“TEACHERS AREN’T PEOPLE... THEY’RE TEACHERS”: A COMPARATIVE LOOK
AT THE EFFECTS OF AMERICAN TEEN TELEVISION ON CANADIAN NATIONAL
IDENTITY
by
Jeremy Ball
B.A., U niversity o f N orthern British Columbia, 2005
THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLM ENT OF
THE REQUIREM ENTS FOR THE D EGREE OF
M ASTER OF ARTS
IN
ENGLISH
UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA
September 2012
© Jeremy Ball, 2012
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Canada
A Comparative Look at Identity Formation in
The OC and Degrassi: the Next Generation
Introduction - The Camera Eye: The case o f Television studies and the Formation and
moulding o f identity. - 2
Chap. one -
Beneath, Between & Behind: Sex, Substance and Violence in The OC. 16
Chap. two -
Closer to the Heart: The Responsible Education o f Degrassi: the Next
Generation’s Teenagers. - 36
Chap. three - Lessons: The Tragedy o f the ‘New Woman, ’Alex and Different Strings:
The Deconstruction and Recreation o f Paige Michalchuk. - 57
Chap. four -
Subdivisions: A Comparative Look at Class and Identity. - 77
Conclusion - In the End: What can Canada do? - 86
Works Cited 92
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Introduction
The Camera Eye: The Case o f Television Studies and the
Formation and Molding o f Identity
“I feel the sense of possibilities,
I feel the wrench o f hard realities”
(Lee, Lifeson and Peart)
Contemporary teen programming is recognized by hipster-TV audiences as being overtly
self-referential. The OC, in particular, was admired and copied by programs like One Tree H ill
and Gossip Girl for its ability to mirror itself and its program identity within the confines of the
show itself. A way that the writers were able to do this was by creating a faux “mirror” show they
called The Valley. Taken straight out of Shakespearean plays like Hamlet, the writers from The
OC create a “reality show” that the characters watch throughout the years. The “play within the
play” is a microcosm o f the events taking place within The OC, and the primary characters
comment on the “reality show” mockingly, completing a metaphor in that both audiences are
being influenced by the programs they are watching in a cyclical loop. The writers thus used
television as a mirror within the show as a reflection o f character formation.
The OC, like many other teen dramas, exhibited that television works as a mirror; the
audience is influenced by the actions they see reflected on it. The identity o f North American
Teen Audiences is very much molded by the television they choose to consume. ‘“ Television is
still the dominant medium o f choice for teenagers and they're watching more o f it than ever
before" (Nielson). While it might be commonly thought that teenagers are more consumed with
the Internet and texting, a 2009 study by the Nielson group has shown that teenagers still spend
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the majority o f their free-time in front o f a screen watching the television. As a teaching device,
television can be problematic due to the arbitrary variances between what is possible and what is
real. Both possibility and reality are negotiable terms whose meanings are both subjective and
contextual; ideally, if the terms are paired, a possibility can often become a reality. Using both
Television and Cultural Studies as a lens, this thesis will negotiate through television that is
written for teen audiences and analyze the possibilities of the genre while addressing the impacts
of the genre; who is watching, what they are gaining from it, and how their identity is modified
as a response to and in relation to what they have seen.
I chose to link identity formation and the development of national identity by analyzing
two popular teen programs, Degrassi: the Next Generation (DTNG) and The OC. I have been a
fan o f teen drama for as long as I can remember. During my teenage years, Degrassi Junior High
was often playing on my TV, and I have fond memories o f watching it in class during high
school. Teachers would often use the show to help deal with “sensitive” material like sex and
drug use. I imagine it would be easier for a teacher to talk to someone else’s child about these
matters than it would be to talk to their own, but I still remember it being difficult for my
teachers to talk to the class about personal issues like rape, bullying and drug use. W hen I began
studying television, I found myself drawn to didactic television, and thus returned my gaze to the
teen programming I remember being so important in shaping my identity when I was a teenager.
At the time when I started my thesis work, Degrassi: the Next Generation and The OC were the
most popular night-time teen television dramas available on cable. Both DTNG and The OC have
also reached some sort o f cult-status for teen programming because of their ability to not only
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reflect teen culture, but also because they have the capacity to influence the complicated
maturation process in which teens form identity. According to Sara Gwenllian-Jones:
Cult television’s serial and segmented forms, its familiar formulae, its
accumulated multiple storylines, its metatextuality, its ubiquitous intertextuality
and intra-textuality, its extension across a variety o f other media, its modes o f
self-reflexivity and constant play o f interruption and excess, work together to
overwhelm the processual order o f cause and effect, enigma and resolution,
extending story events and other narrative and textual elements across boundless
networks o f inter-connected possibilities. (84)
Both shows have devoted followings by adult audiences and often rely on culture relevant to
young adults (for example, Kevin Smith and Death Cab for Cutie1) to ensure their characters
appear on the cutting edge o f trends. Because o f this, DTNG and The OC are strong, timely, and
culturally relevant programs to analyze for the purpose o f this thesis. Scholars like Thorbum,
Gerbner and Fiske have been writing about the effects of television on national identity for more
than twenty years. But what no one has yet treated is the impact teens have on their nation’s
identity and how the relationship between teen and country is portrayed on television. As the first
scholar to approach The OC and Degrassi: the Next Generation I am creating a link between the
discussion of television and national identity and the arguments that center around how
television helps teens create identity. This link is vital to the discussion. In an age where
television's reaches and influence have never been more pervasive, this discussion is necessary to
understand the influence of television on identity moving forward.
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Theoretically and empirically, two different approaches will be used to analyze these
programs, Television Studies and Cultural Studies. These fields are significant in their own right
and the connections that will be drawn between the two frameworks will further the discussion
on the intrinsic link between television and culture in an era where media studies is making
important strides towards legitimacy and magnitude in the field of Humanities.
In his
introduction to The Television Studies Reader, Robert Allen refers to Television Studies as being
a “field o f inquiry” (2). He continues to explain that Television Studies is becoming a legitimate
field, but until further organization is done in the burgeoning field, Television Studies is more o f
an amalgam o f studying television in different disciplines like Literature or Political Science.
The introduction to this thesis includes a literature review that will touch on the major topics
being discussed in both Cultural and TV Studies and present topics and arguments I will use as
the theoretical basis for o f my thesis.
The way that characters on a TV show are informally educated will have an effect on the
audience, particularly in the way the audience sees informal education. Teen dramas are
dominated by informal forms o f education. Traditional education takes a secondary role to
education by peers in teen based television shows like Degrassi: the Next Generation and The
OC. This pedagogy is then relayed to the teen audience, who mirror what they see on TV.
Television is the primary education medium on sexual and substance abuse issues for the Teen
audience. This may be problematic if parents and educators attempt to teach teens using media.
Examples o f teaching with television already exist with classroom-based video/M edia learning
and made for Teen Viewers specials like ABC’s Afterschool Special.
Being that “the typical
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American spends more time watching television than doing anything else but sleeping” (Dail and
Way 492) the way television teaches is pertinent to discussion.
Connections between viewers and experiences are laid out in George Comstock and Erica
Scharrer's book, Television: What's on, Who's Watching and What does it Mean? In this book, the
authors apply an empirical strategy to formulate data about the testable characteristics o f
television viewers. A theorist who approaches one subject from both textual and logical
standpoints engages in interdisciplinary scholarship. Using this interdisciplinary approach,
Comstock and Scharrer discuss hard facts about TV while backing them up with the results o f
their testing. Their results argue that Teen Audiences are influenced by what they see on
television, particularly by anti-social behavior and issues that adults and parents are sometimes
not comfortable discussing, like criminal activity, drug use, and open sexuality.
Anti-social behavior including, but not exclusive to drug use, alcohol use and under-aged
sexuality is represented differently on television in individual countries, and this difference
speaks to the national identity o f the country in question. While investigating the depiction o f
the aforementioned issues in a comparative study o f Canadian and American teen television
drama, I expect that the way the subjects are handled individually in each country will speak
volumes about their national identities in the contexts established in this thesis.
American television has a massive impact on Canadian audiences.
In fact, “it is often
easier to find Canadian content rerun on US stations than on Canadian ones” (Byers and
VanderBurgh 105).
A question arises, however.
Would there have been many similarities
between two shows from Canada and America even ten years ago? Are American television
programs shaping Canadian ones? And if this is the case, is American television shaping
B a ll 7
Canadian national identity? As a result o f American television’s social impact, coupled with
Canadian television’s has need to grow to compete with American television, programs like
DTNG are getting more extreme, and struggle to maintain a Canadian identity.
In unpacking this comparison o f national identities, I plan to examine a few specifics.
First, I am interested in the way education is used in each program relating to the anti-social
matters I have mentioned. Are the teens in the programs being formally or informally educated
about these controversial topics? For the basis o f this thesis, formal education will include
teachers and professionals, while informal will include friends, parents and television itself. The
handling o f these issues in the narrative transcends the medium itself. That is, the viewers o f this
type of program that caters to young, impressionable audiences, are being influenced and
educated in the same way as the characters in the program.
Television has a tendency to instruct subconsciously.
“observational learning” (492).
Dail and Way refer to this as
They go further, adding that “If the viewer engages in the
subprocesses o f observational learning and perceives a certain degree of reality associated with
what is being observed, and if there is likelihood o f an opportunity to display the observed
behaviour, modeled behaviour may occur” (492). This ties into notions of catharsis and didactic
art, which will be discussed later.
From the field of Cultural Studies, I will use theories and arguments that focus on the
rhetorical construct o f identity and culture, not only for individuals, but for nations as well.
We
must assume that national identities are representative o f individual identities. Theories about
identity like those discussed in Chris Barker's book, Television, Globalization and Cultural
Identities will be discussed. In this text, Barker discusses the changing formation and definition
B a ll 8
o f the term "identity" in recent years. Barker argues that identity is not a fixed term; it is fluid.
Barker goes farther to discuss television's role as a leading proponent o f globalization, and
whether or not it has a role to play in the unification o f nations. With this study o f the cultural
effects o f TV and its role as a component of national identity, Barker's argument will pertain to
my argument about what role TV plays in the formation o f Canada's culture and identity.
“Children spend more time watching television than they spend at school or in direct
communication with their parents, siblings, or friends” (Fabes et al. 337). Television, although in
most instances an informal form o f education, plays a primary role in teaching teens about sex,
drugs and alcohol, and is therefore instrumental in shaping teen culture. The characters in teen
television dramas get the bulk o f their "education" from friends and parents, thereby
complementing the formal education system. Cultural Studies texts like Ron Lembo's Thinking
through Television and Chris Barker's Television, Globalization and Cultural Identities, will
serve as the basis for my methodology o f studying culture through TV.
What function does American television have in molding the Canadian teen drama, and to
what extent are elements o f Canadian teen culture being shaped by the American ideals? In 1997,
the Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC) televised a documentary titled, What Border? that
investigated the Americanization o f Canadian culture and what Canadians are doing to preserve
their sense of distinctiveness. Additionally, in Richard Collins' text, Culture, Communication and
National Identity: The Case o f Canadian Television, an argument is made for the case of
Canadian national identity as it pertains to television. Collins goes on to argue that Canada's
identity is not only shaped by its cultural influences, like television, film and other arts, but
Canada defines itself culturally through a group o f unifying symbols, like the maple leaf or
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hockey. Thus, because of its ability to reach all Canadians and deliver symbols like hockey and
even Degrassi television is a factor in any sort o f over-arching Canadian identity.
Mel van Elteren, in his article, "Conceptualizing the Impact of US Popular Culture
Globally," studies the impact that American pop culture has on other countries, mainly European
in this instance, and what the affected countries are doing to maintain their identity. Van Elteren
goes into great detail describing the legalities that come into play to protect cultural borders.
Americanization is exactly what Canada may be facing; although scholars like Collins may think
television is not a major influence on Canadian identity, I argue that as teens age into adults, their
sense o f national identity will be swayed by what they remember as predominant influences as
they matured. Therefore, the Americanization o f Canadian teens threatens Canada's already
fragmented culture. According to Sean Phipps Canadian culture, “doesn’t exist, it’s regional, and
it’s multicultural or any combination of the three... It is a complex culture, shaped by all the
cultures that form it” (theGlobeandMail.com). While describing the state o f Canadian television
culture, Byers and VanderBurgh state that “with no visible history upon which to draw, Canadian
television must be constantly reinvented, coming to exist in a kind o f television language o f no
language, television style of no style” (107). Obviously, Canadian identity is problematic, but
this is also the case with American identity. For the purpose of this thesis, while Canadian and
American identities are fragmented, I will examine them in contexts specific to how social issues
are examined in each nation’s teen television.
The abundance of American programming bombarding the mainstream viewing audience
is a leading reason that Canadian culture is at risk. Beyond pure numbers of programs, American
TV has better production values, contributing to “ [t]his disinterest in watching Canadian-
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produced television that despite the development o f multiple platforms and the passing o f years
does not appear to have changed much” (Byers and VanderBurgh 114). The "Americanization"
of Canada through programming and the spreading of pop culture by American broadcasters can
be interpreted as a modem day form o f imperialism, as Canadian sense of "self' is threatened.
Television is a medium that has educational value and can help instill values and identity
in formative years. Although the amount o f time spent by teens on their electronic devices
increases yearly with the addition of smart phones and tablets, the time spent watching television
in the traditional fashion has not suffered. A reason for this is that television is a legitimate social
indicator. It reaches a diverse, influential audience. Although many consider television to be a
large waste of time, they cannot deny its appeal. Television is both a mimetic and a didactic
device; it echoes real life situations while teaching the viewers lessons. David Considine's article,
"Media Literacy: National Developments and International Origins" discusses the concept o f
teaching with television and how specific countries, including Canada, are integrating this
system into the public education sphere. Programs like Degrassi are being used to teach high
school students about controversial issues like drug use, teen pregnancy and eating disorders. As
traditional education is regionalized and differs slightly from region to region in a nation,
television acts as an overarching signifier of national contexts. Television is an educator and it
affects each country’s national identity.
After thoroughly discussing the theoretical basis o f each field, and how they individually
apply to my central point, I will engage in arguing that in some circumstances, only through a
union o f the two disciplines can we really leam from television in a manner that is responsible.
Notable scholars in the field, such as Lynn Spigel and Ron Lembo are approaching this subject in
B a ll 11
an interdisciplinary manner. Lembo argues that TV viewing is a cultural form, implicitly tying
together the disciplines of Cultural and TV Studies. Through argument, discourse and empirical
studies of watching habits, Lembo attempts to leam how viewers give meaning to their television
watching experience.
When studying TV, according to Horace Newcomb, three questions consistently arise,
"[f]irst, how does television tell stories... [sjecond how do the stories found on television relate
to... the societies and cultures in which they appear... [and t]hird, and finally, why
television?" (107). It is the third question that I find most problematic, why study television? TV
is an astute cultural reflection, and a driving force in shaping the identity of its audience. In terms
of Television Studies, I will be following a reader response theory; I feel that the effects on the
teen audience are what are truly important to my thesis. O f course, I will also discuss other
matters involved with Television Studies, for example, television aesthetics and context.
One matter I am particularly concerned with is the ability o f television to be didactic. For
my argument, television must be proven to be a formative teaching implement for teens. Rick
Nauert, Senior News Editor for Psychcentral.com recently published a paper speaking to
television’s ability to influence youths.
In 2010, he started a study that “involved 353
undergraduate students between the ages of 18 and 25.
p r o g r a m s t h a t f o c u s e d on the d i f f i c u l t i e s
All o f them watched one o f two
associated
with u n p l a n n e d
teen
pregnancies” (Psychcentral.com). One of the programs Nauert used was The OC. Nauert found
that “those who watched The OC were more likely to report in two weeks that they planned on
taking steps to prevent pregnancy” (Psychcentral.com). Lynn Spigel, one of the foremost experts
on Television Studies, approaches the notion o f "television" as more than just the narrative o f the
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shows themselves in her article, "TV's Next Season?" Spigel takes an interdisciplinary look at
TV as a whole, arguing that the format o f the shows (for example when commercials are on and
what they are trying to sell) have just as much effect on the audience as what happens on the
show itself. This concept is also known as “flow” (132). When referring to flow, Fink explains
that "it is evident that what is now called 'an evening's viewing' is in some ways planned by
providers and then by viewers as a whole; that it is in any event planned in discernible sequences
which in this sense override particular program units" (132).
