Friday, April 2, 2010

Articles #1


The The first of the two articles that I read was about an American sensation for shows like Wife Swap and Nanny 911. Both of these shows tied into the idea of the females role in society. The article went into great detail about how the shows portray women's roles via their job/social status/marrital status. Jim Brancato discussed how the situation of the "Perfect House Wife" was switched with some lower class "trailer trash" like family. Each woman had a completely different setting from their normal daily hardships. Americans seemed to be fascinated by this because of its abnormality. When do you see two husbands agree to switch wives, and their wives agree to the terms? I would say never, but America is quite strange. Of course by the end of the show, both families' issues are solved and the mothers can return home to there new and improved home life.

The second of the two articles, written by Mark P. Orbe, explains the countless different reality televisions shows, and why people are so obsessed with them. One of the things he addresses is the fact that the focus of many of these reality shows is competition. They put people up against one another for money, prizes, or dream vacations, and as a result, America gets its 30-60 minutes of entertainment. Some of these competitions are for a hand in marriage, Bachelor for instance. The most infamous of the reality television shows is The Real World. This show pitches conflicting personalities and people together just to show the world the drama of a young adult. Is this really reality?

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