Although soap operas do indeed attempt to tackle and define social messages, it must be considered to what extent they are able to educate their viewers and produce realism of the subject that is being portrayed. Henderson argues that certain issues such as illnesses (both physical and mental) create problems in terms of script writing. Using the example of Peggy Mitchell’s fight against breast cancer, Henderson maintains that the dramatic element of the soap opera can not be compensated for ‘real’ features such as medical jargon and scenes which involve treatment.
“the Eastenders production team chose not to portray any medical procedures in detail…The decision was, apparently, based upon ‘dramatic’ rather than ‘realistic’ function… ‘needles going into her(Peggy Mitchell) wouldn’t be dramtically interesting’.”
From this we are able to use the example of HIV sufferer Mark Fowler. Recently, the character had learned that his HIV virus had turned into AIDS. Instead of showing the demise of his character and eventually his death- Mark left the square to ‘travel’. The audience were not represented with the true reality of the effects of AIDS upon a person. Thus we are able to argue that soaps do not create socially aware realism to the extent to which audiences are able to learn from the storyline that is being presented. Instead, we are presented with a utopic world in which characters are able to leave the serial and ride off into the sunset on their motorbike to deal with their illness alone and we, the audience, are spared the harsh reality of deaths which are a result of a socially controversial subject. As an Eastenders source explained “…we can’t be an educational film because of time or dramatic function.”
Yet, social issues like those discussed above are not the only elements that the soap opera endeavours to bring to the forefront. Britain is a multi-cultural society, in order for soap operas to maintain their social realist element, the inclusion of ethnic minorities is essential to reflect the larger and more general picture of British society. The major soap operas in Britain include; Eastenders, Emmerdale, Coronation Street and Brookside- although the soaps are all set in different locations around the country they all share the fundamental similar foundation on which the characters and plot lines are formed- a community of famillies which are majority white. (Geraghty)
“The white working-class family, however extended and open, does not readily or realistically (in the programme’s terms) accommodate black people…and yet their presence was essential to the programmes’ claims to deal with current social issues.”
Geraghty uses the example of Nisha, an asian character in Brookside who faced maintaining her western lifestyle whilst dealing with demands from her strict family. Geraghty argues that images of Nisha as being the “deprived Asian girl whose unseen parents were behaving unreasonably and whose life deviated from the British norm.” The fact that her family was ‘unseen’, produced stereotypical imagery of Asian families as being strict and therefore alienated ethnic characters from the established white characters making them appear suspicious and foreign. The recent example of the new Asian family; the Ferreria’s in EastEnders also illustrates the ways in which the portrayal of ethnic minorities are simply overlooked when representing a social group. EastEnders script writers neglected simple things such as names when introducing the family to the square- how is it possible for one family to incorporate names which are Islamic, Hindu and Christian when the cultures from which the names originate are very different from each other. Therefore, does that mean that the producers and script writers are ignoring a large proportion of their potential audience as they are displaying ignorance of even the simplest things- as many Asian viewers across the country managed to pick up on their mistakes (myself included) and were not able to relate to any of the characters?
Yet, soaps do not primarily focus all of their storylines upon socially controversial subjects or issues. Instead storylines which have a ‘film’ element to them are used in order to capture and maintain viewer interest by creating elements of suspense- which is essential for cliffhanger endings of which soaps are typical. Thus creating populist fantasy and entertaining storylines. Such stories include ‘obsession’ and ‘stalking’. (Henderson)
“…stories of ‘obsession’ and ‘stalking’ have long been the subject of gripping storylines…bears little resemblance to real-life cases…”
It is possible to relate this to a recent story in Coronation Street, where the charcters Dev and Sunita became entangled in a fatal love triangle with Dev’s ex-fiance Mya. The consequences of the fatal attraction resulted in Mya holding the pair hostage after fire-bombing his (Dev’s) shops and almost killing the lovers. We must not forget that the soap opera is entertainment television, and that it’s ability to lose itself in fantasy- as it is an imaginary community, with imaginary characters- who have unreal pasts and lives- fits in with representations of real life issues. Also, the soap is endless, thus justifying its ability to include storylines which bring elements of suspense, interest, fear for the characters and action to the everyday lives of the people that live on the Street, the Square, the Close and even the Farm.
John Fiske analyses the way in which the soap opera represents the female and feminine sexuality. He argues that the dominant ideology which is patriarchy underpins the soap opera, but the female characters which are seen as disruptive in accordance with the ‘normal’ foundations of the soap- family life, housework etc, present the female viewer with pleasure. The representation of women – particularly powerful women in soap operas, may create populist fantasy as many female viewers may not be able to relate directly to the character- but are able to gain fantasy type image of dominant women who are able to use their sexuality for personal gain.
“…the powerful women who disrupt men’s power are both loved and hated, their actions praised and condemned…The ability to understand, facilitate, and control relationships is often shown as a source of women’s power, used disruptedly by the bitches and more constructively by the matriarchs.”
Therefore, fantasy type images are created through female characters and their ability to manipulate relationships, thus making women the most powerful character’s in soap operas. If we take the example of Janine Butcher in EastEnders- Janine was one of the most popular characters in the soap. She was seen as strong, manipualitive and was murderous even. Such women stand against the social reality of patriarchy which is present within our society through institutions, norms and values etc, Yet, in the soap opera the woman is powerful, she is in control of he life and does not care if she causes disruption to the everyday mundane life that is present in the soap. Therefore, the soap opera is able to create populist fantasy through its female characters in order to entertain the viewer.
