Will&Grace&Lucy: A Close Look at Intertextuality at Odds with Representing Homosexuality — The American Sitcom Main Menu Will&Grace&Lucy A Close Look at Intertextuality at Odds with Representing Homosexuality — The American Sitcom Table of Contents Introduction: More Intertextual than Political An introduction to the themes and arguments of the book: separating the show from political views. Chapter One - Lucy and Grace I Love Lucy intertextually informs the watching/reading of Will and Grace. Chapter Two - Self-intertextualization Infantilization vs. Stereotyping If Grace and Lucy are infantilized, Ricky and Will are stereotyped. An Intertextual Reminder Explicit vs. Implied Intertextuality

Desexualized Relationship

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Sex was excluded from the I Love Lucy – Lucy and Ricky famously slept in twin beds. Lucille Ball was pregnant during the second season and this was considered dangerous for the network because pregnancy validated that Lucy and Ricky had sex. But, she kept the bump and stayed on the show, and it did not make the show less popular even though their relationship was consummated. But, the wacky situations kept audiences and Lucy’s charm kept viewers tuning in.
Writers constructed the gay characters as virtually sexless to make them more palatable for the straight mainstream. Will's earliest relationships with other men are more "male bonding" than anything else (Battles and Hilton-Morrow 94). Jack is presented as promiscuous, but the overwhelming majority of these hints at gay romantic/sexual life. Grace, meanwhile, has a slew of bedroom scenes and arguably the strongest overarching storyline for the '98 version of the show is her search for love (and finding it with Leo played by Harry Connick Jr.). 

So, while attitudes on women's sexuality have shifted, there is still a theme of desexualizing main characters (especially if they are LGBTQ+). Grace is single for many episodes, but is allowed to pursue relationships with other men. Will was not written in the same way. The end goal of getting married was not possible due to the time period and illegality of same-sex marriage. Of course, gay people had commitment ceremonies and life partners at the time.  But, this was unfamiliar territory on primetime television until the episode "Coffee & Commitment" where friends of Will and Grace, Joe and Larry, are getting married. However, as will be covered in Chapter Two, with "Homonormative Storytelling," the writers enforce heteronormative situational comedy. It is not until the renewed version that the show addresses major issues. As per New Historicism, this is appropriate. 

Something which always stuck with me from the show is when Will says something like "In every relationship there is a gardener and a flower." Grace, much to her chagrin, is a flower. Having Will portrayed as a sexless gardener (pardon the metaphor) might very well be an accurate representation of some gay men's lives, but it is a limiting perspective and seems to serve mainstream audience rather than purposeful storytelling.

Forever, they are platonic husband and wife; friendly kisses on the lips are their regular greeting and other characters like Karen refer to them as married or basically married. For much of the show, they share a home. Battles and Hilton-Morrow point out the episode where Will and Grace’s friends Joe and Larry are having a commitment ceremony (what gay people did to celebrate marriage before it was legally recognized), but “Grace is clearly positioned as Will’s wife, much to Will’s resentment They fight over money, specifically Grace not paying her part of the wedding gift/the fact that they have a shared gift despite the pair’s lack of romance.

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  1. Chapter One - Lucy and Grace Fernando Rivera

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