In Search of an AliBI: Narratives of Bisexuality in Contemporary American Television

Abstract

Walter Fisher’s narrative paradigm holds that human beings are storytellers who understand the world around them through the use of stories, which inform processes of narrative rationality. This thesis explores the role that televised narratives play in the process of narrative rationality, particularly in their ability to influence societal perception of non-binary conforming sexual orientations. Televised narratives have played a key role in the growing acceptance of homosexuality in popular culture, but that same level of acceptance is not yet afforded to bisexuality. Case studies of Nolan Ross from Revenge, Piper Chapman from Orange is the New Black, and Sarah and Ali Pfefferman from Transparent provide examples of the types of bisexuality narratives present on television today, and illustrate how narratives are evolving to encompass a more fluid conception of sexuality and encourage acceptance of bisexuality in popular culture.