Week 1
- How has the academic reception of popular genres changes over time
- What might the value be of studying them
the term Genre fiction refers to a popular novel written with certain rules such as romance novel, mystery novel, martial arts novel, fantasy novel, and science fiction. Originally referred to as romance genre, mystery genre, etc. they were collectively referred to as genre fiction. However, genre poetry or genre essay cannot exist, but genre criticism can exist, so it can be called genre literature.
Genre fiction belongs to a field of popular fiction, the perception that it is inferior to novels on a pure literature. Although it is completely separated from the choice of the public to enjoy literature, this recognition inevitably leads to a tendency to lower genre fiction by popular opinion through media advertising enables the mindset to accept the other judgment bestowed by literary powers
Those who have grasped the existing literary power think of genre fiction as an enemy who has forced itself into the market of selling books nationwide and locally. This is the way to go through with changing perceptions of society. It may be difficult to take the first step in such a problem until we abandon the old-fashioned feelings that the public enjoys and interprets the emotions humans desire as taboo or entertaining by their literature needs to be immoral, seriousness, and pain.
There is no superiority between genres in literature. It is just that there are good and bad works. Every distinction and discrimination are only a system of knowledge created by discourses. There are many people who have gone out as advanced readers through genre fiction. Genre fiction, which shows significant influence in the era of cultural industry. the discovery of cultural archetypes of each nation and strategies for content creation. Also, the cultural industry is being combined with various cultural industries such as video and music, thereby maximizing its marketability and helping to secure competitiveness. The wider impact on world culture icons will flow in the form of a calibration of cultural media platforms: digital video, music, and games. The study of genre fiction will become an increasingly important keyword in the cultural industry in the future. Therefore, it is more important than anything else to have marketability and competitiveness. Since genre fiction is an essential new growth engine of high added value, strategic research is needed. In advance genre fiction is fortuitous in bringing out commerciality as one of the aspects cultural industries.
Reference
The 17 Most Popular Genres in Fiction – And Why They Matter. from https://www.writerswrite.co.za/the-17-most-popular-genres-in-fiction-and-why-they-matter/
Herold. (2019, January 30). Book Publishing Market Overview for Authors – Statistics & Facts. https://bookadreport.com/book-market-overview-authors-statistics-facts/
Tale Foundry. (2016). Are Movies Getting Dumber? — “Genre Fiction vs. Literary Fiction”. https://www. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVCtWZSt58w
Mountfort, P. (2020). AUT Blackboard. Popular Genres ENGL602. PowerPoint Week 1. https://blackboard.aut.ac.nz/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_96250_1&content_id=_5273101_1&mode=reset
Week 2 Questions – Tintin
What issues do his albums raise in terms of representation of ‘race’, and particularly ethnic and cultural stereotyping?
The legal dispute began in 2007 when Congolese Belgian citizen Bienvenu Mbutu Mondondo filed a lawsuit against the release of the comic book, claiming that the comic book is full of racial demeanor. Mbutu argues that “it makes people think that ‘black people are savage’.”
However, the law ruled, “It is clear that this cartoon came out in 1946, when colonial thinking prevailed, and it was not intended to create a threatening, hostile or contemptuous atmosphere in the plot.”
Mbutu’s lawyer said, “Mbutu will hold on to this case as far as possible,” and said he will appeal.
The first edition of the controversial book, Tintin in the Congo was published in 1946 when Congo was under Belgian colonial rule.
Due to the Belgian colonial rule the cartoons published during this time were allowed free willing without the backlash of public opinion reflects the period of systematic discrimination towards ethnic minorities and caused racial injustice of accepting this behaviour in the controversial book , Tintin in the Congo. Certain images throughout the Tintin in the Congo cartoon have presented explicit white supremacist views through detailing and portraying the narrative of black natives lying flat behind Tintin and puppies, saying, “White people are very great and spiritual,”. Tintin series portrays not only blacks but also Asian and Native Americans as of barbaric image, nature, and practices.
