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Why Are Soap Operas So Popular?
Sarah Richards
Throughout this essay, I will endeavour to discuss in detail the possible reasons for the genre's popularity. In doing so, I will refer to recent analyses on the pleasures of watching soap opera, my own views as a soap opera fan, and I will be paying particular attention to the the British soaps EastEnders and Coronation Street, with references to the Australian soaps Home & Away and Neighbours, and the American soaps, Dallas and Dynasty.
"The popularity of soap opera appears to rest on its undemanding nature and
its preoccupation with everyday concerns" (Livingstone 1990).
Indeed, it has
been argued that the undemanding nature of soap opera can be seen as a
contributory factor to the genre's popularity. For example, a regular viewer of
a particular soap opera may find viewing an undemanding activity due to his or
her familiarity with the plots and characters. This could therefore mean that
soaps are easy viewing for their fans due to the low level of concentration
needed in comprehending each episode, as illustrated here; "..a person who has
been a fan of a particular show hasn't seen the show for years, only to catch up
for the missed years by watching only one or two episodes" (Brown 1994).
However, one could argue that soap opera can be demanding at times, especially
as viewing takes at least half an hour to an hour of our time, and also when we
have a tendency to drop immediately whatever we are in the process of completing
in order to watch an episode.
Most significantly though, soap opera's concern with the everyday lives of everyday people and their problems, big and small, appears to be one of the main reasons why this genre is so popular.
Whereas the American soaps such as Dallas and Dynasty are often thought of as a form of 'fantasy' by some viewers, British soaps, and indeed Australian soaps, are generally referred to as being, 'realistic' in that they focus on the domestic and personal, and on everyday concerns and problematic issues such as death, friendship, marriage, romance and divorce.
Most significantly though, soap opera's concern with the everyday lives of everyday people and their problems, big and small, appears to be one of the main reasons why this genre is so popular.
Whereas the American soaps such as Dallas and Dynasty are often thought of as a form of 'fantasy' by some viewers, British soaps, and indeed Australian soaps, are generally referred to as being, 'realistic' in that they focus on the domestic and personal, and on everyday concerns and problematic issues such as death, friendship, marriage, romance and divorce.
Coronation Street, which was first broadcast in
1960, is an example of a soap that allegedly embodies this 'social realism' by
regarding the everyday inner-city working class life of a street in Manchester
(Goodwin & Whannel 1990). To illustrate this point, here is a section of
script from episode 1,822 of Coronation Street which focuses on the
domestic sphere; personal relationships and the role of the female in the
marital home:
Deidre: Out of bed this morning, why isn't my breakfast on the table, where's
my clean underpants, this fried egg's hard. Give us me butties.
Elsie: That's men, love. They're all the same.
(Dyer 1981).
Remarkably, it seems that the soaps such as EastEnders and Home &
Away which contain these 'social realist conventions' attract the attention of
the soap viewer, who gains a lot of pleasure from watching soap opera that
portrays so many things that are happening today, and doesn't shrink away from
real life, but instead, faces us with the problems that do happen (Livingstone
1990).
Interestingly, the genre's popularity also stems partly from the viewer's need, after the events of the day, to find out what happened in Coronation Street, Albert Square or Summer Bay that same day. Due to this, the viewer can often gain pleasure from the notion that everyday life in the soaps is 'real' and on-going just as our lives are:
Additionally, it is also evident, particularly in the British soaps, that the script writers bring humour into the drama of soap opera to make it more pleasurable to watch. For example, part of the success and popularity of Coronation Street has been due to, "the mixture of social realism of the North and the language of the stand-up comic" (Dyer 1981). Evidently this is true in my household, as for the duration of October, my family were tuned in to Coronation Street to find out if the comic 'prankster' Les Battersby would be discovered for deceiving his Neighbours Emily Bishop and Ken Barlow into thinking they were living with the ghost of Ivy Tilsley. Although social realism contributes to the popularity of soap opera, this can be problematic as viewers should be in no doubt that soaps are only 'realistic' to a certain extent in that they do not portray a 'window on the world' because "more dramatic things happen more often in soaps than in 'real life'. However, soaps allow us to be entertained, to look and laugh, as well as think about life" (Brunsdon 1984:86). "When I sit down to watch, I belong to the family in a way...I can enter into all the characters because they're so familiar" (Ang 1985).
This comment from a person interviewed by Ang, clearly shows how viewers gain pleasure from forming an active 'parasocial relationship' (Livingstone 1990) with soap opera characters. Indeed, it can be argued that soap opera owes part of its popularity to the fact that its viewers enjoy forming this kind of participatory 'relationship' with the characters, and also like to identify themselves with the plots and characters. In fact, regular viewers of long-running soaps may have already experienced the gratifications of forming parasocial relations with the characters, and in doing so, have allowed them to become almost 'real' friends and family, as this man illustrates:
"I know that after a while the characters do become real people and we are concerned for their well-being just as we are for our own friends and colleagues" (Livingstone 1990).
