Charlotte Brunsdon
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159803
- eISBN:
- 9780191673702
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159803.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
This title traces the history of the feminist engagement with soap opera, using a wide range of sources from programme publicity to interviews with key soap-opera scholars. The book reveals that ...
More
This title traces the history of the feminist engagement with soap opera, using a wide range of sources from programme publicity to interviews with key soap-opera scholars. The book reveals that feminist scholarship on soap opera was a significant site in which the identity ‘feminist intellectual’ was produced in dialogue with her imagined other, the soap-opera-watching housewife. The book integrates personal autobiographical accounts within a broader history which traces both the move from ‘women's liberation’ to ‘feminism’, and the acceptance of soap opera as a serious object of study.Less
This title traces the history of the feminist engagement with soap opera, using a wide range of sources from programme publicity to interviews with key soap-opera scholars. The book reveals that feminist scholarship on soap opera was a significant site in which the identity ‘feminist intellectual’ was produced in dialogue with her imagined other, the soap-opera-watching housewife. The book integrates personal autobiographical accounts within a broader history which traces both the move from ‘women's liberation’ to ‘feminism’, and the acceptance of soap opera as a serious object of study.
Charlotte Brunsdon
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159803
- eISBN:
- 9780191673702
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159803.003.0012
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
This chapter discusses the commonalities in the research and thoughts on feminism and soap opera of those who were interviewed for this study. All the interviewees have written significantly on soap ...
More
This chapter discusses the commonalities in the research and thoughts on feminism and soap opera of those who were interviewed for this study. All the interviewees have written significantly on soap opera and their research was conducted between 1976 and 1982. All of them continued to be associated with soap opera in their professional lives and they all provided retrospectively the feminist revision of soap opera.Less
This chapter discusses the commonalities in the research and thoughts on feminism and soap opera of those who were interviewed for this study. All the interviewees have written significantly on soap opera and their research was conducted between 1976 and 1982. All of them continued to be associated with soap opera in their professional lives and they all provided retrospectively the feminist revision of soap opera.
Charlotte Brunsdon
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159803
- eISBN:
- 9780191673702
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159803.003.0011
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
This chapter discusses an interview with Ellen Seiter about her research on soap opera in Great Britain. It provides background information on Seiter's family, education, and career highlights. In ...
More
This chapter discusses an interview with Ellen Seiter about her research on soap opera in Great Britain. It provides background information on Seiter's family, education, and career highlights. In the interview, Seiter points out a feature in the history of the study of popular culture which seems easily forgotten in the current wave of attacks on cultural populism, which is the significance of the non-U.S.-originated defences of American popular culture. This chapter explains Seiter's thoughts on feminism and soap as reflected in her works.Less
This chapter discusses an interview with Ellen Seiter about her research on soap opera in Great Britain. It provides background information on Seiter's family, education, and career highlights. In the interview, Seiter points out a feature in the history of the study of popular culture which seems easily forgotten in the current wave of attacks on cultural populism, which is the significance of the non-U.S.-originated defences of American popular culture. This chapter explains Seiter's thoughts on feminism and soap as reflected in her works.
Charlotte Brunsdon
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159803
- eISBN:
- 9780191673702
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159803.003.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
This introductory chapter explains the objective of this book, which is to trace the development of British and U.S. feminist television criticism through a study of the soap opera during the period ...
More
This introductory chapter explains the objective of this book, which is to trace the development of British and U.S. feminist television criticism through a study of the soap opera during the period from 1975 to 1986. This book features interviews with some feminist critics who conducted early work on soap opera and discusses the factors that influenced the development of feminist engagement with soap opera. It also analyses the works of some notable feminist commentators during the 1970s.Less
This introductory chapter explains the objective of this book, which is to trace the development of British and U.S. feminist television criticism through a study of the soap opera during the period from 1975 to 1986. This book features interviews with some feminist critics who conducted early work on soap opera and discusses the factors that influenced the development of feminist engagement with soap opera. It also analyses the works of some notable feminist commentators during the 1970s.
Charlotte Brunsdon
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159803
- eISBN:
- 9780191673702
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159803.003.0007
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
This chapter discusses an interview with Christine Geraghty about her research on soap opera in Great Britain. It provides information on Geraghty's family and educational background. Her work ...
