The Stereotyping of Female Writers

Why are most female writers considered lesbians? I am in no way saying that all female writers are lesbians but since I have arrived at college and going through my lit. courses I have noticed that a lot of professors (usually male professors) claim that writers such as Emily Dickinson and Mary Shelley were lesbians and that their works hint this fact.

This week we read Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway, which follows Clarissa Dalloway, as well as various other characters through one day in their lives. The novel mentions an incident between the main character Clarissa and her friend Sally where they kissed. Now it has been said that Virginia Woolf was a bisexual so I will not argue with this fact. However, this made me think back to other discussions I've had with professors about other female writers. One such case, I argued for Emily Dickinson that she was in no way a lesbian and her poems were more about life and death rather than her suppressed love of women.

I find it stereotypical to claim that a female writer is bisexual or a lesbian just because they had success during a time when male authors were in control. I'm not saying that some females weren't. That would be denial. All I'm saying is that it is ridiculous to place a woman in this catagory without real proof which has not been found yet.