Hemingway, Wilhelm, and a Style for Lesbian Representation

This essay explores Hemingway's possible influence on We Too Are Drifting (1935), a now forgotten lesbian novel by Gale Wilhelm, and then examines how both authors engaged with contemporary scientific arguments about the origin of homosexuality, specifically the early 20^th century psychological concept of "sexual inversion." Wilhelm's style and tropes evoke Hemingway's, while both authors use "twinness" as a vehicle to explore sexuality and sexual identity in different ways. Using an apparently "factual" writing style, each sought to represent same-sex desire as a "fact" of normal and mainstream life.