More
This chapter discusses an interview with Christine Geraghty about her research on soap opera in Great Britain. It provides information on Geraghty's family and educational background. Her work outlines the characteristics of the genre, focusing on narrative and characterization while at the same time giving special attention to the role of gossip both inside and outside the text. This chapter suggests that from the start, Geraghty felt a desire and an obligation to address non-specialists and non-academics in both her writing and speaking.Less
This chapter discusses an interview with Christine Geraghty about her research on soap opera in Great Britain. It provides information on Geraghty's family and educational background. Her work outlines the characteristics of the genre, focusing on narrative and characterization while at the same time giving special attention to the role of gossip both inside and outside the text. This chapter suggests that from the start, Geraghty felt a desire and an obligation to address non-specialists and non-academics in both her writing and speaking.
Charlotte Brunsdon
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159803
- eISBN:
- 9780191673702
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159803.003.0013
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
This chapter sums up the key findings of this study on feminist television criticism of soap opera in the U.S. and Great Britain during the period from 1975 to 1986. The results reveal how the ...
More
This chapter sums up the key findings of this study on feminist television criticism of soap opera in the U.S. and Great Britain during the period from 1975 to 1986. The results reveal how the feminist intellectual was partly produced in the complicated and contradictory struggles to define a soap opera as a legitimate area of engagement for intellectual work. The findings also indicate that soap opera had very particular resonances for the emergent feminism of the 1970s.Less
This chapter sums up the key findings of this study on feminist television criticism of soap opera in the U.S. and Great Britain during the period from 1975 to 1986. The results reveal how the feminist intellectual was partly produced in the complicated and contradictory struggles to define a soap opera as a legitimate area of engagement for intellectual work. The findings also indicate that soap opera had very particular resonances for the emergent feminism of the 1970s.
Lesley Henderson
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748625314
- eISBN:
- 9780748651177
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748625314.003.0001
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Television
Compared to the well-developed sociology of news production, there are few accounts of how the production process operates in relation to television fiction. The soap opera has not been examined and ...
More
Compared to the well-developed sociology of news production, there are few accounts of how the production process operates in relation to television fiction. The soap opera has not been examined and investigated from the political economy perspective. This approach is not associated with television fiction. Again, in comparison with production studies of news, the production of non-journalistic content as a whole is an underdeveloped and fragmentary field of research. To put it simply, television fiction has largely been studied as a site of entertainment and pleasure despite of its importance in ‘conveying social meanings and cultural forms’. This book is concerned with ‘public issues’ in television fiction. The focus is on the television serial drama and in particular on the role of soap opera. The book hopes to contribute to the understandings of how ‘issue’ storylines are produced, presented and received. It uses this format as a lens through which to closely examine how power is distributed and mediated through television fiction. The book reflects more broadly on the function of television fiction in contemporary culture, positioning it as culturally charged. Its overriding concern is with the power of the media to shape public attitudes and beliefs about public issues. This approach is characterised as being empirical, problem based, alert to questions of power and keen to inform policy and public debate. The studies in the book are thus situated at the intersecting point between these two distinct projects – analysing television fiction not simply as a site of pleasure, but also as a site of definitional power.Less
Compared to the well-developed sociology of news production, there are few accounts of how the production process operates in relation to television fiction. The soap opera has not been examined and investigated from the political economy perspective. This approach is not associated with television fiction. Again, in comparison with production studies of news, the production of non-journalistic content as a whole is an underdeveloped and fragmentary field of research. To put it simply, television fiction has largely been studied as a site of entertainment and pleasure despite of its importance in ‘conveying social meanings and cultural forms’. This book is concerned with ‘public issues’ in television fiction. The focus is on the television serial drama and in particular on the role of soap opera. The book hopes to contribute to the understandings of how ‘issue’ storylines are produced, presented and received. It uses this format as a lens through which to closely examine how power is distributed and mediated through television fiction. The book reflects more broadly on the function of television fiction in contemporary culture, positioning it as culturally charged. Its overriding concern is with the power of the media to shape public attitudes and beliefs about public issues. This approach is characterised as being empirical, problem based, alert to questions of power and keen to inform policy and public debate. The studies in the book are thus situated at the intersecting point between these two distinct projects – analysing television fiction not simply as a site of pleasure, but also as a site of definitional power.
Sam Ford, Abigail De Kosnik, and C. Lee Harrington
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- March 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781604737165
- eISBN:
- 9781621037767
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781604737165.003.0001
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Television
This introductory chapter provides an overview of the main themes covered in this book. Daytime soap operas are currently struggling with declining ratings as well as uncertainty over who is actually ...
