In light of the sad news of Linda Williams’s passing, we want to acknowledge how hugely influential Linda and her work have been for Screening Sex. Simply, there would be no Screening Sex without Linda Williams. We are so grateful for Linda’s generosity and support for our endeavour, including sitting on the editorial board for our book series.
Her books Hard Core: Power, Pleasure and the Frenzy of the Visible, The Porn Studies Book and, of course, Screening Sex, as well as her numerous essays, articles and chapters relating to sex on screen, have been instrumental in shaping the Screening Sex initiative and the field. Linda’s discussion of the dual meaning of ‘screening sex’ as both revelation and concealment was our starting point and allowed us to take this across various disciplines, inside and outside of academic studies. Our thoughts are with Linda’s family, friends and all of those impacted by the loss of such a pioneering scholar.
We know her work has had a far-reaching impact across our network and we would love to attempt to capture this on this page. We are inviting our network members (and beyond) to share with us how Linda’s work has influenced your research relating to sex and sexual cultures, referencing any publications should you wish. If you would like to contribute, please contact us via the form below or by emailing screeningsex@gmail.com and we will then add comments and references to this page.
I first came across her work in the mid-1990s as a cinema and TV studies major and, yes, it was *the* body genres article that since proved most influential to my ways of thinking about the affective grab of porn. Williams blurbed my 2011 book Carnal Resonance on the topic. This was a generous thing to do, given that we’d never met and the query must’ve come out of the blue, and there must have been many such demands. Anyway; I was very touched. A few years later I attended her talk in Paris but as social awkwardness got the best of me, I didn’t go up to say hi and thanks and I’m so-and-so. Not sure it would’ve mattered to her, but now I never get to do that. Kudos, Linda Williams, truly.
— Susanna Paasonen, University of Turku, Finland
Linda’s work was an inspiration, prompting my study of sex in cinema. Both brave and incisive, she was a shining star in cinema studies and will be much missed.
— Tanya Kryzwinksa, Falmouth University, UK
Linda Williams’ work has had a profound influence on my research. Her groundbreaking theory of onscenity has not only redefined the understanding of how eroticism, the body, and gender roles are represented in culture, particularly on television, but it has also provided a critical framework that has guided my work over the past 15 years. Her ideas, which I have had the privilege of teaching for over a decade and a half, continue to prove remarkably prescient—almost prophetic—in their relevance to the ongoing evolution of representation and social organization. Her intellectual legacy remains a constant source of inspiration and insight in my scholarly endeavors.
— Ania Malinowska, University of Silesia, Poland
Linda Williams wrote the best book on pornography ever written. She outflanked the sex-wars of the 1980s by publishing Hardcore at the end of the decade and re-claimed the field of critical academic analysis. I never met her but she has been a huge influence on my thinking.
— Simon George Hardy, University of Worcester, UK
Linda Williams’ Hard Core and Screening Sex have been extremely influential in the development of my thinking around screening sex and has been instrumental in the development of my PhD on screening sex in the #MeToo era. I’ve been really lucky to have been able to introduce more students to her work in my teaching and play a tiny part in celebrating her legacy.
— Polina Zelmanova, University of Warwick, UK
Screening Sex 