It is due to this formation of parasocial relationships, that enables soap opera viewers to gain pleasure from being able to understand how a certain character feels or behaves in particular circumstances, due to themselves having been in a similar situation, or having knowledge about the subject in hand. For instance, here is an example of such a parasocial relationship between a viewer and a character from the American soap opera, Dynasty:
'I really understand her [Claudia's] situation because there are so many mentally ill people here in Denmark nowadays..no-one can feel absolutely safe' (Schroder 1988).
Furthermore, this parasocial relationship can be recognised in its extreme form when a viewer puts himself so deeply into a character, that he can feel the same emotions and experience the same events as the character is supposed to feel (Brunsdon 1984).
Notably, this deep identification with a character can be seen when a viewer cries at a soap wedding or funeral, or similarly at a birth or marital break-up. The viewer appears to enjoy this 'roller-coaster ride' of different emotions when watching their favourite soaps; "...you can experience a full range of emotions from anger to despair, to sheer joy, excitement and relief" (Livingstone 1990). This catharsis, the purging of emotions by watching others live through the same situation, is one of the main pleasures for regular viewers of "social realism" soaps.
Yet another point of identification which the viewer enjoys forming with the characters, is that of self or personal identity. Based on personal experience, it is evident that viewers often use the behaviour of a character in order to justify their behaviour in a similar situation. An example of this became clear to me during an episode of EastEnders on 30/11/97 on BBC1 which was being viewed by the tenants in my house. I observed that when the character Joe Wicks decided to solidify his relationship with a girl whom he was seeing behind his fiancee's back, all of us were disgusted with his behaviour and immediately started to comment on how sympathetic we felt for Sarah Hills. However, all of us except for one male student took this attitude as he himself took pleasure in presenting his argument that he saw nothing wrong with the character's actions, because he had been in a similar position and had acted in the same way. Clearly in this particular case, the viewer liked to identify himself with the character in confirming his own model of behaviour, ( McQuail 1987:Lecture 3).
On the other hand, many viewers gain pleasure from watching soaps because they enjoy identifying themselves as a particular character, for example, "I wish I looked like her/him" or, "I wish I was..." Although it seems that viewers like to identify themselves with, or as soap characters, the problem remains of how we can identify ourselves with the American soap opera characters in Dallas and Dynasty who live in luxury and represent the world of the rich and powerful oil tycoons (Livingstone 1990:115).
Although the point made here may refer to the British and Australian soaps more than the American ones due to their element of ' realism,' the argument is that the viewer can still identify with the characters in American soaps such as these because their feelings and behaviour can be identified with separately from how wealthy they are and how lavish their lifestyle is.
Indeed, the popularity of soap opera here stems from the pleasures offered by the points of identification offered by the characters. We want to watch and discover what happens to those specific characters locked into that specific network of relationships (Glaesner 1990).
Soap opera is also popular due to its continuity, regularity and familiarity. Soap opera has been labelled as a 'ritual pleasure' which offers reassurance in its familiarity and longevity, its predictable familiarity of life being the main force which pulls us in (Brunsdon 1984).
Indeed, the theme tune which is a familiar sound to our ears, makes the viewer aware that an episode is about to begin, and also confirms the setting of the soap. The familiar theme tune played on the piano reminds us of London where EastEnders is set, and likewise the nostalgic sound of the cornet playing the Coronation Street theme reminds us of the famous brass bands we associate with the North of England.
Also, due to the soap being solely based in one place geographically, and portraying the lives of the same characters in each episode, we can be assured of familiarity and continuity. Additionally, in certain soaps, the viewer is aware of where a character is, or what he or she is doing if absent from a particular episode.
Interestingly, the genre's popularity also stems partly from the viewer's need, after the events of the day, to find out what happened in Coronation Street, Albert Square or Summer Bay that same day. Due to this, the viewer can often gain pleasure from the notion that everyday life in the soaps is 'real' and on-going just as our lives are:
"Coronation Street gives the
impression of leaving a literal gap of time between episodes, and significant
days in the outside world such as Christmas Day are celebrated that day," (Dyer
1981).
Additionally, it is also evident, particularly in the British soaps, that the script writers bring humour into the drama of soap opera to make it more pleasurable to watch. For example, part of the success and popularity of Coronation Street has been due to, "the mixture of social realism of the North and the language of the stand-up comic" (Dyer 1981). Evidently this is true in my household, as for the duration of October, my family were tuned in to Coronation Street to find out if the comic 'prankster' Les Battersby would be discovered for deceiving his Neighbours Emily Bishop and Ken Barlow into thinking they were living with the ghost of Ivy Tilsley. Although social realism contributes to the popularity of soap opera, this can be problematic as viewers should be in no doubt that soaps are only 'realistic' to a certain extent in that they do not portray a 'window on the world' because "more dramatic things happen more often in soaps than in 'real life'. However, soaps allow us to be entertained, to look and laugh, as well as think about life" (Brunsdon 1984:86). "When I sit down to watch, I belong to the family in a way...I can enter into all the characters because they're so familiar" (Ang 1985).
