LuceIrigaray THISSEXWHICHISNOONE TranslatedbyCATHERINE PORTER
withCAROLYNBURKE CORNELL UNIVERSITYPRESS NewYork Originally
published inFrenchunderthetitleCeSexequin'enestpasun,
1977byEditionsdeMinuit. Copyright1985byCornellUniversity
Allreserved.Exceptforbrief quotationsinareview,thisbook,or must
notbereproducedin anyformwithout permission in
fromthepublisher.Forinformation,addressCornell
Press,124RobertsPlace,Ithaca,New York14850.
FirstpUOllsneo985CornellPress. InternationalStandard Book Number
0-8014-1546-2 InternationalStandard Book Number 0--8014-9331-5
Libraryof CongressCatalogCardNumber 84-23013
PrintedintheUnitedStatesof America Librarians:Libraryof Congress
appearsonthelast pageof thebook.
Thepaperinthisbookisacid-Jreeandmeetsthe guidelines for
permanenceanddurabilityof theCommitteeonProductionGuidelines
forBookLongevityof theCouncilonLibraryResources. Contents
1.TheLookingfromOther Side 2.ThisSexWhichIsNot One
3.PsychoanalyticTheory:AnotherLook 4.The Power of
DiscourseandtheSubordination of theFeminine 5.COStFanTutti
6.The"Mechanics"of Fluids 7.Questions 8.Women on the Market
9.CommoditiesamongThemselves 10."Frenchwomen,"StopTrying 11.WhenOur
LipsSpeakTogether Publisher'sNote andNoteson SelectedTerms 9 23 34
68 86 106 119 170 198 205 219 5 1 THISSEXWHICHISNOTONE
TheLookingGlass, fromtheOtherSide ... she suddenly began
again."Then it really has happened,afterall!Andnow,whoamI?Iwill
remember,ifI can!I'm determined to do it!"But being determined
didn't help her much,and all she could say,after a great deal of
puzzling,was:"L, I knowit beginswith L." ThroughtheLooking-Glass
Alice'seyesareblue.Andred.Sheopenedthemwhilegoing
throughthemirror.Except forthat,shestill seemstobeexempt foom
violence.Shelivesalone,inherhouse.Sheprefersitthatway,her
mothersays.Sheonly
goesouttoplayherroleasmistress.Schoolmistress,naturally.Whereunalterable
factsarewritten downwhatever
theweather.Inwhiteandblack,orblackandwhite,dependingon
whetherthey'reputontheblackboardorinthenotebook.Without color
changes,in anycase.Thoseare saved for thetimeswhen Alice is
alone.Behind the screen of representation.Inthe houseor garden. But
justwhenit'stimeforthestorytobegin,beginagain,"it's autumn.
JJThatmomentwhenthingsarestillnotcompletelycongealed,dead.It
oughttobeseized sothatsomethingcanhappen.But everythingis
forgotten:the((measuringinstruments, JJthe"coat, JJthe
"case,"andespeciallytheUglasses. JJ"How cananyonelivewithout
Thistextwasoriginallypublished as"Le miroir,del'autre
cote,"inCritique,no.309(February1973). 9 - - - ~ . - -
-SexWhichIsNotOne allthat? JJUptonow,that's what hascontrolled the
limits of properties,distinguishedoutside
ftominside,differentiatedwhatwaslooked onwithapproval ftomwhat
wasn't.Madeit possibletoappreciate,to recognizethevalueof
everything.Tofitinwithit,asneeded.
Theretheyare,alllost,withouttheirfamiliarreferencepoints.
What'sthedifferencebetweena ftiendandno ftiend?Avirginanda
whore?Yourwiftandthewomanyoulove?Theoneyoudesireand
theoneyoumakelovewith?Onewomanandanotherwoman?The
onewhoownsthehouseandtheonewhousesit forher pleasure,
oneyoumeetthereforpleasure?Inwhichhouseandwithwhich
womandoes-did-williove happen?And whenisittime forlove, anyway?Time
forwork?Howcanthestakesinloveandworkbe sorted out?Does"surveying"
have anything todowithdesire,or not?
Canpleasurebemeasured,bounded,triangulated,ornot?Besides, autumn,
JJthecolorsarechanging.Turningred.Thoughnot for long.
NodoubtthisisthemomentAliceoughttoseize.Nowisthetime
forhertocomeonstageherselfWithherviolet,violatedeyes.Blue
andred.Eyesthatrecognizetherightside,thewrongside,andthe
side:theblurof deformation;theblackorwhiteof alossoj
identity.Eyesalwaysexpectingappearancestoalter,expectingthat
onewill turnintotheother,isalreadythe other.But Alice isat school.
She'llcomeback fortea,whichshealwaystakesbyherselfAt least
that'swhathermotherclaims.And she'stheonlyonewhoseemsto whoAliceis.
Soat four o'clock sharp,the surveyor goesintoher house.And since
asurveyorneedsa pretexttogointosomeone'shouse,especiallya
lady'S,he'scarryinga basketojvegetables.FromLucien.Penetrating
into"her" placeundercoverof somebodyelse'sname,clothes,love.
