Water scene

"Today, these couples would be seen as homosexual"

Pauline Aurdal-Åmli
Pauline Aurdal-Åmli Pauline Aurdal-Åmli Pauline Aurdal-Åmli Journalist
Published
Lagherta Broch's diary

'There is a strong resemblance between the human eye and the sea – the mirror of the soul. How beautiful, how indescribably delightful it is to look into a pair of clear eyes that express good and loving feelings!'

This is what Lagertha Broch wrote in her diary on January 11, 1897.

Lagertha Broch

She was a teacher, author, artist, and women's rights advocate.

But she was also part of the Norwegian spinster culture.

Spinster is a term used for unmarried women.

This culture emerged during the 19th century.

It was a result of there being many unmarried women in the cities, greater opportunities for education and work, and more women's organisations.

Many spinsters also formed partnerships with other women.

Christiania / Oslo late 1800s

"There was a significant cultural conflict between traditional and emerging ideas about women and family," explains Tone Hellesund, a historian at the University of Bergen.

At this time, 'the new woman' was on the rise.

"Finding men who were as progressive and feminist as the women of that generation was not easy," she says.

Hellesund completed Norway’s first PhD on queer history in 2002: The Norwegian Spinster.

"An important motivation for forming relationships with other women was that if you entered into marriage, the possibility of having your own career was essentially over," she explains.

Portrait of Lagertha Broch, women's rights advocate and spinster

For career-oriented women like Lagertha, the solution was to live with their 'faithful friend.'

“These were respectable women who lived with their dear, loyal friend, and people rarely interpreted the relationship as homosexual,” the historian explains.

At that time, people had a very different view of sexuality than most do today.

“Today, these couples would be seen as homosexual, but I don’t think most of them saw themselves that way, and those around them didn’t perceive them that way either,” says Hellesund.

Lagherta Broch, women's rights advocate and artist

Interestingly, these so-called spinsters did not face much opposition.

“Even though medicine, law, and theology had their own positions on homosexuality, public attitudes were far more varied,” Hellesund explains.

Their relationships are often described as part of a broader culture of romantic friendship.

Historical sources show that this was more common in the upper social classes.

“The culture of romantic friendship was probably primarily a middle- and upper-class phenomenon. Creating a home together required financial resources that not everyone could afford,” Hellesund explains.

Women from the upper classes left behind more documentation, such as diaries.

Sources showing romantic friendship among the lower classes are usually legal documents and census records.

“There may well have been many more relationships between women from lower social classes than we currently know about,” says the historian.

Still, some couples are known.

The two photographers Bolette Berg and Marie Høeg lived together from the late 19th century onwards.

“Among women in photography, a profession often associated with a middle-class standing, such partnerships were relatively common, and they chould be found across Norway,” Hellesund explains.

Photography was not a highly paid profession.

These women pursued it nonetheless.

Berg and Høeg stayed together for life.

Their photographs show that they played with gender roles.

Here, Marie Høeg is seen wearing a fake mustache.

“It's possible that these couples were ridiculed for being unmarried, seen as frigid, or criticised for not conforming to the heterosexual norm of marrying and having children,” Hellesund says.

“But they were not suspected of being homosexual.”

Why not?

Portrait of four women.

“People largely did not think of what two women could do together as sex. If there was no man and no penis present, it was not considered sex,” the historian explains.

The author Amalie Skram wrote depictions of encounters with brutal husbands on the wedding night.

“The idea that men and women were fundamentally different, also sexually, was very widespread during this period.”

Marie Høeg and Bolette Berg sitting on a sofa.

“There has been some debate in academic circles about the question ‘did they have sex or not?’ I’m very tired of that question,” says Hellesund.

“What matters is that they saw themselves as partners and that these were loving relationships.”

Many of these women lived together in much the same way as married couples.

“And how much sex people had within marriage is also unknown. As a cultural historian, I would absolutely wish that people had been better at documenting their sex lives for future historians,” the researcher says.

“What I find so fascinating about these romantic friendships is that they challenge the way we think about these things today,” Hellesund explains.

She emphasises the importance of not imposing modern perspectives on women of the past.

“We tend to think we have the truth now, but we are shaped by our own time’s cultural understandings, and it is fascinating to see that it was possible to think completely differently about this.”

“Today, many people care about being respected for their identity and having the correct terms used. I believe that should also apply to history,” the researcher explains.

Hellesund’s message is clear:

“It's not appropriate to retroactively label these women as homosexual when neither they nor their contemporaries understood them in that way.”

Photo credits:
Photo 1: National Museum of Norway, CC BY-NC-ND (background removed)
Photos 2–5: National Museum of Norway, public domain
Cover photo and photos 6–12: Berg & Høeg. From the negative archive of Berg & Høeg, Preus Museum collection.
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Translated by Alette Bjordal Gjellesvik
Read the Norwegian version of this article on forskning.no

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