Reading The L Word Outing Contemporary Television

by Warn, Sarah; Akass, Kim; McCabe, Janet

• ISBN13: 9781845111793
• ISBN10: 1845111796
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-04-04
• Publisher: Atlasbooks Dist Serv

Summary

As Americas first television series about lesbians, The L Word captured national attention when it debuted in 2004, and has continued to make headlines since. The Showtime cable drama about a group of lesbian and bisexual friends in Los Angeles challenges traditional notions of relationships, gender, and sex, and has generated both controversy and devotion within the lesbian community. Contributors write on how the show deals with topics like third-wave feminism, bisexuality, race, glamor, sex, relationships, music, as well as how the series has been marketed to and received by viewers. Also included are interviews with key contributors to the show itself. Throughout, the essays address both humorously and analytically what The L Word says about lesbiansand what lesbians say about The L Word.

Author Biography

Kim Akass is Lecturer in Film Studies at London Metropolitan University. Janet McCabe is Lecturer in Film Studies at Trinity College, Dublin. Both are editors of Reading Sex & the City (I.B.Tauris, 2004) and Reading Six Feet Under (I.B.Tauris, 2005). Sarah Warn is the founder and editor of AfterEllen.com and AfterElton.com, leading entertainment websites for gays and lesbians.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	ix
List of Contributors	xi
Regular Cast	xvii
Foreword: The Letter `L'	xix
Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick
Preface	xxv
Janet McCabe
Kim Akass
Introduction	1	(10)
Sarah Warn
Part 1 Lesbians on TV
Sex and the Clittie	11	(4)
Diane Anderson-Minshall
The L Word Under-whelms the UK?	15	(12)
Paula Graham
Interview with Guinevere Turner (November 2004)	27	(6)
Sarah Warn
New Queer Cable? The L Word, the Small Screen and the Bigger Picture	33	(10)
Michele Aaron
Part 2 Looking
The (In)visible Lesbian: Anxieties of Representation in The L Word	43	(12)
Susan J. Wolfe
Lee Ann Roripaugh
How Does a Lesbian Look? Stendhal's Syndrome and The L Word	55	(14)
Dana Heller
Lipstick Leviathans: Demonologies of the Lesbian Body in The L Word	69	(12)
Mark W. Bundy
Part 3 Loving
Heteronormativity and The L Word: From a Politics of Representation to a Politics of Norms	81	(18)
Samuel A. Chambers
Straight-up Sex in The L Word	99	(12)
Lorna Wheeler
Lara Raven Wheeler
The Chart	111	(4)
Kim Ficera
'L' Is for 'Long Term': Compulsory Monogamy on The L Word	115	(24)
Merri Lisa Johnson
Why is The L Word Sexy?	139	(4)
Kathy Belge
What Is A Straight Girl To Do? Ivan's Serenade, Kit's Dilemma	143	(16)
Janet McCabe
Kim Akass
Part 4 Labels
Is She Man Enough? Female Masculinities on The L Word	159	(14)
Candace Moore
Kristen Schilt
Interview with Katherine Moennig (March 2003)	173	(4)
Sarah Warn
The Other 'L' Word: Representing a Latina Identity	177	(6)
Shauna Swartz
The Glamour Factor and the Fiji Effect	183	(6)
Jennifer Vanasco
Radical Acts: Biracial Visibility and The L Word	189	(10)
Sarah Warn
Hot Stuff: Music as a Language of Lesbian Culture	199	(10)
Zoe Gemelli
Interview with Erin Daniels (January 2004)	209	(6)
Sarah Warn
The Essential L Word Episode Guide	215	(17)
Scribe Grrrl
Film and TV Guide	232	(3)
Bibliography	235	(10)
Index	245