Beverly Hills, 90210 : television, gender, and identity / E. Graham McKinley.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

McKinley, E. Graham.

Series:

Feminist cultural studies, the media, and political culture.

Feminist cultural studies, the media, and political culture

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Beverly Hills 90210 (Television program).

Television viewers--United States--Psychology.

Television viewers.

Television programs--Social aspects--United States.

Television programs.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (283 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Philadelphia : University of Pennsylvania Press, c1997.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

In 1990 the fledgling Fox television network debuted its prime-time soap opera Beverly Hills, 90210, which was intended to appeal to viewers in their late teens and early twenties. Before long, not only did the network have a genuine hit with a large and devoted audience but the program had evolved into a cultural phenomenon as well, becoming a lens through which its youthful viewers defined much of their own sense of themselves. By an overwhelming majority the fans were female-young women between eleven and twenty-five whose experience of the program was addictive and intensely communal. They met in small groups to watch the program, discussing its plot and characters against the backdrops of their own ongoing lives. Wondering what this talk accomplished and what role it played in the construction of young female viewers' identities, Graham McKinley found several groups who watched the program and questioned them about the program's significance. Extracting generously from actual interviews, McKinley's investigation has the urgency of a heart-to-heart conversation, with rich anecdotal moments and revelations of self.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Acknowledgments

Chapter 1. The Enthusiastic Voices

Chapter 2. Watching Beverly Hills, 90210

Chapter 3. Cultural Studies: Agency, Community, and Pleasure

Chapter 4. Social Construction: The Discursive Self

Chapter 5. Appearance: Expertise and the Community of Viewers

Chapter 6. Characterizations: Community with the Characters

Chapter 7. Narrative: Playing Pundit

Chapter 8 Talk About TV Effects: Enculturation

Chapter 9. Issues: Closing Down the Moral Voice

Chapter 10. Dating: The Passive Female

Chapter 11. Guessing: The Microprocesses of Hegemony

Chapter 12. Conclusion: Swimming with the Tide

Appendix: Data Collection and Subjects

Glossary

Bibliography

Index

Notes:

Rev. ed. of the author's thesis (doctoral)--Rutgers University.

Includes bibliographical references (p. [261]-267) and index.

ISBN:

1-283-21122-X

9786613211224

0-8122-0075-6

OCLC:

758823524