nodding sagely, the slit mouthed woman as analogy for being gay. And carefully applying make-up/keeping your expressions in check as analogy for repressing/being closeted.

Good stuff.

So the slit mouth part was a metaphor

You know what, I literally just read Slit-Mouth Woman earlier and thought “it’d be nice if this got a sequel,” and while it’s not the ladies from before, I really loved this!

good one

nodding sagely, the slit mouthed woman as analogy for being gay. And carefully applying make-up/keeping your expressions in check as analogy for repressing/being closeted.

Good stuff.

As a trans woman, I thought way more of being trans than gay. Because yeah, being gay is hard and stuff, but you don't necessarily need to announce it to the world.

Being trans tho... You don't have much of a choice if you wanna be happy, you have to go through several steps of being shamed and beaten and hunted for it to finally "fit in" and not be noticed. And you likely will still be if you mess up once.

Also to me the line of "She's just a fucking slit-mouthed woman" as if to say "She's not woman enough."

nodding sagely, the slit mouthed woman as analogy for being gay. And carefully applying make-up/keeping your expressions in check as analogy for repressing/being closeted.

Good stuff.

As a trans woman, I thought way more of being trans than gay. Because yeah, being gay is hard and stuff, but you don't necessarily need to announce it to the world.

Being trans tho... You don't have much of a choice if you wanna be happy, you have to go through several steps of being shamed and beaten and hunted for it to finally "fit in" and not be noticed. And you likely will still be if you mess up once.

Also to me the line of "She's just a fucking slit-mouthed woman" as if to say "She's not woman enough."

My reading as well. When you're fixated on passing, and haven't deconstructed the idea that, separate from safety and convenience, it is a good thing, it can be infuriating to see people who don't worry about it. That's where you get people lashing out at other trans people with their own internalized bigotry.

As a trans woman, I thought way more of being trans than gay. Because yeah, being gay is hard and stuff, but you don't necessarily need to announce it to the world.

Being trans tho... You don't have much of a choice if you wanna be happy, you have to go through several steps of being shamed and beaten and hunted for it to finally "fit in" and not be noticed. And you likely will still be if you mess up once.

Also to me the line of "She's just a fucking slit-mouthed woman" as if to say "She's not woman enough."

certainly a good reading as well, I mostly focused on the normal family that she starts the narration with and the way the she's jealous of how the other slit mouthed woman can be so happy with another woman where she feels like she has to keep to herself.

so to edit. Nodding sagely, the slit mouthed woman as analogy for being a trans lesbian. And carefully applying make-up/keeping your expressions in check as analogy for repressing/being closeted.