''Myra Breckinridge'' is a 1968
satirical
Satire is a genre of the visual arts, visual, literature, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently Nonfiction, non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ...
novel by
Gore Vidal
Eugene Luther Gore Vidal ( ; born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his acerbic epigrammatic wit. His novels and essays interrogated the Social norm, social and sexual ...
written in the form of a
diary
A diary is a written or audiovisual memorable record, with discrete entries arranged by date reporting on what has happened over the course of a day or other period. Diaries have traditionally been handwritten but are now also often digita ...
. Described by the critic
Dennis Altman
Dennis Patkin Altman (born 1943) is an Australian academic and gay rights activist.
Early life and education
Dennis Patkin Altman was born in 1943 in Sydney, New South Wales to Jewish immigrant parents, and spent most of his childhood in Hob ...
as "part of a major cultural assault on the assumed norms of gender and sexuality which swept the western world in the late 1960s and early 1970s", the book's major themes are
feminism
Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...
,
transsexual
A transsexual person is someone who experiences a gender identity that is inconsistent with their assigned sex, and desires to permanently transition to the sex or gender with which they identify, usually seeking medical assistance (incl ...
ity, American expressions of
machismo
Machismo (; ; ; ) is the sense of being " manly" and self-reliant, a concept associated with "a strong sense of masculine pride: an exaggerated masculinity". Machismo is a term originating in the early 1940s and 1950s and its use more wi ...
and
patriarchy
Patriarchy is a social system in which positions of authority are primarily held by men. The term ''patriarchy'' is used both in anthropology to describe a family or clan controlled by the father or eldest male or group of males, and in fem ...
, and
deviant sexual practices, as filtered through an aggressively
camp
Camp may refer to:
Areas of confinement, imprisonment, or for execution
* Concentration camp, an internment camp for political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or minority ethnic groups
* Extermination ...
sensibility. The controversial book is also "the first instance of a novel in which the main character undergoes a clinical sex-change".
Set in
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood ...
in the 1960s, the novel also contains candid and irreverent glimpses into the machinations within the film industry.
''Myra Breckinridge'' was dismissed by some of the era's more conservative critics as
pornographic
Pornography (colloquially called porn or porno) is sexually suggestive material, such as a picture, video, text, or audio, intended for sexual arousal. Made for consumption by adults, pornographic depictions have evolved from cave paintings ...
at the time of its first publication in February 1968; nevertheless, the novel immediately became a worldwide bestseller and has since come to be considered a classic in some circles. "It is tempting to argue that Vidal said more to subvert the dominant rules of sex and gender in ''Myra'' than is contained in a shelf of
queer theory
Queer theory is a field of post-structuralist critical theory that emerged in the early 1990s out of queer studies (formerly often known as gay and lesbian studies) and women's studies. The term "queer theory" is broadly associated with the study a ...
treatises", wrote Dennis Altman. Critic
Harold Bloom
Harold Bloom (July 11, 1930 – October 14, 2019) was an American literary critic and the Sterling Professor of humanities at Yale University. In 2017, Bloom was called "probably the most famous literary critic in the English-speaking world". Af ...
cites the novel as a canonical work in his book ''The Western Canon''. Vidal called ''Myra'' the favorite of his books,
and published a sequel, ''
Myron
Myron of Eleutherae (480–440 BC) (; , ''Myrōn'' ) was an Athenian sculptor from the mid-5th century BC. Alongside three other Greek sculptors, Polykleitos Pheidias, and Praxiteles, Myron is considered as one of the most important sculptors ...
'', in 1974.
The novel was adapted into a
1970 film of the same name, which was panned. Vidal disowned the film, calling it "an awful joke".
In his 1995 memoir ''Palimpsest'', Vidal said the voice of Myra may have been inspired by the "megalomania" of
Anaïs Nin
Angela Anaïs Juana Antolina Rosa Edelmira Nin y Culmell ( ; ; February 21, 1903 – January 14, 1977) was a French-born American diarist, essayist, novelist, and writer of short stories and erotica. Born to Cuban parents in France, Nin was the d ...
's diaries. Indeed, the story is told through increasingly erratic entries in Myra's own personal diary and recordings on events given by Buck Loner.
Plot
A beautiful young woman, Myra Breckinridge is a film enthusiast with a special interest in the
Golden Age of Hollywood
Golden means made of, or relating to gold.
Golden may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
*Golden, in the parish of Probus, Cornwall
*Golden Cap, Dorset
*Golden Square, Soho, London
*Golden Valley, a valley on the River Frome, Stroud#Golden Val ...
—in particular the 1940s—and the writings of film critic
Parker Tyler
Harrison Parker Tyler (March 6, 1904 – July 24, 1974), was an American author, poet, and film critic.
Career
Tyler co-authored ''The Young and Evil'', in 1933 with writer Charles Henri Ford. The work was one of the first openly gay America ...
. In her notebook, she declares her mission is to "re-create the sexes and thus save the human race from certain extinction." She comes to the Academy for Aspiring Young Actors and Actresses in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, owned by her deceased husband Myron's uncle, Buck Loner, a former cowboy actor and current lecher. Myra's purpose in visiting Buck is to claim her mother-in-law Gertrude's share of the property, left jointly to Buck and Gertrude by their father when it was an undeveloped orange grove, and through Myron's will transmitted to her. The property is now worth $2 million. Intending to stall her as long as possible, Buck declares his lawyers will look into the matter; in the meantime, he offers Myra work at the Academy teaching the Empathy and Posture classes.