Further discussing ‘flow ’ in a
national identity context, Byers and Vanderburgh conjecture that “Particular narratives through
which ideas such as ‘nation’ have become meaningful might be seen to emerge quite literally in
the jumbling together of disparate historical texts into one ‘flow’, in much the way that they do
in the American and British contexts” (107).
Specifically, Spigel’s article discusses the
integration of Cultural Studies into TV studies and how the scholarly research on television is
changing and where she expects it to go in the next few years.
There is a discrepancy between Television Studies and Media Studies, the first being the
act of studying television, the second studying with television.
By studying with television, I
refer to the act o f using television in the classroom as a teaching implement. For example, an
episode from a teen program discussing cyber bullying may be a valuable tool for a teacher to
use inside the classroom. Studying television and studying with television are inevitably linked.
A certain amount of TV study must be done before it can properly be used as an instructive
device. Gary Edgerton discusses the relationship between the two theories in his article, "Media
Literacy and Education: The Teacher- Scholar in Film and Television." This article deals with the
B a ll 1 3
past, present and future o f media studies as well as discussing the move away from reading and
towards television.
Is television the primary educational medium on anti-social issues for teen viewers? This
theory was empirically tested in George Comstock and Erica Scharrer's book, Television: What's
on, Who's Watching and What does it Mean?, but what the study does not evaluate is what
techniques programs in different nations are using to affect their respective audiences. The
logical question, then, is: do teen nighttime dramas use the same didactic devices and rhetorical
techniques to educate the audiences in Canada and the United States? I propose that this is not
the case, and that the differences in pedagogical styles between the programs I am looking at
speak clearly of national identity in each country. Critics such as Jeannette Sloniowski and
Marie-Claire Simonetti have both attempted to survey the differences between this genre in
Canada and the United States, but the link between didactic television and national identity has
escaped the discourse so far.
The Canadian program I will analyze is Degrassi: the Next Generation (2001). Analysis
and interpretation of this program will make a point about the didactic properties o f TV, as well
as how the Canadian writers and producers o f television attempt to negotiate the formation o f
Canadian national identity into their programming.
The OC (2003) is the American show that I will address as it deals with many o f the same
issues as Degrassi but in a distinctively American way. As this thesis is comparative, the two
shows will be analyzed together regarding the specific issues they share, and how these shared
issues are handled differently.
B a ll 1 4
Degrassi: the Next Generation, created by Yan Moore in 2001, is the most recent
incarnation of a show that originated almost thirty years ago in Canada with The Kids o f
Degrassi Street that originally aired in 1982. This program aired on Canadian Television (CTV),
until 2010 when broadcasting was taken over by sister station MuchMusic. CTV is Canada's
largest privately owned television network. In this most current version, the narrative follows an
ever changing cast through their high school years. A few o f the actors from Degrassi Junior
High and Degrassi High rejoin the cast. This time around, they are the parents and teachers. The
teenaged characters in DTNG are actually played by teenagers. This is unlike many teen dramas
that use actors in their twenties. I believe this adds to the believability o f the on-screen
relationships and dilemmas.
The OC was created by Josh Schwartz in 2003 and aired on the Fox network in the USA.
The OC follows a group o f four teenagers and their parents as they go through their high school
years in the very upscale neighborhood o f Newport Beach in Orange County, California. Unlike
DTNG, The OC uses actors in their early twenties to portray the teenagers. Chang claims that
“[a]t its height, The OC drew nearly 10 million viewers and had a dedicated following in the
lucrative youth demographic” (Chang). Although The O C s target market is teenagers, the adults
play primary roles in the story arcs that occur in each season. In DTNG, the adults do play a part
in the narrative, but only to further plot lines.
My thesis will have six sections in total: an introduction, four chapters and a conclusion.
In chapter one, I will investigate the counter culture elements including the use o f drugs, alcohol
and sexuality in the American television program, The OC. My findings will not only show how
in this instance, Americans look at these issues, but also how American teens are educated about
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these issues through this program. Chapter two will be similar in style and structure to chapter
one, but instead focus on the Canadian program, DTNG. Again, my findings will point to the
Canadian way o f dealing with counter culture as well as the struggle of Canadian television to
interpose concepts o f nation into television. Chapter three will be a comparative look at the
periphery o f counter cultures. Chapter four will take a look at class issues in the two programs
and compare contemporary TV to traditional genre definitions o f comedy and tragedy. My
conclusion will tie up my argument and comparison and point towards further work to be done in
this subject.
1 Kevin Smith is a film writer and director who gained fam e in the late 1990s with his independent films
that had a style of quick dialogue with intelligent verbiage that has become common on shows geared
towards a youth demographic. Death Cab for Cutie is an independent band that received a large push in
listenership after the band was featured on The OC.
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Chapter One
Beneath, Between & Behind: Sex, Substance and
Violence in The OC
“The guns replace the plow, facades are tarnished now.
The principles have been betrayed”
(Lee, Lifeson and Peart)
Southern California acts as the setting for the program I will be analyzing in this chapter.
California still produces the majority o f America’s television and movies. Fame and affluence
are a few o f the notions associated with the largest state on America’s west coast. Television
images of Southern California are rife with deceitful characters, extra-marital activity and
substance abuse.
The OC follows a group o f four teenagers and their parents as they go through their high
school years in the very upscale neighborhood o f Newport Beach in Orange County, California.
The setting of the program is of utmost importance. A teen drama could take place anywhere as
normally the major concern of the program is the interpersonal issues that are inherent in the
plot.
When considering teen drama, I agree with Silverblatt that teen dramas focus on “the
theme of the adolescent's assertion o f independence, which is characteristic o f the adolescent
stage of development” (219). I will extend this definition to include aspects o f education and
rebellion, both o f which are identity forming, and together, are fundamental to the teen
experience.
In this program, the setting for the drama, Newport Beach in Orange County, California,
becomes a character. As if the title of the show, The OC, gives it signification as an object, each
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individual episode follows this pattern; the title always starts with “the.” The setting is not
simply a backdrop, but there are further implications as well.
For example, the issue o f
nationality is important. The OC aired during the presidency o f George W. Bush, during the
second war in Iraq and on a network that is owned by the ultra-Conservative Rupert Murdoch.
With all its affluence and exclusion, The OC s Newport Beach is what I will refer to as a “gated
community.” Based on the following theoretical bases and analysis o f the program I will argue
that the gated community o f Newport Beach is but a microcosm o f American society during this
time context, and thus, the beliefs and behaviours o f the characters in the show can and should be
applied to the general notion o f American national identity.
During the four seasons o f the program, interpersonal relationships maintained the
majority of the weekly serial plot-lines. The characters are always making and breaking up while
trying to find their place in modem nuclear families, if there is such a thing. The majority o f the
watchers o f The OC are o f the fifteen to twenty five year old demographic, both north and south
of the 49th parallel, and during these highly susceptible years, a person’s identity is being
formed. O f course, that demographic matches with the ages o f the four main characters on the
show and this creates familiarity and identification between audience and actors. Television is
often didactic and is capable o f influencing the audience. To be more specific, when I speak o f
“the audience” in this thesis, I am referring only to the teen audience because that is my focus.
Teen viewers, who are easily influenced, have identities that are being inculcated by the
characters on this program at some level. Although most positive and formal lessons, such as
attention to mathematics and respecting one’s elders, can commonly be reinforced at school and
in the home, I believe that the more controversial, or what I will refer to as “anti-social,”
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elements including substance use, criminal activity and sexuality, are not reinforced by parents
and teachers, either because teens cannot associate or identify with these older adults as experts
on these subjects, or the parents/teachers are not comfortable addressing these matters. Teenagers
are being instructed by the aforementioned issues. They are also discovering the link between
these issues, for example sex and drugs, criminal activity and drinking and so on. If these teens
are being instmcted or influenced by the attitudes and beliefs propagated by this program, then I
believe that The OC is both reflective o f American identity while at the same time shaping it.
The depiction and interplay of anti-social issues including irresponsible sexuality, substance
abuse, and criminal activity on The OC speaks to American identity in the context o f the program
as well as shaping future generations o f viewers.
First and foremost, I am going to discuss the didactic nature of television. Then, the
definition and implications o f the gated community will be considered. Next, I will address the
definition and conventions o f the traditional teen drama and how they are insufficient to capture
the actual niche or genre o f this program. Finally I will discuss the link between television and
identity formation that is formed in this unconventionally didactic teen drama.
To really understand the impact television can have on a person, I want to quickly discuss
the theories o f fandom and connectedness. In short, fandom “is characterized by the persistent
influence of a television program(s) in the fan’s life and experiences. (Russell and Puto 395).
Fandom itself may not cause harm to individuals or really influence their identity, but because o f
the persistent influence of a program in one’s life, it will be a long term influencer. W hen I speak
o f persistent influence, I refer to participating in the show beyond just watching it. This includes
online forums, blogging, or tweeting. In fact, Russell and Puto found that
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The teen soap opera Beverly Hills, 902JO generated many Internet chat room
comments such as ‘I feel as if I have grown up right along with the cast’ or “I like
(90210) so much because they face everyday problems that teens have to deal
with such as racism, death, alcohol and drug abuse and so on.’ These comments
show that the viewers enjoy their shows because they can relate positively to the
situations portrayed in them. (397)
Once the viewer has this persistent influence in their life that is acting as a influencing factor,
they then enter a state of ‘connectedness.’
According to Russell and Puto, “Audience
‘connectedness’ is defined as an intense relationship between audience and television program
that extends beyond the television watching experience into individuals’ personal and social
lives” (397).
Connectedness creates an almost dependent relationship between viewer and
program,as the identification has reached cathartic levels.
Russell and Puto indicate
that
“connectedness with a television show testifies to the pertinence o f the show and its characters to
an individual’s identity” (398).
So, when we take fandom and connectedness in context with
influence and teen programming, we are shown a blue print that displays exactly how teens are
being influenced by television.
The links between drama and its ability to be didactic may be found in the Greek
philosophy o f Aristotle and the Roman philosophy of Horace. Aristotle believed that art was
mimetic, in that it reflected the real world through its actors and scenarios. According to
Aristotle, if the audience was able to identify with the actors and scenes, then they are able to
healthfully purge negative emotions through a process known as catharsis. (Aristotle 53). While
Aristotle established that drama was helpful and that identification with it was healthy, Horace
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goes further, establishing that art should both delight and instruct. In The A rt o f Poetry, Horace
states that “[h]e who combines the useful and the pleasing wins out by both instructing and
delighting the reader. This is the sort o f book that will make money for the publisher, cross the
seas, and extend the fame o f the author” (72). For what I am contending, it is what Horace refers
to as “the useful” that is the most important.
Television, as the most pervasive and available form o f art in modem times, is capable o f
complying with the precepts set out by Aristotle and Horace. Gerbner argues that “television has
become the primary storyteller for children in the late twentieth century, a common source o f
information and socialization in an otherwise diverse population” (17). Programs that are
examples o f tragic drama evoke empathy and are cathartic for the viewer (Aristotle 53).
Programs that are intentionally didactic, like Sesame Street, instruct and delight the younger
viewers. I believe that there is the potential for a program to do all of these things, and this is
when television is at its most important, and most dangerous. I contend that when people are
undergoing catharsis, they are vulnerable, because it is an emotionally purgative state. When an
audience becomes attached to a character on a program, this type o f catharsis is more common.
This is especially true if the audience recognizes a moment o f peripeteia, which is the reversal o f
the situation, or a deep identification with a character. Although if art is didactic, it must be
influential. If a teen is taught by something they see or hear are they not being influenced to
think or feel a certain way? Therefore, when audiences undergo a process of catharsis that makes
them vulnerable, they are more open to be influenced by the message o f the program ’s writers.
The teen drama, as defined earlier, is a highly cathartic type of programming that is
influential. These influences shape thought patterns, belief systems and, thus, identity in its
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audience. This theory is referred to as “social cognition” (299) by Comstock and Scharrer. They
go on to explain that this type o f learning, “emphasizes the meaning individuals ascribe to the
observed behaviors o f others. Observation is fundamental, but interpretation is decisive” (299).
These interpretations are formed through experience. While children are at a young age, parents
will often watch television with them to ascertain the value o f what they are watching, but, this is
unlikely to continue when those children have reached their teenage years. The teenagers do not
have the benefit of parental supervision and are watching television only with what they have
learned as a lens of interpretation. Therefore, when the teenagers are viewing scenes containing
sex or drug use, what basis do they have to interpret the action on screen as anything but
realistic? Thus, television can be important in the identity shaping process for malleable teens
because of its ability to be didactic and cathartic.
In the introduction to this chapter, I referred to Newport Beach as a “gated community”.
Tragedies like Columbine and 9/11 have caused America to retreat into a strategy o f isolationism
and I believe this is represented on a microcosmic scale in The OC’s gated community. In the
traditional sense, a gated community is a usually affluent neighbourhood, made up by a series o f
houses and roads that are literally protected by a surrounding wall and guarded gate. A t its heart,
the community is protective o f its borders and citizens, and practices exclusion rather than
inclusion. In the pilot episode of The OC we are introduced to the character Ryan Atwood (Ben
McKenzie) who grew up in Chino, a rougher part o f California, famous for its prison and violent
neighbourhood. Ryan is considered other by the community for the entire run o f the program
because he is not originally from Newport and has a violent past. In “The Pilot” after Ryan is
attacked by some o f the Newport elite, one o f Ryan’s attacker delivers the infamous line,
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“Welcome to the OC, bitch” (“The Pilot”). Immediately, the outsider, Ryan, is presented as
unwanted by the established. I believe that since 9/11, the United States has returned to a policy
of cultural isolationism. This is not the same type of isolationism the country practiced before
World War Two (White and Murphy) when it would not participate in world politics, but an
isolationism that it is protective o f its borders, particularly against the other. With programming
like Fox’s 24 and even the parodic American D ad consistently using Muslims and MiddleEastemers as “the enemy,” the American television viewing public is being influenced to
immediately disassociate from those who are unfamiliar, and to protect their communities from
those who are deemed dangerous. Although The OC does not deal with these terrorism or race
issues explicitly, the program is riddled with themes of exclusion and protecting the community
of Newport. Therefore, the gated community allegory, in my belief, ties the social constructs o f
The OC to a larger sense o f identity existing in America today.
Genre has a vital role in television programming. As the youth today have been brought
up watching TV, in general, they expect certain conventions in their programming; the guy in the
leather jacket is dangerous, the skinny fellow with glasses is a nerd and the girl in the short skirt
and no bra is probably promiscuous. Steve Neale argues,
it has long been recognized that output in each of these fields [genres] can
be grouped into categories, and that each category or class is marked by a
particular set of conventions, features and norm s... that generic norms and
conventions are recognized and shared not only by theorists themselves, but also
by audiences, readers and viewers. The classification of texts is not just the
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province o f academic specialists, it is a fundamental aspect o f the way texts o f all
kinds are understood. (1)
So, when an audience member is about to watch The OC for the first time, certain expectations
should already be in place. These expectations would have been created dually, by the
commercials and introduction (opening credits) o f the program and also by what conventions the
audience would expect because o f genre expectations. But, these suppositions fall short in this
program. The OC does not use the archetypal characters that were established from programs
like Beverly Hills, 90210 or even Saved by the Bell. O f the four main characters, Seth (Adam
Brody) is the character that would most closely represent a “nerd” type figure. But, he has
popular friends, dates the most beautiful girl at school, Summer (Rachel Bilson), experiments
with drinking and drugs, and his humour is not sight or gag based. We do not laugh at Seth; we
laugh because of Seth. Rachel Mosely writes about the teen drama:
At the imaginative centre o f the teen drama, as in soap, are place, character and
relationships, and emotional drama is often heightened through the use o f
close-up and (generally romantic pop) scoring... further pointing to the
melodramatic nature o f the genre... Teenageness is a significant ‘in-between’
period, and teen drama deals with the stuff o f adolescent anxiety: friendship, love,
sex and impending adulthood. (42)
Mosely’s description does justice to the format o f the teen genre, but is not entirely accurate
when dealing with this program. The OC deals with difference and otherness, but not in an
obvious sense. The show does not present one model, in other words it does not promote the idea
that, one teen is gay and all o f his peers are straight. Instead, it suggests that othering is an active
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notion, an individual must be “othered.” Often, this is done is one o f two ways; either a character
is seen as an outsider or different by the other characters in the narrative, or this difference is
recognized by the audience. In The OC, the characters who do show major differences in
sexuality or race are not othered by their on-screen peers at all, but are positioned to be
recognized as being others by the audience. I believe this is an intentional act the writers commit
to warn the audience that being different will lead to ruin. The principal othering in this program,
or where differences are brought to the forefront, deals largely with class and birthplace. To put it
simply, class can be defined as “a relative social ranking based on income, wealth, status and/or
power” (Collins et al 233). Again, this ties into the notion o f the gated community. While The
OC does deal with standard teen issues, much o f the plot-line also involves the adult characters.
