Conclusion: Feminism, Friendship and Conflict

Abstract

Women friends constitute my most precious relationships as well as the most complex. Eichenbaum and Orbach identify the exquisite intimacy of female friendships while also noting how they have the potential to generate powerful negative feelings: ‘Behind the curtain of sisterhood lies a myriad of emotional tangles that can wreak havoc in women’s relationships with each other’ (Eichenbaum and Orbach, 1988, 10–11). Indeed, my most cherished friendships are precisely those knotty ones in which we have found ourselves exposed, vulnerable, hurt, but also loving; where we have created an alchemy of relating unique to us and which has illuminated much about ourselves and each other. These ‘emotional tangles’, however, have also caused the dissipation of some friendships and their loss continues to be a source of grief. Eichenbaum and Orbach identify how feelings like anger and betrayal are not easily expressed and, as a consequence, collaborations, networks and intimacies can be destroyed. If conflicts between women do not have a collective space to be unpacked then solidarities can implode, leading to the dissolution of projects and manifestos.