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NO CLASS TODAY – 02/28/11
NO CLASS TODAY!
Sorry, all. Due to unforeseen circumstances, I need to cancel class today. Please watch the pilot episode of Dawson’s Creek, which can be found at the link at the bottom of this post, for Wednesday, and be prepared to discuss it in conjunction with “From Beats to Arcs” and “My Generation,” both of which can be found on e-reserve.
Week 8: Balancing Reality and Documentary in Frontier House
Since PBS’s birth as a television channel, the content of its shows has been viewed as more educational and done in a documentary genre. As Rymsza-Pawlowska notes, documentary is the prominent genre for PBS programs (35). Frontier House on PBS does not fit into the typical documentary style of the other programs on the network. Frontier House is more of a hybrid of a documentary and a reality show. There are some aspects of the show that are more indicative of each genre, but they are molded together in a way that does not solely produce a documentary or a more modern reality show. . I believe the creators successfully combination of the documentary style and a reality show by meshing elements of each genre and not being to overbearing on just one side.
Frontier House has many documentary elements such as narration, historical accuracy, and truth. Right away viewers are welcomed by the narration of a woman who introduces the concept of the show as to debunk myths about the Old West and accurately depict the time using the lives of modern day people (Episode 1). Having a narrator is one key difference that makes Frontier House not be a typical reality show. The program is based around the need for historical accuracy and gives the audience more background than other reality shows. If you think of reality shows today, they are more about the pure entertainment factor (think America’s Most Smartest Model that we watched last week) where no narrator is needed to give background information. Frontier House, however, is a show that wants to do more than entertain. It wants to teach. The entertainment value of a reality show is there, for instance when the participants react when they are faced with new challenges such as killing a chicken (Episode 1). The show meshes this entertainment aspect with a historical teaching agenda as well (for example the clothing and props used in the show being authentic and historically accurate) (Episode 1).
To add entertainment value to the show, there are also aspects of reality genre that are present in Frontier House. As Rymsza-Pawlowska points out, the participants of the show are just your average, non-celebrity people (38). If the show was a pure documentary, there may be more characters on the show that are famous. Another way Frontier House balances the reality part of the show is the use of camcorders. This intimate component allows viewers to get a glimpse of each participant’s journey and personal reaction to situations that occur. This is instrumental in adding to the reality genre and puts significant emphasis on the experiences of the participants and not just the events that arise (38).
Frontier House negotiates the lines of each genre by including a little bit of both to achieve it’s main objective of teaching the audience about the lives that were lived in the Old West. Truth of the time is accounted for by historically replicating aspects of the show like the haircuts, clothes, props and tasks, but this is combined with an authenticity level of how the participants actually go about these tasks and their ups and downs of the lifestyle being captured for entertainment value. Meshing the lines of the genres is hard, because if the show were too historical and documentary-like, Frontier House would not capture the same type of audience it may have hoped for. And if the show was too much of a reality genre, the entertainment value may have been overwhelming and the objective to teach about what life was really like would have been lost. The creators did a good job at combining aspects of each genre and creating a reality show with a bit more substance than some of the other shows on the market now which has further complicated our discussion on trying to define the reality genre!
Works Cited
“Episode 1.” Frontier House. Youtube.com. 29 Apr 2002. Web. 24 Feb 2011.
Rymsza-Pawlowska, Malgorzata. “Frontier House: Reality Television and the Historical Experience.” Film & History 37.1 (2007): 35-42. Print.
Blog 8: Frontierhouse
Ever since its start in public television, PBS has always strived to educate and inform its viewers through its unique and diverse programs. One of these programs happens to be Frontierhouse, a documentary/reality television show that depicts three modern families assimilating into the frontier life during the 1880’s, equipped with only the items and/or tools that existed during this era (Rymsza-Pawlowska 35). With aspects of both a documentary and a reality show within its realms, Frontierhouse attempts to mold two genres together to create a new one of its own but unfortunately, the show fails to fully capture its viewers as it lacks the essence of what makes reality shows so lively and entertaining.