Thus, the writers have the opportunity to address issues that could not realistically be discussed
in a solely teen forum. A teen may associate with alcohol, but it a rare occurrence before 20072,
for an American program would have a teenage character be an admitted alcoholic and go
through treatment.
Although this may be the reality, it is too real for a teen audience in the
network’s opinion, otherwise this example would have been addressed by this time. Also, the
need for distance from reality is a dependent clause o f catharsis according to Aristotle (57). The
OC uses self-reflective plots with layers o f intertextual references to establish a type o f program
that transcends the typical teen drama. With its inherent social conscience and less than subtle
messages, this program applies elements o f the teen drama and o f the soap opera to create a
format that gives the writers, directors and actors a forum for delivering social commentary
without preaching.
Television, especially programming that is aware o f and acting on its social conscience,
can hold an important role in the formation o f identity for its viewers. Lichter et al. conjecture
that, “television has transcended its role as mere entertainment to become a potent force shaping
everyday life” (12) and that “the most innocuous sitcom carries messages about how our society
works and how its citizens should behave” (12). Now, although it may not be a positive aspect, in
some circumstances, Gerbner argues that television is shaping identity because the viewers are
having a hard time disassociating what they are watching from real life. This goes beyond
mimesis, into something that Gerbner calls the “cultivation effect” (5). He goes on to explain this
as, “contending that the more time people spend watching television, the more they misperceive
the real world as being identical to the stylized version o f things as presented on TV” (5). This is
most tme when dealing with viewers who are the most malleable, for instance, children and
teenagers. Fabes et al. support this, conjecturing that “... a ‘cultivation effect’ whereby people
who watch large amounts of television tend to believe that the real world is more like the way it
is presented on television than it actually is and, for example, are more fearful and
distrustful.” (338). Although teens will have a better chance than young children o f
understanding the difference between television and reality, they are still easily influenced by
what they are watching. Edgerton conjectures that, “television and other mass media are
presently undermining the socially constructed stages o f childhood by systematically disclosing
and dispensing the adult world to youngsters at the simple touch o f a button” (6). This can be
conflated with the concept that parents are more comfortable letting their children leam about
certain matters on television. So, not only are the young able to leam about adult issues at the
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push o f a button, but by some neglect on the part o f the authority figure in a child’s identity
formation, ie. teachers and parents, the child is almost encouraged to leam in this way.
Lyn Spigel has a different approach to using the media as a tool in identity formation that
is slightly more positive than the way I am looking at it, and it should be noted. She argues:
... there are, o f course, important reasons to study new media... Scholars have
shown how Internet culture re-articulates (and at times replicates) gender, sexual,
class, and racial struggles; how it provides alternative modes o f “gathering” as
communities and political bodies; and how it reconstructs the politics o f national
borders and our sense o f place. Insofar as television studies has been centrally
concerned with similar issues, and insofar as television now converges with
digital platforms, it seems only right that people who study television would also
study the Internet and other digital devices. (84)
In this passage, Spigel is clearly linking the study of digital media along with television and
national identity, and I believe that there are important themes that should be drawn from this
link as well. For example, the re-articulation o f understood concepts o f sexuality and an
alternative gathering point for building community are crucial to the discussion o f TV ’s impact.
Television offers these things in abundance and to a substantial audience. TV programs create
communities o f fans that have something in common, whether it is just enjoyment o f the
program or an aspect o f the program that they might not be as comfortable in the real world. For
example, the bisexual character Alex (Olivia Wilde) on The OC is not demeaned in any way by
her peers or the central characters despite the restrictions o f their heteronormative framework. I
will refer to her bisexuality as assumed because in a heteronormative lens, a more fluid
B a ll 2 7
explanation of sexuality does not exist. Bisexual viewers might find this comforting if they are
not accepted by their actual community and seek out viewers with similar problems on blogs or
fan-sites. From here, these likeminded individuals can create a safe online community where
they can discuss their sexualities and come to terms with them. In this way, television and its
contemporary mediums can have a positive effect on the formation o f identity in its viewers.
This argument, thus far, has postulated that television is influential as a device that can
shape the identity of its viewers. To take this argument farther, and to make it more specific, I
will apply the terms and theories I have posed thus far to a specific American teen program. With
a direct read o f Josh Schwartz’s The OC, I will formulate an argument around how the program,
in the context of when it was developed and aired, has a role in the development o f the identity
of its audience. I will look specifically at three characters from the program, Seth Cohen, Marissa
Cooper (Mischa Barton) and Ryan Atwood. These characters each come from a different class.
Class is central to issues in The OC. Langston argues that
[A]s a result of the class you are bom into and raised in, class is your
understanding of the world and where you fit in; it’s composed o f
ideas,
behavior, attitudes, values, and language; class is how you think, feel, act, look,
dress, talk, move, walk; class is what stores you shop at, restaurants you eat in
class is the schools you attend, the education you attain; class is the very jobs you
will work at through your adult life. (100)
Seth’s parents are members o f Newport’s elite. M arissa’s mother comes from a trailer park but
she marries often and usually above her current class.
As a result, Marissa has a complex
identity. She is not really a member o f the elite, but she does have some social status. Ryan is the
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classic boy from the wrong side o f the tracks who consistently struggles to gain comfort in the
social situations he is placed in. Although these characters will be the major focus, other
characters will be used as foils or as comparative points for specific instances where similarities
o f experience but difference of consequence cannot be ignored. From the scenes that I select, the
importance o f class in The OC will be obvious. Also, as mentioned previously, if the program is a
microcosmic representation of America, the effects the characters suffer from the consequences
of experiences with drugs, sex and violence will speak o f American national identity.
When the audience is first introduced to Seth Cohen, a few basic things about him are
evident; he is an outsider in his school, he is in love with Summer Roberts, and his parents are
extremely wealthy. Through his friendship with Ryan, Seth develops into a young man who is
more able to fit in at school, get the girl o f his dreams, and undergo many major life events that
influence the formation o f his adult identity. Although Ryan is adopted by Seth’s parents, he
comes from humble roots and he cannot shake that stigma. In many instances, because they act
as if they were brothers, Ryan and Seth experience similar challenges.
In season two o f The OC, Seth’s mother, Kirsten (Kelly Rowan) develops a drinking
problem. Throughout the series to this point, Kirsten is well known for enjoying a glass o f
Chardonnay, but after marital difficulties and the death o f her father, Kirsten’s drinking ends up
crossing the line and becomes an addiction. In the episode “The Dearly Beloved,” (Season Two)
Kirsten creates an embarrassing scene at the wake of her father’s funeral involving her family
and her alcoholism. After falling and spilling a tray o f drinks, Kirsten is obviously embarrassed
and angry. Her actions are not only causing her grief, but her family as well. But, since Kirsten is
o f the upper class, she gets help. During a scene from the aforementioned episode, Kirsten’s
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husband Sandy (Peter Gallagher) and a doctor at the Suriak Alcohol treatment facility
demonstrate that this sort of issue is properly taken care o f for the higher class citizens o f
Newport Beach by involving their family and making sure the correct and necessary treatment is
available.
According to Langston, when discussing class in America, “as a result o f the class you
are bom into and raised in, class is your understanding o f the world and where you fit in” (101).
Although class may not be discussed at great length in the United States, according to Holtzman,
there are great discrepancies between the rich and the poor. The differences are overly apparent
in this program. Kirsten Cohen gets to go to a treatment center and gets real help to deal with her
drinking, resulting in a full recovery and return to both her family and the social status that she
held during the years before her alcoholism. On the other end o f the spectrum, Ryan’s mother,
Dawn Atwood (Daphne Ashbrook), does not have the same advantages. In an episode from
season one, “The Gamble,” there is an incident including alcoholism and embarrassment, highly
reminiscent of the scene involving Kirsten.
Ryan’s mother, Dawn, becomes drunk, loses her
balance and causes a scene in front o f the Newport Elite, just as Kirsten does at her father’s
funeral. Dawn requires the boys’ help to walk out o f the event and is heard muttering “You hate
me, don’t you?” to her son (“The Gamble”).
At the end of the scene, Kirsten associates Dawn with the Cohens, so no more trouble is
caused between Dawn and the other guests and the police are not called. Being from the lower
class, Dawn is unable to help herself and feels bitter and pitiful. The Cohens adopt her son and
raise him while Dawn ends up in jail. Not until season three, before her son’s graduation, does
Dawn sober up. The difference in the treatment o f class in the gated community o f Newport
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Beach is obvious, and disconcerting. According to Holtzman, since “factors o f income and
wealth are devastating simply on the face o f the information, there are further consequences for
lower income people in the United States” (115). The factors that Holtzman refers to are a lack o f
health coverage or insurance and a larger susceptibility to violence or violent behaviour. For
example, the audience sees two women in The OC, separated only by money in identical
situations. For the woman of the privileged class, help is provided and recovery happens; for the
poor woman, exclusion from the gated community and later, incarceration are the eventual
precursors to her possible recovery. W hat is this telling teenagers? How is it shaping their
identity? It is understood that television is mimetic, and Gerbner’s cultivation effect theory is
accurate. This program is reinforcing ideals o f affluence equating to better lives and that the poor
can only achieve more than stereotypically expected if they are helped by the rich. According to
Hochschild, the American dream is defined as having four characteristics:
1. The belief that everyone can participate equally and can always start over.
2. The belief that it is reasonable to anticipate success.
3.The belief that success is a result o f individual characteristics and that actions
are under one’s control.
4. The belief that success is associated with virtue and merit.
(Hochchild 72)
The accepted notion of the American Dream is that everybody has the opportunity to be
successful. But, The O C ’s narrative tells the teen audience that success is completely contingent
on receiving help, whether an individual was bom into luxury or is dependent on members o f the
community at large for help. In this instance o f The OC, identities of difference and class are
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reinforced, presumably affecting the identity o f the viewers to continue to think and act in this
way.
In the scenes that I have discussed, the use of alcohol in The OC has had consequences.
The character in question is represented as an alcoholic and the narrative focuses on the
problems o f her drinking. This does not follow the norm for television, in which the use o f a
tertiary or transitory character as one with a drinking problem is more common, and the main
characters may just use alcohol situationally or as a social enhancer. This is contrary to what
Brown and Witherspoon argue as the standard. They argue that alcohol is associated with
a variety o f benefits that appeal to adolescents... and few consequences... often
depicting] slices o f life that focus on the drinkers and the drinking occasions
rather than on the qualities o f the product itself, which may be particularly
appealing to teens who are using the media for ideas about how to be in the world.
(88)
Although the melodrama o f The OC creates unrealistic and inappropriate ways o f looking at life,
functional lessons are important. These lessons speak to the social conscience o f the show, and
its attempts to shape at least one element o f identity in a positive way as opposed to solely
reinforcing the conventions laid out by Brown and Witherspoon. As mentioned earlier, during the
pilot episode of The OC, the Cohen family rescues Ryan from a youth incarceration facility. It
does not take long for his friendship with the Cohen’s son, Seth, to become brotherly in nature.
Ryan protects Seth at school and acts as a positive influence in his life, truly caring for him. Ryan
and Seth go to school together, date best friends and manage to find themselves in similar
socially unacceptable situations. For instance, during the tenure o f the program, both youths steal
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vehicles. As established in scenes that have been analyzed, in The OC class will play a large role
in how the boys are punished for their crimes.
In season two, Seth starts dating a girl, Alex, who is positioned as an outsider. Physically,
Alex is a beautiful girl, but with her dyed hair and visible tattoos, she is different from the
Newport Beach bred crowd. Seth is somewhat intimidated by her “bad girl” persona and
attempts to act like a “bad boy” to compensate for this, drinking and stealing his grandfather
Caleb Nichol’s (Alan Dale) Bentley. The car is reported as missing and Seth is brought home by
the police in the following scene:
The front door - Sandy opens the door and sees Seth standing there with 2 police
officers
Seth: (waves) ‘Hey dad’ (Sandy looks disappointed) ‘How was the party?’ (points
to the 2 police officers, whispers) ‘I think somebody called the cops.’
(Sandy stares at Seth, not impressed)
(“The Family Ties”)
Seth ends up being grounded for his auto theft. To a teenager, this is almost no consequence at
all. True, it was his grandfather’s car that Seth stole, but again, the rich in Newport Beach are
nominally punished for their actions, reinforcing the class differences I have mentioned to this
point. To further discuss these class issues, I will focus on the car theft that led to Ryan’s entry to
the Cohen family.
In the pilot episode, the underprivileged Ryan Atwood is involved in auto theft. The car is
by nomeans a Bentley, and it is Ryan’s brother, Trey (Logan Marshall-Green) who actually
steals the car against Ryan’s wishes and better judgment. As a result of this, Ryan ends up in
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juvenile hall and his confinement results in violence against him from fellow inmates and his
ultimate adoption by the Cohen family. Ryan was obviously against the car theft, and nothing but
an unwilling participant. He does not overtly steal a car like Seth does but his punishment is far
greater. Again, the reinforcement of class differences in this series speaks to the same innate
differences in American culture; the lower income families are more likely to suffer from unfair
treatment from the establishment, and these attitudes are being reinforced on television. Identities
are being shaped by stereotypes and although there are repercussions for these illegal activities,
the only punishment that fits the crime is handed down on the characters from lower social
classes. In the gated community o f Newport Beach, if one is not o f the proper class, one will
suffer the consequences.
A final scene that I would like to discuss in this chapter involves two individuals who are
roughly of the same class. During season three, Ryan has been accepted by most members o f
Newport Beach as the Cohen’s son, not as a criminal. The other character involved is Marissa.
After Julie’s (Marissa’s mom) husband dies at the end o f season two, mother and daughter are
destitute and must move into a trailer park. Marissa has dropped in social standing, and Ryan has
risen, but because of their roots, I would situate them in the same general class. But, this scenario
has less to do with class and more with American attitudes about sex, violence and substance
abuse and, again, with how this type o f programming can negatively shape youth identity. In
episode three of season three, “The End o f Innocence,” Ryan and Marissa have sex together for
the first time. Now, besides the complete lack o f discussion on safe sex it is the way that this
scene is shot that is crucial to my argument that there is no privileging between sex, violence and
substance abuse; they are shown for equal times and at random. The scene is a montage, spliced
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together with images o f Marissa’s father, Jimmy (Tate Donovan) getting assaulted by men under
a pier, as well as scenes o f Kirsten contemplating having a drink after reading a letter from her
dead father. These scenes cut from one to the other with no privileging. The teen audience is
shown a scene with Ryan and Marissa in a coital embrace, which then quickly cuts to Jimmy
getting punched in the face, and then followed immediately with a cut to Kirsten looking
lovingly at a bottle of vodka in a sequence of repetition. This scene proposes a complicated,
negative message.
Is teenage sex the equivalent o f an assault or falling o ff o f the wagon?
Although quick cross-cuts back and forth between scenes exhibiting both sexuality and violence
are a subtle way to delivering this message, the subconscious mind latches onto the negativity
immediately. If the intention was to make teens fear sex, the results may not be so. Edward
Donnerstein argues that
Individuals exposed to certain types o f materials respond with blunted sensitivity
to violence against women, calloused attitudes about rape, and sexual arousal to
rape depictions and laboratory simulations o f aggression against women. (5)
It is possible that this scene would have the same effect when watched by a teen audience.
Interspersing violence, substance abuse and sex may just deaden the audience to the harmful
effects because of this correlation between brutality, alcoholism and sexuality and not cause fear
in spite of this conflation. Reuman writes, “it is now primarily children and teens, rather than
adults, who are considered to be at moral and physical risk from inappropriate sex” (216). As
illustrated in The OC the conflation o f sex with violence could lead to similar negative
behaviours in a teen audience.
