Regulation of Telenovelas in Society
Hello class, I hope you are all doing well during these times of COVID-19. When I was thinking about what to write for this week's blog post, I couldn't help but share some thoughts I had about Dr. A's slides on telenovela regulation of the social formation. As I went through the slides and watched the videos and clips, it registered how much Latin American culture depends on the telenovela. In the slides, Dr. A shared a video about the fertility rates of Latin American women in Brazil. While there were many speculations as to why the fertility rate was decreasing over the course of a few decades, research was conducted to see if telenovelas played a role. This was because in telenovelas, smaller families (with approximately two kids) were wealthier and, in turn, happier. Typically, Brazilian women's fertility rates were much larger, until telenovelas came into the picture. Their speculations were correct, and an academic paper was released into the media to inform the public of their findings.
What I specifically found interesting, was the fact that we have been discussing social formation regulation in class without even knowing it. For example, we discussed women and their ideas on beauty and "perfection" through telenovelas. Women all over Latin American countries were participating in plastic surgery procedures in order to appear more like the idealized women in the telenovelas. It even got to the point where women were struggling with major health issues because of the unsanitary measures they would take to get these procedures done. It is extremely interesting to me that people, and women specifically, are so captivated by these telenovelas, that they would go to such lengths to emulate their physical appearances and family sizes to those actresses in the show.
Daley,
ReplyDeleteIt is very interesting how you extended the topic of regulation to see that in reality these telenovelas play a huge role in the way reality is seen. You mention the impact of beauty standards in telenovelas, but the effects that telenovelas have on women in particular date back to the beginning with the novela rosa. In those novelas, women are portrayed a certain way that seems admirable thus showing to its audience the way to appeal to men in particular is to be more docile for example. These mannerisms and ways of thinking regulate society by setting a standard that its copied and kept to. It is very interesting how intricate these novelas can be and the change they offer to society. Sometimes they will be reflective of the culture present and other times it will be more of an idealized world where people find they wish they lived in.
I find it extremely interesting to see how beauty standards in telenovelas are reflected among Latin American society. At first I was kind of taken aback by the cosmetic surgery culture that has gained popularity, but once I reflected back on the United States' culture, it doesn't seem so far fetched. The Kardashians dominate both television and social media. Their inhancements have almost redefined what it meant to be a "beautiful" woman in the 2010s. Plastic surgery still isn't at the rate that it is in Latin America, but I wouldn't be surprised if this trend continues to grow in the US. And even countries like South Korea are extremely acceptant of the plastic surgery culture. I sometimes hate that media can have such a strong hold on who we should look like and who we should be, but to have that direct insight into seeing telenovelas influence on body image has been really interesting.
ReplyDelete