This comment from a person interviewed by Ang, clearly shows how viewers gain pleasure from forming an active 'parasocial relationship' (Livingstone 1990) with soap opera characters. Indeed, it can be argued that soap opera owes part of its popularity to the fact that its viewers enjoy forming this kind of participatory 'relationship' with the characters, and also like to identify themselves with the plots and characters. In fact, regular viewers of long-running soaps may have already experienced the gratifications of forming parasocial relations with the characters, and in doing so, have allowed them to become almost 'real' friends and family, as this man illustrates:
"I know that after a while the characters do become real people and we are concerned for their well-being just as we are for our own friends and colleagues" (Livingstone 1990).
It is due to this formation of parasocial relationships, that enables soap opera viewers to gain pleasure from being able to understand how a certain character feels or behaves in particular circumstances, due to themselves having been in a similar situation, or having knowledge about the subject in hand. For instance, here is an example of such a parasocial relationship between a viewer and a character from the American soap opera, Dynasty:
'I really understand her [Claudia's] situation because there are so many mentally ill people here in Denmark nowadays..no-one can feel absolutely safe' (Schroder 1988).
Furthermore, this parasocial relationship can be recognised in its extreme form when a viewer puts himself so deeply into a character, that he can feel the same emotions and experience the same events as the character is supposed to feel (Brunsdon 1984).
Notably, this deep identification with a character can be seen when a viewer cries at a soap wedding or funeral, or similarly at a birth or marital break-up. The viewer appears to enjoy this 'roller-coaster ride' of different emotions when watching their favourite soaps; "...you can experience a full range of emotions from anger to despair, to sheer joy, excitement and relief" (Livingstone 1990). This catharsis, the purging of emotions by watching others live through the same situation, is one of the main pleasures for regular viewers of "social realism" soaps.
Yet another point of identification which the viewer enjoys forming with the characters, is that of self or personal identity. Based on personal experience, it is evident that viewers often use the behaviour of a character in order to justify their behaviour in a similar situation. An example of this became clear to me during an episode of EastEnders on 30/11/97 on BBC1 which was being viewed by the tenants in my house. I observed that when the character Joe Wicks decided to solidify his relationship with a girl whom he was seeing behind his fiancee's back, all of us were disgusted with his behaviour and immediately started to comment on how sympathetic we felt for Sarah Hills. However, all of us except for one male student took this attitude as he himself took pleasure in presenting his argument that he saw nothing wrong with the character's actions, because he had been in a similar position and had acted in the same way. Clearly in this particular case, the viewer liked to identify himself with the character in confirming his own model of behaviour, ( McQuail 1987:Lecture 3).
On the other hand, many viewers gain pleasure from watching soaps because they enjoy identifying themselves as a particular character, for example, "I wish I looked like her/him" or, "I wish I was..." Although it seems that viewers like to identify themselves with, or as soap characters, the problem remains of how we can identify ourselves with the American soap opera characters in Dallas and Dynasty who live in luxury and represent the world of the rich and powerful oil tycoons (Livingstone 1990:115).
Although the point made here may refer to the British and Australian soaps more than the American ones due to their element of ' realism,' the argument is that the viewer can still identify with the characters in American soaps such as these because their feelings and behaviour can be identified with separately from how wealthy they are and how lavish their lifestyle is.
Indeed, the popularity of soap opera here stems from the pleasures offered by the points of identification offered by the characters. We want to watch and discover what happens to those specific characters locked into that specific network of relationships (Glaesner 1990).
Soap opera is also popular due to its continuity, regularity and familiarity. Soap opera has been labelled as a 'ritual pleasure' which offers reassurance in its familiarity and longevity, its predictable familiarity of life being the main force which pulls us in (Brunsdon 1984).
Indeed, the theme tune which is a familiar sound to our ears, makes the viewer aware that an episode is about to begin, and also confirms the setting of the soap. The familiar theme tune played on the piano reminds us of London where EastEnders is set, and likewise the nostalgic sound of the cornet playing the Coronation Street theme reminds us of the famous brass bands we associate with the North of England.
Also, due to the soap being solely based in one place geographically, and portraying the lives of the same characters in each episode, we can be assured of familiarity and continuity. Additionally, in certain soaps, the viewer is aware of where a character is, or what he or she is doing if absent from a particular episode.
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