In the article entitled “Frontier House: Reality Television and the Historical Experience”, Rymsza-Pawlowska mentions the dichotomy between documentaries and reality shows in order to differentiate between the two seemingly similar categories of television shows (37). According to Rymsza-Pawlowska, documentaries usually “present an account of an event [as opposed to] reality television [which] is not so much of an account of the event but of the experience” (37). When looked upon more closely, documentaries, in essence, focus on the overall aspect of the situation and the accuracy of the information being presented to the audience. In Frontierhouse, for example, these three families realize that they must not only live the day-to-day life of frontier families in the 1880’s but immerse themselves in the “truth” behind this time, from wearing frontier clothes to having no make-up to using whiskey for pain relief. Even something as uncomfortable as a sanitary belt must be used by the women when they are menstruating because the real concept behind the show is to depict the “true” frontier life, paying great attention to every detail that is necessary to accomplish this goal (“The American Dream”).
In addition to that, Frontierhouse also incorporates aspects of reality television as a way to capture the “authenticity” of the families’ experience. Because reality television places a spotlight more on the experience of the people rather than the facts, the only way to do this is to provide something that obviously does not fit this time – a camcorder. By using a camcorder, each family member is able to express their inner thoughts and feelings about their experience and the people around them, giving way for the reality television aspect of the show (“The American Dream”). Family members are also taken to the side from time to time in order for them to say what they feel and this gives the audience “accurate reflections in the context of the experience” (“The American Dream”; Rymsza-Pawlowska 38).
However, because Frontierhouse tried to mix these two genres into one, in a way, the show is unable to completely fulfill both genres’ full potentials. While documentaries are all about the presentation of accurate facts and reality shows are about depicting the most intense reactions and behaviors of the characters throughout this time, Frontierhouse was only able to measure up to half of such things. The introduction of technology makes the show shy away from the documentary’s accurate depiction of the 1880’s but at the same time, keeping things too formal with a narrative takes away the authenticity of the reality aspect (“The American Dream,”). Therefore, even with its unique attempt to merge the different ideas of albeit two similar genres, Frontierhouse fails to measure up to the full potentials of each one, hindering its own entertainment factor in television.
Works Cited:
“The American Dream”. Frontierhouse. Public Broadcasting Service, 2002. Web.
Rymsza-Pawlowska, Malgorzata. “Frontier House: Reality Television and the Historical Experience.” Film & History 37.1 (2007): 35-42. Print.
Week 8: Frontier House
Frontier House could be considered a documentary due to the fact that the show tries to replicate the American frontier of the late 19th century. It serves an educational purpose, like most documentaries. The viewing audience learns how the settlers on the frontier lived—what they ate, what they wore and what they did on a day-to-day basis. The show portrays an accurate depiction of the lifestyle of the settlers back then (“The American Dream”). “The meticulously researched documentary features established the program as a legitimate and accurate historical account” (Rymsza-Pawlowska).
Similar to documentaries, this program follows three families, though not in their normal environment, and documents their day to day lives while trying to survive on the frontier (“The American Dream”).
On the other hand, Frontier House could also be categorized as a reality show because it is entertaining and competitive. I do not believe there was an end prize they were competing for, but each family wanted to prove that they could have survived in the late 1880s (“The American Dream”). According to Rymsza-Pawlowska, “most television audiences view the genre of reality television primarily as entertainment and amusement.” It was indeed amusing when Adrienne was so upset that she could not wear make up for the remainder of her time on the frontier (“The American Dream”). But this was not the primary intent of the show. I think it is a combination of entertainment and education. So Frontier House really cannot be categorized definitively as either a documentary or a reality program. It seems like it is an equal combination of both genres.
As in other reality shows, the families in Frontier House acknowledged the presence of the camera and documented their experiences each night, like a video diary (“The American Dream”). Shows such as Big Brother and Survivor use a similar technique to that of Frontier House; they all put people in unusual quarters—whether it be a house for twelve strangers, a deserted island, or back in time on the frontier.