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As Holtzman argues, “Entertainment media (prime time telveision, popular film, and
music) are a primary fact of life in most US homes” (5). Media Literacy is a common catch
phrase these days. Digital mediums, including TV, are becoming more pervasive and ever
present and youths should be taught to be media literate; they should be critical while they are
watching television. But, where should this critical thinking process come from? It is the
responsibility o f the parents and the education system to prepare youths to watch TV critically
and not become conditioned by it. In the episodes from The OC that I have looked at for this
chapter, there are many other scenes and characters that exhibit attitudes and behaviours that can
be considered counter-culture or anti-social. Roszak defines counter-culture as a “group whose
behaviour deviates from the societal norm” (419). Like the situations I have mentioned, most o f
the behaviours result in some sort of consequence, whether it is appropriate or not. Television is
representative o f the belief systems under which it is created, and national identity affects these
systems. Whether or not Newport Beach truly is a microcosmic representation o f the entire
United States is not as important as realizing that these attitudes exist in some parts o f the United
States. In order for television to help shape the identity of the youth that is already being
influenced by its programming, we should not look to the networks to change what is on TV, but
to the parents and establishment to educate the youth on how to be critical o f what they see on
TV.
2Josh Schwartz’ current project, Gossip Girl debuted in 2007. The characters on Gossip Girl are the
same age and socio-economic status as the characters on The OC but there is a great deal more drinking
and provocative sexual activity. Previous to ’07 programs like Beverly Hills, 90210, had drinking in them,
but nothing like Gossip Girl
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Chapter Two
Closer to the Heart: The Responsible Education o f
Degrassi: the Next Generation’s Teenagers
“And the men who hold high places
Must be the ones to start
To mould a new reality
Closer to the heart”
(Lee, Lifeson and Peart)
While the greater region o f Toronto may not have the significance in the entertainment
industry that Orange County does, it is Canada’s artistic and multicultural mecca. Toronto, to
many, is the pinnacle o f Canadian society; the business sectors, excellent schools, media centers
and proximity to Canada’s political nucleus make this city as significant to Canada as California
is to the United States, though for different reasons. And like the state that hosts the television
program I discussed in the last chapter, the teens o f Toronto seem to find themselves involved in
the same types o f affairs, both physical and emotional, as their Californian peers. Toronto is the
home o f the fictional Degrassi Street, and although the programs based upon its inhabitants may
not follow the same melodramatic formula o f programs like The OC, it is comparable in several
ways.
In 1982, The Kids o f Degrassi Street was the first incarnation o f the Degrassi
phenomenon. The Degrassi franchise carried on from there in a fashion not often, if ever, seen in
North American television. It next evolved into Degrassi Junior High in 1987 and penultimately
into Degrassi High in 1992. These three incarnations o f the series followed the same general
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group o f children as they grew up, graduated and moved on with their lives. The most recent
manifestation of the series is Degrassi: the Next Generation (DTNG) that first aired in 2001 in
Canada on Canadian Television (CTV) and continues to air on MuchMusic, a CTV GlobeMedia
property. The series now follows the children o f the original cast and their group o f friends. The
teenagers in DTNG reside in a generally nondescript neighbourhood in a middle-class region o f
Toronto, though, occasionally, the scene shifts to areas inhabited by the wealthy or the poor. This
environment is typical of urban Canada: multicultural and multi-class. Obviously, if the program
was filmed for viewers in the prairies or Atlantic Canada, the audience would be shown a much
different Canada, as in Corner Gas or Trailer Park Boys, but as this program is intended to be
educational and the majority of the Canadian population lives along the US/Canada border, that
is the section of Canada that is represented. Also, the educational purpose o f the show demands
the use o f urban Canadian characters in order to reach the largest possible segment o f the school
age demographic. The periphery may be portrayed during episodes as well. To further the impact
that the notion o f the periphery has on Canada in general, Tinic argues,
As the centre replicates itself on Canadian television screens, it is perhaps not
surprising that a regionally fragmented community has become an avid audience
for American television programming. Positioned as outsiders in both televisual
landscapes, Canadians on the periphery have opted for the one that will, at
minimum, provide the epitome o f production quality and investment. (Tinic 156)
Tinic’s argument acts as a harbinger for future Canadian generations; American television has
invaded Canadian borders and is supplementing Canadian identity. This is the link that I find
both fascinating and important. Everything about Canadian television, from the policy that
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regulates it to the shows that end up sporadically on Canadians’ televisions, seems to make
American television a more feasible and attractive option for Canadian teen viewers.
Furthermore, as more Canadian teenagers are watching American television on a regular basis,
Canada edges closer to losing its national identity.
O f course, there are others who think that Canadian identity is not at risk. As Vipond
argues, “Clear proof that American culture is not damaging to the Canadian identity is the fact
that Canada still exists, although it has been flooded by Americanized mass media for at least the
past one hundred years” (126). Be that as it may, the fact that something still exists is not
evidence that it has not been changed. W hen Vipond uses the word “damaging,” I would argue
that this is a subjective term and what seems damaging to one reader or viewer may not be to
another. In the same work, Vipond goes on to argue that “ [m]any Canadians feel comfortable
enough about their own identities to believe exposure to American culture will not undermine
their own sense o f Canadian identity” (127). This seems to be a more reasonable statement
concerning the battle that Canadians are facing on a daily basis regarding the Americanization o f
their identity. Perhaps the reason that Canadians are not afraid o f American culture’s effect on
their national identity is the recognition o f the sheer melodramatic nature of American television.
According to Thorbum, “[t]he term melodrama is said to have originated as a neutral
designation for a spoken dramatic text with a musical accompaniment or background, an
offshoot or spin-off to opera” (438). He goes further to contextualize it for a modem audience:
...melodrama is a resolutely pejorative term, also originating early in the last
century, denoting a sentimental, artificially plotted drama that sacrifices
characterization to extravagant incident, makes sensational appeals to the
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emotions o f its audience, and ends on a a happy or at least a morally reassuring
note” (439)
The OC exemplifies this definition; the program is rife with extravagance and artificiality. The
plots o f the drama are sensational, and commonly through a party or gathering, a strict moral
code is exhibited and reinforced. By this definition, The OC is much more melodramatic than
DTNG. Although in DTNG the audience is still looking into and getting involved in the day-today lives of these teenagers and their families via Twitter and engaging with the program, but the
sense o f abundant affluence is missing in the Canadian program. The Canadian teenagers are not
from very rich families, so the element o f exoticism is taken away from the program. This exotic
element is commonly seen in American teen programming, as in the current Schwartz project,
Gossip Girl, or MTV’s The Hills. The utter wealth and untouchability o f the American characters
make the audience members into what I will refer to as voyeurs, teen viewers who are peering
into something they want but, more than likely, can never have. This has an impact on the
audience as well as their interaction with the program. The unique way each show is watched is
relevant to their individual identities, as well as their respective national identities.
Canadian teen television is the focus of this chapter. Throughout this chapter in the lives
o f the urban Toronto based families, the program follows the children and friends o f the
characters from Degrassi Junior High. Degrassi has reached cult status with its Canadian
audience. Byers and VanderBurgh explain that “our students have encyclopedic knowledge o f
Degrassi episodes made before they were bom. Since the series is readily available, inexpensive,
and legal to screen in classrooms, Degrassi will be taught in schools, discussed, and remembered
as part of a specific cultural lexicon” (108).
The characters on DTNG, I will argue, are
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representative of Canadian teens at large. Furthermore, this program is targeted towards a
demographic that resembles its cast. As I have argued, this helps with the formation o f a belief
system for the viewers o f this program by creating a believable mirror. Teen years are a major
stepping stone in the formation o f identity, both o f the self and how an individual sees him or
herself as a citizen of their nation. Rosengren et al argue that “[t]o a large extent, youth culture is
a differentiated product o f the cultural industry, providing the young with what they may need
for the creation, maintenance, and expression o f their identity” (119). Therefore, this program
will affect the national identity o f a teen, and furthermore, as teens grow into the leaders o f
tomorrow, Canada3 as a whole.
Degrassi: the Next Generation is representative o f Canadian national identity, insofar that
it privileges community support and knowledge as forms o f education. I will argue that each
situation that the teenager characters face ends in a manner that is reasonable and attempts to
educate the audience responsibly. These situations will include non-traditional sex, drug and
alcohol usage and violence, specifically sexual violence. Furthermore, I will discuss how the
realism in Degrassi helps Canadian teens build a positive identity, both in regards to nation and
self. The existence or non-existence of nation and nationalism in the program will further be
applied to how it relates to the formation of identity. Before the concepts o f nationalism and
identity formation can be juxtaposed, the concepts o f nation and nationalism must be discussed.
The identification of self and national identity are by no means synonymous, and
although there may not be an obvious link between the two concepts, when considered in the
context of identity formation, these links should be made, especially when watching television
through the lens o f Canadian Cultural Studies.
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One thing that we must consider is that in modem society, the definitions o f terms like
nation and nationalism are changing continuously. According to Anthony Smith, “the nation, that
nation-state and all its works may be modem, contested and fluid” (218).
If the concepts o f
nation and nationalism are fluid in nature, the “nation” represented as “home” in this program is
tied to the formulation of identity. Not having overt influences o f “home” is as much o f a
statement as privileging it.
Anderson writes that “the end o f nationalism, so long prophesied is not remotely in sight.
Indeed, nation-ness is the most universally legitimate value in the political life o f our time” (3).
Although written in 1983, I believe the sentiments in Anderson’s book are still viable. The
world’s political climate has changed, but since 9/11, I believe that nationalism remains strong
and is by no means on a downswing. For Canadians, this needs to be true. In a country cloven by
divisions: linguistic, geographical and ethnic, there must be something that ties the nation
together, some unifying concept that brings Canadians to the table as one, not divided into
“multis.” Anderson furthermore defines the nation as “an imagined political community - and
imagined as both inherently limited and sovereign” (6). For the scope of this paper, I will only
define two o f those characteristics, as I believe only the fact that the nation is both “imagined”
and a “community” is inherently applicable to Television Studies.
To further quote Anderson, “ [the nation] is imagined because the members of even the
smallest nation will never know most o f their fellow-members, meet them, or even hear o f them,
yet in the minds of each lives the image o f their communion” (6). For Canadians, this is very
true. The majority o f Canadian citizens will not travel the expansive space o f this nation, nor will
they meet even a minute portion o f the population, but Canadians are aware o f each other.
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Canadians are linked under a flag, an anthem, a government, and it is because o f our beliefs in
these systems that a nation can exist. Secondly, Anderson states that:
...[the nation] is imagined as a community, because, regardless o f the actual
inequality and exploitation that may prevail in each, the nation is always
conceived as a deep, horizontal comradeship. (7)
This definition o f “nation” applies directly to the state o f Canadian Studies today and, perhaps,
where it must go in the future. The authenticity exists in a confluence, where the representation
of the nation is representative of its people. “People” includes both indigenous citizens and
settler. When I refer to settler, I am talking about those who landed on Canadian soil. Canada
has entrenched multiculturalism in its constitution. According to Bill C-93:
It is hereby declared to be the policy o f the Government o f Canada to:
(a) recognize and promote the understanding that multiculturalism reflects the
cultural and racial diversity o f Canadian society and acknowledges the freedom o f
all members of Canadian society to preserve, enhance and share their cultural
heritage; (“MISA”)
Because Canada is multicultural by nature, I will refer to the sense o f belonging to Canada as
Canadian nationalism.
Although Canada has several regions, there is one commonality:
television.
Television can be something that binds Canadians together, a “large cultural system."
But, is it prudent to be proud of a cultural source that creates no connection with Canada? In part,
Canadians could be proud of a television program because it is Canadian itself, part o f the
imagined community. But, it is my argument that the system works both ways; in order for a
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Canadian to be proud o f another Canadian citizen, or art forms, then the citizen or art form, too,
must exhibit Canadian nationalism. How can this pride come out o f television? Overt attempts to
create this relationship may be pointless, and by no means should the writer o f a program be
forced to display something that does not fit in his or her vision, so the question remains, can a
television program, or a character, have an identity that includes nationalism in its formation
while still being true to the screenwriter’s vision?
Perhaps if the screenwriter’s vision is
nationalistic pride, then overt nationalism could have merit, but in the upcoming examples, these
attempts are unsuccessful. Before looking more deeply at nationalism in Canadian television,
some differences between American and Canadian television broadcasting must be discussed.
An important distinction between Canadian and American broadcasting that must be
noted is in the policies that involve the act o f broadcasting itself. American television is
predominantly privately broadcast; the major networks, NBC, ABC, CBS and FOX are privately
owned or publicly shared companies that are broadcast over local networks that are in turn
owned privately in each viewing area. Canada also has three “major” networks, CTV
GlobeMedia (a division o f Bell Media), CBC and Global, but the way broadcasting works in
Canada is disparate in comparison to the United States. The most obviously non-conventional
network, when comparing Canadian and American networks and broadcasting, is the Canadian
Broadcasting Corporation, or the CBC.
The CBC is a govemmentally funded network that is mandated to air in every area o f
Canada. Whether viewers live in Toronto or Stoney Creek, they are able to turn on their
televisions and tune into the CBC. The CBC does air private commercials that in turn help fund
the programming, but a portion o f the channel’s income comes from the Canadian government,
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and hence, its taxpayers. Since the network is intrinsically in debt to its viewers, the
programming must both reflect the nation’s contextual attitude, and also represent its people. In
fact, the CBC has a mandate to “contribute to shared national consciousness and
identity” {International Directory o f Company Histories, Vol. 37. St. James Press, 2001). The
CBC is the only Canadian network that receives this type of funding and has this expectation;
both Global and CTV are completely privately funded. The CBC does more original
programming than either of the other networks, but I argue that even though the shows that air on
CTV are not funded by Canadian tax payers, to compete with the original programming on the
CBC, the networks executives at CTV must both be wary and respectful o f what the CBC is
doing. The CTV is not only competing with the CBC; the largest market share o f Canadian
viewers is held by American programs. Unfortunately, unlike the CBC, CTV does not have the
luxury o f being defended by legislation. Tinic argues, “National public broadcasting in Canada
was, from its inception, designed to defend against the perception o f cultural domination by the
United States” (Tinic 154). Although CTV, and more specifically relevant to the television show,
DTNG, do not share that mandate against American broadcasting, it is the burden or duty o f
every original Canadian program to fight against the appropriation of Canadian culture by
American television.
Furthermore, American television is so pervasive that it threatens the very identity o f
Canada. This is especially true for Canadian teen audiences, who, as I have argued, are at a
malleable and persuadable stage. Canadian teens are exposed daily to television that, as I argued
in the previous chapter, represents conservative, fear-mongering, protective American ideology
and identity. So, how does DTNG depict Canadian identity, and furthermore, is there an attempt
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made to rationalize this depiction to the audience? Is DTNG about being a Canadian, or is it
about being a teenager? Is there a disconnection between the two concepts, or from the point o f
view o f the viewers who are Canadian citizens, are they inexplicably linked? Degrassi: the Next
Generation does engage with both the concepts o f Canadianism and maturation. By examining
two of the more popular characters from DTNG as well as various scenes, al will point out a
distinction between how American and Canadian programs display and shape national identity.
Also, I will address Canadian television’s flaws and the forthcoming loss o f Canadian televisual
national identity.
Unlike The OC, which has only subtle nuances and microcosms o f national identity,
DTNG actually makes one specific, textual attempt at displaying Canadian national identity.
Canada’s identity is commonly seen as “not-land” ; this refers to Canada identifying itself as “not
something else,” for example, “not American.” So, by self-identifying in this nature, Canada is
opening itself up to further comparisons to external identifiers. I f the “not-land” theory has
credence, then what other countries think o f Canada is o f equal importance and validity as how
Canada views itself. Collins argues that
[t]wo opposed forces are at work in the Canadian broadcasting system the
political pressure to ‘Canadianize’ the system in order (it is believed) to maintain
the integrity of the Canadian state and Canadian audiences1 contradictory and
obdurate consumption of large quantities o f non-Canadian programming. (Collins
43)
The Canadian program is constantly fighting an uphill, losing battle. The pressure should exist to
not only be successful, but to be Canadian as well. The act o f being Canadian is fraught with
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language divisions, peripheral geographic isolation and politically forced multi-culturalism. How
is a single program supposed to accomplish these things while still being topical, valid and
attractive to its demographic, which is, in this case, teenagers? Degrassi attempts to do just that
by asking Kevin Smith to direct, fictionally, Jay and Silent Bob Go Canadian, eh? Kevin Smith,
a writer/director known for his soliloquies and distinct camera work, plays him self in a Degrassi
story arc concerning Canadiana.
During season four, Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith, who are commonly known by their
alter egos, Jay and Silent Bob, come to the hallowed halls o f Degrassi Community School to film
the next feature in the Jay and Silent Bob line, Jay and Silent Bob Go Canadian, eh? using the
local kids as cast members and Degrassi as the set. The story arc, which takes place over two
episodes in season four and two episodes o f season five, offers a truly parodic view o f Canadian
culture and features guest appearances by some of Canada’s most well known celebrities,
including musical artist Alanis Morisette, who also played God in the Kevin Smith film Dogma.
