Will & Grace
Players often enact drama on a stage, which can be viewed either on television or live. Drama can be defined as a literary composition that presents a story through actions and dialogues and is authored by a playwright. The success of the intended portrayal often relies on many different factors such as the coordination of the roles of producers, writers, and actors. All of them need to recognize the conventions and limitations of the stage. In the 21st century, television drama has become a colossal form of entertainment and it continues to entertain millions of people in their homes. In this explicatory piece, the American sitcom, ‘Will & Grace’, is analyzed with a focus on its themes and impact on the society.
Will & Grace is a sitcom set in the city of New York. Essentially, it explores the relationship that exists between two friends, Grace Adler and Will Truman. Will is a lawyer who happens to be gay and Grace is a straight interior designer. It is important to note that the show was filmed in front of a live studio audience on Tuesday nights. Art in its best form often allows an individual to experience life and ultimately changes the way a person views the world. Will & Grace is one of the few drama shows which has influenced its audience in this way. The plot of the story is extremely entertaining, full of comical relief. However, it does more than just amuse the viewers.
The show presented a different America; it showed it with a perspective, which
The television shows from 1950 to the present are connected in many ways. The characters showed in the 1950s television show called Leave It To Beaver all have white coloured skin and portrayed as a happy, perfect family. As the decades increased, the nuclear families turned into blended families, and the television shows started to have coloured characters. The families started to have problems and social situations. The viewer sees the conflicts inside the family begin as the years progress. For example, in the 2000's we examined a television show called Arrested Development. The show portrays the characters as if they are troubled and have problems. The children do not listen to their parents but instead have
In Tania Modleski’s “The Search for Tomorrow in Today’s Soap Operas” she introduces that the rare appearance and function of soap opera in two ways. The first being the viewer’s ability to occupy the text’s recommendation of the viewers position of ‘the good mother’, and the second using the stereotype ‘villainess’ to displace one’s own bottled up anger and powerlessness. I will analyze these two functions by using Modleski’s perspectives on the positions of soap operas, how a new genre of reality television programs that are featured today function in a similar way.
Living by the restrictions that society places upon us, humanity is constrained to follow rules. Television writers were forced to write a certain way and were forced to leave out information that society would deem as improper, rude, and even racist. However, in 1971, a groundbreaking American television sitcom broke through societal boundaries and transformed the way that the American audience viewed television. Engulfed by the Vietnam War, Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s, fight for women's right, and the Watergate scandal, Norman Lear persevered through stereotypes and entertainment norms with his show All in the Family. This show approached its audience in a very blunt and crude manner; it made conflict the center of its comedy. It dealt with contemporary cultural issues in a relatable way, which blue allowed blue-collar workers to learn about their current everyday issues and concerns. Through his show All in the Family, Norman Lear highlighted sensitive topics such as racism, bigotry, and sexual relations to prove that they are still alive in our country; thus, Norman Lear is an agent of change by bringing awareness to social issues.
There comes a time in the second act of Dear Evan Hansen when the sound of the audience's sniffles seem to overpower the sound radiating off stage. The Broadway Musical, Dear Evan Hansen, follows the anxiety driven title character as his lie about a close friendship with a classmate who killed himself spirals out of control. Under the advice of his doctor, he often writes letters to himself, hence, the title of the musical. What had initiated as an innocent misunderstanding soon becomes darker once he is pushed closer with the dead boy's parents and sister (whom he falls in love with). As a member of the show's audience last week, I can most definitely say that this show has changed my life; it has left of positive influence on the way I view the world, especially as a young adult.
The Fault in Our Stars depicts Hazel Grace Lancaster, a 16-year-old girl diagnosed with terminal thyroid cancer. The book chronicles her relationship with Augustus Waters, who has also been diagnosed with cancer. Throughout the novel, Hazel constantly struggles with her identity in relation to her disease. She is conflicted whether to accept the prescribed image society has of her or to embrace her true inner self. Through a period of self-realization, she eventually comes to terms with and redefines her identity. Although society may define an individual’s self-image, The Fault in Our Stars demonstrates that identity is defined by the inner self, rather than external forces; in turn, that self-perception deeply impacts one’s perspective on life.