“The reality portion—in which present-day families attempted to live in the manner of 1883 frontier settlers—allowed the participants, as well as the audience to examine and negotiate their own beliefs about the myth of the Old West and contemporary American life” (Rymsza-Pawlowska). Even that description of the show portrays the extremely fine line between documentary and reality genres. Though the show experiments with modern day people, it is educating the participants and the viewers at home about the hardships of the frontier life. I do not believe that Frontier House can only be categorized accurately as one genre—it does not have all the characteristics of a documentary or a reality show—it is a combination of the two.
Works Cited:
Rymsza-Pawlowska, Malgorzata. “Frontier House: Reality Television and the Historical Experience.” Film & History 37.1 (2007): 35-42. Print.
“The American Dream.” Frontier House. 29 Apr. 2002. Television.
Frontier House
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Frontier House is another great example of the vast possibilities for a reality television show. Unlike many of the other reality shows of its time, Frontier House does not fit the typical genres that have been established. It is not a competition based show with contestants competing in extremely difficult conditions, nor is it one of those MTV based shows about shocking the world. Instead Frontier House dwells into the realm of documentary programs. It is almost a combination of the two with the reality style and the history lessons presented.
I say that it is filmed and created in the reality style because there are aspects, which fit well into that category. Things which most critics judge to be the main aspects of reality television all seem to be there. What is interesting about the show is how history makes it way into the episodes. We learned today that Frontier House is about families giving up all of their items and life styles to life like the old pioneers from the 1800’s. Through out the first episode the family was given a training period on preparing for their time in the new frontier. However, not only did the family learn a few things, but so did the audience. Different specialists instructed the families on different things in which they would have to know. The specialists also would instruct the views on various history lessons from the old west.
It is with out question that both the history and reality side of the show presents it self strongly. From the reality side we see the different families in an invasive manor. The audience witnesses the issues the family members have with the setting as well as with their new neighbors, and from that the audience is presented with drama. Which is a key element in reality television. From the historic standpoint we see the show it self is attempting to prove to the audience that everything is authentic. They do this by bringing on the history experts, only using items that were known to be in that time period, and the most abrasive measure was the narrator making a remark to the audience that this item was hand sown, or how it was found that the item is realistic. I would still argue that the Frontier House fits the mold of a reality show a bit more than a documentary, but nonetheless there are sides of a documentary.
Kompare, Derek. “Extraordinarily Ordinary: The Osbournes as An American Family.” Reality TV: Remaking Television Culture. Ed. Susan Murray and Laurie Ouellette. New York: NYUP, 2004. 97-116. Print.
Rymsza-Pawlowska, Malgorzata. “Frontier House: Reality Television and the Historical Experience.” Film & History 37.1 (2007): 35-42. Print.
Blog 8: Frontier House
For me, I thought that the Frontier House executed the hybrid of documentary and a reality show perfectly because it took different types of ‘all American families’ into a historical situation from an American past. The show wanted to cast the typical middle classes and wealthy classes, which are usually depicted within America, thus, the producer’s goals weren’t meant to have extraneous personalities on the show for future disagreements but it was meant to symbolize what a typical family would have done in order to have survived back in those days. Unlike The Osbournes, Frontier House was not meant to be a reality sitcom where it was meant to be comical or have the casts’ personalities produce the most entertainment, instead it was the authentic situations that they were faced with which made it successful and entertaining to watch. Shows such as The Osbournes or other celebrity family reality-base shows tend to want to entertain the masses through their crazy actions because they’re use to the abnormal environment of fame, so sometimes we can’t always distinguish their true colors and it might be mistaken for acting. Not only did we see real families’ interactions amongst each other and with their environment but the audience was also informed from each episode as educational narration persists throughout as well as granting experts and artifacts to be used. This is typical of what we see in a documentary. Yet, a trend on reality-based shows is the utilization of hidden cameras or confessionals, and this was also used to depict the realism. To make it interesting, Rymsza-Pawlowsha’s article explains that research was involved and that producers utilize the pedagogy and the use of “Real-American” families to make the show more deliverable and entertaining to the masses.
