Transcript
In late 1930s, consumerist population
was on the rise
People were able to buy leisure
commodities – i.e. radios
Women were able to stay at home and became the predominant demographic soap operas catered to
Soap opera families were created to reflect this comfortable living class of the suburban housewife
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMHKF3HzM00&feature=related
Radio was heavily dependent on the money that its sponsors provided and advertising was
its main source of income
To attract listeners to bring in money, broadcasters turned to
programming
Serials were a form of story that whose plot continued
indefinitely, a daily basis in order to form a loyal audience
base
Soap manufacturers helped sponsor the first radio serials in
exchange for advertising time
As the popularity of soap operas grew,
soap companies began buying whole shows to
increase revenues
A Radio A Radio AdvertisemenAdvertisemen
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Soap operas formed from serials as serials became increasingly complex, with multiple and overlapping plot lines
When one story line ended, another continued
Plot was moved forward primarily through the conversation between characters
Writers maintained the conversational aspect of the radio format and drew in more aesthetic aspects
Soap opera began to visually stress the importance on material goods, as part of latent commercial advertising
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxtKk2sMs-E&feature=channel
Introduction of primetime soap operas changed some of their
production aspects
Networks and the shows’ producers
required the flexibility to make soap operas appealing to wider
audiences of television viewers
Soaps shifted to taped broadcasts from live shoots
Taped products were better revenue generators because it allowed for easier distribution to foreign markets as well as reruns in syndication on televisions across the nation
Originally, soap operas used everyday locations such as a doctor’s office, law firm, or living room
In the last few decades, there was an introduction of more interesting and often-exotic locations. 1978 – All my
Children, St. Croix
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMnuly5DO0I
In the 1980s, plotlines began to focus on then-appealing motifs like business and romance
Paralleled society: tough economic times
Romance as escape from business/economic problems
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkeRVWUAmbY
1990s: Focus on Social Issues (Mental Health, Drug and Alcohol Abuse, Physical Illness, Sex and Relationships)
Paralleled society: better economic times, issues of the 1980s no longer held sway
Focus on the barebones of soap operas
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkKowG-xmmg&feature=related
Early Days of Soap Operas: domesticity, motherhood, maintaining the household
1970s and on: Professional Roles for women, mirrored changing role of women in
society post WWII
Soap operas manage to mirror daily life as well as dramatize it
“[Soap opera] offers itself to its audience as the representation of lives that are separate from but continuous with their own” (Porter 782)
Soap operas break free from banality of everyday lives, yet still remain realistic
Viewers can “identify with the anonymity of [these soap opera] location[s]” (Hobson 32).
Soap opera families usually consist of upper middle-class professionals and wealthy business people
They are careful in choosing which parts of everyday life they portray
The soap opera world lacks politics, war, international relations or economic and commercial influences
The prominence of soaps have in culture helped shape their audience’s understanding of culture and reality
Though viewers know that soap operas do not always accurately parallel their own lives, the do draw concepts of social norm from them
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IgejVyp2gA&feature=related
Most audiences understand that the situations and circumstances of their characters, while relatable, are not generally an accurate portrayal of life, but a dramatization. As the next clip aptly demonstrates-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNJBNtEfFaE
In that they are generally watched on a daily basis, soap operas are fixtures in the lives of much of their audiences, and thus, bear a considerable amount of weight in molding their perception of social norm.
Soaps are thus both reflectors and creators of culture.
Hobson, Dorothy. Soap Opera. Cambridge: Polity, 2003. Print.
Porter, Dennis. "Soap Time: Thoughts On a Commodity Art Form." College English 38.8 (1977): 782-88. Print.
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