Women-Loving-Women Portrayals in Fiction, a Critical Literature Review

Abstract

This critical literature review explores the ways in which scholars have discussed depictions of fictional women-loving women (WLW) in film and on television in the past five years. This study is guided by both sexual script theory and the intersectional perspective. Prior studies of WLW in fiction have largely focused on the areas of homonormativity, race, bisexual-erasure, WLW stereotypes, gender dynamics, WLW communities, and post-modern representation. Earlier research has focused on those areas to the exclusion of giving more attention to exploring the use of queerbaiting in modern storytelling. Future research should include analyses of more recently featured fictional WLW characters and WLW relationships in film and on television in addition to more research on queerbaiting overall.