AtAtransgenderd hhero
I greatly enjoyed your article Is the World Finally Waking Up to Transgender Issues?? (April). Alongside James Barry, Chevalier D’Eon and Harry Stokes, we must include one of Britain’s most controversial and talented authors in the list of transgender heroes: namely, Radclyffe Hall.
Though many consider Hall l to have been a lesbian, I would d argue that this is not an accura ate reflection of how she saw herse elf – an identity that was limited by a lack of understanding and d proper nomenclature that has persisted well into recent decades. Hall dressed in traditionally male attire and, among her friends at least, was s known as John. In her biography/memoir, Hall’s long-time partner, Una, Lady Troubridge, captures the confusion of how a trans person was to live in those times, both referring to her beloved Hall as John while also using female pronouns. There simply wasn’t another option, particularly for those who had achieved a significant level of fame and thus could not hide their gender behind clothing and a changed name.
Indeed, I would also argue that Hall’s novel The Well of Loneliness – the focal point of one of the most famous obscenity trials in history – is wrongly considered to be a seminal lesbian novel. It really should be considered the first trans novel for its portrayal of Stephen Gordon, known by the terminology of the time as a ‘sexual invert’. We owe Hall an enormous debt of gratitude for her attempt to bring light to this facet of queer culture, even if she had to wear the name of lesbian because there were no other options during that period of time. Amy Foster Myer, Portland, Oregon