Sunday, November 3, 2013

Idea for Final Essay Abstract topic

I basically typed up all of this in MS Word so I'm copying and pasting from there.
You don't have to go through all the sources and stuff, but I was wondering if this was a good idea for a topic. If there is any way that I can narrow it down let me know. I was thinking maybe I could include less examples? Thanks for taking a look!
Also I don't have a title yet.



Thesis: Television’s influence on American society is a double-edged sword, in that it can be used to push issues beyond the boundaries of taboo and help audiences accept them as a cultural norm. At the same time, audiences become desensitized toward these less ethical subjects, mainly the sexualization of adult and youth situations.

Objective: I would like to explore how this sexualization has developed over time from the 1950s until the 21st century by citing popular examples of scripted and reality cable television shows. May or may not include:
·         Mary Kay and Johnny (first sitcom married couple to be shown sleeping in the same bed and first on-screen pregnancy)
·         I Love Lucy (married interracial couple in sleeping in separate beds)
·         Star Trek (first scripted interracial kiss on TV)
·         All in the Family and/or Maude (sitcom format that focuses on controversial issues of the 60s-70s such as abortion, the Vietnam War, women’s rights, etc.)
·         Jersey Shore (glorifying people getting drunk/fighting and making fools of themselves)
·         Teen Mom (glorifying teen pregnancy)

I’d like to offer the reader a comparison of what was acceptable during the earlier stages of television sitcom and drama verses what is acceptable now and how that progression proves that American society has become much more tolerant of vulgar and explicit sexual/otherwise controversial content on television.

Potential Sources:

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