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Start Date
25-6-2022 12:00 AM
End Date
25-6-2022 12:00 AM
Abstract
This paper is specifically concerned with the relationship between contemporary "feminist" "quality" television programming and representations of violence against women. Exploring how these programmes continually attempt to reinvent themselves against evolving political contexts, this paper argues that recent television series such as HBO's Mare of Easttown (2021) are often publicly lauded as "feminist" because they feature female characters in leading roles. Despite this, violence against women in these programmes is often depicted in a manner that indicates very little representational progression over time.
This paper will explore representations of sexual violence within the so-called “quality” programming of the U.S. from 2009 – 2019, demonstrating how these representations have changed since the 1980s, alongside changes in broadcasting contexts which have subsequently given rise to the contemporary ubiquity of digital streaming services and premium, pay-per-view modes of broadcasting. The current proliferation of sequences of sexual violence featured within televised drama programming broadcast by the U.S. has now reached an epidemic level, as established by Vanstone’s (2017) identification of more than 30 drama programmes broadcast in 2017 alone which heavily feature narrative sequences of rape and sexual violence. This thesis aims to investigate the relationship between these sequences of exploitation and abuse, and the “quality” television format that has become the universal venue by which these sequences are shown to audiences worldwide.
“Quality” television itself is a cultural concept with a complex and controversial history that this paper argues is inherently and irrevocably gendered. As cultural representations inform perceptions of reality, it is crucial that these televisual depictions of violence against women are assessed and analysed. In a rapidly changing socio-political climate, with sexism currently occupying an important space within the public agenda worldwide, the role that television plays in perpetuating and subverting rape myths must be ascertained, precisely because of the powerful nature of the medium of television itself. Accessible on a variety of platforms, and regularly consumed by audiences across a wide range of backgrounds, nationalities, and ages, television aims to ‘inform, educate, and entertain.’ It is critical, therefore, to investigate the relationship between “quality” television drama, and the specific ways in which ‘popular’ television might ‘inform, educate, and entertain’ audiences about the issues of consent, sexual violence, and rape.
"It's Not A Switch You Can Just Turn Off": "Quality" Television, Feminism and Violence Against Women in Contemporary U.S Programming
This paper is specifically concerned with the relationship between contemporary "feminist" "quality" television programming and representations of violence against women. Exploring how these programmes continually attempt to reinvent themselves against evolving political contexts, this paper argues that recent television series such as HBO's Mare of Easttown (2021) are often publicly lauded as "feminist" because they feature female characters in leading roles. Despite this, violence against women in these programmes is often depicted in a manner that indicates very little representational progression over time.
This paper will explore representations of sexual violence within the so-called “quality” programming of the U.S. from 2009 – 2019, demonstrating how these representations have changed since the 1980s, alongside changes in broadcasting contexts which have subsequently given rise to the contemporary ubiquity of digital streaming services and premium, pay-per-view modes of broadcasting. The current proliferation of sequences of sexual violence featured within televised drama programming broadcast by the U.S. has now reached an epidemic level, as established by Vanstone’s (2017) identification of more than 30 drama programmes broadcast in 2017 alone which heavily feature narrative sequences of rape and sexual violence. This thesis aims to investigate the relationship between these sequences of exploitation and abuse, and the “quality” television format that has become the universal venue by which these sequences are shown to audiences worldwide.
“Quality” television itself is a cultural concept with a complex and controversial history that this paper argues is inherently and irrevocably gendered. As cultural representations inform perceptions of reality, it is crucial that these televisual depictions of violence against women are assessed and analysed. In a rapidly changing socio-political climate, with sexism currently occupying an important space within the public agenda worldwide, the role that television plays in perpetuating and subverting rape myths must be ascertained, precisely because of the powerful nature of the medium of television itself. Accessible on a variety of platforms, and regularly consumed by audiences across a wide range of backgrounds, nationalities, and ages, television aims to ‘inform, educate, and entertain.’ It is critical, therefore, to investigate the relationship between “quality” television drama, and the specific ways in which ‘popular’ television might ‘inform, educate, and entertain’ audiences about the issues of consent, sexual violence, and rape.
Bio
Daisy Richards is a Lecturer in Media and Communications at Nottingham Trent University and is currently undertaking her PhD after having received both her MA and BA from the University of Warwick in 2018 and 2016, respectively. Her research focuses on the representation of female bodies on television, and specifically engages with the relationship between "quality" programming and depictions of sexual violence against women on-screen. She is the author of several articles relating to the coverage of violence against women as presented by news media platforms, and her recent publications include Normalising Sexualised Violence in Rock Music. Her forthcoming work includes an article on fat female bodies on television, and a piece on representations of women’s bodies in Hulu’s Shrill (2019 – 2021). Outside of academia, Daisy enjoys breakfast food, and her kitten called Meatball.