Den här uppsatsen handlar om Charlie (1932) av Margareta Suber, som ofta kallas Sveriges  första lesbiska roman, och Girl Meets Boy (2007) av Ali Smith, en modern roman som utspelar sig i en annan tid och kontext, men har många gemensamma teman med Charlie. Böckerna  behandlar homosexualitet, androgynitet och genus, men det viktigaste för den här uppsatsen  är hur de centrala karaktärerna tar del av en skriven text, och hur sagda text är fundamental  för deras identitetsskapande och böckerna i sig.  Detta hör samman med diskursbegreppet och representation på flera olika sätt; vilka  strukturer styr hur böckerna och texterna i böckerna ser ut? Vilka effekter får de? Hur  representeras verkligheten i texterna? Hur tolkas de av karaktärerna?  De två böckerna ställs sida vid sida för att möjliggöra en jämförelse av diskurser i olika  kontexter. Genom att ställa en äldre bok mot en nyare med samma centrala teman är det  lättare att se hur diskurserna i de olika böckerna ser ut och verkar.  En av uppsatsens slutsatser är att den centrala skrivna texten i Charlie kommer från ett  snävare utbud av texter än den i Girl Meets Boy, och ger huvudpersonen som läser den en  snävare beteckning att identifiera sig med. En annan är att texterna påverkar karaktärerna i  de två böckerna på väldigt olika sätt, och att orden och att göra dem till sina egna är av stor  vikt i en människas (och kanske särskilt i en från normen avvikande människas)  identitetsskapande. Karaktärerna tar ord som de fått av andra och gör dem till sina egna, och  gör med det en tolkning av dem. De betonar vissa aspekter av texterna, utesluter annat, låter vissa saker definiera dem och ta extra plats i textens betydelse, och bedömer andra saker  som oväsentliga. De skriver alltså om andras ord, med andra ord.

The aim of this thesis is to study representations of identity and (in)visibility in Swedish lesbian novels written in the 1930s, and to provide a summary of Swedish lesbian literature up to the early 21st century. This study has been done through a close reading primarily of Charlie by Margareta Suber (1932), Fröknarna von Pahlen by Agnes von Krusenstjerna (1930–1935) and Kris by Karin Boye (1934). Lesbian literature is discussed as a loose category, a construction which can be used as an analytical tool in a conscious and reflexive way, with its basis in the categories of author, text and reader. In short, I define lesbian literature as novels written by women, about lesbian figures and/or relationships, and for lesbian readers in the sense that the literature depicts lesbians from an insider’s perspective. As regards the period before 1930, the focus is on romantic friendship and the excitement zone when the romantic friendship becomes a sexual one, as seen in the fictitious case of Sin fars dotter (1920) by Lydia Wahlström. Sexological theories, the image of “the new woman” and changes to the law all colour the first half of the 20th century. This is seen in Charlie by Margareta Suber, where the author makes use of many such explanations in her creation of a lesbian figure. A reading of Fröknarna von Pahlen by Agnes von Krusenstjerna shows an intricate pattern of relationships at its heart. My analysis charts several same-sex couples, a lesbian single woman and two collectives; that is to say, the female collective and the male homosexual collective. The relationships between women are many-faceted and include everything from romantic friendship, kinship and sensualism to eroticism and shared parenthood. In my analysis of Kris by Karin Boye, I focus on Malin, the main character, and the development of her sense of identity, in which the struggle between the language of the world around her and her own emotional experience of love for a woman is a central theme. After the 1930s, the historical context changed in terms of everything from decriminalisation in 1944 via the homophobic panic of the 1950s to the impact of queer theory in the 1990s. Swedish lesbian literature addresses everything from crime of passion (murder) to the coming out process of young women. There exists in all novels from the 1930s an interplay that is (in)visible: the characters or lesbian relationships depicted are both visible and invisible at the same time. The characters are more or less aware of the potential risks attached to being visible as a lesbian, and often they do not notice themselves when this occurs. During the course of the 20th century, (in)visibility becomes replaced by openness and secrecy, and the visibility of the lesbian characters is politicised. / The abstract is translated by Janet French.

In this paper, I study the concept of subordination and power by using two Swedish lesbian classic literary texts; ”Den första kärleken”, published in the collection of short stories Berättelser och skizzer (1884) by Mathilda Roos and Charlie (1932) by Margareta Suber. I examine power dynamics and subordination by comparing the two texts with each other and analyze the similarities and differences between subordination in queer contexts and in heterosexual contexts. Judith Butlers theory of subordination and Michel Foucalts theory of the subject and power are the theoretical ground for this paper, as well as the heterosexual script, which function as a way to illustrate what the characters conform to and/or resist against. As a result, I find that queer subordination is more exciting than heterosexual subordination, but also that heterosexual subordination is, although the characters conform to it, a form of resistance against the heterosexual norm. I also find that social punishment is a crucial aspect regarding the choices they make when it comes to queer subordination.