Michel Foucault begins his essay “We, the Other Victorians” with a description of what he calls “the Repressive Hypothesis” (Foucault 10). According to this hypothesis, openly expressing one's sexuality in the early 17th century was considered shameless. Transitioning into the Victorian era and with the development of the Victorian bourgeoisie, sexuality began to take on a whole new meaning. Any physical act or visual representation of sexuality with a purpose distinct from procreation became considered “illegitimate,” paving the way for a generation of repressive silence (Foucault 3). In modern American culture, we can affirm that society has "liberated itself from those two long centuries during which the history of sexuality [was] considered above all as the chronicle of increasing repression", but assume this position is to assume that the repressive hypothesis is correct and that the Victorians were in fact sexually repressed (Foucault 5). Foucault disputes this position, arguing that the Victorians were more sexually liberated than modern society generally considers. Rather, this consideration is based on a sense of sovereignty that can be gained by triumphing over a repressive force by engaging in any activity widely considered taboo. In Alison Bechdel's Fun Home, Alison's indulgence in lesbian literature and her experience within the gay community rewards her with a sense of liberation. Considering Foucault's "repressive hypothesis", this could be based on Alison's experience of a sudden sense of freedom due to the break with the sexual repression of our Victorian ancestors. The purpose of this essay is to investigate Alison's invigorating exploration of sexual identity through language, physical expression, and the satisfaction gained through a sense of community. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essayFoucault argues that during the Victorian period, sexuality shifted from a behavior-based to a behavior-based conception on identity, like a certain number of identities. categories were highlighted. Partly because of this historical shift, Alison accepts her sexual identity through discourse before actually engaging in sexual intimacy with another woman, experiencing "a revelation not of the flesh, but of the spirit" ( Bechdel 74). Alison spends a lot of time at the library researching lesbian-friendly books such as Word is Out: Stories of Some of our Lives by Nancy Adair and The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe Hill. In this passage, Alison recalls that she “first learned the word [lesbian] because of its alarming prominence in [her] dictionary” (Bechdel 74). Following this discovery, Alison begins to identify with the word and accepts its importance in defining her identity. According to author Timothy Murphy, “some scholars…argue that in their modern form, [gay and lesbian] identities were created in medical and sexological discourses of the late 18th century” (Murphy 598). Thus, the word "lesbian" did not exist in pre-Victorian discourse, whereas it occupies an important place in Alison's twenty-first century discourse and plays a determining role in her conceptualization of personal identity. Elsa, a character from one of the books depicted in this passage, was born in 1898 and "never had that crossover crisis that people talk about these days – the feeling that you have to undergo some kind of indoctrination or trauma, or a coming-out ritual” (Bechdel 74). This clearly shows the generation gap when it comes todiscourse between the Victorian era and Alison's modern era. Foucault highlights modern society's emphasis on overcoming sexual repression in order to feel liberated and powerful. In this passage from Fun Home, we find examples of Alison acting in accordance with Foucault's repressive hypothesis. Following her identification with the word "lesbian," Alison "put up her courage and bought" a gay-friendly book, "and soon [she] was trolling even the public library, without worrying about the risks" (Bechdel 75 ). The risks in question undoubtedly rest on societal acceptance of homosexuality. As she continues her coming out journey, Alison attends a “Gay Union” meeting, then proceeds to come out to her parents (Bechdel 75-76). Each of these cases represents a need to fight against the “repressive” societal forces that persuade her not to publicly declare her sexual orientation. Foucault challenges the idea that power is a “top-down” model in which those at the top hold power and those at the bottom are subject to it. Foucault instead theorizes power as a set of fluid community relations. Alison's sense of power in this passage comes from community: a community of gay authors and a community of "Gay Union" people. Like Foucault, Bechdel challenges the concept of a hierarchy of power, proving that experience within a community of people has the capacity to foster a strong sense of individual power. Following her public statements, Alison feels "exalted" and in a "trembling state" as she experiences a gratifying sense of power and authority over her identity (Bechdel 76). Following the emphasis on discourse and publicity, Bechdel begins to emphasize the physicality of Alison's revelation regarding her sexual identity. She describes her experience at the library, stating that she "found a four-foot treasure in the stacks which she promptly raped", a phrase with obvious sexual connotations. This play on words is followed by physical indulgence, as “it became clear that [she] was going to have to leave [the] academic plane and enter the human fray” (Bechdel 76). Alison's epiphany is supported by an image of her masturbating while reading Anais Nin's Delta of Venus. By moving from literature to physical reality, Alison takes the final steps in her journey toward understanding and formulating her identity. From this point on, she begins to physically experiment with her partner Joan at university without worrying about the societal consequences: “Joan was a poet and a 'matriarchist'. I spent very little of the remaining semester out of bed” (Bechdel 80). Such a strong physical revelation might not have been possible for Alison without first relating to lesbian discourse. Even during the physical experience, she and Joan merge literature with sex, as the bed was "strewn with books, however, in what was for me a new fusion of words and deeds" (Bechdel 80). At this point, the discourse becomes sexual and sexuality becomes dependent on literature. Alison acts in accordance with the repressive hypothesis on different levels. She seeks her identity through discourse, by making her sexual orientation known and by engaging in physically sexual acts. Foucault defines “the relationship between sex and power in terms of repression: something that could be called the benefit of the speaker. If sex is repressed, that is to say condemned to prohibition, non-existence and silence, then the simple fact of talking about it has the appearance of a deliberate transgression” (Foucault 6) . Although Alison lives in the midst of the gay revolution, homosexuality is not fully, 2000.