Reasons for Popularity of Buffy The Vampire Slayer
Vampire stories have been told for hundreds of years, and like all
things, they have evolved with time. As technology has moved forward
so did the stories, and vampire films soon became popular. These
stories have recently moved onto the small screen, the most popular of
which, a modern adaptation of the tradition vampire myth called 'Buffy
the Vampire Slayer'. This popular programme has a massive following
here in the UK and also overseas and is now in its 7th series of
programmes and has been seen on TV screens around the world for over
four years.
Vampires are well known for their fanged teeth, slick combed back
black hair and red and black capes; however, in 'Buffy the Vampire
Slayer' these traditions have made way for ghoulish monsters and
female fighters. We each have our own different ideas about what and
who vampires are, but, the media use their power on us to create a
strong image of what a vampire 'should' look like and have endorsed
traditions believed for many years. When I say the word vampire, what
do you think of? I am sure that many of us would think of a dark
figure with fanged teeth and wearing a distinctive black cape with a
red collar. In order to maximise viewing figure, the creator's of
'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' have made a good blend of the horror genre
and the typical American high school programme. This mixture of
different genres is suitable for many different age groups and tastes.
The first episode is titled 'Welcome to Hellmouth' this name is an
oxymoron as it uses words that express good and bad. The build up to
the episode shows a young coupl...
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...ecause it provides a good mix of many
aspects of popular programming. It contains scenes that are scary,
action packed and also offers addictive viewing like a soap opera.
Buffy can be viewed by many different age groups as it seems that
there is almost something for all, just the opening episode included
many different styles of programming, from comedy to gothic style
features. If you look at the most popular programmes on TV (Coronation
Street, The Simpson's, Neighbors, Heartbreak High, Relic Hunter etc)
you can see that 'Buffy The Vampire Slayer' includes story lines and
scenes that would attract people who normally watch one or more of the
programmes listed above. Buffy is a blend of a American high school
comedy mixed with sitcom/soap opera story lines, all this as well as
including scenes of violence and horror.
Yezierska uses darkness to describe all the feelings the main character has of being lost and the hardship she endured when she was in Russia. She also uses
The world is composed of light and dark. It is of evil and good, concrete and abstract, black and white, planes and curves, stark and subtle.
What is gender? The answer to that is not so simple. “Gender is what culture makes out of the ‘raw material’ of biological sex,” (Unger and Crawford, 1995). Also, there is a difference between what is gender identity and what is a gender role; a difference which seems to be even more difficult to differentiate between than the words “gender” and “sex”. Media and other parts of our culture seem to believe they know the difference, yet up until a certain period in time, the same stereotypical characters were portrayed and used as role models for others in most media. Women characters being the helpless victims, while the strong men would come to save them (including television shows such as Miami Vice or Three’s Company). Today there is a whole slew of shows and movies, which are redefining and re-categorizing the stereotypical language in relation to gender. One such television series is Buffy, The Vampire Slayer (starring Sarah Michelle Gellar). And although it may seem like a typical teen-angst show, and the main character is a “whiny, rich” girl who fights demons , many people believed it would be exactly like the film (of the same name) which came out five years before the television show first aired in 1997. The film (starring Kristy Swanson) was trite and “airy”, and yet the television series proved those non-believers wrong. In a stereotypical world within the culture that the show represents, Buffy is doing a man’s “job”. She is fighting creatures double her size, and killing them. She is aggressive, outgoing, and determined. Words which are not “normally” used to describe women (without, of course, the word “bitch” trailing right behind them). In other cultures, women being the more aggressive and “take-charge” kind of person is the “norm”, but because we are living in a society, a culture, where even with the whole women’s suffrage being long passed, many people would still like to see women behave as dainty, quiet, and passive characters. Buffy, The Vampire Slayer has taken the issue of “normal gender roles and behavior” and switched them around, allowing the women to be more aggressive, having most of the power and ability, while the men take on the more passive role, watching from the “sidelines”, or at least simply trying to help. Although, at times, the stereotypical views of how a...
imagery of darkness. It is interesting to note how the speaker distinguishes these details, yet in
the recurring theme of night and darkness is used to symbolize guilt and conscience such
The Buffy the Vampire Slayer series is a very popular show that engages well with most youthful audiences, including teenagers and young adults. Teenagers are quickly captivated by the show’s great amount of comedy, adventure, and science fiction. Although it is remarkably entertaining, the show also teaches important life lessons pertaining to love, friendship, and family. In the episode “Hush” from the series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the theme that through clear acts, one can develop clarity in relationships is presented.
Alfred, Lord Tennyson, the author of Idylls of the King, uses motifs in his works to give a deeper understanding of his epic poem. One of his motifs in Idylls of the King is a light and dark binary. Light is seen as bright and beautiful with a new beginning. It also symbolizes the past staying in the past and having a fresh start. Night is when it is dark, and that is when all of the creatures and monsters come out, so to say. Darkness is full of pain, but Tennyson does not always portray it as so. The motif of light and dark takes on several different meanings. Tennyson uses dark with its true meaning, manages to put light into the darkness and use light with its true meaning, and he gives light the darkness that corrupts it.
In the story Sonny's Blues the author, James Baldwin, uses the image of darkness quite frequently. He uses it first when the older brother (main character) talks about his younger brother Sonny. He says that when Sonny was younger his face was bright and open. He said that he didn't want to believe that he would ever see his "brother going down, coming to nothing, all that light in his face gone out." Meaning he had gone from good (clean and innocent) to bad ( giving into drugs like so many of the other young people).
Buffy The Vampire Slayer has broken many barriers in its seven-year stint, creating new genres and enabling innovation in a previously barren area of television. The largest leap the show has taken though, has been in the way it has embraced its fandom, creating a symbiotic relationship between Buffy the show and Buffy the fanfiction. Not only does Buffy fanfiction seize upon unexplored areas and inconsistencies inherent in the text, these forays are often paid homage to by the show, and in some cases, even made part of the canon itself. Ideas and fantasies created by the fans can impact upon the show in a way that has never been seen before.
BBC, in a rare move, picked up the series and turned it into a smash
If you have never seen the TV show Supernatural you need to start watching it then. Why, you ask? Only that it is the most remarkable TV show of time. Well in my opinion it is. Supernatural has magnificent characters and a storyline that just spits out action and drama in every episode. The creatures and ghost are the nightmares you hope will never come true . Here are some main reason on why I watch the show and recommend you to do the same.
The Reasons Behind the Popularity of Action Films In this essay I am going to explore the conventions of action films and their popularity. People love action films, and when they go to see one there are conventions you would expect to see in the film All plots of action films are based on the same outline, Hero and villain meet, there's a disruption of order, and mission, then everything is sorted out when the villain dies and everything returns to normal. There are Stock characters that you expect to see in this genre of film, the hero, the villain and two attractive ladies. The main action is around a male hero, however, modern films have featured female heroines for example Angelina Jolie in 'Tomb Raider'. If the hero is male he is always good looking, intelligent, brave, chauvinistic, and manages to escape from life threatening situations, however the hero will always have a weakness, and if the hero is male the weakness is normally women.
In one context, Marlow the protagonist of Heart of Darkness uses the word "darkness" when reminiscing about his boyhood dreams of exploring undiscovered places on the map. Marlow referred to the places on the map that were uncharted and unexplored as dark. Darkness represents a mystery or an adventure yet to happen.
"SparkNotes: Heart of Darkness: Themes, Motifs & Symbols." SparkNotes: Today's Most Popular Study Guides. Web. 23 Mar. 2011. .