Lesbian masculinity stems from assuming male responsibilities, not from erotic life.

Evidence

What gives women enclosed in homosexuality a masculine character is not their erotic life, which, on the contrary, confines them to a feminine universe: it is all the responsibilities they have to assume because they do without men. — Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, 1077

Categorization

• DEFINE: Beauvoir’s core distinction: the lesbian’s masculine character comes from role (responsibilities) rather than desire, which stays feminine.
• XREF: connects to: The desire to provide is not an innate male instinct — bell hooks, Ain’t I a Woman_ Black Women and…, 225; Lesbians suffer psychological malaise from being neither complete woman nor virile man — Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, 1045

Broader Connections

• Lesbians suffer psychological malaise from being neither complete woman nor virile man #complicates (0.78) — Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, 1045
• The desire to provide is not an innate male instinct #corroborates (0.72) — bell hooks, Ain’t I a Woman_ Black Women and…, 225