Herge said in a media interview during his lifetime, “When I drew Tintin in the Land of the Soviets and in the Tintin in the Congo. I was fed the prejudices of the bourgeois society that surrounded me, Africans were great big children. Herge drew cartoons based on that standard,”.
Historical background After the success of Tintin in the Land of the Soviets, Herge wanted to send Tintin to the United States, but Norbert Wallez, the editor of the far right, instructed Hergé to draw a story that took place in Belgium’s ruled Congo.
Wallez believed that Belgium’s colonial rule of the Congo at that time needed to be promoted, as Michael Farr Pa pointed out, in 1928 the memory of Belgian King Albert and Queen Elizabeth’s visit to the colony was still of impact during the period of settling the Belgian colonial rule of Congo forcing their colonial ideology and power upon the masses.
During Leopold’s reign, about 10 million Congolese died in brutal rule, such as cutting off their hands if they failed to meet their quotas. Hergé later sarcastically referred to the Congolese as “our beautiful colony that needs us very much.”
Reference
Independent Digital News and Media. Herge’s ‘racist’ adventures of Tintin? Not so, court decides. The Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/herges-racist-adventures-of-tintin-not-so-court-decides-6894770.html.
Vrielink, J. (2012, May 14). Effort to ban Tintin comic book fails in Belgium | Jogchum Vrielink.
Week 3
Question 1 How and why have Tintin’s gender and sexuality been question?
The discussion about Tintin’s gender has been debated during the time of internet forums. As the absence of female or physically attractive characters in Tintin does not represent his gender or sexual preference desires.
There is no sexual dynamics in Tintin comics, and homosexuality is a clear choice of sexual behaviour, and in this book, there is no such story at all. In Tintin comics, you can find the same answer as why no character dies. Because it’s a children’s cartoon for children’s readers. Judging gender and his sexual identity directs no influence of the ideas being presented however the awareness to reach the age appropriate audience during the initial release of the comic were heavily influenced directly by the period of release where general public opinion was more close minded and conventional towards the ideas that embed misogynistic culture and ideas towards male central characters will embellish male characteristics resulting in diluting the pool od demand towards all genders demand being equal to read the adventures of Tin Tin .
In the case of Tintin, as the series progresses, there is less clear information about which country the land is from. This can have the effect of making it easier for foreign readers to immerse themselves in the main character when the cartoon is translated into a foreign country.
Hergé intentionally made Tintin avoid the feelings of love, and in the cartoons, there were blondes and young women. Scenes were mainly used to create intrigue or action. the lack of heterosexual love in Tintin requires some understanding of the laws of pre-World War II publications in France. Currently, the legal regulations for children and adolescents were severe. The newspaper where Tintin was serialized was also a Catholic newspaper, so it helps us understand why Tintin does not have a sexual dimension.
The adventures of Tin Tin were made with the intention to be read by teenagers, so the moral purpose is noted. He is philanthropists. He saves people from trouble without racial distinction. Tin Tin portrays bravery, the difficulties of dealing and overcoming dangerous circumstances and scenarios, displaying the ability to be creative and work alongside your intuition. Use your wisdom to get through difficulties. He is philanthropists. He saves people from trouble without racial distinction. According to author Hergé, his brother is the model of Tintin. His hairstyle was the same as his brother’s hairstyle. But since Tintin became famous, my younger brother, who was a career soldier, was so stressed out that he looked like Tintin that he shaved his head. Hergé used it as a model to create a character, so the character that was born was Colonel Spoons, the villain
Reference
Mountfort, P. (2020). Tintin and gender part 1 [PowerPoint Slides]. Blackboard. https://blackboard.aut.ac.nz/
Mountfort, P. (2020). Tintin, gender and desire. Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics. https://doi.org/10.1080/21504857.2020.1729829
Week 4
1. What was the cultural impact of Akira (1988), and why does it occupy a key place in the canon of anime greats?
Akira is considered one of the most influential animations of all time. Akira is even mentioned as the most important work in the history of Japanese animation. It has become a novelty of the cyber funk genre and is widely popular and long-time cult film has global recognition for its high praise film that envelops the audience into film to be overwhelming immersive cinematic.
