The article from the Journal of Popular Culture titled Sex and the City by Deborah Jermyn is an assessment of the book Jermyn wrote about the cable television show the Sex in the City. Also the author of the article Ronald Helfrich gives his view point towards the television show, and clarifies, rebuttals, and informs the reader beyond what the title suggest.
Sex in the City was a television show that aired on a cable television station called the Home Box Office (HBO). HBO was the producer of the show, and was accredited by the show’s popularity and success explains Helfrich in the article. He goes on to explain that the book Jermyn wrote was one of two published works that attempted to explore the multifaceted television show, and fell short. However he does acknowledge the fact that a book is limited by page numbers, and could not possibly address all of the aspects of the show (Helfrich) .
Helfrich's language and topics throughout this article suggest that he is writing to a mature audience. He addresses the fact that the television show won over fifty awards during its six seasons of air time. Also the amount of viewers the show drew to the cable network, and compared it to titles like, I Love Lucy, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, and The Mary Tyler More Show. These are all reasons why I feel the audience he is addressing is a more mature audience between the ages of twenty-eight and forty-five (Helfrich) .
This article lacked a great deal of facts that I would like to know about. The article tells us how many viewers this show had, and says it was a great deal higher than any other typical cable television show has, but does not offer any comparable numbers. Also, there is no information about which viewers were the millions that tuned in weekly, and why he thought that this group of people did tune in (Helfrich) .
There is much more information about the television show that can be addressed. Facts about what the author of the book was attempting to achieve in her writing would have been nice to have understood further the information we were being given. Over all the article is very well written and gives a broad view of information over a wide range of topics regarding the book, and show The Sex and the City.
Helfrich, R. (n.d.). Sex and the City. Deborah Jermyn. Detroit, MI: Wayne State. EJC: Book Reviews , pp. 662-663.
I do not get the big deal about Sex and the City. I watched part of one of the movies and found to be catty and shallow. I think it sad what they make women out to be. But my knowledge of the show is limited therefore I could be wrong. It is impressive the show has won so many awards.
ReplyDeleteThe fact that the shows choose to compare it to were I Love Lucy, Breakfast at Tiffany's, and The Mary Tyler More Show makes me agree that the article was for an older demographic. Parly because I have never seen any of these shows!
Amy Hammel
I myself attempted to watch the show with my girlfriend and for the life of me, could not understand it. She had be watching it longer than I had so she got everything, but I will never understand the fascination with that show.
ReplyDeleteTo Brian and Amy, As with most television series people learn about the characters, and can find the depth with in the portrayal of each aspect of the program. Sex and the City is much like that, maybe even more like the hit show Grey's Anatomy. At first glance some could say the show is all about sex, but if you listen and look beyond the sex you see friendship, compassion, and every day struggles being portrayed by characters who only want to find their prince! However there is a reason why there are multiple television shows, and stations; that is because people are all different and will not always like the same things.
ReplyDeleteAs with the movies about the show you would have to have already been connected to the characters, and emotionally connected to each characters plot to understand, or even care about what was going on in the movie. Again though you have to be a fan of this type of acting to have a desire to watch. As my husband has told me numerous times I am able to relate to people on a very personal, emotional, and honest level that leads me into a characters life, and I become their cheerleader, mourner, and analyst!:)
Shelby,
ReplyDeleteSex and the City was very popular and it was known as a "chick show" by many of my guy friends. Whenever the show was on, my buddies and I would go out and have a "guys night" and let the women have their "Sex and the City" party at the house. Although I never watched the show or either movies, I benefitted from it by having a "guys night" out!
It is a shame that the author couldn't give more information to back up his claims in his article.
You did a great job with what you were given in the article!
Thank you Mr Joe!:)
ReplyDelete