Myra proves radically popular with the students, while soon becoming a thorn in Buck's side. At a student's party, after "mixing
gin
Gin () is a distilled alcoholic drink flavoured with juniper berries and other botanical ingredients.
Gin originated as a medicinal liquor made by monks and alchemists across Europe. The modern gin was modified in Flanders and the Netherlands ...
and
marijuana
Cannabis (), commonly known as marijuana (), weed, pot, and ganja, List of slang names for cannabis, among other names, is a non-chemically uniform psychoactive drug from the ''Cannabis'' plant. Native to Central or South Asia, cannabis has ...
", Myra gets "stoned out of her head" and suffers visions before passing out in a bathroom. Myra attends an
orgy
An orgy is a sex party where guests freely engage in open and unrestrained sexual activity or group sex.
Swingers' parties do not always conform to this designation, because at many swinger parties the sexual partners may all know each other o ...
arranged by a student. She intends only to observe but suffers a "rude intrusion" by a member of the band The Four Skins, from which she derives a perverse, masochistic enjoyment.
Out of an obscure desire to be avenged on the male sex for the indignities suffered by Myron during his long period of homosexuality, Myra preys upon a student named Rusty Godowski, a muscular ex-
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...
, and ultimately anally violates him with a
strap on. The rape causes Rusty's relationship with Mary-Ann, his girlfriend and fellow student (whom Myra has taken under her wing), to deteriorate. The two break up, and Rusty begins a relationship with Letitia Van Allen, a casting agent who has sex with the male clients she represents. Rusty, previously a gentle lover, has been transformed by his assault at Myra's hands into a violent and brutish sex partner, to Letitia's great delight. Myra's lesbian overtures to Mary-Ann, conversely, are continually frustrated.
Meanwhile, in a meeting in Buck's office his lawyers produce a trump card: no death certificate exists for Myron Breckinridge in New York, and if he is not dead his will has no legal bearing. At this juncture, Myra stands and reveals her
vaginoplasty
Vaginoplasty is any surgical procedure that results in the construction or reconstruction of the vagina. It is a type of genitoplasty. Pelvic organ prolapse is often treated with one or more surgeries to repair the vagina. Sometimes a vaginoplas ...
scars, disclosing that she and Myron are the same person and that she is thus entitled to Gertrude's share of the property. Frightened, disgusted, and shocked, Buck concedes defeat, privately commenting that if he could get away with
murder
Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse committed with the necessary Intention (criminal law), intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisd ...
ing her he would.
Soon after her triumph, Myra is severely injured in a
hit-and-run car accident, and while she is comatose in hospital her breast implants are removed. Upon discovering this when her plaster casts are taken off, Myra
attempts suicide A suicide attempt is an act in which an individual tries to kill themselves but survives. Mental health professionals discourage describing suicide attempts as "failed" or "unsuccessful", as doing so may imply that a suicide resulting in death is a ...
. The novel ends with a
time-skip to three years in the future; Myra is now living as Myron and is married to Mary-Ann; the two have found moderate success in showbiz, and Myron wonders how he could ever have held such grandiose aspirations.
Writing
Vidal first contemplated writing ''Myra Breckinridge'' as a sketch for the risqué revue ''
Oh! Calcutta!
''Oh! Calcutta!'' is an avant-garde, risqué theatrical revue created by British drama critic Kenneth Tynan. The show, consisting of sketches on sex-related topics, debuted Off-Broadway in 1969 and then in the West End in 1970. It ran in ...
'' but quickly decided to develop the story into a novel. He wrote the first draft in Rome over the course of a month. About two weeks into writing the novel, Vidal decided to make Myra transgender.
[As stated]
by Vidal in the documentary '' Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia The name "Breckinridge" was taken from
Bunny Breckinridge
John Cabell "Bunny" Breckinridge (August 6, 1903 – November 5, 1996) was an American actor and drag queen, best known for his role as "The Ruler" in Ed Wood's film ''Plan 9 from Outer Space'', his only film appearance.
Family
He was the grea ...
, an associate of director
Ed Wood
Edward Davis Wood Jr. (October 10, 1924 – December 10, 1978) was an American filmmaker, actor, and pulp novelist.
In the 1950s, Wood directed several B movie, low-budget science fiction, crime and horror films that later became cult c ...
, and a stage performer whose openly gay, flamboyantly transgressive life partly inspired Vidal's novel.
Analysis
According to critic Robert F. Kiernan, ''Myra Breckinridge'' explores the mutability of gender role and sexual orientation as being social constructs established by
social mores
Mores (, sometimes ; , plural form of singular , meaning "manner, custom, usage, or habit") are social norms that are widely observed within a particular society or culture. Mores determine what is considered morally acceptable or unacceptable ...
.
The first novel whose main character undergoes a clinical sex-change, it was praised by Edmund Miller as "a brilliantly chosen image for satire of contemporary mores."
Arnie Kantrowitz called the titular character a "comic surrogate
holooks at life from both sides" and "wields a wicked dildo in her war against gender roles".
Joseph Cady wrote that the novel "skewers conventional American sexuality".
References
{{Gore Vidal
1968 American novels
Metafictional novels
Novels by Gore Vidal
Fictional diaries
Literature related to the sexual revolution
American LGBTQ novels
Hollywood novels
American novels adapted into films
Novels about transgender topics
Little, Brown and Company books
Novels about rape
1960s LGBTQ novels
Works about patriarchy