Film Assignment 2: Class Dismissed: How TV Frames the Working Class (LABR 1F90)

1. What theoretical assumptions underlie the documentary’s major premise that TV depicts working class people as either clowns or social deviants?

For the past five decades television shows have used blue collar acting as a means of entertainment, discipline, education and shaping the view of working class people. The working class people were portrayed as class clowns because of their lack of development and the restrictive boundary they had around their social class. Class clowns have bad taste, lack of intelligence, intransigent politics, poor work ethics and dysfunctional family values. Bad taste usually led to lifestyle of a junk culture such as those seen on sitcoms where the husband came late from work to watch television with a beer in his hand. Some television shows demonstrated that families prefer living with a lower income and buying cheaper brand than expensive ones.

Class in reality however, is not the same since it is powerfully structured by social forces. As publicized in the film ‘Class Dismissed,’ shows like Joe Millionaire, The Nanny, Extreme Makeover and Extreme Makeover House Edition all tried to show how lower classes have attempted to fit with upper and middle class. Another show known as ‘Queer Eye for the Straight Guy’ argued that it was their main intention to focus on the body and the house. It was known as one of the rare shows that aired on television because of its gay representation, stereotypical white male and actors representing upper middle class. Males were seen in the show were concerned with looking beautiful compared to women who were concerned with getting people to recognize their social ability. Nonetheless for a class makeover to exist, the economic system will have to change drastically.

2. How do race, gender, and