Today’s Agenda:
Over the past two classes, we have talked about the literature of your everyday experiences. First, we addressed literary and theatrical components in advertisements and works of art. Next, we addressed the literary and theatrical components newscasts and political speeches. Today, we are going to consider the literature of television.
The average American watches 4 hours of TV a day. That’s 28 hours a week, or 1456 hours a year. That’s the equivalent of 60.6 days – or approximately two months!
Why do we watch TV?
If your journal, I want you to describe your relationship with television. When did you start watching TV? What did you watch? What do you like or not like about TV? What is the longest period of time that you have ever watched TV? What is your favorite show? What is your least favorite show?
Group Activity:
Imagine that you have been given the power to set the TV schedule for a major network for one week. What would you show? Why would you show it?
If we break down our TV watching, we will come to learn interesting things about both ourselves and our culture.
If you watched TV last year, there is a good chance you watched one of the following shows:
1) American Idol
a. There are two sides to American Idol:
Let’s talk about the literary elements of this. Who are these people? What are they doing? What kinds of questions does this raise?
Other very famous shows include:
Dancing with the stars
2) Sunday night football
3) CSI
4) Grey’s Anatomy
5) Samantha Who
6) House
7) CSI: Miami
When you watch a television show, you are not just watching the show. You are also watching advertisements. Many of them. In fact, during an average half-hour of TV, there is over 8 minutes of ad time. That’s 16 minutes for every hour, or 64 minutes day: over 356 hours a year!
A few classes ago, we talked about how print ads have both literary and theatrical components. The same is also true of television ads. Let’s watch a brief ad from wal-mart.
As we break this down, what kinds of questions does it raise? What might we disagree with? What would we not disagree with?
Let’s look at another ad
And one more
Homework:
Your homework for next time is to watch the last walmart commerical above and write up a one page explanation of the literary components, theatrial components, and the major questions that are raised by this ad.
TBA in class
[...] Tuesday, November 11 [...]
Pingback by Welcome to Eh 112: Approaches to Literature « Approaches to Literature, Fall 2008 — August 29, 2008 @ 5:28 pm |
abc News – Talking parrot saves toddler
theatricle-
being filmed in the home. shows shots of the child playing, with parent, the parrot talking with parent
literary –
the parent
the toddler
the parrot are all present
the mother answers questions from the news cast and explains what had happened – the mother went to the bathroom when her daughter began to choke on her pop-tart and the parrot started talking out to the mother.
Comment by Jennifer Campbell — November 11, 2008 @ 5:29 pm |
I know for sure that I was set down in front of the TV really young – who knows how young! The show that i remember watching as a child is the tv show “Chips”. I can remember watching it everyday before going to school. What i like about TV is that it can take up time you are trying to kill, and also entertain you at the same time. Something else that i like about TV is that it helps me fall asleep at night. What i don’t like about TV is the commercials. Yes i get that they are all advertisments, but i wish we could choose if we wanted to watch them. The longest period of time in which i have watched TV is about 6-8 hours. When i was in High school, a friend and i could sit down all day and watch movie after movie on lifetime. we would have to push ourselves to not watch one after another. My favorite TV show is Army Wives, but has recently ended, so i have now got an interest in Jon&Kate plus 8. I think that the show is very interesting to watch to see how the parents juggle everything going on in their lives. My least favoirte TV show is The Simpsons. I have never been able to sit down and watch a full episode.
Comment by Jennifer Campbell — November 11, 2008 @ 5:47 pm |
I have been watching tv ever since i can remember. The things i can remember watching are mary-kate and ashley movies, power rangers, and are you afraid of the dark. I dont like that TV can trick you into being a zombie on the couch for many hours. I find that if i dont pay attention to how long ive been sitting there, it could get out of hand. I also hate that there are so many commercials. Probably the longest i ever spent watching TV was when i had my wisdom teeth out. For about 4 days i just layed in bed and watched either TV or movies. It wasnt for a long time, since i would go back to sleep every few hours due to the pain meds. My favorite TV show is House, i normally dont have time to watch it when the new episodes come on, so i download them from itunes and watch them when i have time. I also love Janice Dickenson’s modeling agency. I hate any movie on the SciFi channel.
