I have
chosen to analyse the audience pleasures of watching Miranda (BBC 1).
I will give specific examples by close reference to episodes and by
quotation.
Miranda is mainstream family viewing, aimed at a target audience who would relate to middle class life. Miranda is a TV sitcom: socially inept Miranda always gets into awkward situations when working in her joke shop with best friend Stevie, being hounded by her pushy mother, and especially when she is around her crush Gary.
A comprehensive review of all four BBC TV channels by the governing trust (July 2014) found that BBC 1 could feel “middle class in focus and target audience" with Miranda cited as an example. They also found that the BBC is falling out of favour with younger people and BAME (black, Asian and minority ethnic viewers). The average age of BBC1 viewers is 59, compared with 56 in 2010/11. However, the character of Miranda is also quite like a big child as she is unmarried, always making a fool of herself and getting into trouble with her mother, so I think that audiences such as young children and teens could relate to her. Audiences also relate to her relationship with her best friend Stevie because it is a very typical relationship with back and forths and ongoing jokes like Miranda's size or Stevie's 'allure'.
Miranda offers the pleasures of the sitcom genre, such as characters that are recognizable that the audience can relate to, who are stereotypes. Miranda's mother, for example, is the epitome of the upper/middle class.
Miranda's mother makes us laugh because she is a very relateable character to people who know someone like her or act like her which makes jokes like her 'posh laugh' and catch phrase 'such fun' have a more personal and funny twist for the audience.
Miranda's group of girl friends are stereotypes. For example, the middle class is shown as very social and seeing themselves above people like 'commoners'
Her girl friends often make us laugh at Miranda, such as in the episode when her friends say "Tarzan of cakes"
However, in many ways, Miranda is an anti-stereotype because she is disorganized and quite childish she does not have the typical aspects of a hero like an attractive body.
There are many points of recognition for middle class audiences in the ways in which the sitcom addresses audience’s lifestyles, concerns, hopes, such as Miranda's conflict with her mother as when she is forced to go to a social event.
Another narrative strand that makes audiences relate to her is her troubled love life. To explain she is a hopeless romantic but has no immediate desire for a partner much to the disappointment of her mother who tries to marry her off at every opportunity.
Each episode also features predictable running gags such as, for example, the 'allure'
Miranda always manages to lose her clothing, such as in the episode when she shuts a taxi door and traps her dress ripping it off as it drives away.
Stevie and Miranda always compete for boyfriends, such as the episode when the buy dogs simply to impress a man they are fighting over.
Miranda always embarrasses her friends socially, such as the cutaway in an episode where it shows her laughing to fit in and accidentally laughing when someone mentions a death and getting awkward stares.
The sitcom addresses audience’s lifestyles, concerns, hopes about relationships. Miranda always fails to explain her true feelings for Gary, such as when he leaves to hong kong and she cant explain that she wants him to say. Miranda tells us: "of course i don't want him to go"
She competes with, quarrels and makes up with Stevie, for example, when the both comepete in an eating contest.
She gets scolded by her mother, such as in the episode when her mother says "oh no your not going yo The Henley Regata are you?"
In most sitcoms, the audience is passive consumer but this show is filmed before a live studio audience. In addition, Miranda establishes a relationship with her audience by breaking the 4th wall and communicating directly. She confides in us, the audience her feelings, saying: "I just want to let Gary know how i feel"
For Blumler and Katz, audiences use media to gratify needs (the uses and gratifications model of audience behaviour). Miranda offers the pleasure of entertainment, escapism and diversion by making us laugh. In particular, both slapstick humour and verbal humour entertain us. Examples of these include when Mirada talks about the penis pasta in her store and make it into a joke, when she competes with Stevie to find 'Wallet man' by buying a dog and when she kicks the tray out of the waiters hand in the restaurant.
Audiences also like to relate to the characters in programmes; I have shown that Miranda offers many points of recognition in its characters. It s also important that Miranda is a likeable character who does not hold grudges. For example, she is always forgiving of stevie after feuds
Audiences pick programmes with actors that they know and like. It is also significant that Miranda Hart is a well-known person in comedy as it feels like more of a documentary too.
Audiences tend to favour programmes that support their values and their sense of their own identity. Part of our sense of self is informed by making judgements about all sorts of people and things. This is also true of judgements we make about TV and film characters, and celebrities. The shows we watch, the stars we like can be an expression of our identities. One aspect of this type of gratification is known as value reinforcement. This is where we choose television programmes or newspapers that have similar beliefs to those we hold. Therefore, equally important is the upbeat, comic atmosphere of the show. Despite set-backs such as her poor social skills Miranda bounces back, for example, she still attends events like the regatta.
Finally, audiences like to know what is going on in the world (surveillance). This relates to Maslow’s need for security. By keeping up to date with news about local and international events we feel we have the knowledge to avoid or deal with dangers. In a sitcom, the characters face all sorts of situations that we can experience vicariously, some of which are challenging, such as overcoming her embarrassment at telling Garry how she feels.
In conclusion, Miranda is a successful sitcom because it is typical and relatable. it very much fits the audiences pleasures and she is a likeable character and we build a personal relationship which makes viewers come back to find out the next chunk of her story.
Miranda is mainstream family viewing, aimed at a target audience who would relate to middle class life. Miranda is a TV sitcom: socially inept Miranda always gets into awkward situations when working in her joke shop with best friend Stevie, being hounded by her pushy mother, and especially when she is around her crush Gary.
