I Am A Woman - Plot Summary

Plot Summary

The story joins the main character of Odd Girl Out, Laura Landon, a year after she has left college. Exhausted by living with her harsh, judging father for his perception that she failed out of school, Laura leaves home in the middle of the night and goes to New York City. She gets a job as a secretary in a medical office and lands an apartment with a roommate — Marcie. Marcie is young and very impulsive, but vivacious and she puts Laura at ease. Laura moves in to the apartment in Greenwich Village with a vague gnawing excitement in her.

Laura and Marcie develop a routine and Laura learns her new job. Marcie is constantly fighting with her ex-husband Burr, who comes around frequently to date Marcie, and in between fights, they sleep together. Finding that Laura tempers Marcie a bit, she insists that she will only date Burr if Laura is with her — which confounds Laura as she recognizes that she is attracted to Marcie and intensely dislikes Burr. Burr brings along a friend, Jack Mann, and they double date one evening. As a joke, he explains, Jack takes them to a gay bar in Greenwich Village and watches their reactions. Jack is clearly an alcoholic and gets drunk frequently, but is good-natured and has a self-deprecating sense of humor. Laura is intrigued by him, and his friends laugh at him.

Jack returns the intrigue when he hears Laura argue with Burr's statement that he can make any of the women in the bar straight if he wanted to. Jack asks her out again and shocks her when he tells Laura he knows she's in love with Marcie. Jack admits he's also gay and helps Laura deal with the realization about herself. She also confides to him that her father hates her because her mother and brother drowned and her father could not save them.

After going out a couple times, Jack introduces Laura to a mutual friend, Beebo Brinker (born as Betty Jean) - a tall, swaggering, dark-haired butch. They meet later in the gay bar after Laura runs away from Marcie, unable to contain her attraction. After a few drinks, Laura is afraid to return home, so Beebo allows her to sleep on the sofa. From a desperate longing and loneliness, Laura sobers up enough to seduce Beebo and they begin a torrid affair. Laura tells Beebo about Marcie and Beebo warns Laura that Marcie knows Laura is in love with her and is playing with her. Laura refuses to believe it.

Laura's father travels to town for a journalists' convention and she attempts to contact him, only to be rebuked. Marcie finally stops speaking to Burr and Burr, frustrated, calls Laura at work and accuses her of being in love with Marcie and keeping her from seeing him. Laura begins to spy on her father and unravel under the strain of her relationship with Marcie. She depends on Jack, who is in a new relationship with a young man, but who expresses his sincere doubt that it will last. After getting drunk and humiliating Beebo in a bar, she's left alone. Exhausted, Laura finally tells Marcie she's in love with her. Marcie, deeply moved by Laura's sincerity and intensity admits that it was a game for her after all, but will try to return Laura's love. Heartbroken and ashamed, Laura leaves the apartment to confront her father at his hotel. They have a violent fight and Laura hits him over the head with an ashtray and runs.

After wandering the night in the rain, Laura shows up at Jack's house fearing she killed her father. Jack and his new boyfriend take care of her. Laura shows up to apologize to Beebo and tells her she loves her. In an ending that was completely different from any previous work of lesbian fiction, they walk together to Beebo's apartment arm in arm.