Comment by Jana Craig — November 11, 2008 @ 5:49 pm |
When I was younger, I was always outside so I don’t really remember watching TV until was in first grade. I’m sure that I probably did watch some but I liked being outside much more than I liked watching TV. I used to like shows such as Zoom, Mr. Rodgers, Seaseme Street, and Arthur. However, when I was about 6 or 7, my parents made a rule about how much TV I could watch. They limited me to 1/2 hour a night. So from then until close to my high school years, I was only watching 1/2 of TV during the week. On weekends I was usually busy with sports of the farm so I didn’t watch much of it then either. As I grew older I started to care less and less about TV series. This could be because I only had three channels but I was more interested in movies, specifically military movies. I did like shows like JAG and NCIS. My grandparents had satellite so I would go down there to watch the Celtics or Red Sox play. Now that I’m in college I don’t really watch a lot of TV. Usually the TV is on but it’s more of just the sound that I look for. If I do watch TV it is something along the lines of Fox News, TNT, AMC, DISC, or the Military Channel. I love military/action movies and could watch those all day long. The type of shows that I dislike the most are reality shows. I don’t think that they represent and normal person at all so I can’t relate. The most TV I have ever watched was the Band of Brothers serious which lasts like 24 hours total.
Comment by Gabe Cheney — November 11, 2008 @ 5:49 pm |
characters -contestants, judges
setting- stage like, with a backdrop with a sign that says american idol
staging- judges desk, with 3 people – setting changes – city changes
coloring- more focus on the judges and contestants
dress- judges are dressed casually, and contestants have thier own wear.
why show bad singers? why show only clips? what are thier standards for good singers?
Comment by Jennifer Campbell — November 11, 2008 @ 6:31 pm |
Wal-Mart Ad. 1
Theatrical:
-music
-editing
-fast paced
-flashing of products
-logo
-excitment of actors
Comment by Jana Craig — November 11, 2008 @ 6:41 pm |
Theatricle –
many TV in background at one point
casual dress – green and red
the ad goes back and forth fast do different views
walmart logo appears more than once
shows the varios electronics and tells about them different brands
also backgorund wall in the girls house is blue – that is walmarts “color”
Comment by Jennifer Campbell — November 11, 2008 @ 6:42 pm |
Leah Narbus
November 12, 2008
EH 112- Approaches to Literature
Homework Assignment: Watch the last Wal-Mart commercial above and write up a one page explanation of the literary components, theatrical components, and the major questions that are raised by this ad.
The literary components that I could come up with in the Wal-mart video were; the characters, the setting, the plot of the video, some cultural references, and imagery.
The characters were the Wal- mart associates who were in charge of the lines. The setting of the video was at the Wal- mart store. The basic plot of the video was getting the point across that Wal- mart was opening new isles at the store for the busy Christmas season, and the words that they say during the video are what get the plot of the video across. Cultural references would be the lights on the isles, and the logo Wal- mart, save money. Live better. The imagery is the color blue because it is the color logo of Wal-mart and also the white light sign.
Some of the theatrical elements that I came up with were; the way that the employees all walked at the same time, and had the same position when at the register. Also, the employees all having the same colors, and the colors in the background would also be another theatrical element. The lights blinking on and off would be another, and also all the TV’s and registers all having the Wal- mart logo. And another would be, the Christmas decorations that the store is decorated with. And lastly, the music in the background blending in with what the plot of the video is, and the voice of the person in the background.
Comment by Leah Narbus — November 13, 2008 @ 1:24 am |
Jennifer Campbell
EH112
Homework
November 11, 2008
During the third Wal-Mart ad that we had to watch for class, you think that it is just a simple ad, when in fact there are many different views we can look at. A few things that we take into consideration are the theatrical components, literary components, and the different questions that arise from the ad.
A few of the theatrical components that I found in the Wal-Mart ad were the Christmas music playing in the background. This music was probably playing to make the connection with Christmas and Wal-Mart to get people to shop there for the presents. There was also the Wal-Mart logo each time the shot switched, emphasizing the logo to get it to click into the publics heads. We see the different candy being sold, the one that stuck out was skittles. Maybe the ad is trying to reach out to children to get them to convince their parent to go there for candy. You also see the smiles on the faces, and how they are all dressed the same, which is the typical Wal-Mart dress code.
Some if the literary components are having all the Wal-Mart employees being shown in the ad. The only people being shown, are that of the different faces of employees, all different races. The lights are the beginning, showing the Wal-Mart sign, lighting it up to make the viewers pay attention to the logo. Another component is that the whole ad is that of a Wal-Mart store, not of the outside.
