In chapter 3, after doing a lot of research on lesbians, Allison makes up her mind to reveal her gender identity to her parents via a letter. In the first panel of page 77, she likens how impersonal the letter is to her family but in a light-hearted manner. This tone shows how bechdel can look back and recollect her story with a sense of humour, but sarcastic tone suggests isolation of her family members and distance between them which would have made allison choose to write letters instead of talking to her parents about her gender identity. Also, she mostly uses illustration to tell the story. Even when her father doesn’t take her gender identity seriously, there is no text that describes her frustration in detail. Instead, illustration of her being shocked tells the reader how she feels. She is devastated as well when her mom tries to deny the fact that her daughter is lesbian, but she doesn’t explicitely say that. Her mother has stereotype on lesbians and it makes Bechdel feel unwanted and disappointed to her mom.
Below are some extracts from other people
“Just when Alison feels as though she is finally becoming her own person and establishing her unique identity by deviating from the social norms at the time and coming out as lesbian, she is once again seen as being resemblant of her father. It is almost as if she has had a piece of her identity stolen from her.”
“He simply reads and follows whereas Alison chooses to explore her identity, and write up her own identity through the inspiration she gains from reading about similar situations; she does not wish to conform. Hence, Bechdel reveals that though they may be similar in their interest in literature, they both seek to gain completely different things from it.”
-Gianina