Kevin Smith, an avid fan o f the Degrassi series, has also mentioned the program in some o f his
other movies, including Chasing Amy. By undertaking this project, the writers o f DTNG are
walking along what Simon Gikandi would refer to as the “double edged sword” o f nationalism.
Gikandi goes on to describe the double edged sword as “two competing narratives, one o f
celebration, the other of crisis” (672). While one wants to celebrate their nation, at the same
time, nationalism causes conflict because o f the strife felt by groups who do not feel like the
nation they live in represents them.
While attempting to add this overt injection o f satirical
Canadian Content into the program, the writers risk alienating parts o f the Canadian audience for
the possible gain o f an American audience.
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In 1992, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC)
released a report on the stabilization o f Canadian identity in television. As far as they were
concerned, it was legitimate to create an assimilated identity in the attempt to create national
unity. I believe this textual parody o f Canadian culture by an American director on a Canadian
program abides by this agenda. As mentioned previously, Canada is a country split by regional
and linguistic cleavages, and presenting Canadian identity as a whole is an impossibility. As the
CRTC states in their findings,
... it is not always realized that unity and identity are quite different things to be
promoting and that in Canada they are perhaps more different than they are
anywhere else. Identity is local and regional, rooted in imagination and in works
of culture; unity is national in reference, international in perspective and rooted in
political thinking... Assimilating identity to unity produces the empty gestures o f
cultural nationalism; assimilating unity to identity produces the kind o f provincial
isolation that is now called separatism. (CRTC qtd in Frye 24)
Perhaps attempting to overtly create or exhibit a “Canadian” national identity is a fruitless effort.
Raboy refers to this as the “Canadian crisis” (257). Thus, by attempting to add a humorous look
at Canadian culture, the writers o f DTNG are not only alienating their Canadian audience and
risking destabilization of national unity, they are also contributing to Raboy’s “Canadian crisis.”
In a scene from the episode “Goin’ Down the Road4,” Kevin Smith, Jason Mewes and Alanis
Morissette lampoon Canadian culture by wearing flannel, speaking in stereotyped Canadian
colloquialisms and swinging hockey sticks in the air. Obviously, the writers, directors and
producers involved in the scripting o f this program are aware o f the absolute absurdity o f this
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episode. I can make the assumption that the Canadian portion o f the audience is also aware o f
this preposterousness. This story arc does provide several sub-plots that will be discussed in full
in chapter three, but does this interplay o f Canadian identity and culture help or hinder the
attempt to add to the mosaic o f Canadian national identity? According to Tinic’s reading o f Fiske
and Hebdige, any attempt to produce an institutionalized broadcast with the goal o f instilling or
reaffirming Canadian national identity will be met with failure:
These institutions not only tend to marginalize groups and regions, they also often
encourage high-culture programming at the expense of popular culture. As a
result, audiences frequently turn to internationally produced (mainly American),
commercial alternatives as an act o f resistance against official culture. (128)
Therefore, the problem is cyclical; if the producers o f DTNG want to seriously attempt to educate
their audience, both national and international, they run the risk o f marginalizing the Canadian
audience. On the other hand, if the writers o f DTNG attempt to educate the audience
comedically, it is often done as a parody, and only a stereotyped version o f Canadian national
identity is shown. But is this inability to exhibit Canadian identity on television just a rejection
of the notion o f a singular Canadian identity? According to Collins, “...Canadian television
audiences’ viewing o f non-Canadian television ... is a deeply destabilizing political force” (43).
As mentioned previously, the audience ends up turning to American television. If the Canadian
teen is not getting a reasonable cross section o f national identity from the overt attempts to
display it within the program, then the program must attempt to discover and develop this
identity in more subtle ways.
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Although the cast o f DTNG does not share the class issues o f The OC, characters do seem
to go through the same types o f drama. Teenagers are teenagers, regardless o f place, and most
anti-social behaviors are ubiquitous. Most teenagers will at some point have to deal with sexual
subjects like pregnancy and rape; most teenagers will have to deal with the pressures o f drinking
and drug use, and most teenagers will have to deal with violence.
Even though rape can be
positioned as a violent act, its nature is sexual. So, as I have addressed these issues in the
previous chapter on The OC, I will now address them with DTNG. The Canadian program deals
with each of these issues differently from the American show, and this is truly how Canadian
teens can hope to get a sense of national identity from watching DTNG.
James Tiberius York (Ryan Cooley), also known as JT,
is one o f the first characters
introduced in the DTNG pilot. He is perhaps the most dynamic character from the program. He
undergoes massive changes throughout the series, from his pre-pubescent beginnings to his
untimely death. The examination o f JT’s maturation process (including but not exclusive to
sexual education), his drug use and his violent death will exhibit the way these issues are dealt
with on the Canadian program and will be compared to similar occurrences on the American
program.
Although JT does not share the same issues o f class and drinking experienced by the cast
of The OC, he does share the melodramatic problems that are commonly experienced by
teenagers. In the final episode of season one, “Jagged Little Pill,” JT has his first experience with
drugs. At a party thrown by his best friend’s older sister, JT brings drugs, specifically Ecstasy, to
the party.
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Ultimately, the older teenagers end up taking the drugs away from the younger teens.
This is an example of the community interaction in Canadian television that I mentioned earlier.
The older teens, who are deemed responsible at this point in the plot line, take it upon themselves
to act as the appropriate authority in this situation. In this situation, phoning the police would be
a more drastic response and who would attack the perpetrators violently? In this case, a less
extreme response is to remove the drugs. This is an honest consequence to an action. Sera Tinic
argues, “There is a perception among Canadian producers that ‘As a country we are a lot more
open or we can talk more honestly to our audience’” (181). Canadian producers are being more
straightforward with their teen audiences. DTNG is a non-melodramatic, but still dramatic,
didactic teen drama that echoes Canadian ideals o f responsibility, education and community.
DTNG continues to produce new episodes while The OC only lasted for four seasons.
Therefore, the audience o f the former has grown up with the characters. When the teen audience
is first introduced to JT, he is in grade eight, so he is roughly thirteen years old. His character is
on the show for five years until his death, so the character matures from childhood to adulthood.
The dynamic process of his aging has a major impact on the audience’s connection with JT
because they feel they truly get to know his character. In fact, according to the blog “iLove - All
Things Degrassi”, “... JT was someone who we grew up with and saw as a friend. W hat is your
reactions when you recall JT, or watch Rock This Town - the crucial episode in which JT died?
Most posts on YouTube.com... talk o f tears and sadness” (ilove-allthingsdegrassi.blogspot.ca).
On the other hand, the teenagers from The OC start at roughly sixteen years old, and by the time
the show was cancelled, they were twenty. According to the Centre for Educational Research and
Innovation, “[ajdolescence is an extremely important period in terms of emotional development
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partly due to a surge of hormones in the brain” ( Understanding the Brain). Earlier teen years are
more formative than the latter years. Therefore, the audience will be more affected by the issues
dealt with by the younger characters than those o f the older characters, especially because the
situations are comparable, even though the consequences are not. To avoid being
considered
melodrama, DTNG uses both adult and teenaged characters that suffer from a wide scope o f
issues. This brings DTNG into a realm o f reality that The OC avoids with its specific, hyperbolic
drama. For DTNG to uphold the responsible community, the way the situation is dealt with must
be realistic and probable. If the situation being discussed is realistic and probable, and it
represents Canadian culture, is it therefore a better tool for Canadian youths to use to help shape
their identities?
Analyzing one of the more sober DTNG story-lines from season two will
provide some information on this topic.
During Season Two o f DTNG, which originally aired in 2002, JT has his second, and far
more serious, encounter with drugs. Strangely, in this case, the drugs that JT interacts with are
legitimate, prescription narcotics, specifically OxyContin, but they are used in a way that takes
the situation into the anti-social side of culture. At this point in the Degrassi narrative, JT is
involved in a situation he does not have the facilities to negotiate. Like so many teens, including
the character Spike, (Amanda Stepto) from the earliesr Degrassi incarnations, JT and his
girlfriend, Liberty, (Sarah Barrable-Tishauer) have had unprotected sex and Liberty becomes
pregnant. JT attempts to do what he thinks is the mature thing and finds him self a job at the
local pharmacy, but it is what he learns at school, from the miscreant, Jay, played by Mike Lobel,
that truly educates JT and ultimately influences his actions. Instead o f just working at the
pharmacy, JT starts stealing prescription medication and selling it to Jay’s drug dealing
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acquaintance. This incident has obvious implications for the viewers. First, the audience is
shown, matter of factly, that young teenagers cannot hope to come out o f adult situations without
consequences. A child of fifteen should not have to worry about having a baby and finding a job
to support a family; he should be concentrating on school. JT has become a criminal to attempt to
do these things, and this action has realistic, rather than melodramatic, consequences.
When JT finds that he is in over his head, his life spinning out of control, he does what
seems to be reasonable, to his immature mind, and takes a handful o f the powerful narcotic to not
only attempt to belong, but to try and forget his troubles. It is never broached in the show
whether or not this was an attempt at suicide, or just a horrible decision, but the response is very
unlike what happens to characters in The OC who take drugs. Yes, he does have an overdose and
ends up in the hospital, similar to Marissa Cooper’s Vicodin overdose in Tijuana in Season One
o f The OC, but it is what happens in the hospital that I argue speaks to the Canadian
sentimentality in the program. Instead o f having his friends break him out o f the hospital to avoid
being replanted in a mental health institution like Marissa, JT is m et by his friends, family and
the police. In the episode “Turned Out, pt 2,”
JT has to deal with the community-wide
ramifications o f his actions, as well as the personal difficulties. This honest telling o f
consequence refers back to Tinic’s argument that “...As a country we are a lot more open or we
can talk more honestly to our audience” ’ (Tinic 181). The Canadian producers provide what I
interpret as an honest, realistic, community-driven response to this tragic occurrence5.
Television aside, Canadians have a more collective relationship with their country, from
the standpoint of citizenship, than do Americans who have a more individual connection with
their country.
As early as 1922, scholars like Herbert Hoover were writing about American
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Individualism. More recently, Fox News contributor Margaret Hoover explains “ [b]y invoking
the principles o f American individualism, we have a template for addressing the challenges o f
the twenty-first century in a way that can make modem conservatism relevant for the rising
generation” (xv). While television does have its part in forming the identity and morality o f its
viewing culture in Canada, a lot o f this duty is held by the community, and that is reflective in
DTNG. Americans, on the other hand, were destined to let television guide and shape their
country. John Hartley speaks o f Thomas Paine and his notions o f the republic and relates them to
television:
Paine united the three elements o f a republican approach by bringing together:
textuality (republic of letters); nation (“respublica,” the common weal); and
citizenship (representative government). Paine actually modeled his favored
system o f government on publication —on the republic of letters itself. (389)
The American republic was based on documents first and foremost, and since Paine was one o f
its founders, this diatribe should be looked at from the standpoint o f the publication aspect o f it.
In the modem age, a country is kept together via its television; thus, the relationship each citizen
has with his or her TV is a relationship that keeps them attached to the happenings o f their
country. Hartley describes this as a “two-way flow o f information [that] was needed to link the
imagined community together, with public affairs and decisions heading one way and public
opinion and feedback heading the other” (390). Therefore, the lack o f community involvement in
The OC gives credence to this argument. In the United States, the television has taken the place
of a true community, and only Anderson’s “imagined community” still remains. Luckily, JT had
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his community, and his life was not only saved, but carried on quite successfully for a number o f
years.
As I have shown through the narrative surrounding the JT character, DTNG has a very
different way o f dealing with counter cultural issues than The OC. In this situation, o f course, I
am referring to the relationship between drug (ab)use, the characters and the community. On
DTNG, no characters are shot; nobody has to perform a daring escape from a hospital, and
nobody is excommunicated from Toronto. Instead, the issues are dealt with aptly and responsibly
from the lens o f today’s educators as seen in several studies. The teenagers are reprimanded for
their activities by the proper authorities, like parents or school administrators and rehabilitation
takes place in and with the help o f the community. As Hall states, ’’identities” are “the names we
give to the different ways we are positioned, and position ourselves in, the narratives o f the
past” (Hall qtd in Castiglia and Reed 249).
Future watchers o f DTNG can properly situate
themselves against or with this narrative in the construction o f both their self and national
identity. Furthermore, as Tinic argues:
the perceived need to create a homogeneous definition o f national identity,
through broadcasting, preceded the analysis and subsequent representation o f the
various interpretations o f national self-consciousness as expressed by the distinct
populations within Canada. (16)
Thus, Degrassi: the Next Generation is doing what I argue Canadian television must set out to
do. It is using a responsible form o f education to represent Canadians, while also creating a form
o f national identity. DTNG has now been on the air for eleven seasons. Although Canadian teens
may be able to learn from this program, many o f them were not watching it during the timeframe
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of this thesis.
In 2007, DTNG averaged 522,000 viewers, about a quarter o f the viewers as
compared to Hockey Night in Canada (Strauss), so the Canadian teenagers that are viewing
examples of Canadian youth are influenced by the program’s message of responsibility.
Raboy argues that Canadian television needs to use “...Canadian culture as a bulwark
against American domination” (153). Out o f the channels shown on the average Canadian
television, only three channels are nationally broadcast Canadian channels: CTV, CBC and
Global. Out o f the three, only “the CBC, as the national broadcaster, must ensure that at least 60
percent of its program schedule between six AM and midnight consists o f Canadian
productions” (Canadian Content Rules). So, the average Canadian television set is completely
dominated by American programming. Raboy goes further in his argument, stating that “ ...the
majority of Canadians were using other [international] broadcasting sources most o f the
time” (161). Therefore, Canadians find themselves in a crisis. As I have argued to this point,
television is not only a national unifier, but a major device in the creation of identity, particularly
in malleable teens seeking acceptance. If the Canadian teen is not watching Canadian television,
the inundation o f American programming will have an effect on future Canadian national
identity. Canadian teen audiences are arguably consuming primarily American programming
because Canadian TV screens are a reflection o f the “regionally fragmented community o f
Canadian TV. A" s mentioned previously, Tinic argues that:
As the centre replicates itself on Canadian television screens, it is perhaps not
surprising that a regionally fragmented community has become an avid audience
for American television programming. Positioned as outsiders in both televisual
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landscapes, Canadians on the periphery have opted for the one that will, at
minimum, provide the epitome o f production quality and investment. (156)
Tinic refers to a “centre” that represents the urban, more often focused on economic, social and
cultural centres of Canadian society, such as Toronto or Vancouver. The shows that represent this
“centre” often alienate the periphery, and although demographically, the majority o f Canadians
are representative of these “centres," at least geographically speaking, most o f Canada is on the
periphery.
DTNG maintains this centre-view by continuing to underrepresent the periphery. The
characters live in Toronto and are fairly middle class. DTNG might be on the mark regarding
responsible, educational programming that encourages the formation o f Canadian national
identity in the nation’s youth, but by denying involvement o f the periphery, the show fails to
completely curb or negate the onslaught of American culture.
4 All episodes of DTNG are titled after songs. This one is based on Bruce Cockbum’s song from
the 1970 Donald Shebib movie Goin ’Down the Road. Shebib’s film is widely acknowledged as
one of the best in Canadian history that really grasped the mood o f the nation in the period that it
was released.
5 Canada has a rich history o f social programs and a welfare state. This has lead to Canadians’
sense o f community involvement and responsibility for each other.
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Chapter Three
Lessons: The Tragedy o f the 'New Woman, ’Alex Kelly
and
Different Strings: The Deconstruction and (Re)Creation o f Paige Michalchuk
You know w e’ve told you before!
But you didn’t hear us then
So you still question why
You didn’t listen again
(Lee, Lifeson and Peart)
Different eyes see different things
Different hearts
Beat on different strings
But there are times
For you and me
When all such things agree
(Lee, Lifeson and Peart)
As North American teen television evolves with the teens that it is representing, there is a
need to represent those who have been underrepresented on television thus far. This includes
LGBT teens or teens that have suffered from sexual abuse. To set the parameters for this chapter,
I will focus on season two of The OC, which aired during the 2004/05 TV season, and
particularly on the character Alex and her relationships with the rest o f the cast, and seasons two
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through five of DTNG, which aired between 2002 and 2006, and particularly on the character
Paige Michalchuk. But first, to have a true understanding o f sexuality and othering in The OC
and DTNG, several things must be put into perspective including the types and intensity o f
sexuality on the programs as well as an explanation o f othering and how it fits into television.
