Table of Contents

Introduction: Story for a Global Village Sources The Institutional History of Electronic Story "There was this dentist in Santa Barbara . . . ": Folk and Fantasy Sources for Soap Opera The Maid's Tragedy, The Comedy of Errors, An American Melodrama: The Genre of Soap Opera Structure Social and Archetypal Realism: The Content of Soap Opera Story Issue Stories Soap Characters as Story "Functions" Blocking and Weaving: The Structure of Soap Opera Response Toward a Methodology for Soap Opera Audience Study Resonance, Complexity, and the Spacious Vision: Folklore, Story, Oral Culture, and Art Notes Bibliography Index

Promotional Information

This is an examination of soap opera sources, structure, and response, particularly from the critical viewpoints of psychology, both archetypal and empirical, and popular culture, specifically narratology and feminism, that uncover the fundamentals of genre.

About the Author

CAROL TRAYNOR WILLIAMS is Professor of Humanities at Roosevelt University. Her research and writing focus on the social, political, and psychological effects of popular film, particularly on women and the image of women. Professor Williams, who is the author or co-author of several books, watched a dozen soap operas over a six-year period in doing her research for this book.

Reviews

?A refreshing entry into the growing list of studies of the soap opera genre.?-Popular Culture in Libraries

?Her conclusion that the soaps have "resonance, complexity and spacious vision" is persuasive. Undergraduate; graduate; faculty.?-Choice

?This is a serious analysis of both the programs and their critics which does a useful job making the format more understandable to those who cross serials off their list.?-Communication Booknotes

"A refreshing entry into the growing list of studies of the soap opera genre."-Popular Culture in Libraries

"Her conclusion that the soaps have "resonance, complexity and spacious vision" is persuasive. Undergraduate; graduate; faculty."-Choice

"This is a serious analysis of both the programs and their critics which does a useful job making the format more understandable to those who cross serials off their list."-Communication Booknotes