Some of the questions that arise are why are they advertising Wal-Mart when it is already a busy and bombing store? What are they putting Christmas music with the ad and not that of a different culture? Are they only attracting the certain population that celebrates Christmas? And lastly, I have always seen most of the lines open when I go into Wal-Mart, so why would they advertise just more lanes being open, and not the certain merchandise being sold, don’t you think that would be the major way to hook people in?
Comment by Jen Campbell — November 13, 2008 @ 1:32 am |
Michael Austin
11/12/08
When looking at the literary elements of the commercial you see many cultural references. When looking at the commercial it is that of a holiday setting. The store is done up for Christmas, but you don’t see anything for any of the other holidays. When seeing this the question of whom are they trying to reach with this commercial? The next thing that I see when looking at this ad is the setting is in one of the stores. By looking at thing they want you to feel like this is the store close to me. By doing this they want you to feel welcome in their store so that you will come to shop.
The plot of the ad is that you are going to have a joyful time when doing your Christmas shopping. The rising action of the of the commercial is when they play jingle bells with the lights. Falling action is when all of the clerks come to the front of the registers to show that you are welcome when coming to wal mart.
Some of the theatrical elements of the ad that are resin by looking at this ad, the color, theme, the lights, and the people. The theme of the ad is Christmas shopping, they want you to shop with them and save money. You see the layout of the store with if you have ever been to a wal mart than you know that it’s the wal mart store. The color is very cheerful, it shows that they open the door earlier than the rest and have more lines open so that you have more time with the family. Finally looking at the colors that they used, they made it look like it’s a cheerful place but also very early in the morning. The question that are arises when looking at this commercial is why Christmas, why do the strive on more lines open, and finally why not any other holiday?
Comment by Michael Austin — November 13, 2008 @ 2:53 pm |
Gabe Cheney
Adam Crowley
EH 112
13 November 2008
When ads on TV are designed, it is so that they will catch your attention and make you want to shop there. Each little detail in the commercial is planned out with persuasion in mind. They look at the literary and theatrical components of the ad and how they will work. They might also want to make you ask questions and become intrigued with a new product. If they can get you in the store than chances are that you’ll come out with something.
The main component of this particular ad isn’t the literary components however there are still some that are worth mentioning. The characters of this commercial are all associates that work at the registers. They are from all walks of life and all have smiling faces anxious to start the day. The setting is in a typical Wal-Mart store just before it opens. At the beginning you can see the Wal-Mart sign light up and the associates taking their places. A couple of motifs are convenience and obviously the holidays.
The theatrical components are based on the song “Carol of the Bells” the register lane lights light up with the tune of the song. All the people are smiling and act like they can’t wait for the holiday season. You can see each of their name tags showing their hospitality. The most abundant color is blue seeing as how that is Wal-Mart’s main scheme. The song is supposed to get you in the spirit of Christmas.
The biggest question for me is why do they only open up enough registers during the holiday season? Why not the rest of the year as well? Another question might be where are all the customers? One would think that Wal-Mart would want to show their store as a bustling place of retail.
Comment by Gabe Cheney — November 13, 2008 @ 3:37 pm |
Selina Staples
November 13, 2008
Adam Crowley
When watching TV ads people usually dont watch them and try to figure them out. There is usually too much information in a short period of time flashing by to try to understand the ad and to pick it apart. When slowing an ad down and watching it several times there are a few different ways to look at one, think about the literary elements and theatrical elements. Also you can come up with questions that arise from the ad.
When looking at an ads literary elements you look at the setting, characters, plot, cultural reference, and symbols. The setting of this ad was inside a Wal-Mart at the check-out isles. The characters were Wal-Mart workers who check out peoples items. The plot of this video is the store opening up and the lights at each isle turning on to go along with the song. The song is an example of a cultural refrence. This is a song that is affilated with Christmas to our culture. The symbols are the Wal-Mart logo which is shown in every shot. This emphasizes the fact that it is a Wal-Mart commercial, this is done to get the store name in the heads of the watchers.
The theatrical elements that can be looked at are color, the clothes. The color theme throughout the commercial is blue. This is the color that represents Wal-Mart and is seen through the whole ad. The clothes are typical Wal-Mart clothing. They are blue and have the name Wal-Mart printed onto them. Also the people who are wearing the clothes are people of different races and all seem to be having a good time with smiles on their faces while working there.
Questions that arise after watching this ad are, Do the lanes only open during Christmas? Do they only sell candy? What else do they sell? Where are all the customers?
Comment by Selina Staples — November 13, 2008 @ 5:06 pm |