Forthetimebeing,thatdoesn'tseemtobotherhim.Heopensthe
door,she'smaking a phone call.Toher fiand:.Onceagainhe slipsin
between them.thetwothem.Intothebreachthat'sbringinga
TheLookingGlass,ftom OtherSide womananaa
manclosertogether,todayatjouro'clock.Sincethe
relationshipbetweenLucienandAliceliesinthezoneoj the
yet."Or"never."Pastandfoturebothseemsubjecttoquitea
"That'swhatloveis,maybe?"And hisinterventioncutsback
acrosssomeotherin-betweens:mother-Alice,Lucien-Gladys,Aliceher
ftiend("She alreadyhas
aftiend,one'senough"),tall-short(surveyors).Tomentiononlywhatwe'vealreadyseen.
Doeshisinterventionsucceed?Or doeshebegintoharbora suspicion that
she is not simply herself? Helooks fora light.Tohide
confosion,fillintheambiguity.Distractherbysmoking.She doesn't
seethelighter,eventhoughit's right in ftont ofher; instead she
callshimintothefirstbedroomwheretheremustbealight.His
familiaritywiththehousedispelstheanxiety.He goesupstairs.She
invites himtoenjoy her,ashelikes.They separateinthe garden.One of
themhas Jorgotten"her" glassesbythetelephone,theother"his"
onthebed.The"[if!ht JJ haschangedplaces.
Hegoesbacktotheplacewhereheworks.Shedisappearsinto
nature.IsitSaturdayorSunday?Isittime Jarsurveyingor
He'sconfosed.There's only one thing todo:pick ajight with a "cop."
desireiscompellingenoughtomakehimleaveatonce.
Nomoreaboutcops,atleast forthetimebeing.He findshimself
(theyfindeachother)nearthe garden.Amaninloveanda manin love with a
woman wholives in the house.The first asks the second,or
ratherthesecondasksthe jirst,if hecan go(back)andseethewoman heHe
isbeginningtobe ftightened,and begstobeallowed. Afterward.
Good(commonorproper)sense-anysenseof proprietyor property-escapes
Lucien.He givesthingsout,setsthemin motion,
withoutcounting.Cap,vegetables,consent.Aretheyhis?Dothey
totheothers?Tohiswift?Tosomebodyelse's?As forwhatis
his,itcomesbacktohiminthedance.Whichdoesnotpreventhim
fromallowingotherstotakeit.Elsewhere. ... ---..---.11
ThisSexWhichIsNotOne Sohe comes(back)itl.It's teatime.She...
She?She who?Who's
she?She(is)another...lookingforalight.Where'salight?
Upstairs,inthebedroom,thesurveyor,thetallone,pointsoutcheer-Pleased
atlasttocomeacrossa specific,unquestionable,verifiable
fact.Pleasedthat hecanproveit (himself)usinga + b,or1 + 1,
thatis,anelementthatrepeatsitself,onethatstaysthesameandyet
produces a displacement inthe sum; pleased that it's a matter oja
series, oJa sequence.In short,ofa story.Might aswell sayit's
true.That he had alreadybeenthere.That he... ?That
she?Was?Wasn't?She.
Forthevegetablesnolongerproveanything.{'Imusthaveeaten them.""1"
who?Only the"light" is left.But it isn't thereto shoreup
theargument.AndeveniJ itwere,notraceoj whathashappened
wouldremain.As forattestingthatthelighthasmoved fromhereto
there,orstatingthatitscurrentwhereaboutsareknown,ornaming
Alice'sroomastheonlyplaceitcanbe found,theseareall just claims
thatdependon"magic."
Alicehasneverlikedoccultism.Notthattheimplausiblesurprises
Sheknowsmore thananyoneabout
fobulous,fantastic,unbelievablethings...
Butshe'salwaysseenwhatshetalksabout.She's observed allthemarvels
first-hand.She'sbeen"inwonderland."She
hasn'tsimplyimagined,"intuited.}}Induced,perhaps?Moreover, froma
distance.Andacross partitions? Going through the
lookingglass,that'ssomething elseagain.
Besides,therearenotracesojsuchanadventureinthat gentleman's
eyes.It'sa matteroJnuances.Soit'surgentJorhimtogetoutof the
houseatonce.Hewon't?Thenshe'stheonewho'llleave,who'll
desertit.Theout-of-doorsisanextraordinaryreJuge.Especiallyin
thisseason,withallitscolors.toogoesintothe garden.Right up Soone
nolonger hasthe right tobe alone?Whereisone to go?If and
gardenareopentoallcomers.Omniscient surveyors, for example.It's
imperativetohurry and invent a retreat theycan't get to.
Curlupsomewhereprotectedfromtheirschemingeyes,fromtheir
inquiries.Fromtheir penetration.Where?
TheLookingGlass,fromtheOtherSide Lucienknowshow towait,even
forquitea longtime.His patience outattheedgeof
thevegetablegarden.Installed
outsidetheproperty,hepeels.Prejerablybeetstalks,whichmake little
girls growup.And leadthemimperceptiblytomarriage.Froma
longwayoff,verycarefully,he'spreparinga foture.Improbable.
That'snottheonlythinghe'speeling.Perhapsthataccountsforhis
arrival.Empty-handed.Hedoesn'teventakethepath,likeeveryone
else.Hecomesacrossthegrass.Alwaysa littleunseeml
Alicesmiles.Luciensmiles.Theysmileateachother,complieitously.Theyareplaying.Shemakeshima
gijtoJthecap."What willGladyssay?"Thathehasaccepteda gift
fromAlice?Thatshe has offeredhimthat cap?A"dragon.fly" whose
Jurtive flightvolatizes
