TV Theory 8: Soap Opera

Objectives:
-Analysis of the soap as genre.
-Codes and conventions of soap genre.
-Some possible critical approaches.

Genre elements to watch for:
mise en scene-
-How many locations?
-real or studio?
-Communal spaces?

Camera and Sound-
-Single or multi-camera?
-Diegetic or non-diegetic sound?

Narrative and genre conventions?
-Realistic characters or stereotypes?
-Acting naturalistic or exaggerated?

What is soap opera?
-seral melodrama, primarily dealing with family and emotional issues.
-originated in US, aimed at housewife demographic.
-sponsored by detergent companies, hence the name 'soap opera'.

Soap opera- technical conventions
-multi-camera
-limited sets
-diegetic sound

Early soaps transmitted live or recorded 'as live'.

Soap opera narrative conventions:
-Episodic format- Typically 30minutes. Open-ended storylines with episode cliff-hangers (to sustain audience)
-Repetition- relies on stock characters and locations returned to in each episode.

Melodrama? Or soap?
-pathos
-overwrought emotion
-moral polarization
-coincidence and 'deus ex machina'
-sensationalism

British social realism:
Contemporary-realistic settings and character dealing with social issues.
-Drug abuse
-Mental illness
-HIV
-Sexual abuse

Soap opera- Symbolic conventions:
Mise en scene-
-Classic 'social realist'' British soaps rely on communal locus, where disparate characters meet and interact.
-Limited sets offer continuity and audience identification.

Soap Opera Archetypes:
-The matriarch- dramatic centre
-The lothario- sex, propels plot
-The 'victim'- audience empathy
The 'innocent'- corruptible, changes
-The 'bad boy/ girl'- stock villain, agency