On Frontier House gained authenticity by talking about the historical social issues back in the 1800s, such as the use of contraceptives, sanitation, medications, farm life, and hunting were all presented to the cast for them to succeed in living how one would in the past. As they were taught these methods and facts, the audience can also be engaged in the experiences. However, even though the show takes place in rural farmland settings of the West and out of modernization, one of the faults in show was that casts still refused to give up their modern ideas and materials. For example, Karen Glenn shielded her toilet paper away, the families were not given original barrel rifles to hunt but prototypes of them, females were allowed to use the period sanitary belts (even though the majority of women did not have them back then), and in extreme medical emergencies could individuals be given modern medication and treatment. Although the program was trying to submit to the ethical and moral standards for the well-being of their cast, these exclusions can alter the authenticity of the show, and it prevents it from becoming a true documentary.
Nonetheless, the show did a remarkable job in exploring how ‘ordinary’ (I put this in parentheses because everyone has their own version of what is normal or ordinary) people in the past lived through its truthful depictions, revelation of facts, and explanations. So, I think that both standards are in compliance to Kompare’s and Pawlowska’s binaries of what a documentary and a reality show represent; the only thing that is not met is the it has, in my opinion, ordinary people instead of actors who really show their true emotions, especially in the confessionals.
Works Cited:
Kompare, Derek. “Extraordinarily Ordinary: The Osbournes as An American Family.” Reality TV: Remaking Television Culture. Ed. Susan Murray and Laurie Ouellette. New York: NYUP, 2004. 97-116. Print.
Rymsza-Pawlowska, Malgorzata. “Frontier House: Reality Television and the Historical Experience.” Film & History 37.1 (2007): 35-42. Print.
Balancing of Reality and Documentary
Frontier House
In class, this week, we watched the first episode of Frontier House. It was very heavily based on a balance between reality television and documentary programming. To better understand the difference between the two, let’s define these terms. Reality television is often defined as “a genre of television programming that portrays one or more unprofessional actors and their reactions to given stimuli and/or goals”. (Google) Whereas, documentary programming is often defined as “a program that presents the facts”. (Google) It’s purpose is to “emphasize and express things as perceived without distortion of personal feelings, insertion of fictional matter, and/or interpretation”. (Google) Now, just how is it that Frontier House balances these two conflicting styles of television programming?
Reality television is definitely evident in Frontier House. First off, the characters that are being shown are real people and families, not professional actors. Also, they are placed in homes that are not theirs and given “backgrounds” to follow. (These backgrounds are the booklets that each family was given to read at the beginning of the episode.) Another way that this show contains a trace of reality television is that they are pulled aside to answer questions about each other and the activities that they are involved in. This is very similar to the way that the confessionals are set up in shows like Jersey Shore and Real World. Let’s not forget the drama between the two mothers. This example of conflicting personalities is definitely a tell-tale sign of reality television today. It presents a sense of schadenfreud in the fact that we can laugh at their disagreements and misfortune.
Documentary programming is also evident in Frontier House. For one, the dialogue that is exchanged is unscripted. Reality television often says that it is unscripted, but it is actually quite the contrary. Another way that documentary programming is seen in this show is that there is a narrator. The majority of the time, when dealing with documentaries, there is a narrator explaining to the viewer who these people are, what they’re doing, and why they are in these specific situations. A good example of this narration, besides Frontier House, is in the show Life. The narrator on this show is Oprah Winfrey. Yet another form of documentary programming is the fact that there is more than one family in more than one home. A lot of times, in reality television, they place multiple people under a single roof. That’s probably so that drama is more likely to occur. The last way that I could see documentary programming in Frontier House is just the fact that they showed the slaughtering of the chickens. I think that this is because documentaries are all about the facts, while reality television is just for entertainment. While reality television would rather show the hookups and drunken tirades, documentaries would prefer to show things like the circle of life, how the food chain really works, and other factual things that take place in life. Yes, the all too well known example of a lion running down its prey is an excellent example of this “real life” theme that documentaries try to depict to the viewers.
