The+L+Word

**“The L Word” summary**
The L Word was a show introduced on Showtime Networks in January 2004. Showtime is a pay cable channel that has promoted queer television in the past (Kern 2005). In part from the title, the show is based on lesbians in the modern day; but not all characters on this show are lesbians. The L Word is a drama that centers around seven women in the Los Angeles area. Each of the seven women has different sexualities including lesbian, bisexual, and heterosexual (Kern 2005). The L Word only went on for 6 seasons, ending in 2009.

The main premise of the show was to start an era of homosexual visibility, specifically lesbians in mainstream media. The L Word aims to present the characters and plot in a “fashionable and glamorous image of lesbianism to counter stereotypes,” (Beirne 2006). The L Word remains a significant part of our society because it was the first mainstream television show to showcase and center lesbians as a theme. The show presented queer women as the central characters, and not as the secondary, invisible, or manly ones that are typically in the media (Kern 2005). The L Word was even deemed “revolutionary/groundbreaking” (Ostrow 2004, Kern 2005). This show may not have been the most popular one, but it truly did spawn the era of homosexuality in the media. The best way to see how effective this show was is with the media culture now. Shows like Pretty Little Liars, Glee, The Secret Life of the American Teenager, and Skins just to name a few. Slowly lesbianism has gained an acceptance in mainstream culture, especially in teenage television shows.

**Lesbians in the media**
Homosexuality has only recently become a popular trend of the media; before, it was a hush-hush subject. Both queer men and lesbians do not have a long history in the media, but they started to become prominent around the 1970s. During the 70s, AIDS became more prevalent, and the issue of homosexuals coming-out became an issue in the media (Capsuto, 2000; Gross, 2001; Kris & Frueh 2007). From the start, homosexuals never had it easy in the media. As with African Americans, gays received plenty of discrimination in the beginning, especially lesbian women. The coming-out of lesbians was initially less visible than the coming-out and acceptance of gay men (Kris & Frueh 2007). Homosexuals could be considered minorities of the media. Kris and Frueh (2007) say these minorities go through four phases to gain acceptance in society: (1) invisibility, (2) funny and weird characters, (3) characters in crime genres, and (4) emancipation from determined characterizations, so that mass media won’t stigmatize homosexuals anymore.

There has been a conceived stereotype given to lesbians in society and in the media. Throughout the mid 1990s, there was a popularized notion of “lesbian chic.” During this time, people saw lesbians more masculine, but only saw a few of the “lipstick lesbians,” (Beirne 2006). From then on, it seemed as though society only characterized lesbians as either “butch” or “feminine/lipstick lesbians.” The typical stereotype of lesbians has been butch, but to counter that is the feminine (Beirne 2006). The butch lesbian has more clearly signified lesbian for mainstream audiences, and is the “representative” for lesbians (Beirne 2006). To some, these masculine girls or “dikes” stereotypically wear sleeveless flannel shirts, jeans, or manly clothing. It is seen that the feminine lesbian came our of the marked butch in the media. The growth in depicting “lipstick lesbianism” is essentially a by-product of mainstream media attention, which inevitably favors a “consumable lesbian,” (Beirne 2006). For producers of the media, the appeal to lipstick lesbianism is consumable because of the potential to appeal to the masses more so than the butch stereotype.

With time and the media, lesbianism has tried to fuse these stereotypes. The L Word, in turn, provides a different perspective of social understanding of female homosexuality. Viewers are able to identify with a variety of different kinds of people and personal experiences (Kern 2005). Some may argue that the show steered America in a more stereotypical or negative manner that enforce female gender identity; while others say the show’s presence is essential.

**Controversy with lesbians in “The L Word”**
With being the first show purely about lesbians, The L Word was bound to face adversity, criticism and controversy. The L Word battled with the meanings of lesbians, and lesbians in Los Angeles (Reed 2009). It also faced trying to construct different identities, stereotypes, and nature of lesbians (Beirne 2006). As The L Word has tried to shape the different want lesbians are looked at, they also expand the characterization of the actors/actresses by age, size, race, class and physical ability (Reed 2009). The main controversies that have come out of The L Word is perceived realism and the identity of the lesbian.

Some have said that The L Word does not reflect “real” lesbian life. The show depoliticizes and neutralizes the meaning of lesbian categories that have to challenge “heteronormativity.” Even though the media is known for its unreal depiction most of society’s beliefs, any representation on television is necessarily a fantastical construction of “reality,” (Reed 2009). The L Word has contributed to debates on the meaning of butch, gender transition, and even equipment for women to function as a male publicly. But, the show doesn’t convey that complexity of different identities because not everyone will have the same experience or even in the same category (Reed 2009).



The attempted theme of the show is to distance it from “old-style” lesbians, and characterize them as not too feminine or too butch (Beirne 2006). Critics have found this show on different spectrum's of butch and feminine, with not enough or not representative enough to lesbians and society. Queer TV (2005) found the lack of butches on the show could stand as an emblem of cultural victimization, and that giving the butch on the show a villain-like character. The L Word finds itself in the midst of “border wars,” of the meaning of female masculinity. The debate centers the competitiveness between butches and lipstick lesbians, in which they consider each other as normal (Female Masuclinity 143, Reed 2009). This argument has come out from the increasing invisibly of feminine lesbians and the “inevitable questioning of butches” in a world full of ever-changing sex (Reed 2009). The L Word tries to defy our expectations, but also had to bring forth the stereotypes that we have grown to associate lesbians with.

References

Beirne, R. (2006). Fashioning the l word. Nebula, 3(4)

Kern, R. (2005). The L-Word Media Coverage: A Textual Analysis of Queer Female Representations and Themes in Print. //Conference Papers -- International Communication Association//, 1-35. Retrieved from EBSCO//host//.

Kris, A., Rossmann, C., & Frueh, H. (2007). Same Sex - Different City: The Depiction of Women in "The L-Word" and "Sex and the City" and Its Impact on the Perception of Homosexuality in Germany. //Conference Papers -- International Communication Association//, 1. Retrieved from EBSCO//host//.

QUEER TV. (2005). //GLQ: A Journal of Lesbian & Gay Studies//, 11(1), 103-105. Retrieved from EBSCO//host//.

Reed, J. (2009). Reading Gender Politics on The L Word: The Moira/Max Transitions. //Journal of Popular Film & Television//, 37(4), 169-178. Retrieved from EBSCO//host//.

First image from: http://nanchatte.wordpress.com/2009/06/19/the-l-word-an-update/

Second image from: http://fuckyeahshane.tumblr.com/post/238983602