End of masquerade

That we're all wearing masks 8-) in our daily lives is a notion which has gone somewhat out of fashion, at least in academic discourse. The theatrical metaphor is a rigid one, as it implies that we play our roles consistently, that we follow a script and that we are somehow more authentic behind our masks. Our real selves would show when every once in a while we put the masks down (and when would that be?)

I'm done reading Norah Vincent's story now, and she has, of course, been wearing a mask in quite a literal sense. She was Ned. But what she concludes after 18 months as this self-invented man - going to bars, bowling, working etc. among other men - is not just that her masquerade was a frustrating experience in itself. Her great distress came, she says, [and don't read on now, if you're planning to read the book],

from the way the world greeted me in my disguise, a disguise which was almost as much of a put-on for my men friends as it was for me. That, maybe, was the last twist of my adventure. I passed in a man's world not because my mask was so real, but because the world of men was such a masked ball. (273)

There's no mistaking the theatrical terminology here. And what is more, in Norah Vincent's experience her men's group of all places was where masks were let down:

Only in my men's group did I see these masks removed and scrutinized. Only then did I know that my disguise was the one thing I had in common with every other guy in the room. (273)

Pulling off everybody's masks at the end seems an overly simplistic way of wrapping the story up, and it came as such a disappointment after reading Vincent's close and carefully prepared descriptions up until then. Discharging the idea of social masquerades as such may be hasty, but these lines that I've quoted do sound crude, don't they (especially when read out of context). Still Vincent presents this as a true and extraordinary experience which eventually made her suffer a mental breakdown and puts an end to her investigations.

It is always striking how undercover reporting turns questions of appearances and social interaction into very practical matters. Social mechanisms become obstacles to be instantly dealt with by the reporters in order to keep their cover intact, so social mechanisms in these texts tend to be described in terms of exactly that: mechanisms. And masquerades. It all becomes very literal and heavy-handed which might explain why many of these adventures - despite their playful setup - seem predetermined and, end of post now, become quite depressing stories to read.