So, I’ve given examples of both reality television and documentary programming because I strongly believe that both have been attained in this specific show. I found this balance of reality and documentary very entertaining, yet educational at the same time. So, in conclusion, I definitely think that Frontier House has done an excellent job at finding the perfect balance between reality and documentary. It not only kept my attention and left me wanting more, but also educated me on how life was on the frontier.
Works Cited:
“Definitions of Reality Television on the Web”. Google. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Feb 2011. <http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&defl=en&q=define:Reality+television&sa=X&ei=rYZmTbnkJYG88gbc6832Cw&sqi=2&ved=OCB4QKAE>
“Definitions of Documentary on the Web”. Google. N.p, n.d. Web. 24 Feb 2011. <http://google.com/search?hl=en&q=define%3A+documentary+>
Frontier House. PBS. Television. 24 Feb 2011.
Blog Post 8-Frontier House
It is now back to year 1883, living on the Montana Territory, and three families are challenged to experience the true life on the American frontier. The families are provided with materials of the time period such as the clothing, tools, and livestock, in order to recreate and mimic the real lives of families from this time. The three chosen families are put to the ultimate challenge of testing how capable they are of surviving, how successful they are at accurately living the hard lifestyle of the time, as well as how productive they are in preparing for the hard winter. The show casts three completely different families from “disparate geographical, economic, and social situations.” (Rymsza-Pawlowska 7)
Frontier House is a unique example of a reality-televised show that confronts the audience with an extreme encounter to “actual reality”, while presenting viewers with an unexplored realm that they are not used to seeing. The reality show viewing audience is continuously subjected to false advertisement in terms of what is actually real or not. The fascinating spin of the show is that it actually breaks away from the fictitious “reality” viewers are accustomed to, and explores the premises of implementing true real life scenarios. As stated by Malgorzata Rymsza-Pawlowska in his article titled Frontier House: Reality Television and the Historical Experience, he explains, “documentary, unlike other television genres, is based directly on actual experiences and events and purports to offer a depiction of them.” After watching the show in class, I think that Frontier House is successful in doing just that. Susan Caine, who is an expert on domestic living, accompanied by her livestock expert, Rawhide Johnson, team up to research and reconstruct an accurate scenario for the cast members to live by. The “production techniques, the presence of experts, and the use of artifacts and careful explanation of their functions” all combat to categorize Frontier House as a documentary. (Rymsza-Pawlowska 8)
Although Frontier House goal is to execute a real life depiction and challenge contestants to live the life on the American frontier, it still holds true to providing the viewing audience with some traditional “reality” television elements. I think that the most obvious claim to how the show suites the reality standard is how the characters “opinions, reactions, and emotions are not simulated but instead are accurate reflections in the context of the experience.” (Rymsza-Pawlowska 12) Furthermore, this restricts Frontier House from being an accurate portrayal of life as a Montana homesteader, but rather is modern day people’s outlook on that type of life. Another flaw in the system of upholding the homestead lifetyle is how the contestant of the show “are not stopped or penalized when they deviate from the diogesis of homestead life.” (Rymsza-Pawlowska 12)
Frontier House does stray away from traditional reality television fundamentals; however, it does not leave them out completely. There are certainly no challenges or silly games to win prizes that are commonly seen on most generic reality shows, but rather the real life of the frontier is the biggest challenge of them all. I think the show definitely meets requirements for being categorized as a documentary, as well as a reality TV show.
Work Cited:
Rymsza-Pawlowska, Malgorzata. “Frontier House: Reality Television and the Historical Experience.” Film & History 37.1 (2007): 35-42. Print.
Frontier House
Frontier House is a show that showed multiple different families go from their normal lives to a farm that represented culture and values of colonial times. They changed the way they lived and gave up all modern technology (TV.com). In terms of reality television, this show has met the fact that a lot of this unscripted. It is really just the fact that these characters are being taken down a road that keeps coming up with surprises. When one family discovered their milk cow, the one thing gave them the majority of important goods, has gotten crucially sick, they do not know what to do. You can tell that these emotions of being dumbfounded and the fear that they had were completely real (TV.com). In this aspect, the reality television point was clearly made.