When discussing othering, I am going to extend definitions set out in Edward Said's
Orientalism
to include the area of sexual orientation as I examine homosexual characters as
“other” . Said defines Orientalism as “a way o f coming to terms with the Orient that is based on
the Orient’s special place in European Western experience” (1). Said takes his theory farther, but
for what I am discussing, this definition will suffice. Said poses the question, "Can one divide
human reality into clearly different cultures, histories, traditions, societies, even races and
survive the consequences humanly?" (110). This concept o f division is at the heart o f the
inevitable "'us' and 'them'" (110). That division, in accordance with this chapter, will be
heterosexual versus homosexual. Larry Gross seems to believe there is a connection between
sexuality and othering on television. He argues that, "This emerging trope [homosexuality] is
significant in many ways. The absence o f overt television portrayals has reproduced youth
homosexuality as deviant and other, achieving what some term, symbolic annihilation" (148). A
character that causes as much destruction around her as Alex cannot help but seem dangerous.
In the second season o f Josh Schwartz’s The OC, the character Alex Kelly (Olivia Wilde)
is portrayed as an outsider. While she is no more or less beautiful than any o f the other major
female characters or extremely loose in her sexual morals, she is presented as dangerous in her
bisexuality, a person that the teen viewer should not idealize. Although Alex is an example o f a
strong female character, it is ultimately her lack o f classic femininity and embodiment o f "bad"
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sexuality that differentiates her from the rest o f the female characters and establishes Alex as
other. I believe that the Alex character is used as a warning to teens that open sexuality will lead
to danger. According to Regnerus, “Whether punishing or peeping, Americans are a gawking
nation when it comes to sex... We remain fixated on punishing the sexually deviant, even as
“deviant” sexuality remains a moving target” (4). Alex is not explicitly othered by the characters
on the show; most of them accept her into their group quite willingly. The othering in this case is
dependent on the American teen audience.
media itself.
In this instance, the issue of othering transcends the
Although Alex is accepted by the characters on the show as a friend, she is
presented as other by the writers to the audience because o f her sexuality and unwillingness to
become a “cookie cutter” resident of Newport Beach.
During seasons two and three o f DTNG, the character Paige (Lauren Collins) is not
portrayed as an outsider to the teen audience; in fact, she is the exact opposite. Paige is the most
popular girl at school, leader of the spirit squad and an excellent student on her way to Banting
University. She fits in well with the rest o f the characters and is never seen as dangerous, but in
some situations, she is a victim. She is a strong female character who experiences the normal
challenges o f a pretty teen girl, like dealing with popularity and deciding whom to date. But
Paige, like Alex, does not have a traditional femininity in that her sexual dalliances exceed the
predetermined standard and could subscribe to what I will define as "revealing" sexuality. As
mentioned earlier, class issues are not highlighted for the most part in DTNG, and the character is
definitely not othered by either her classmates or by the audience. Paige suffers from the real
consequences o f her actions, and while she goes through dramatic situations, they are less
sensationalistic than the melodrama o f the American program.
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The sexuality that is displayed in The OC, is completely heteronormative.
Thomas Peele argues that
...in the realm o f popular culture, discourses that are perceived as positive far
out-weigh those that are perceived as negative. Negative discourses concerning
lesbian and gay people are either relegated to the level of connotation, where the
reader can’t be sure if a particular
character is lesbian or gay, or, m ore
commonly, the lesbian or gay character is irredeemably evil, strictly laughable, or
asexual. And even while these representations are heteronormative, they are not
considered to be necessarily negative or destructive by people who enjoy,
for example, representations o f the homosexual-as-sissy. (Peele 2)
There has been an utter lack of explicit sexuality throughout the duration o f this program.
Obviously, there are examples o f kissing and occasionally the sexual contact becomes slightly
more intense, but visually, it never becomes lewd or inappropriate. Characters’ clothes are rarely
removed, perhaps with the exception of a m an’s shirt. Other than the instances I will mention in
this paper, physical contact is always male/female, and although there are instances o f lust, most
contact is done within the confines o f a monogamous relationship. Although these facts may not
seem entirely important, they have an intriguing effect; it sets a precedent as to what I will refer
to as "restrained" sexuality.
Yet, Degrassi takes a stance on sexuality that is not prudish. During the nine seasons o f
the program, while sexuality has not been explicit, it has been discussed at length. Characters
have been pregnant, and in the three instances portrayed on the show, one had a child, one had an
abortion, and the third gave her child up for adoption. Sue Johanson, a famous Canadian sex
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therapist, makes numerous guest starring roles on the program, preaching her mantra o f safe and
responsible sex. The character that I will speak o f at length, Paige, has been raped and later is
involved in a lesbian relationship. So, although the sexuality is not graphic, the Canadian
audience is receiving a responsible and educational view o f teen sexuality.
Another context that must be kept in mind before delving deeper into this argument is the
role of the female in each o f the programs. There are four female lead characters throughout the
entirety of The OC that I will be discussing. First, the adult women, Julie Cooper, Kirsten Cohen,
and the teenage girls, Marissa Cooper and Summer Roberts. These women are strong, wellrounded female characters. During season two, Kirsten is the Vice President o f a real estate
development firm, the Newport Group, and Julie is the acting Corporate Executive Officer o f
said group. The teenaged girls are both in high school, and are by no means wallflowers. Marissa
is the head o f social direction, and although Summer may not be as involved in school events,
she is clearly dominant in both o f the relationships she juggles throughout the season. As sexual
beings, all of these women, except for Marissa, ascribe to my theory of restrained sexuality. All
four women have boyfriends or husbands, and although there are occurrences o f unfaithfulness
in each case, the sex is non-violent and consensual. Marissa, on the other hand, does not exhibit
restrained sexuality because her relationship with Alex is homosexual in nature. As characters,
the women of The OC are representative o f Lynn Stevens' fin de siecle, or end o f the century,
theory o f The new woman. This theory "anticipate[d] this key modernist movement. The figure
o f the 'new woman' appeared when feminists were arguing that marriage and motherhood were
detrimental to women" (Stevens 4). In a more contemporary context that fits with the adult
female characters of television, we can look at Sally Ledger's The New Woman Fiction and
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Feminism at the Fin-de-Siecle from 1997. In Ledger's text, she refers to the "new woman" as the
"creme de la creme of human evolution" (10). This historical definition o f an ideal or perfect
woman is impossible to maintain today. According to Jong
such supposedly benign expectations victimize women far more than
men have ever done. Attachment parenting, especially when combined with
environmental correctness, has encouraged female victimization. Women feel not
only that they must be ever-present for their children but also that they must
breast-feed, make their own baby food and eschew disposable diapers. It's a
prison for mothers, and it represents as much of a backlash against women's
freedom as the right-to-life movement. (Jong)
Jong is referring to attachment parenting, the newest addition to societal expectations for women.
Women are held to an unacceptable level o f accomplishment due to antiquated ideas like the
“new woman” and in this chapter, the impossibility for the characters in these programs to meet
this mold will be explored.
By discussing the "new woman" concept in the
context of the
aforementioned notion o f "restrained sexuality" a clear definition o f what I will call restrained
femininity will be evident. Thus, restrained femininity will include the characteristics o f beauty,
strength of mind and will, and sexual liberation that may include infidelity but is always
heterosexual and non-violent. Some youth may find that restrained femininity is impossible to
uphold.
Degrassi boasts a massive cast, so I will not go into each character in as much detail, but
I will describe enough o f the female characters in the program to give an appropriate cross
section of their roles as the female characters in the program. There are two adult female
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characters, Spike and Miss Hatzilakos, (Melissa DiMarco). Spike is a young mother; she had her
daughter Emma in the first season of Degrassi Junior High and is a small business owner. Miss
Hatzilakos is a teacher who is later promoted to principal o f Degrassi Community School.
Similar to the women in The OC, these women are obviously strong characters and responsible
role models, ascribing to the earlier mentioned theory o f the “new woman.” The two teenage
girls I will compare to the teenagers from The OC are Ashley Kerwin, whose role in the Degrassi
narrative will be discussed at length in the next chapter, and the aforementioned Paige. Ashley
represents restrained femininity with her responsible nature and heterosexuality, but she also
walks along the darker side o f life, visible in her use o f drugs in Season One and her identity as a
“goth” from seasons two to four. Paige, on the other hand, does not fit my definition. Paige is
raped in season two and has a bisexual affair with Degrassi's Alex, (Deanna Cassaluce) in
seasons three and four. Paige is very similar to The O C ’s Marissa, but the results o f her
experimentation and sexual deviance are not her death, but the true formation o f her character.
This evolution and dynamic nature o f Paige fits what I have argued is the Canadian producers'
responsibility o f honesty to their television audience.
The OC has its share of strong women. Alex is introduced to the audience in the third
episode of season two, “The New Kids on the Block.” In the scene, she roughs up the effeminate
Seth, while positioning herself as both physically and sexually dominant and as the manager o f
the restaurant.
My interpretation of this scene is that Alex is a strong, domineering, beautiful
young woman who is so capable that she runs a club with little to no interference from the
owner. From this evidence, it is clear that Alex has elements o f the new woman. But, there is a
difference between the woman Alex is and that historical definition; whereas Alex may embody
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certain elements, including being a strong willed career woman, she does not succeed in her
career while balancing a family life. The notions o f marriage and family are as oppressive to
today’s woman as they were to the women o f the nineteenth century. Alex is a guest character on
The OC, she is only present for half o f season two and is then never heard from again. But,
during her tenure on the program, she is involved in two relationships, one with Seth and the
other with Marissa. It is my belief that Alex is the terrifying other in this program because o f the
latter relationship. Alex may be set up as other before the homosexual relationship occurs
through visual and class differences, but it is her bisexuality that may cause the audience to other
her completely.
As I have mentioned visual differences in television, diegesis should be discussed.
According to Bordwell and Thompson, diegesis consists o f a “spatio-temporal world” (8) where
everything that is not explicitly displayed on screen, exists. Diegetic othering, or the process o f
characters on screen treating someone as other, is a method the writers of the program can use to
convey to the audience that someone is different, or that the viewers should be afraid o f them.
The last statement made regarding Alex is an example o f diegetic othering, but only to a point.
Since the cast does not other her, what needs to happen for the character to be othered by the
audience requires that the audience’s attitude toward a certain group must be known or expected.
As Queers have been pre-determinately exposed on American TV as other, the audience
recognizes that even though Alex is friends with the characters, her sexual preferences are
counter-culture and will thus lead to difficulties.
Alex may be a shining example o f the new woman but her non-conformist sexuality
results in her downfall. I believe occurrences o f "revealing" sexuality in The OC always lead to a
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character's downfall, because, at some level, the writers are intending to use the character’s fate
to convey a warning to the teen audience. Although accepted by the characters around her, Alex
is othered to the audience because o f her revealing femininity. Alex may be capable and
beautiful, but her immoderate sexual tendencies keep her out o f the Newport Beach elite. Alex
leaves Newport Beach because o f problems relating from her relationship with Marissa. After
being with Alex, Marissa goes through several stages of transformation, although not sexual, that
result in her ultimate death. Through examples o f Alex's sexual tendencies and a comparison o f
her pseudo-doppelganger, Ryan, I will argue that characters on The OC who don't fit the
"restrained" sexuality mould are othered and then omitted as a warning to the audience.
Alex is a complex character and this creates a paradox. Alex is gorgeous, and she is also
tattooed. Tattoos do not detract from a woman’s beauty, but they are a counter culture scar that
act as a mark of resistance. As Karin Beeler argues in her book, Tattoos, Desire and Violence,
"Tattoo culture has traditionally been a very male-centered culture... when women are tattooed
they are often restricted to the object o f male, heterosexual desire" (41).
The tattoo is a form o f visual othering. During Season two o f The OC, Alex is the only
character on the program that is marked in such a way, and it makes her less safe than a girl like
Summer. The purple stripe in Alex's hair furthers this paradigm, creating difference between her
and the other characters. This is an example o f diegetic indicators that act on the audiences pre
conceived expectations and furthermore indirectly influence the audience’s attitude towards a
character. Later, when Seth is attempting to arrange a double date, he comments to Ryan, "Her
with the tattoo, you with the wristband? That's like the ultimate wrong side o f the tracks love
story" (“The New Kids on the Block”). Seth others both Ryan and Alex by loosely referring to
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them as subversive members of society. Seth maintains a friendship with Ryan and dates Alex,
and the audience is led to believe that even though Seth is a part o f the establishment with his
lawyer father and executive mother, Alex and Ryan are similar, as opposed to other or different,
and therefore able to exist in his social circle. Thus, although Alex is accepted by Seth, her
difference is still inferred negatively by the audience. Seth’s comment not only points out Alex's
differences, it also creates a link with Ryan that I believe helps establish her as other.
Alex's tattoo is that o f a butterfly, a marking that is traditionally female. Yet, she is not a
traditional woman. When Marissa asks her what the butterfly means, Alex responds, "It m eans...
I was drunk... (laughs) No, I just got emancipated from my parents, and M om and Dad with a
huge X through them was way too expensive" (“The Accomplice”). The butterfly tattoo
establishes Alex as a character who has gone through a metamorphosis. Alex has lost the
shackles of her oppressive parents and has embraced bisexuality where she finds true happiness.
In episode ten, after Marissa helps Alex reclaim her heart-shaped necklace from her ex-girlfriend
in “The Accomplice," Marissa also becomes tattooed. Marissa's tattoo is never quite visable, but
in this instance, it is the act more than the symbol that is important. This moment marks the
beginning of Marissa's fall; first the tattoo, then the homosexual relationship, then the trailer
park, and ultimately, death. Although Marissa was a mildly troubled youth before Alex came
along, her life only seems to get more complicated and destructive afterwords.
Alex is not the “object of male heterosexual desire “ (Beeler 41). Alex is a sexual being
herself, and although not predatory, she does not shy away from physical contact. In this scene,
Alex's morals concerning casual intimate contact are exhibited:
B a ll 6 7
‘Obviously you got the wrong idea Saturday night, cos you and me, it's not
happening.’
‘O k... Ok, but you did kinda kiss m e.’
‘Uh huh. It was fun.’
‘It was fun? It was fun? It didn't mean anything to you?’
‘Dude it was just a kiss.’
‘Why don't you just shake hands?’
(Alex kisses delivery guy) ‘Thanks Homer, see you Thursday.’
‘You just kissed the beer guy.’
‘So it's just a kiss, right M andy?’ (kisses girl).
("The SnO C")
Alex resists Seth's attempts of drawing a connection between kissing and relationships. While
exemplifying her carefree, dangerous attitude, this also shows Alex's resistance to all things
formal, in this case, the SnO C dance held at the local high school. Although attending the school
dance is a given in most teens' lives; a right o f passage that Alex resists. Although in this scene
she does not appear to be mocking the dance or regretting her decision, she acts as though the
dance just is not necessary. As Alex has already had a metamorphosis, the flowering o f her
sexuality, she does not need the traditional teenage rituals to feel as if she belongs. After the
dance, a recently assaulted Seth returns to Alex where she kisses him to improve his mood,
effectively starting their short relationship. At this point in the story arc, Alex is seen as a visual
other that resists the classic interpretation o f being a teenager. Alex is accepted by Seth, but is
definitely deemed as an outsider by the teen audience.
The scene I have mentioned earlier, with Alex kissing her co-worker, was also the first
instance of teenaged homosexuality on The OC. Although the kiss was trite, it expands on the
representation of Alex as other. The kiss is shocking to Seth, and is an understated introduction to
Alex as a bisexual figure. In the next instance, in the episode entitled, "The Ex Factor," the
audience is introduced to Alex's ex-girlfriend, which is o f little importance except to establish
Alex's history o f homosexual experience, further adding to her otherness. Marissa and Alex's
relationship commences from issues with A lex’s former lover. As mentioned previously, Alex
and Marissa journey to the residence Alex shared with her prior girlfriend to retrieve some o f
Alex's things, including the heart necklace that her ex-girlfriend had stolen from her. In this
episode, Marissa becomes truant, spending the majority o f her time drinking and partying with
her new lover. Alex has a lifestyle that Marissa finds appealing in an idealistic sense. At this
point in the series, Season two, Episode fourteen, Marissa has only dated three people: Luke, a
preppy water polo player at the beginning o f the series; Ryan; and DJ who was Marissa's family's
yard boy. Luke aside, Marissa has a history o f dating men who are rejected by the establishment
in some form or another. For someone o f her breeding and environment, there are class issues
when she dates a maintenance man or the teenaged male who just got out o f jail. Although
Marissa still maintains the image of the new woman, she dates the subversive side o f Newport
Beach. While Marissa may idealistically covet the sensual, exciting, carefree life that Alex
possesses, the audience is led to believe that Alex is just another anti-establishment figure that
Marissa is dating to resist her mother's tyranny. In the episode “The Rainy Day Woman," Alex
and Marissa’s mother, Julie, discuss the ironies o f M arissa’s character. Julie takes the
opportunity to ridicule the relationship between the two, and not only does Julie undermine any
B a ll 6 9
sort o f partnership Marissa and Alex may have, she discounts Alex's importance in Marissa's life
when she comments on Marissa's past loves. Julie insinuates that Alex has the same social
standing as the yard boy, thus othering Alex further. This is where the audience can distinguish
the difference between Alex and Ryan as well. Although Ryan is anti-establishment, like Alex,
and sharesthe same working class affiliation, because he is straight he is deemed acceptable
according to Julie at this juncture. According to Julie, Ryan is only the right choice when the
other option is a homosexual relationship between Marissa and "this week's yard guy" (“The
Rainy Day Woman”). This further adds to my argument that The OC promotes and privileges a
heteronormative viewpoint.