Tetsuo, Shima the deuteragonist and main antagonist of the AIKRA franchise, a monster who enabled himself to gain overwhelming power after an incident. He elicits a sociological imagination of the ambivalent attributes of modern civilization of science and technology, and the ultimatum; self-destructive power all three representing the great achievements of human history with reflection towards it discrepancy of human error leading significant warring for future preservation at the cost of driving human forward through attaining the impossible.
Through this, we can say that the belief in “development” and “progress” related to science and technology is an empty hole in optimism about technologically civilized society.
If Tetsuo’s superpowers were to be associated with the mythical story of Prometheus, we can relate this to the concept of ‘fire’.
Prometheus is the most humanized god who brought fire to the human world, and he is later punished severely for his actions by Zeus.
The issue that should be noted in this myth is the nature of fire in which he gifted to humanity. Fire in this myth is expected to be controlled under the power of Zeus, and human interest in fire is considered taboo. Therefore, Prometheus’ outlandish act of stealing fire and passing it on to humankind is observed to be a challenge to the gods before it is seen as compassion towards human beings. It symbolizes the deadly nature of human desire to multiply infinitely towards divine tools.
Based on the similarity with Prometheus, I would like to interpret it as “Tetsuo,” who stole technology in a near-future. The tragic end of ‘Tetsuo’ a punishment for self-cultivated ambitions, and a destructive overthrow of social desires that have been the foundation of these self-cultivated desires.
It can be said that the second main character, Tetsuo, declared the end of the Homo sapiens era in a new way. It refers to Homo sapiens who possess the knowledge on how to use tools to supplement intrinsic human abilities. It also contains the narcissistic self-awareness of mankind living as the dominant species of earth. However, it is no doubt that the human body and spirit, as well as human to human network of relationships, are subordinate to technological power today when what was considered a technological tool, began to enter the human interior. Here, we use Akira to illustrate the reversal of the situation in which humans are equipped to the outcome of science and technology. Specifically, after describing a technological civilization that cannot be overcome by relying on natural human power, it shows a situation in which individuals cannot resist such an environment. The explosion of ‘Tetsuo’ makes us reflect very profoundly on the human excesses that have become the driving force. Within the direction and speed of the development of science and technology, it indicates that there is a latent instability factor that the present civilization has not realized.
References
Mountfort, P. (2020). Pop genres anime 1 Akira [PowerPoint Slides]. Blackboard. https://blackboard.aut.ac.nz/
Week 5
Q-What genre or genres is Princess Mononoke? How does it relate to its ‘prequel’, Nausicaa
It is the most remarkable result of Hayao Miyazaki’s macroscopic stories, this is considered one of the best works in animation history. There are also dramatic elements of the main character’s internal conflict, mental growth, awakening to the world surrounding him, and the nature of adventure elements that venture as they leave west to solve their curses. It is an animation that contains various discourse under the big ecological theme of symbiosis between nature and human beings.
Nausicaa is the only person in the film, “Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind”, who can represent both human and natural positions. She strives for human survival, but on the other hand, she also struggles to tell the truth of nature and bring about coexistence. It was drawn in such an ideal way. In this regard, “Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind” withholds a strong comparison to “Princess Mononoke”.
In “Princess Mononoke”, there is no one like Nausicaa, who is a perfect idealist which represents everyone’s perspective. Ashitaka is a human being who can communicate with animals, but as a result, he has failed to obtain consent from the villagers for his view of nature.
San is a person who grew up with wolves in nature but was not trusted by all the members of nature in “Princess Mononoke”. A herd of wild boars and their chief, Okkoto-nushi, represent the idea that San was not trusted. Unlike the nature of “Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind”, nature in “Princess Mononoke” is portrayed as something that can act exclusively at any time for survival.
