SITUATION COMEDY: CHARACTERS, STEREOTYPING and IDEOLOGIES - a 400-word hand-out for Popular Television module seminar.

SITUATION COMEDY Characters, Stereotyping, Fictions and Ideologies Sitcoms have more a general grip on their audiences than other popular genres which have obvious connections with more general ideological formations, like the spy thrillers in the 1960s or the crime series in the 1970s. Ryall suggests that genres can be defined as patterns, forms, styles and structures, which mean that the viewer knows everything will be alright in the end. The 'inside/outside' dichotomy can be …

…st as stereotyped as the characters, and humour is generated by placing them in intrinsically funny situations. Normally, sitcoms are associated with working-class audiences, and it offers viewers a sense of escapism by using the uses and gratifications theory: escapism and entertainment. From: J. Corner & S. Harvey ed. (1996) "Television Times: A Reader" Arnold P. Marris & S. Thornham ed. (1998) "Media Studies: A Reader" Edinburgh UP A. Goodwin & G. Whannel ed. (1990) "Understanding Television" Routledge