More
This introductory chapter provides an overview of the main themes covered in this book. Daytime soap operas are currently struggling with declining ratings as well as uncertainty over who is actually watching, how to attract and retain new viewers while not losing long-term fans, and how best to capitalize on the deep histories of narratives that have been airing for decades. Indeed, soaps are facing many questions that trouble all television production today as it transitions from broadcast to digital media. The chapter discusses the reason why the soap genre warrants consideration; the cultural significance of soaps; different viewer reception and interaction stimulated by serial primetime shows and daytime dramas; and principles that distinguish daytime soaps from other television genres and storytelling forms.Less
This introductory chapter provides an overview of the main themes covered in this book. Daytime soap operas are currently struggling with declining ratings as well as uncertainty over who is actually watching, how to attract and retain new viewers while not losing long-term fans, and how best to capitalize on the deep histories of narratives that have been airing for decades. Indeed, soaps are facing many questions that trouble all television production today as it transitions from broadcast to digital media. The chapter discusses the reason why the soap genre warrants consideration; the cultural significance of soaps; different viewer reception and interaction stimulated by serial primetime shows and daytime dramas; and principles that distinguish daytime soaps from other television genres and storytelling forms.
Charlotte Brunsdon
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159803
- eISBN:
- 9780191673702
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159803.003.0004
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
This chapter examines the language and concerns of three pioneering 1970s feminist commentators on soap opera. It suggests that the continuities between the work of the 1940s and the 1970s are ...
More
This chapter examines the language and concerns of three pioneering 1970s feminist commentators on soap opera. It suggests that the continuities between the work of the 1940s and the 1970s are greater than is usually supposed. An analysis of literary criticism in the 1970s reveals that its focus was on the emerging figure of the feminist intellectual and her contradictory response to conventional femininity. It discusses the works of Carol Lopate, Michele Mattelart, and Tania Modleski.Less
This chapter examines the language and concerns of three pioneering 1970s feminist commentators on soap opera. It suggests that the continuities between the work of the 1940s and the 1970s are greater than is usually supposed. An analysis of literary criticism in the 1970s reveals that its focus was on the emerging figure of the feminist intellectual and her contradictory response to conventional femininity. It discusses the works of Carol Lopate, Michele Mattelart, and Tania Modleski.
Charlotte Brunsdon
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159803
- eISBN:
- 9780191673702
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159803.003.0002
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
This chapter examines the attention paid to soap opera in 1970s feminism in the U.S. It traces the way in which this genre became an attractive object of study for feminist scholars and suggests that ...
More
This chapter examines the attention paid to soap opera in 1970s feminism in the U.S. It traces the way in which this genre became an attractive object of study for feminist scholars and suggests that the attention given to soap opera during this period can be characterised as worrying. It contends that the historical engagement between feminism and soap opera can be seen as representative of the Western second-wave feminist engagement with the media and popular culture.Less
This chapter examines the attention paid to soap opera in 1970s feminism in the U.S. It traces the way in which this genre became an attractive object of study for feminist scholars and suggests that the attention given to soap opera during this period can be characterised as worrying. It contends that the historical engagement between feminism and soap opera can be seen as representative of the Western second-wave feminist engagement with the media and popular culture.
Charlotte Brunsdon
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159803
- eISBN:
- 9780191673702
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159803.003.0005
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
This chapter examines the career and criticism of one of the most significant women of soap opera in Great Britain during the 1970s: Meg Mortimer of Crossroads. It suggests that Mortimer's appeal to ...
More
This chapter examines the career and criticism of one of the most significant women of soap opera in Great Britain during the 1970s: Meg Mortimer of Crossroads. It suggests that Mortimer's appeal to the television audience lies partly in the way she represented the fantasy embodiment of a housewife. It argues that there may be greater similarities between the feminist soap opera and the soap opera housewife/matriarch than might initially be assumed.Less
This chapter examines the career and criticism of one of the most significant women of soap opera in Great Britain during the 1970s: Meg Mortimer of Crossroads. It suggests that Mortimer's appeal to the television audience lies partly in the way she represented the fantasy embodiment of a housewife. It argues that there may be greater similarities between the feminist soap opera and the soap opera housewife/matriarch than might initially be assumed.
Charlotte Brunsdon
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159803
- eISBN:
- 9780191673702
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159803.003.0008
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
This chapter discusses an interview with Dorothy Hobson about her research on soap opera in Great Britain. It provides background information on Hobson's family, education, and career highlights. Her ...
More
This chapter discusses an interview with Dorothy Hobson about her research on soap opera in Great Britain. It provides background information on Hobson's family, education, and career highlights. Her first published research has been on the lived experience of young white working-class women and it included some discussion of media usage by these young women. This chapter explains Hobson's thoughts on feminism and soap as reflected in her works.Less
This chapter discusses an interview with Dorothy Hobson about her research on soap opera in Great Britain. It provides background information on Hobson's family, education, and career highlights. Her first published research has been on the lived experience of young white working-class women and it included some discussion of media usage by these young women. This chapter explains Hobson's thoughts on feminism and soap as reflected in her works.