Alex and Marissa's relationship ends predictably. Since, Marissa is unable to handle the
realities o f living outside of her economic and social spheres; she returns back to the centre o f
Newport Beach. Marissa is not capable o f being with Alex and being completely happy because
she is not ready for life on the social periphery. In episode sixteen, the audience is shown the
ultimate break-up between the two:
Marissa: This is my life! So what do you think?
Alex: I think, this is your life, and I don't fit in. Pep rallies, cheerleaders, boys.
Marissa: Nothing happened with Ryan.
Alex: Not yet, but what do you give it, a week, a month?
Marissa: I really wanted this to work between us. Look, I'm sorry if I hurt you.
Alex: I'm sorry that I brought two skeezy ex-cons to your bonfire.
Marissa: What happens now?
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Alex: Who knows? I think I might go back home, make some money, go back to
school. It actually looks kinda fun.
Marissa: Yeah, from really far away. C'mon, you're gonna miss the human
pyramid.
(“The Blaze o f Glory”).
Alex points to her own differences in this passage. She recognizes that she does not fit in and that
Marissa would be better off with Ryan. The passage ends with Alex’s expected exit from The OC
and her half-hearted statement regarding returning home and attempting a normal lifestyle. This
speech completely undermines her resistant, anti-authoritarian ways by showing a longing for a
banal existence that she struggled against the entire time she lived in Newport Beach.
Apparently, this is the writers' attempt to bring closure to the portrayal of Marissa as being other.
She hasalready been visually othered and portrayed as a sexual other and her
lower class
upbringing is emphasized, and this led to her returning to a home that she originally left because
she was not accepted. I believe the writers o f The OC, were broadcasting the message that the
only way to belong anywhere is to be one o f "us," not one o f "them."
Perhaps the creator o f the program was not attempting to other Alex but to use her as a
tool to assist Marissa's character development, at least in his mind. The O C ’s creator and writer,
Josh Schwartz comments on the relationship:
‘That was a double-edged sword for us,’ Schwartz admits, ‘because we were
asked to pull back [on the duration o f the kiss] while at the same time it was very
heavily hyped. It was like some sort o f game. But while everybody thought the
kiss would be the start and end o f it for them, for it was really about doing a real
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relationship and showing how, after it ended, Marissa would be at a place o f
greater maturity. (Mitovich)
Marissa never reaches this "place o f greater maturity". In fact, the end of the relationship initiates
the end of her character on the program. Alex unknowingly wreaked havoc on the two characters
she dated during her time at Newport Beach. With Seth's out-of-character drinking and stealing
of his parents' car and Marissa's lesbian relationship that could be seen as the beginning o f her
downfall, it is hard to argue that Alex is not depicted as a negative influence. Although Alex and
Ryan share a multitude o f similarities, including upbringing and resistance to authority, Alex is
the character who causes people to hurt or suffer. The only conclusion I can draw from this is
that Alex is seen as a negative other because o f her sexuality. Alex is a warning to the audience
that if they mirror her sexual behavior, it will result in harmful situations both for the persons
involved and their associates. “Revealing” sexuality is what ultimately establishes Alex as a true
other.
This type o f othering is a repeating theme in the program. It resurfaces when Ryan's
brother is added to the cast in the second half o f season two.
Much like Alex, Paige endures her own share o f issues during DTNG, though her
problems occur during a much longer period o f time. Paige is introduced in the third episode o f
the series and remains a regular on the program through the sixth season. Paige is beautiful and
has power over her friends - this much is evident even from her earliest on-screen appearance.
Her attire during her introduction is similar to that o f a young starlet, and her demeanor sends a
message of confidence and overt sexuality. Paige is fifteen in the first season, so her journey into
womanhood has just started. But, she is still similar to the historical concept o f the “new woman”
in that she is straight, a figurehead, social, and successful. Paige has a relatively safe sex life
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during the first season, as she has no relations whether sexual or romantic with men or women,
but early in the second season, Paige starts dating and finds that she has a predilection for older,
more experienced men. Paige has three relationships that are integral to her identity formation.
By relationships, I refer to dating rather than sexual relations. Throughout the series, she dates
two men, Spinner; (Shane Kippel) and Matt 01eander(Christopher Jacot) her teacher; she also
dates one woman, Alex Nunez (Deanna Casaluce). Paige has a destructive introduction to her
sexuality.
In season two, Paige decides that she wants to have her first boyfriend and sexual
experience. Although it is not apparent during their first meeting, the attractive basketball player
from another school, Dean, played by Dean Blundell, is about to become a rapist. Paige is lured
upstairs during a party and then forced into sexual intercourse. This moment Paige regrets is her
first sexual interaction. Rape does not fit my definition o f restrained sexuality. After this moment
and the subsequent story arc that continues through seasons two and three, Paige is scarred
sexually. This is a probable response that a teen girl would have to such a traumatic event. One
must assume the rest of Paige’s life will be different because o f her rape. Can or will Paige still
fit the definition of the “new woman” after her rape? As I previously defined the term, as soon as
revealing sexuality is introduced into the equation, the “new woman” formula is complicated,
and often, the character’s existence is marred by misfortune rather than positivity. Or, is the “new
woman” an impossibility, an ideal set up that cannot be reached? As I mentioned earlier, today’s
women are now expected to be successful in both the workplace and home.
Fabes et al.
comment on how class may lead to different definitions o f parent: (m)iddle-class television
parents and their children are more likely to be portrayed as intelligent, mature ‘superpeople’ ...
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whereas working class parents and children are likely to be portrayed as inept” (339). It is more
reasonable that a woman, whatever her circumstance might be, should just be a strong, feminine
person rather than to attempt to be compared to an ideal formula o f what a woman in the twenty
first century should be. Although Paige does not fit the restrained sexuality formula that I have
established, she is not othered by the audience or the rest o f the characters. Instead, she remains
as part of the cast until the show’s seventh season. I believe this is because the Canadian program
is rejecting the standard, Americanized melodramatic teen drama formula and is instead
attempting to bring responsible levels o f reality and consequence to the genre.
In season five of DTNG, Paige starts a relationship with the school’s “bad girl,” Alex.
This relationship does not start off sexually, however; it begins as a work association. After the
closure of her rape trial, where the defendant was found not guilty due to lack o f physical
evidence, another burden that Paige is forced to live with, Paige takes retribution into her own
hands. She destroys her rapist’s car with her boyfriend’s, and as a result o f this, Paige does the
responsible thing: she turns herself into the police and starts a part time job at the local theatre,
with Alex, to pay for the repairs to her boyfriend’s car. In the episode “Death o f a Disco Dancer,”
Paige and Alex share their first casual social experience, which happens to be deviant in nature.
The two girls skip their college interviews to smoke marijuana outside the school. Their
conversation includes discussion about college and Paige’s failed heterosexual relationships,
perhaps a precursor to their eventual affair. I interpret this scene as Paige and Alex setting
themselves on the periphery by accepting drug culture into their lives. As part o f the counter
culture, the formation o f their identities does not abide by the same standards as what would be
referred to as traditional culture. Castiglia and Reed argue that, “People invested in normative
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identities (whiteness, maleness, heterosexuality) that are continually reinforced by the
mainstream media as the makings of unique individuality can afford to ignore the collective
aspect o f those [counter culture] memories” (256). This program gives the counter culture an
opportunity to build identity in a positive way. Although Paige is not successful during the
interview, which is a reasonable expectation o f the audience, she does end up getting into the
school and goes on to have a decent, normal life. She is by no means othered by the characters
because of her experimenting with counter culture; instead, the teen audience learns that there
are consequences to every action.
Now that the counter cultural nature o f Paige and A lex’s relationship has been
established, I want to discuss the homosexual relationship that they share. In the end o f season
five, series episodes ninety-two and ninety-three, Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes return to
Toronto for the premiere o f their movie, Jay and Silent Bob Go Canadian, E h l. Alex and Paige
attend the movie premiere together, and after several intense moments, they have their first
same-sex kiss. The way this scene was shot shows it to be anything but harmless. The camera
zooms in closely on the kiss, and the passion is evident, as well as Paige’s immediate discomfort
and regret. In the next few episodes, she negotiates with the the terms o f the relationship, its
impact on her and how those around her feel about it. As Castiglia and Reed argue, “For those
outside mainstream culture, however, memories on which to ground alternative social identities
must be more self-consciously recognized, cultivated and shared” (256). Again, Paige is not
othered because o f her sexuality or decision to live in the counter culture. It is well-established
by this point that her brother and the character Marco, played by Adamo Ruggiero, are both
homosexual. DTNG is offering the counter culture part o f its audience the opportunity to build
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positive memories related to their own life experiences. Paige does not suffer because o f her
choices; she deals with them in a socially responsible fashion, and the audience is shown positive
experiences as a result. This stance towards sexuality is fluid in nature, especially as compared to
the heteronormative lens that The OC uses.
Ultimately, the relationship between Alex and Paige does not work out. Paige has
aspirations of attending college, but Alex is not willing to join her. The relationship has a nonmelodramatic ending, which is common to many teenage couples who face the decisions that life
presents after high school. Both characters go on to lead regular lives, and neither o f them is
written off the show or stereotyped as a lesbian in the narrative. They continue to be dynamic
and representative o f teenage counter culture.
In this chapter, I have compared characters who are representative o f the counter culture
in both Canada and the United States. Although the two countries might have very different
cultures, counter cultural elements are almost universal in the Western World. Drug culture and
alternate sexuality are depicted with common themes on television from Canada’s DTNG and
America’s The OC to the United Kingdom’s Skins.6 Street drugs are illegal, and no matter how
liberal each individual country might claim to be, the centre, or mainstream culture, still believes
there is something deviant about homosexuality. The differences become apparent when I look at
how each country deals with the issues in their television programming. In The OC, the counter
culture character Alex is othered and leaves town hastily after her tumultuous relationship with
Marissa. Marissa suffers from an attempted rape, which results in an abusive drug infused
relationship and ultimately death at the hands o f her violent boyfriend7. In DTNG, the character
Paige goes to university and lands a job in her chosen field, while Alex goes to college and rises
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above her expected position in life. More disparateness in sexuality in television, though, is
necessary. According to Peele
[w]hile much progress has been made toward representation o f glbtq people in
composition and in popular culture, we still need to encourage our students to
look beyond the traditional categories o f straight and gay, male and female. A
queer response would be to focus on the incoherence, constructed nature, and
fluidity of gender identity itself.
(Peele)
The differences in the strategies that the Canadian DTNG and the American The OC employ that
influence their audiences are representative o f each country’s national identity. In the next
chapter, I will take a final look at how national identity is tied to each program.
5 Although not discussed at length in this thesis, the program The Skins which aired originally in the
United Kingdom on BBC4 and now a North American version on M TV in Canada and the United States is
the epitome of the realistic teen television program. The dark, gritty style of the show has drawn negative
press since some critics have argued that it romanticizes counter culture, but in my opinion, the non
sensationalist style of the program offers an honest look at teenaged culture
6 At the time of Marissa’s death, she was not dating the young man who was driving the vehicle that
crashed into hers. She had broken up with him and was attempting to get her life back on track. I see
her death as a further warning to the audience that if you do deviate from the norm, you are doomed
regardless of whether or not you attempt to alter your life’s course.
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Chapter Four
Subdivisions: A Comparative Look at Class and Identity
“Subdivisions —
In the high school halls
In the shopping malls
Conform or be cast out”
(Lee, Lifeson and Peart).
The Roman poet Horace elucidates that, “[h]e who combines the useful and the pleasing
wins out by both instructing and delighting the reader. This is the sort of book that will make
money for the publisher, cross the seas, and extend the fame o f the author” (72). Television,
especially that which is written for a primarily teen demographic, is both mimetic and didactic,
echoing the lives of the audience members and drawing upon traditional rhetorical devices like
catharsis to influence the viewers in subconscious ways as to how they may react in situations
that resonate with the on screen action.
From the urban neighborhood o f Degrassi to the gated community o f Newport Beach, the
audiences o f Degrassi: the Next Generation and The OC in Canada and the USA are presented
with microcosms of their specific countries. I f American programs that are rife with melodrama
are didactically more of a cautionary tale to the audience rather than a more comprehensive
educational tool, then appealing to a large demographic is still an effective methodological way
to influence and teach the audience. At the same time, the Canadian teen drama is attempting to
engage primarily with the youth demographic. Whilst engaging, DTNG hopes to provide teens
with the knowledge needed to deal with troubling situations whether or not they actually arise.
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The strategies these programs employ are influencing their respective target audiences in ways
that speak to the national identity o f the country in question.
Considering how substance abuse is addressed in both texts, the differing values o f each
culture are increasingly apparent. For example, in DTNG, when a character uses ecstasy and
embarrasses herself at a party, she is not punished by her parents or the police, but is shunned at
school, not for the drug use, but for humiliating her friends. In this case the specific community
that is involved are her colleagues at her educational institution. In a comparable scene from The
OC, a lower-class teen character uses cocaine with his love interest, and the two o f them attempt
to buy and sell ecstasy. The cocaine use is situated as the mitigating factor in an attempted sexual
assault and ultimately in the violence leading to a tragic shooting. Unlike the example o f the
substance use in DTNG, the example of substance abuse in The OC is followed up with more
dangerous and serious implications. In DTNG, the substance use and its implications are dealt
with by the violator's community (friends at school), but in The OC, the substance use is
conflated with class differences, and the implications are apparently violent and tragic. On
DTNG the social violation results in a less-serious consequence for the perpetrator, but on The
OC, the temperament of the pedantic, or teaching, moments are presented as dangerous in
attempts to coerce the audience to fear the outward and inevitable consequences o f this anti
social behavior rather than to be educated about these activities and their effects on both self and
community. I will argue that the way that both o f these programs address the issue o f substance
abuse reflects the individual identity o f the parent nations; the Canadian program channels
education and community, the American program channels fear and violence.
theoretical basis for this argument, I will address Artistotle and notions of tragedy.
To establish
In The Poetics, Aristotle describes tragedy as,
an imitation o f an action that is serious, complete, and of a certain magnitude; in
language embellished with each kind o f artistic ornament, the several kinds being
found in separate parts o f the play; in the form of action, not o f narrative; through
pity and fear effecting the proper purgation o f emotion. (53)
Aristotle argues that tragedy is cathartic.
For the purposes o f this thesis and from evidence I
have presented, I will refer to contemporary television dramas as modem day tragedies. As I
have argued, catharsis creates a symbiotic relationship between viewer and character which
influences the creation o f identity.
As far as I am concerned, because o f this, television is
didactic as well. Other than the fact that Aristotle argues serials should not be allowed (53), many
of his descriptions, especially dealing with catharsis and plot can be cohesively correlated to
elements o f both The OC and DTNG. To understand this, Aristotelian notions o f mimesis must be
acknowledged. Mimesis refers to the imitation o f life in art. To paraphrase Aristotle from The
Poetics, it is through this imitation, that must not be too close to reality that the members o f the
audience may undergo a process of catharsis, or a purging o f emotions. Aristotle goes on to
describe the distance that is necessary between the mimesis and reality.