Humans can’t unconditionally define themselves as absolute evils due to the construction of an ideal society that returns by destroying nature. This is a rare sight in the world of Nausicaa. Alternatively, the pattern of the ending is different. With Ashitaka’s efforts to somehow stop the fight, San becomes a little closer to humans, and Eboshi admits her own mistakes and vows to make a better village. was not only more realistic, but also ignited the possibility of continued development in the future.
Week 6
What is the philosophy of cosmism and how is it used to convey a sense of dread in both The Shadow Over Inns mouth and The Colour out of Space?
Cosmism is a philosophical view symbolizing cosmic fear, which refers to the overwhelming despair and fear of space, disaster, and transcendental God, which appear in places like the unknown, deep-sea, and cosmic world that we have not yet recognized. Even in Lovecraft’s novel, the theme is the fear of extra-terrestrial species with secrets that give us the mystery of the universe that humans cannot know or fear, which be Cosmism. Cosmic horror is a sub-genre of horror that utilizes Cosmism. Cosmism is based on fear, which is told with important feelings in myths and religions. These Cosmic horrors are written about human fear and end nihilism in a dystopian atmosphere. Especially easily seen around us, “Alien” and “Budbox” and “The Mist” are well-known cosmic-themed films in which humans are brutally attacked and killed by unknown alien species and supernatural beings.
Lovecraft said this in his essay book. It is a sentence that reflects Lovecraft’s opinion of fear. To describe Lovecraft’s philosophy of work in one word, it is Cosmism. The fear expressed in his novel has a distinct element from the visual and auditory fear revealed in the general work. The fear of unknowns, vast universes, or beings that cannot be seen, heard, or felt, is revealed in the work. The images and moods of these horror descriptions serve as a tool to express his unique sense of subject matter very well. Cosmism is a philosophical view of fear.
Lovecraft’s creation, Cthulhu, also sleeps deep in the sea, and Dagon s also a monster living in the sea and his subordinate species, respectively. In the West, people are disgusted by marine animals, and in the case of deep-sea creatures, they are more disparate in appearance.
The outward grandeur or creepy external portrayal of the extra-terrestrial life, Old One, architecture can be frightening.
There could be a violent situation and a primal fear of death being slaughtered by them. However, the theme of “human beings are very insignificant” in the absolute ancient alien civilization is a typical characteristic of Lovecraft’s Cosmic Horror. This is quite out of the ordinary plot.
The horror monster shown in the general myth is the object of Oedipus overcoming. However, the monster in Cosmic Horror is like unknown mother nature that humans cannot resist.
The distinction between traditional cosmic horror is that the genre deals with cosmism, or unknown fear, and cosmic fear. This sense of subject sets the plot apart. Thus, in general, works of the Cosmic Horror genre are tragic. Lovecraft’s unique horror philosophy is contained in “Shadow over Inns mouth”. Human beings are weak and cannot solve cases in the climax. Experience the greatest fear in the climax and fall into despair. As a result, many works face tragedy at the end of the play or merge with fear, as Nietzsche said.
Reference
Stableford, B. (2006). The cosmic horror. Icons of Horror and the Supernatural: An Encyclopaedia of Our Worst Nightmares
Cosmism. (n.d.), from https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/cosmicism
The H.P. Lovecraft Archive. https://www.hplovecraft.com/.
Week 7
1. King (2010) describes Horror as being defined through three basic elements. Explain, using references, what these three elements are. Think of a horror story you’ve read/watched/heard that makes use of all three of these elements and show how King’s definition is at play in that narrative.
According to King (2010), there are some who think fear is of no value other than simply stimulating human peripheral nerves, while others who like and enjoy horror genres may be considered abnormal. Horror speaks bluntly of symbolic things that we fear to talk about, and thus, through books or movies, we indirectly contact these elements and use them as a tool to infinitely unfold the world of our imagination which previously may have been closed. He states that Horror is a useful being that gives us the opportunity to exercise the emotions they continuously demand. Horror novelist Stephen King classified these horrors into three categories. Specifically, things classified as a subgenre of horror and refers to psychological horror.