A comprehensive review of all four BBC TV channels by the governing trust (July 2014) found that BBC 1 could feel “middle class in focus and target audience" with Miranda cited as an example. They also found that the BBC is falling out of favour with younger people and BAME (black, Asian and minority ethnic viewers). The average age of BBC1 viewers is 59, compared with 56 in 2010/11. However, the character of Miranda is also quite like a big child as she is unmarried, always making a fool of herself and getting into trouble with her mother, so I think that audiences such as young children and teens could relate to her. Audiences also relate to her relationship with her best friend Stevie because it is a very typical relationship with back and forths and ongoing jokes like Miranda's size or Stevie's 'allure'.
Miranda offers the pleasures of the sitcom genre, such as characters that are recognizable that the audience can relate to, who are stereotypes. Miranda's mother, for example, is the epitome of the upper/middle class.
Miranda's mother makes us laugh because she is a very relateable character to people who know someone like her or act like her which makes jokes like her 'posh laugh' and catch phrase 'such fun' have a more personal and funny twist for the audience.
Miranda's group of girl friends are stereotypes. For example, the middle class is shown as very social and seeing themselves above people like 'commoners'
Her girl friends often make us laugh at Miranda, such as in the episode when her friends say "Tarzan of cakes"
However, in many ways, Miranda is an anti-stereotype because she is disorganized and quite childish she does not have the typical aspects of a hero like an attractive body.
There are many points of recognition for middle class audiences in the ways in which the sitcom addresses audience’s lifestyles, concerns, hopes, such as Miranda's conflict with her mother as when she is forced to go to a social event.
Another narrative strand that makes audiences relate to her is her troubled love life. To explain she is a hopeless romantic but has no immediate desire for a partner much to the disappointment of her mother who tries to marry her off at every opportunity.
Each episode also features predictable running gags such as, for example, the 'allure'
Miranda always manages to lose her clothing, such as in the episode when she shuts a taxi door and traps her dress ripping it off as it drives away.
Stevie and Miranda always compete for boyfriends, such as the episode when the buy dogs simply to impress a man they are fighting over.
Miranda always embarrasses her friends socially, such as the cutaway in an episode where it shows her laughing to fit in and accidentally laughing when someone mentions a death and getting awkward stares.
The sitcom addresses audience’s lifestyles, concerns, hopes about relationships. Miranda always fails to explain her true feelings for Gary, such as when he leaves to hong kong and she cant explain that she wants him to say. Miranda tells us: "of course i don't want him to go"
She competes with, quarrels and makes up with Stevie, for example, when the both comepete in an eating contest.
She gets scolded by her mother, such as in the episode when her mother says "oh no your not going yo The Henley Regata are you?"
In most sitcoms, the audience is passive consumer but this show is filmed before a live studio audience. In addition, Miranda establishes a relationship with her audience by breaking the 4th wall and communicating directly. She confides in us, the audience her feelings, saying: "I just want to let Gary know how i feel"
For Blumler and Katz, audiences use media to gratify needs (the uses and gratifications model of audience behaviour). Miranda offers the pleasure of entertainment, escapism and diversion by making us laugh. In particular, both slapstick humour and verbal humour entertain us. Examples of these include when Mirada talks about the penis pasta in her store and make it into a joke, when she competes with Stevie to find 'Wallet man' by buying a dog and when she kicks the tray out of the waiters hand in the restaurant.
Audiences also like to relate to the characters in programmes; I have shown that Miranda offers many points of recognition in its characters. It s also important that Miranda is a likeable character who does not hold grudges. For example, she is always forgiving of stevie after feuds
Audiences pick programmes with actors that they know and like. It is also significant that Miranda Hart is a well-known person in comedy as it feels like more of a documentary too.
Audiences tend to favour programmes that support their values and their sense of their own identity. Part of our sense of self is informed by making judgements about all sorts of people and things. This is also true of judgements we make about TV and film characters, and celebrities. The shows we watch, the stars we like can be an expression of our identities. One aspect of this type of gratification is known as value reinforcement. This is where we choose television programmes or newspapers that have similar beliefs to those we hold. Therefore, equally important is the upbeat, comic atmosphere of the show. Despite set-backs such as her poor social skills Miranda bounces back, for example, she still attends events like the regatta.
Finally, audiences like to know what is going on in the world (surveillance). This relates to Maslow’s need for security. By keeping up to date with news about local and international events we feel we have the knowledge to avoid or deal with dangers. In a sitcom, the characters face all sorts of situations that we can experience vicariously, some of which are challenging, such as overcoming her embarrassment at telling Garry how she feels.
In conclusion, Miranda is a successful sitcom because it is typical and relatable. it very much fits the audiences pleasures and she is a likeable character and we build a personal relationship which makes viewers come back to find out the next chunk of her story.
"she is a very relateable character to people who know someone like her ": you must be precise and specify what she is like to get a mark for this.
ReplyDelete"Miranda's group of girl friends are stereotypes": you must give specifc examples for this, naming the friends and stating what they say and do, quoting an episode.
For Miranda as an eg of an anti-stereotype, focus on her height, clumsiness, lack of social awareness. Be specific about each, giving facts /examples.
You write "such as Miranda's conflict with her mother as when she is forced to go to a social event" but this is too vague. You have to prove that you have studied the text and specify which episode / event you are using as illustration.
Good on M's relationship with the audience and breaking the forth wall by confiding her feelings about Gary to us.
ReplyDeleteGrade C