Charlotte Brunsdon
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159803
- eISBN:
- 9780191673702
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159803.003.0009
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
This chapter discusses an interview with Terry Lovell about her research on soap opera in Great Britain. It provides background information on Lovell's family, education, and career highlights. It ...
More
This chapter discusses an interview with Terry Lovell about her research on soap opera in Great Britain. It provides background information on Lovell's family, education, and career highlights. It suggests that Lovell accorded relative insignificance to her work on soap opera but this work helped condense many of her political and theoretical interests. This chapter explains Lovell's thoughts on feminism and soap as reflected in her work.Less
This chapter discusses an interview with Terry Lovell about her research on soap opera in Great Britain. It provides background information on Lovell's family, education, and career highlights. It suggests that Lovell accorded relative insignificance to her work on soap opera but this work helped condense many of her political and theoretical interests. This chapter explains Lovell's thoughts on feminism and soap as reflected in her work.
Mary Jeanne Wilson
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- March 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781604737165
- eISBN:
- 9781621037767
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781604737165.003.0019
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Television
This chapter examines the state of soap opera collections in three major U.S. television archives: the University of California Los Angeles Film & Television Archive; the Library of Congress Motion ...
More
This chapter examines the state of soap opera collections in three major U.S. television archives: the University of California Los Angeles Film & Television Archive; the Library of Congress Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound division; and the Paley Center for Media. Exploring the relationship of each archive with the soap opera genre shows not only how these institutions have and will continue to shape soap history, but also what these issues of preservation and the loss of soap history might tell us about the future of soaps.Less
This chapter examines the state of soap opera collections in three major U.S. television archives: the University of California Los Angeles Film & Television Archive; the Library of Congress Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound division; and the Paley Center for Media. Exploring the relationship of each archive with the soap opera genre shows not only how these institutions have and will continue to shape soap history, but also what these issues of preservation and the loss of soap history might tell us about the future of soaps.
Charlotte Brunsdon
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159803
- eISBN:
- 9780191673702
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159803.003.0010
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
This chapter discusses an interview with Ien Ang about her research on soap opera in the U.S. It provides background information on Ang's family, education, and career highlights. It suggests that ...
More
This chapter discusses an interview with Ien Ang about her research on soap opera in the U.S. It provides background information on Ang's family, education, and career highlights. It suggests that Ang's work has consistently been informed by, and addressed to, the Anglo-American cultural studies/mass communication constituency. This chapter explains Ang's thoughts on feminism and soap as reflected in her works.Less
This chapter discusses an interview with Ien Ang about her research on soap opera in the U.S. It provides background information on Ang's family, education, and career highlights. It suggests that Ang's work has consistently been informed by, and addressed to, the Anglo-American cultural studies/mass communication constituency. This chapter explains Ang's thoughts on feminism and soap as reflected in her works.
Melissa C. Scardaville
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- March 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781604737165
- eISBN:
- 9781621037767
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781604737165.003.0009
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Television
This chapter examines fan and industry perceptions about the decline in quality of soap opera narratives. Both fans and industry professionals agree that soaps used to be so much better, and that the ...
More
This chapter examines fan and industry perceptions about the decline in quality of soap opera narratives. Both fans and industry professionals agree that soaps used to be so much better, and that the heyday of superior storytelling and windfall profits will never be seen again in the soap opera industry. While there have long been two institutional logics—economic, where profit is paramount, and aesthetic, where quality storytelling is the goal—professionals and fans disagree over how the genre’s decline occurred.Less
This chapter examines fan and industry perceptions about the decline in quality of soap opera narratives. Both fans and industry professionals agree that soaps used to be so much better, and that the heyday of superior storytelling and windfall profits will never be seen again in the soap opera industry. While there have long been two institutional logics—economic, where profit is paramount, and aesthetic, where quality storytelling is the goal—professionals and fans disagree over how the genre’s decline occurred.
Charlotte Brunsdon
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159803
- eISBN:
- 9780191673702
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159803.003.0003
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
This chapter examines classic research on radio soap opera in the U.S. during the late 1930s and the early 1970s. It analyses how this genre, its heroines, and its listeners are portrayed in the ...