The first category is ‘Revulsion’ (Gross-out), an emotion linked to the instinctive feeling of disgust toward an occurrence that may be considered unsanitary or unnatural to the highest degree. The shinning director Stanley Kubrick and screenplay also written by Kubrick explores an iconic and historic film in the genre of Horror released 13th June 1980. Kubrick exactly orchestrates this through the central figure “Jack Torrance” due to his physical settings being central to developing the gothic terror narrative to instil fear into the audience. This is highlighted throughout the representations of creating suspense in what will happen. The psychological terror that ensues Wife and Son to be in a state of terror from Jack tuned psycho murderer. All these aspects that represent gothic terror presented through the central characters Jack, Son “Danny Torrance” and wife to Jack and mother to Danny “Wendy Torrance”.
The Shining through the characteristics of blood, scenes that are visibly scary and a physical manifestation which was presented through Jack turning psychotic. The supernatural spotlight presented in scenes such as the supernatural room 237 were Jack and Danny both separately has experiences in room 237 that were estrange from normal outcomes and revered icons of horror represented through a manifestation of what details insanity and strange psychological episodes of breakdown for Jack.
Secondly is ‘Horror’. Horror refers to huge events that humans do not usually experience and have little to absolutely no power over. Examples of this can be the Cthulhu myth, or an apocalyptic event such as a Zombie epidemic or a Nuclear war. The everyday setting Kubrick aims to uproot through the hotel. Produces eeriness by employing the connection of the supernatural added in the start of the film. The hotel was built on ancient Native American land which evolves the setting to become less common when wanting to reel the audience, into seeing more than a normal and boring setting of a hotel located in snowy and Rocky Mountains that is isolated from nearby towns. Kubrick creates an agent of terror in a setting that is common and relatable in humans everyday lives when going on holiday they check in at hotels to create horror, “ the horror film can bring uncomfortably close to the worst and what could happen…Horror films can scare us badly, it can make us want to vomit and it can be disturbing” ( Karin, p.2). Kubrick transgressed the normality of the setting into creating possible or almost certain danger in everyday circumstances to be consistent with horror conventions that produces the feeling of revulsion through suspense, imagination and fear that is out of sight produced from the setting of the hotel locations and placement with in the plot of The Shinning which is essential to the genre of horror
Third and finally there is ‘Terror’. King (2010) said Terror is the most sophisticated horror, which refers to an unpleasant feeling in situations where we don’t know if you are safe or unsafe. Often this comes from a lack of understanding about the situation one might be in along with little knowledge as to deal with a certain situation.
but when it comes to dealing with something that is not inherently safe or unsafe, our human brain becomes confused in judging its level of harm, presiding to cause panic and the aim represented in The shinning director Stanley Kubrick and screenplay also written by Kubrick adapted from Kings novel.
The scene that shows the elevator doors in 1:22:07, the whole screen is turned red and is filling the screen with a flooded river of blood effect crashing into the screen. The horror creates suspense that builds up and intensifies the feeling of being frightened once the horror is presented to the audience. This is interwoven into the narrative structure of The Shining as Kubrick articulates the strangeness and the notion and perception of abandonment, this is essential to showing the audience certainty in using Danny as the storyteller towards the unfamiliar terror happening with farther turned killer Jack with his supernatural abilities to predict events of evil acts towards his mother and himself.
The overall scenes of horror that provides access to gauging with human fears, presented on the screen that are deemed monstrous acts is murder. The soundtrack played in The Shinning enables fear to be heighten by attacking the audience senses. The soundtrack communicates the whole totality of what the genre of horror aims to succeed in creating fear. The conventions of sound play integral with high priced shrieking like music inter played with high pitched screaming from the wife. The sounds of horror presented in The Shinning at the time of its release present to the audience a whirlwind of emotion that is centred on feeling fear and uncomfortable.
