I knew barely anything about melodrama before researching my secondary sources, so I definitely learned a lot about the genre over the last week. I initially thought of melodrama as something that was overdone to the point of ridiculousness, and that calling something a melodrama was a pejorative remark. But my research definitely changed this perception.
Because I did not know much about it, I started by researching articles on particular aspects of melodramatic plays. In melodramas, the same character archetypes prevail: the evil villain, virtuous heroine, and handsome hero. Melodramas are characterized by situations that are extremely far-fetched, with the hero and heroine fighting insurmountable odds, and eventually reach a conclusion where good wins over evil and all is right in the world.
I read a variety of theories on the "purpose" of melodrama and what its intended effect is on the audience. One scholar argued that melodramas reveal the set of ethical values that are at work in the play, reminding audience members that a more just, moral world could exist. Another disagreed, and wrote that melodrama's purpose is actually to show us how we bring suffering upon ourselves in various ways. Others claim that melodramas were just a diversion for audiences of the day, many of which were comprised of working-class people; another wrote that melodramas' implausible story lines rendered them unable to make real social commentary.
While a few of these ideas are competing, I wonder if a more unifying theory could be created. As one scholar noted, melodramatic elements abound in modern TV shows, movies, and our daily lives. It can't be written off as being too unrealistic to have any real meanings. As I research more on the genre, I want to know whether melodrama has been effectively used as a vehicle for conveying social critiques. It seems like other genres (such as farce) would be more appropriate for such purposes, but some melodramatic works could also contain hidden commentaries. Also, I wonder how melodrama has translated across cultures, since it is a genre that exists in the literature of many different countries.
What are some classic examples of melodrama? When/where did it originate?
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your initial thoughts on the genre. When I think melodrama, I think more about farcical works (we do say things like, "Oh, don't be so melodramatic!). I think this says more about our perception of the genre than it does the genre itself though - that as a modern audience, perhaps we don't take melodrama seriously? From the theories you hint at in your post, it does seem like we're not giving it its due respect. I'm super curious to learn more!
ReplyDeleteOne controversial critique I've heard towards melodrama in film is that it's over-emotional, and emotions are tied to female readers/female audiences. Did this critique of melodrama's relationship to women appear even when studying melodrama in theater/as a text?
ReplyDeleteIn researching primary sources, I tried to find melodramas that were used as a form of social critique. The best I could find was Uncle Tom's Cabin, which as I discussed in my primary source post, was not actually that effective in convincing people of the moral evil of slavery. My primary sources seemed to confirm that for the most part, melodramas of the 19th century primarily fit the same mold of excessive emotion, flat characters, and clear-cut definitions of right and wrong. However, that's not to say that melodramas are not as sophisticated or as deserving of critical analysis. I think a fundamental reason they were so popular was that they magnified the sense of things that are out of our control, which we all feel in our lives, even today.
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