Shows such as Impractical Jokers, where four lifelong friends compete against each other in absurd challenges, do not connect to current events. Still, as a viewer, I have spent many weekdays watching countless hours of Impractical Jokers as a way to relieve stress from the academic rigor I endure. Although shows like Impractical Jokers do not illustrate sensitive topics, I find shows similar humorous and a good distraction from the real world. The chief aim of shows like Impractical Jokers is not to state “dangerous or impossible” messages, but to give the audience a good
O Brother, Where Art Thou? is a 2001 film produced by Joel and Ethan Coen set in 1930’s Mississippi. The film is loosely based on The Odyssey by Homer. George Clooney stars as Ulysses Everett McGill, John Turturro as Pete Hogwallop, and Tim Blake Nelson as Delmar O'Donnell. Everett convinces Pete and Delmar to run away from prison to search for treasure. Pete and Delmar have big plans as to what they plan to do with the treasure; Pete wants to open a restaurant, and Delmar wants to buy back his family’s farm. The men have several adventures along the way and meet interesting characters. The first person they come to is a nameless man on a railroad hand cart warning the men to not seek treasure. They continue on and meet Tommy who is a black
But most viewers are interested in excitement in their entertainment, which translates into the format and content of the “news” as well as direct entertainment. It is difficult to imagine that television viewers would have watched Truman grow up over almost three decades when even the most engrossing “soap” can not sustain a third of that time period.
In order to explore the representation of “Southern” culture in television, I am comparing and contrasting two popular television shows: Duck Dynasty and Tyler Perry’s House of Payne. Both shows attempt of portraying Southern families and their beliefs, traditions, pastimes and everyday obstacles. Although House of Payne is a sitcom and Duck Dynasty is a reality television show, the two television shows share many similarities in their representation of “Southern” culture. House of Payne may be scripted, but Tyler Perry bases his writing and the show’s plot on the very real lives of families living in Atlanta and also on his personal experiences.
Segregation and discrimination both happen to African Americans in Bryan Stevenson’s Just Mercy and Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. They are viewed as less, like they show be treated differently. In To Kill a Mockingbird, the town of Maycomb took Bob Ewell's word over Tom Robinson's because he was of a different race. Bryan Stevenson mentions that many young African Americans go to prison because they did something bad, but this then affects these children for the rest of their lives. Many African Americans are still affected today by the justice system and how they are treated by other people. Racial injustice has been a huge part of history and both, Just Mercy and To Kill a Mockingbird talk about racial injustice, that is still happening today.
Do you know the guiltiest pleasure of the American public? Two simple words reveal all—reality TV. This new segment of the TV industry began with pioneering shows like MTV’s The Real World and CBS’s Survivor. Switch on primetime television nowadays, and you will become bombarded by and addicted to numerous shows all based on “real” life. There are the heartwarming tales of childbirth on TLC, melodramas of second-rate celebrities on Celebrity Mole, and a look into a completely dysfunctional family on The Osbornes. Yet, out of all these entertaining reality shows arises the newest low for popular culture, a program based on the idea of a rich man or woman in search of
Grace’s motives seem to be fairly simple, as they are based mostly on a love interest of Mr. Kinnear. Mr.
Family sitcoms have been the most popular and positively influenced television shows watched since the 1900s to today. Many of these shows have consisted of African American, Caucasian, and Hispanic families who all play a role that we as watchers look up to or perceive as the right way to run our household. Over time there has been an addition to biracial shows and family role changes throughout these sitcoms. For example, now observing single parent homes, homosexual guardians and even the changing of social interaction has both positively and negatively impacted real families who are watching.
The purpose of my essay is to examine the how “Community” manipulates genre, and whether or not this show can be defined as a Sitcom. My aim is to take a look at the television series through its construction and the way in which Community plays with different genres. I will also examine the way conventional genres are not considered in this show, by looking at the use of intertextuality, the identity of the characters and the narrative of the show.
The Event did not disappoint with my hypothesis that this was a heavily male dominated program. The content of this show illustrates the social hierarchy and roles that men play in society. Subsequently, the major life events change the direction and course of the actors and force them into new roles, norms and values with their characters.