Week 8
Cosplay
Question- What does the terms detournement mean and how is it applicable to cosplay
Detournement is a French word meaning, rerouting, or hijacking. The history of detournement involves situations International, a group of revolutionary artists and intellectuals in the 1950s (Geczy, & Peirson- Smith, 2018). Detournement refers to where “authoritative books, maps, and other text were cut and pasted along the polemical and aesthetic line,” (Geczy, & Peirson- Smith, 2018). This hijack was a form of rebellion as it used the playfulness of these pranks to undermine these authoritative social hierarchy’s, political and aesthetic lines (Geczy, & Peirson- Smith, 2018) by reclaiming and expressing things the original work may not have intended.
Detournement today is seen as a critical theory as reuse and imitation of the original work. Detournement, in the context of cosplay it can mean reappropriating other culture and even text, into a costume, Cosplay Involves the audience of the original text “dressing up and performing as characters from popular media texts, e.g. comics, animated or live-action films and tv, games, and other popular culture media including music videos.” (Mountfort, 2020).
Mountfort aims to highlight the new roles taken by the audience in submerging and already immersive pursuit of creating new vison created by the fans of the text, film, manga, etc, the art of cosplay forces new interpretation and meaning through their design and further representing the characteristics qualities through their portrayals of characters that are strongly popular on a nation worldwide level such as Naruto, Harry Potter and Halo all three different genres platform are affected and allowed creator to also be the viewer giving further creative consent and ability to the fans to create their own universe and storylines. As Paul Mountfort states “Fanfiction and parodies, cosplay is part of the feedback loop that allows fans to enter into a text and transform it, turning readers into authors and blurring the distinction between fan and critic, as well as reader and text” (Mountfort, 2020). In doing this there is a sense of rebellion from the audience as they are removing the large authority originally held by the author often described as the death of the author (Mountfort, 2020). It is through this process that the critical theory of detournement finds itself situated in.
By the text becoming a “negotiation between the readers, you guys, us and the texts themselves,” (Mountfort, 2020) the audience is given more control of its expression they form their understanding of the text based on their own experience thus they are from a critical theory standpoint participating in detournement. Cosplay is the three-dimensional version of taking text and physically representing their understanding or interpretation of it (Mountfort, 2020).
In conclusion, detournement involves the reuse and imitation of the original text, hijacking, and placing within its new meaning as the original author’s authority is reduced allowing for a new interpretation of a text. Cosplay in all its forms involves the removal of an author’s original meaning as those who cosplay as these characters add new meaning to said characters through their experiences and understanding of the character which now resides outside of the original text. Therefore, detournement is applicable to cosplay as the very act of cosplay is the expression of detournement.
Refence list
Mountfort, P. (2018). Cosplay as Citation. In P. Mountfort, A. Peirson-Smith, & A. Geczy, Planet Cosplay. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press
Week 11
How real is reality tv show?
“Unscripted Does Not Mean Unwritten” (Stradal, 2014). Studies into reality television focusing on the validity of its genre have revelled it represents realism by showing aspects – people, places, and situations – the real-life factors are then altered for entertainment purposes for a desired audience. Through the techniques how they are edited and resulting in the final cut, filmed in certain ways that allow the ‘director’, producer to fabricate and articulate a real event is a dramatizes lens, thus produces altered ‘reality’ of reality television doesn’t varies to actual reality and other film genres like film documentaries must create narrative and matin the viewer’s attention through editing techniques and musical score like . The techniques presented in Nature documentaries such as splice shots from various days of shooting together, with said shots sometimes being of completely different individuals of the same species. Along with the use of selective establishing shots and music among other editing techniques, such texts can construct a dramatic narrative viewer are more likely to engage and empathise with (Nguyen, 2017).
“Reality TV places an emphasis on the representation of ordinary people and allegedly unscripted or spontaneous moments that supposedly reveal unmediated reality”.
Reality TV implements a diverse set of styles and techniques such as amateur actors/actresses, improvisation, and the use of hidden cameras, surveillance cameras and hand-held cameras to encapsulate the feeling that you are seeing the events unfold in real time (Hill, 2005).
