, and her aunt only wants her to find a good "Jewish prince," even though Lillian knows by the age of sixteen she much prefers women to men. Women influenced how she felt about herself and her sexuality, while men influenced her in far deeper ways.
In conclusion, this memoir shows that women can rise to greatness from great adversity. Feminist Wittig writes, "We were at the same time accused of wanting to be men" (Wittig 555), but Faderman makes it quite clear she never wanted to be a man. She knew she was a beautiful woman, and she used that to her advantage. However, she always knew what was inside her, and that was feelings for other women. Wittig continues, "To refuse to be a woman, however, does not mean that one has to become a man" (Wittig 556). Faderman's life is a great example of that statement. She is in a committed loving relationship, has a son, and a fine career. She has not become a man, rather, she has become herself, and that is an important journey for anyone in life.
References
Faderman, Lillian. Naked in the Promised Land.
Wittig, Monique. "One is Not Born a Woman." Everyday Theory. Ed. McLaughlin and Coleman. New York: Longman, 2005. 553-560.