Throughout this show, you can tell that certain things were heavily masked. A lot of the moments that were probably of the kids ENJOYING this life were masked. This would be a part of the “conceit of real”. There is a clash of truth and actuality among these types of shows. The producers want to create a show that the audience wants to watch, and in order to do that, it needs to be interesting. And in order to do so, things have to cut. Therefore this can give the illusion of a reality that is not there.
In addition to there being a fake reality, some of the situations are planned out and therefore, the idea of reality is tampered with. There is a scenario of these “colonial families” going out on the road. Here, they are forced to camp and plan for multiple weeks (TV.com). If this scenario had happened in real life, most likely, it would have been a little more unnerving, and they would not have had the support of the producers like the colonists did here. Because of the planned aspect of this trip, the idea of reality is slightly skewed, and it brings up, once again, the conflict of truth and actuality, as well as actor and authenticity.
Frontier House has the qualities of a documentary rolled into it. A documentary is a show where the characters report to camera to attempt to get a candid and pure thought of the actors/ characters. There was a camera placed in a room where the families can go and report their feelings. This makes the audience feel as though this is real, but there is a catch (TV.com). The producers can easily edit these feelings, and cut out parts that are not going to make this show interesting. You can clearly see how some of the characters begin to turn on each other, and this is documented by the characters. For the audience it makes us feel more engaged in their life, and we almost feed off of this false reality presented to us.
I believe that each type of television is partially met to a certain degree. The reality television is shown through the idea that the families do not know what is going to happen and are on their own. However, reality television genre is not fully met because the cameras are not just a third party the whole time. They make themselves known throughout the show which takes away much of the candid aspect.
A documentary is shown through the idea of there being a camera in the Frontier House episodes. This is the most obvious way it is a documentary. However, according to Merriam-webster.com, the definition of a documentary is presenting facts objectively without editorializing (Merriam-webster.com). This obviously did not happen throughout the Frontier House. Therefore, this is only partially a true documentary. Yet, even though the Frontier House is not fully a documentary, or a reality television show, combining the best ideas of both genres really made this show interesting to watch.
“Frontier House.” TV.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Feb 2011. <http://www.tv.com/frontier-house/show/18876/summary.html>.
“Documentary Definition.” Merriam-webster.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Feb 2011. <http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/documentary>
“Frontier Home”
The Frontier Home show in my opinion did a fairly good job at balancing the reality aspect of television and the documentary style of television. Since the family’s lifestyle will be changing and they will be living like people in the old days. This means no more of the modern day technology that everyone is used to. Things such as cell phones, computers, TV’s, and even washers and dryers won’t be available for some months since they will be living like those of the 1800’s and that will be a whole task in itself. This family will have a lot of changes to go through and it will not be an easy transition for any family to go through but they will have to manage it. There’s a lot of factual information that needs to be provided to the audience so they understand on how things worked and operate during that time period of the 1800’s. This is where that documentary style of television comes into play because the cast on the show will live like those of the early ages, as the show will have this family live as close to that time period of the 1800’s as possible. The frontier home is not only just giving out information but the show has its own storyline on how things should be done. This makes the show a little special because it presents a story that the cast follows as they transition and live this lifestyle for a couple months. This in my opinion creates that perfect balance between a documentary and a reality show. Since a story is presented and explains how things go step by step allows both styles to intertwine. You can keep the information side flowing within the stories and still get the reality of the people and what they’re going through as it happens day to day. The reality aspect is pretty simple they just capture everything from the goods to the bads throughout the show which gives it that reality feel to it. There’s camera’s recording at all times just as a modern day reality show would to capture everything from the kids being frustrated to the parents trying to figure out how to manage their schedules. They also, record little interviews on the adults from time to time to see how they are maintaining and coping with these drastic changes. Issues are a given throughout reality shows and there are plenty of issues within the The Frontier Home show to keep and audience entertained and watching like The America’s Smartest Model Show. These are one of the few shows that a capable in my opinion that can present both themes vividly at the same type without it receiving negative views.
Writing About Television - Course Blog 