However, all reality TV shows are curated in prototypical style and repetitive techniques they use shown by quality of actors and actress and how it is filmed candid and aim to promote a no filter look towards the realities of life portraying certain emotions and themes. The validity and authenticity heavily rely on editors and producers to smooth out the show ready for an audience to consume.
the most prominent techniques utilized to construct drama, especially in game shows, but not exclusive to the genre alone, is how information is edited to construct a certain narrative. How scenes within a reality show are cut together as well as the superfluous layers added such as music and sound effects can completely alter the meaning of recorded scenes. Without the need to use a script, reality television shows can manufacture drama by cutting together dialogue and interactions which occurred in a different order or completely separately, while adding specific music to elevate the desired tone of the artificial moment (Walters, 2016). This technique is present beyond genres usually considered entertainment for ‘the lowest common denominator’.
Producers and editors will show edited cuts of the footage gained, showing only what they want to be shown or what they deem to be worthy of being shown to the public. This can raise the question of how real is reality tv.
Reference list
Stradal, R. (2014) “Unscripted Does Not Mean Unwritten.” Writers Guild of America, West. Retrieved From http://www.wga.org/organizesub.aspx?id=1096
Nguyen, H. (2017). How ‘Planet Earth II’ and Other Nature Docs Manipulate Footage to Mess with Our Emotions. Indiewire. https://www.indiewire.com/2017/04/nature-documentaries-fake-manipulated-video-1201809008/
Hill, A. (2005) The reality genre. In A. Hill, reality TV: Audiences and popular factual television. (pp. 14 – 40). Oxon: Routledge.
Week 12
Genre, hybridity is embedded into the film business with having romantic comedies and parody horrors. Reality television is no different and has come up with many hybrids such as docusoaps, docudramas. Overtime each genre has come further away from the rooted rigidness that once defined them. To put it in simpler words, all genres are at some level hybrid and what was once categorised has been interlaced (Wood, 2004).
Television shows typically included in the category of Reality television are- news and public affairs programmes, talk shows, entertainment, documentaries, real world events, police or emergency worker drama, and quiz shows. ‘Smith’ mentions that this development is what we can understand as reality TV cannibalising itself to survive (Smith, 2020). Smith entails how reality television is intended to give the viewers of the reality television show a window into the lives of others, allowing for a candid reception and audience interaction aim to be highly express in awe due to the events scripted to pull on our emotions as the viewer. The advent of greater hybridity, in my opinion, has added to the fanbase of the genre as the audience are able to have a greater choice in preference.
This means that reality tv is in a constant space of being reproduced, recreated, and reimagined. We see reality tv as an umbrella term, and associate it with the presence of ‘real people’ or ‘real life’, as opposed to the type of entertainment the show is providing Entertainment and what people are interested is constantly fluctuating, so to understand reality tv as an umbrella genre, leaves a space open for it to continue changing.
Further eludes to zone in on the dilution of multiple genres authenticity as the demand has increased for its repetitiveness. Because people can easily change the channel or switch off the television, the ‘entertainment’ factor of reality television is a vital to its immediate success. However, the argument rises towards So, it is no wonder that new reality tv concepts are constantly being thrown at us. Wood states that despite the ongoing reformation and revisioning of reality tv, that many people view reality tv as a genre (2004). The genre of reality tv is argued to be its own genre, as the shows don’t fit into any other genre other than documentary produced format technically. In addition, reality television shows have a semi-scripted format, where situations are fabricated and the people in the show merely react to whatever situation they are presented with.
Reference list
Wood, B. (2004). A world in retreat: the reconfiguration of hybridity in 20th-century New Zealand television. Media, Culture & Society, 26(1), 45-62.
Smith, P. (2013). Heroic endeavours: flying high in New Zealand reality television. In N. Lorenzo-Dus, & P. Garces-Conejos Blitvich, Real Talk: Reality Television and Discourse Analysis in Action (pp. 140-165). Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan.
Pop Genres 2020 