More
This chapter examines classic research on radio soap opera in the U.S. during the late 1930s and the early 1970s. It analyses how this genre, its heroines, and its listeners are portrayed in the literature. It discusses some of the most noteworthy articles written about this genre during this period. These include Herta Herzog's What Do We Really Know About Daytime Serial Listeners?, and Rudolf Arnheim and Helen Kaufman's articles in Radio Research.Less
This chapter examines classic research on radio soap opera in the U.S. during the late 1930s and the early 1970s. It analyses how this genre, its heroines, and its listeners are portrayed in the literature. It discusses some of the most noteworthy articles written about this genre during this period. These include Herta Herzog's What Do We Really Know About Daytime Serial Listeners?, and Rudolf Arnheim and Helen Kaufman's articles in Radio Research.
C. Lee Harrington
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- March 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781604737165
- eISBN:
- 9781621037767
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781604737165.003.0011
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Television
This chapter presents Allen’s views about the rewards of studying U.S. daytime serial dramas. Allen says that soap operas are worth studying for their persistence alone—as a form of storytelling, as ...
More
This chapter presents Allen’s views about the rewards of studying U.S. daytime serial dramas. Allen says that soap operas are worth studying for their persistence alone—as a form of storytelling, as an advertising vehicle, and as the basis for uncountable hours of experience for uncountable billions of people in the U.S. since 1929.Less
This chapter presents Allen’s views about the rewards of studying U.S. daytime serial dramas. Allen says that soap operas are worth studying for their persistence alone—as a form of storytelling, as an advertising vehicle, and as the basis for uncountable hours of experience for uncountable billions of people in the U.S. since 1929.
Denise D. Bielby
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- March 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781604737165
- eISBN:
- 9781621037767
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781604737165.003.0029
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Television
This chapter examines the work of soap critics, focusing on their understanding of the soap genre, the industry’s impact on their evaluative practices, and their relationship to television’s ...
More
This chapter examines the work of soap critics, focusing on their understanding of the soap genre, the industry’s impact on their evaluative practices, and their relationship to television’s networks, actors, and audiences. Relying upon interviews with soap critics themselves, it explores the critics’ background and expertise, the criteria they deploy to evaluate soaps, and the effects of the decline of the soap opera audience and the emergence of the Internet upon their practice of soap criticism. A particular goal is to understand how recent changes to the soap opera landscape have altered the legendary struggle between audiences and critics over claims to the narrative and the implications of these changes for the future of the genre.Less
This chapter examines the work of soap critics, focusing on their understanding of the soap genre, the industry’s impact on their evaluative practices, and their relationship to television’s networks, actors, and audiences. Relying upon interviews with soap critics themselves, it explores the critics’ background and expertise, the criteria they deploy to evaluate soaps, and the effects of the decline of the soap opera audience and the emergence of the Internet upon their practice of soap criticism. A particular goal is to understand how recent changes to the soap opera landscape have altered the legendary struggle between audiences and critics over claims to the narrative and the implications of these changes for the future of the genre.
Rebecca Feasey
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748627974
- eISBN:
- 9780748651184
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748627974.003.0002
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Television
Soap opera has traditionally focused on the home, the family, domestic tribulations and the strong woman, and, as such, has long been said to appeal to the female viewer. However, recently, the genre ...
More
Soap opera has traditionally focused on the home, the family, domestic tribulations and the strong woman, and, as such, has long been said to appeal to the female viewer. However, recently, the genre has tried to extend its audience by introducing several central male characters in order to attract the man in the audience and a wider range of television advertisers. This chapter begins by introducing a short history of soap opera. It considers the representation of women in the genre before looking at the changing depiction of masculinities in British prime-time shows such as Coronation Street, Emmerdale and EastEnders. It focuses on the ways in which masculine gossip, the blurring of the public and private sphere, and issues surrounding paternity can all be seen to negotiate traditional representations of hegemonic masculinity and the dominant male role. Although the chapter focuses on mapping out the key codes and conventions of the popular British soap operas, it also considers US soap operas and determines the similarities in formal and thematic elements between British and US soap operas.Less
Soap opera has traditionally focused on the home, the family, domestic tribulations and the strong woman, and, as such, has long been said to appeal to the female viewer. However, recently, the genre has tried to extend its audience by introducing several central male characters in order to attract the man in the audience and a wider range of television advertisers. This chapter begins by introducing a short history of soap opera. It considers the representation of women in the genre before looking at the changing depiction of masculinities in British prime-time shows such as Coronation Street, Emmerdale and EastEnders. It focuses on the ways in which masculine gossip, the blurring of the public and private sphere, and issues surrounding paternity can all be seen to negotiate traditional representations of hegemonic masculinity and the dominant male role. Although the chapter focuses on mapping out the key codes and conventions of the popular British soap operas, it also considers US soap operas and determines the similarities in formal and thematic elements between British and US soap operas.