We have seen how the soap opera is able to entertain and educate audiences through its portrayal of controversial issues in order to illustrate certain social messages in order to inform audiences, and also how socially real topics are used for entertainment purposes. Yet, there are larger influences which have a greater affect upon the production of the soap opera and the way that its functions are performed. Commercial pressures preside over entertainment values and socially correct material- economic factors are not interested in how socially correct their show is- their primary goal are ratings.
“…buyers are the biggest power in television and indirectly control most of it. Ask yourselves, who do the broadcasters most want and need to please?”
Henderson examines the commercial pressures that are put on soaps that appear on Channel Four and ITV (Coronation Street, Emmerdale and Brookside), clarifying that “soaps operate within the commercial sector and are required to ‘deliver-up’ audiences for advertisers.” She exemplifies the change in images that Emerdale underwent in order to maintain their slot on ITV. Previously the soap had been described and catergoriesed as “cosy, farming, country, slow and dozy,” the inclusion of more social issue stories allowed Emmerdale to appeal to a younger audience which was essential for it rise in ratings and potentially its survival on screen against other ‘younger’ soaps. The appeal to younger audiences and scheduling times also have a large impact on who views the soap and therefore has major affects on the types of storylines that are included. We are able to take the example of the Austrailian soap Neighbours to give clarity to this suggestion. During the late 1980s, Britian aired the soap which was filled with a young attractive cast, the saop was aired twice daily (lunchtime and in the evening at 5.30pm), which was essential as it was a young audience that were watching television at these particular times. As a result almost 17million people tuned into both episodes when Neighbours was at its peak.
Yet, changing the image of the soap opera has not maintained the popularity of the soap opera. Instead, audience attentions have been focussed elsewhere – a place where hundreds of channels are able to cater for almost any viewing preference- the introduction of the multi-channel environment (Sky digital and cable television). This new multi-channel environment caters for the different minorities and age groups that are present in British society. For example: the Asian channel Zee TV offers a number of soap operas that Asian audiences are able to relate to or perhaps even escape to. Younger audiences now have the choice of switching between MTV and the teen channel Trouble. The choice of programme viewing is immense within this environment and has indeed contributed to the loss of ratings for the television soap opera.
In response to the multi channel environment, the soap opera has increased the number of times that it airs its episodes on television. Now many soaps (which used to be on twice weekly) show up to four episodes a week, not inclusive of the weekend omnibus. Extra viewing, for those who were not able to watch earlier episodes are able to watch their favourite soap at a later time on Sky digital television. With the increase in the number of episodes per week are soaps losing their way? The recent demise of ratings has led to EastEnders being one of the least watched soap operas in Britain – with only 6.2 million viewers tuning in to watch the antics on the Square. This soap crisis has not simply been due to introduction of the multi-channel environement. With more pressures on writers and less time to produce stories EastEnders has lost its focus from hard hitting and entertaining issues about teenage pregnancies and love affairs to storylines that have become entangled in a gangster led world of drugs, money and power.
“Our audience must be able to identify with them- you need to be able to have that conversation at the bus stop the next day. My problem with gangsters is that for 99.9% of our viewers it’s not in their frame of reference.”
Similarily, the once ‘issue-led’ Brookside also met its end in recent years, with storylines that had become involved with gangsters, audiences were no longer able to realate to the situations that were created by the soap producers, and constant pressures of producing more than two episodes a week allowed the soap to lose its connection with the audience. Primarily, the soap opera’s foundations are based upon the sense of reality that it produces and displays on screen for its viewer, we must be able to relate to the emotions and experiences and in someway learn from but at the same time be made to laugh, cry or become enraged. Stories about the functions of a mob are of no interest- relating back to Fiske who argued that the soap world is one which is defined by femininity- has been replaced by macho men fighting each other. As Julia Smith, writer for EastEnders expressed “it has become too male. The best storylines have always revolved around strong, slightly out of control women- Angie, Cindy, Janine, Tiffany- fatally attracted towards villains.”
In conclusion it seems that the soap opera in Britain does indeed offer socially aware realism through its on screen portrayal of controversial social topics which are executed through the soaps established characters. However, in terms of educating the audience with such issues, I would suggest that soaps are not able to achieve this to its fullest extent. We must remind ourselves that the soap opera is there as a form of entertainment, it is there to take us away from our lives and allow us to observe the lives of people who are suffering from terminal illnesses, having affairs with their friends husbands and so on- as we know that such issues may not be affecting us directly ye
John Fiske page 24 The form of realism Television culture.
Soap Story Editor page 62 producing serious soaps
Christine Geraghty page 134 British Soaps in the 1980s
Realism versus ratings, Producing serious soaps, page 77 Lesley Henderson
Eastenders Source Realism versus ratings, Producing serious soaps, page 77 Lesley Henderson
Christine Geraghty, British Soaps in the 1980s page 140
Christine Geraghty, British Soaps in the 1980s page 145
page 72 Lesley Henderson Producing serious soaps.
John Fiske, Gendered television: feminity. Television culture page 182-183
Tony Garnett, Lesley Henderson Producing serious soaps page 65
The guardian , Tony Jordan
