SOAP
OPERAS
It is surely
beyond dispute that soap opera is the
most consistently popular type of
television programme in the world. It
has succeeded in the
imagination of millions since it first
as a
genre back in the 1930s.
The word 'soap'
alludes to the role originally played by
detergent manufacturers, who promoted their
products during commercial breaks. Soap
operas have been as
mindless entertainment, with viewers only
to
these programmes in order to escape from
reality.
Soaps are often set in friendly, tightly-knit
neighbourhoods, evoking nostalgic feelings
in some viewers, since such communities may
no longer exist in many areas. The subject
matter of soaps also great
appeal for viewers since the stories
focus
on domestic problems they may have
experienced themselves.
There has been a significant shift in
attitudes with many soaps now moral
and social issues. The characters and
situations are
complex and ambiguous, providing much food
for thought and no easy answers.