When referring to the historical, Aristotle is speaking o f that which is true and has
happened. But as he states, these historical events must refer to the realm o f “probable and
possible.” Therein lays the distinction between mimesis and reality. The plots o f good drama
should be about something that has happened, but it should not be an absolute truth. Without the
ability to disassociate slightly from what they are viewing, the audience cannot be removed
enough from the action to truly be affected by it, because in Aristotle’s estimation, only when
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you can separate yourself from something can you be affected by it. The programs that I am
examining for this paper are both o f this mould. The OC and DTNG tackle legitimate issues that
most teens have to deal with, but the pace and severity of these programs remain entirely
divorced from what is realistic, which is an ingredient for catharsis (Aristotle 56). The OC and
DTNG are both cathartic and didactic due to the distance between the audience and the realities
of the program and how the audience engages with television in terms o f mimesis.
A Television Studies reading o f the aforementioned literature is appropriate when
building upon the teachings o f Aristotle and Horace as a basis for further scholarly discourse.
Television both teaches and delights. Horace’s exact description o f literature is that is successful
for both the writer, the publisher, and the audience. Not only do television programs delight, but
more importantly, in my opinion, they instruct important lessons and can be useful in the
formation o f young identities.
Television, at least in these cases, is a didactic device. But this begs a second question, in
the context o f a Cultural Study, how does TV build identity in teenagers? Van de Berg and
Wenner believe that television, “ ...confirms the power o f the image to raise the passions o f
viewers simply by creating and confirming, through non-discursive means, beliefs about their
reality and ideals” (478). As Jackson believes, “an identity is fashioned in response to others. It is
a dialogue with others in the context of patterned ideas, concepts, linguistic and social
categories... which predate the individual” (81). In such a malleable state as adolescence,
influences from external sources shape how teens see themselves, both in relation to their
parents, their nation, and their associates. Using rhetorical devices, such as mimesis, the imagery
on TV is reflective. These last two points are indicative of television’s aptitude for shaping
B a ll 8 1
teenage identity, especially when united with the didactic nature o f TV as discussed earlier. Later,
I will take this further and show how place has a role in identity construction. To start this
analysis, I will discuss how action and consequence, as a didactic technique, and how character
are comparatively different when discussing drug use in The OC and D W G .
In the second season of Josh Schwartz’s The OC the audience is reintroduced to the
character Trey Atwood (Logan Marshall-Green). Trey is different from the majority o f the
citizens of Newport Beach; he is of a lower class. According to Gerbner, “addictive substances
are linked to bad character rather than to negative health consequences or the danger o f
addiction” (71). Bad character and lower class are often linked on television. W hen the teen
audience is reintroduced to Trey, he has just been released from jail for grand theft auto the same
crime he and Ryan were convicted for during the series’ first story arc. The Cohens take
responsibility for Trey, and as presented in a scene from the episode “The Brothers Grim” the
class differences between Trey and the rest of the community are immediately emphasized. Trey,
with Ryan and Marissa, enter a high end clothing store where Trey is quickly confronted by the
store’s security guard. The altercation turns violent, with Trey noting that he is being singled out
because of how he looks. Although the teen audience has not seen Trey as a drug user yet, the
way his character is being constructed is consistent with the American stereotype o f the criminal,
ex-con addict. Therefore, in matters of character, in the American program, the character that
ends up being the drug user is shown as a criminal who cannot be trusted.
As explained earlier, this type o f thinking is ubiquitous. An audience who sees this type
of character as a drug user has an expected reaction when taken in the didactic sense. This
reaction is fear and repulsion. The audience is not typically expected to be afraid o f the character,
but they are expected to fear becoming like this character, to pity him or look down upon him.
Using a stereotypical drug user as a character achieves the desired result. M aking an audience
fear a character in terms of his or her class and legal standing is a didactic technique that is quite
common. Although Trey’s attitude may be a mitigating factor in the didactic attempts o f the
program’s writers to influence viewers to fear drug use, what really exemplifies this matter is the
consequence o f Trey’s actions. In Media Matter: TV Use in Childhood and Adolescence,
Rosengren argues that “To a large extent, youth culture is a differentiated product o f the cultural
industry, providing the young with what they may need for the creation, maintenance, and
expression of their identity” (119). The television industry has built these stereotypes that are
undeniably shaping the beliefs and knowledge o f youth culture. Although there are instances o f
Trey using, buying and selling drugs earlier in the season, the instance I am focusing on for the
first half o f the action and consequence formula is in episode twenty-one, entitled “The Return o f
the Nana,” that was written by series creator, Josh Schwartz. In the following scene, it becomes
clear that when a character in The OC who is recognized as being lower class takes drugs, the
results are very extreme. In the episode just mentioned, Trey and Marissa become inebriated
together and Trey snorts cocaine. After sitting on the beach for a short time conversing, Trey
attempts to rape Marissa. During the struggle, he keeps mentioning his social class as an issue or
reason why Marissa will not have sex with him. In this scene, things quickly become
inappropriate when drugs are involved. The mood goes from jocular and peaceful to resentful
and violent, even with the inclusion o f alcohol. As the teen audience has been shown thus far,
drug use may lead to violence, even with someone that means as much to one as M arissa does to
Trey. Again, as Rosengren argues, this type o f vision is identity building.
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Although Trey’s drug use and his attempted rape o f Marissa situate substance abuse as a
negative didactic approach, it is the consequence o f these actions, and thus his drug use that
really makes the audience fearful. In the season finale, titled “The Dearly Beloved,” Trey is shot
as a result o f his drug using ways. Although the teen viewers find out in season three that Trey
does not die from the shooting, the picture that is painted for the young audience is grim; if you
use drugs, you may become violent and ultimately suffer from violence yourself. Gerbner states
that in television, “addicts are more likely than others to fail and to fall victim to violence. They
are portrayed as “losers” (74). Trey is the ultimate degenerate, a stereotypical ex-con that ends up
getting shot as a result o f his drug use. In a didactic sense, again, fear is the motivating factor for
the audience not to do drugs. In The OC, the youth cultural identity is being shaped negatively
with fear as the primary factor against drug use.
The drug user that the teenaged audience is introduced to in DTNG, is a very different
type o f young adult than Trey. Ashley Kerwin is the Junior High class president, dates the best
player on the basketball team and is generally the most popular girl in school. Obviously, she is
nothing like Gerbner’s “loser.” In an aforementioned passage from Serra Tinic’s On Location,
she gives a plausible explanation for this, “There is a perception among Canadian producers that
‘As a country we are a lot more open or we can talk more honestly to our audience’” (181). This
could have something to do with Canada’s history with documentary film and television. The
multi-award winning National Film Board o f Canada (NFB) has been focussing on
documentaries and short films since the 1970s. The Canadian audience is more likely to see a
television documentary and this may lead to, as Tinic mentioned, the perception among Canadian
producers that they can be honest with their viewers. Although Aristotle’s separation from reality
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is still necessary for catharsis, in Canada the realities o f the teen genre are a little closer to what
an audience would perceive as reality. Ashley’s character is not o f the archetype that would be an
expected drug user, but when taken in the context o f realism before extremism as I have
explained it, the audience should believe that it is as likely that any character on DTNG is
capable o f making a mistake that will lead to complications. Compared to The OC, this is a
didactic technique that speaks more to education through knowledge and truth than through fear.
In the season finale o f season one, titled “Jagged Little Pill,” Ashley feels pressure from
her friends who consider her boring and predictable. After some Ecstasy is confiscated from
some o f the younger kids, it is given to the dependable Ashley to dispose of. A shley’s friend,
Paige, confronts Ashley about her dullness. Feeling pressure from the group to “be cool”, Ashley
keeps the drugs and invites her boyfriend over, in spite o f her parent’s wishes. Like a normal teen
feeling these pressures, Ashley capitulates and takes the drugs. Later, Ashley embarrasses herself
and offends her friends. The actions that lead up to Ashley taking the drugs and her actions while
high are quite tame compared to the attempted rape o f Marissa by Trey. Ashley also faces
consequences for her actions, but Ashley’s punishment is not a gunshot wound, but being
shunned by her former best friends and boyfriend. These effects stay with Ashley up to midway
through the second season, and predicate Ashley’s transformation from high school princess to
Goth queen. Again, these reactions seem more realistic, echoing the sentiments from Tinic’s
argument. The Canadian audience is being educated with community based responses instead o f
terror. Teen programs are building the identity o f the youths viewing them, but DTNG is a more
beneficial type of didactic television than The OC.
According to Gerbner, “Scenes with alcohol, tobacco, and/or illicit drugs are present in
seven o f ten prime-time network dramatic programs. Scenes o f drinking alcoholic beverages are
seen an average o f every twenty minutes, smoking every fifty five minutes, and illicit drugs
every seventy eight minutes” (69). Youths today are bombarded with this type o f imagery. W hat
must be taken into context is the variety o f imagery they are seeing and the message that is being
delivered because this is what is shaping identity. From a Canadian standpoint, even more
concern is necessary, because more Canadian teens are watching American programming than
are watching DTNG. In fact, the season finale o f 2007’s DTNG gathered under 600 thousand
viewers in Canada while the episode o f Fox’s 24 had 1.2 million Canadian viewers (Strauss).
This fearful type o f didactic television is being absorbed by our youth culture, and they are in
danger o f losing their sense o f Canadianism. As a nation, Canada has to protect its own identity,
and programs like The OC that use a negative form of teaching are subjecting Canadian youth
with identity building techniques that are American in nature. If television is the prime identity
builder of youth, perhaps parents must have better control o f what type o f content is being
viewed by using parental locks and filters if the content is inappropriate.
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Conclusion
In the End: What can Canada do?
“I can see, what you mean, it just takes me longer.
And I can feel, what you feel, it just makes me stronger”
(Lee, Lifeson and Peart)
Obviously, the Canadian programs do not have the budget to truly compete with the
major networks o f the USA, but as argued in the context o f this thesis, the Canadian product is a
rounder, more responsible product. Even the actors in Canada are reaching the same heights in
their careers as their American counterparts. In fact, it seems that the USA is now stealing
D egrassi’s stars. Shenae Grimes, formerly Darcy Edwards o f DTNG, is now starring in the
current incarnation o f Beverly Hills: 90210; Nina Dobrev, Mia Jones of DTNG is now on CW ’s
hit, Vampire Diaries and rapper Drake (Aubrey Graham), also known as Jimmy Brooks on
DTNG, signed a major record label with Little Wayne’s label, Cash Money Records, after being
the most sought after free agent in the market in 2009. But this thesis is not about whether or not
Canadian television can reach the level o f success that the American programs have reached - it
addresses whether Canadian television can help Canadian teens build or keep their national
identities, and if so, how and when?
In chapter two, I addressed The OC and how the handling o f counter cultural issues spoke
to the national identity o f the United States o f America. I have argued that the American show
utilizes fear and negative consequences as a device to educate youths at their most malleable
state. I believe and have argued that this is representative o f the conservatism and isolationism
which are generally assumed to make up large parts o f the American identity (Lora 269).
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In chapter three, I addressed the Canadian program, Degrassi: the Next Generation. I
discussed how DTNG handles counter cultural issues that were similar to those portrayed in The
OC, as well as the struggle o f Canadian television at large. I have argued that Canadian
programmers are thus far incapable o f producing teen television that addresses national identity
in a fashion that can be representative o f Canada as a whole and non-parodical. I went on to
argue that DTNG uses a much more realistic style o f education and more plausible consequences
when addressing counter cultural issues, while similar problems on The OC caused death and
destruction. This is representative o f Canadian ideals o f community and education through
knowledge, rather than through fear. This can also be seen as an example o f Canadians’
willingness to look for solutions through means other than violence or oppression.
In chapter four, I made a comparative analysis of the two programs, and, more
specifically, o f two female characters o f roughly the same age and class. This chapter gave a
more specific look at the two countries' national identities by comparing the counter cultural
experiences shared by these two young women. In this side by side comparison, the differences
in national identities is evident, and it is clear that the two programs have very different ways o f
dealing with the same issues; the American program uses fearful consequences while the
Canadian program uses consequences that are community based and reasonable.
Finally, in chapter five, I examined class differences
and whether or not they were
portrayed by the programs. Specifically, I addressed how place influences the repercussions that
follow problems arising from class differences in DTNG and The OC. So, conclusions must be
made. During my introduction I noted that Canadian teens are watching more American than
Canadian programming. Although I have argued that DTNG has a more realistic and responsible
B a ll 8 8
way o f dealing with teen issues, it is to no avail if fewer Canadian teens are watching the
program than American programs.
In the summer o f 2010, Degrassi moved networks from CTV to M uchM usic (MM),
which is a CTV GlobeMedia subsidiary but has a very different mandate. M M aims at the teen
audience, which is a younger audience than its sister station, and it has employed techniques
much closer to current American programs aimed at the same target, like Gossip Girl or 90210.
DTNG has become a more sensationalist, or melodramatic, narrative, with anti-social issues like
violence and sexuality appearing much more frequently than before the network change. DTNG
now soundtracks the episodes, with licensed music taking the place o f the instrumental score that
used to permeate the soundscape when the program aired on CTV.
As I have been arguing throughout this thesis, I believe that Canadian national identity is
at risk, and, as I predicted, the more time the Degrassi program stays on the air, the closer it will
become to its American counterpart, The OC. As I have interpreted, the program has taken a
decidedly American slant in the recent years. The higher quality o f production, a significant
change in scoring, marketing and the advertising shown during DTNG’s airings are not just a
sign o f evolution in television in and o f itself but a deliberate change to attempt to draw more
viewers than the program did during its tenure on CTV.
This is problematic for two reasons. First, an Americanized Canadian program does little
for building a Canadian identity because it privileges American over Canadian ideals. Second,
Canadian nationalism and, as I have explained in Chapter Two, the promotion o f responsible
repercussions has taken a back seat to sensationalism currently on DTNG. The show now
attempts to draw an audience by appearing as a standard teen melodrama that is identified by the
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audience as familiar, or, to be extreme, American. Now, to be fair, the program was not dealing
with much substance o f import before, but it did emphasize a Canadian lifestyle where problems
were dealt with by the community in a responsible manner. In the most recent season o f D TNG ,
police guards, metal detectors and uniforms were installed in the community high school after a
student brought a knife to school. This seems like a sensationalized idea that would not have
been seen on this program in 2006.
It is not just Canadian television narratives and production values that are more closely
resembling those found on American programming; marketing and advertisements are affected
as well. In 1979, during an address to the nation, Jimmy Carter warned Americans o f
worshipping a system o f “self indulgence and corruption” (Carter). In a very lucid and prophetic
way, Carter was right. Michael Moore addressed Carter in his documentary Capitalism: A Love
Story. During an interview taken for M oore’s documentary Bowling fo r Columbine (2002), shock
rocker Marilyn Manson (Brian Warner) declared that American television, and American society
in general, is built around a symbiotic relationship between “fear and consumption” (Bow lingfor
Columbine). This is intriguing but understandable based on the way television is delivered to the
audience. While people are still paying for and receiving cable by traditional means, the audience
is subject to commercials as a form of advertising. Products are purchased because o f a perceived
need or want and making the audience afraid is a sound way to sell. If a young man does not
smell properly, he will not win the heart o f the woman he wants. I f women do not choose the
correct yogurt, they will gain weight. If young women gain weight, they must go to this gym or
use that product. Fear, not just o f violence and anti-social behaviours, but also o f loneliness and
lack of self worth, is the largest motivator in television advertising.
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Based on the research I have done, I have found this type o f advertising is ubiquitous in
American programming. If Canadian teen television programs are being assimilated into the
great landscape of North American teenage melodrama, then perhaps the advertising, which is
already almost exclusively for American products, will shift towards an American style as well.
If this is the case, then Canadian national identity is truly at risk. As I have argued, the best way
for Canadian identity to be built or maintained through teen television is by educating the
audience that anti-social behaviours should be dealt with through responsible, community-based
repercussions that I believe are significant to the Canadian experience or identity.
Teaching youths to be media literate will facilitate their own abilities to watch television
critically. In Canada, this may not as be as easy as one might think. Although Media Literacy is
mandated in all Canadian school districts, acceptance o f the program is very low (“Learn
Quebec”). In fact, the adoption rate is so low that the British Columbia Association for Media
Education refers to their cause as a “special interest” (Blake).
Should it be a special cause to
educate towards media literacy, or is it an integral part o f pedagogy moving forward? I believe
the latter is true. Parenting blog “Family Matters” explains that “(a)t some stage, you will need
to make sure your kids have enough understanding and awareness to regulate their own TV
consumption” (Baras). If Canadian media literacy is a special interest, the onus must be on the
parents to instruct on media literacy. The easiest way for this to happen, outside o f a complete
pragmatic shift is for parents to talk to their kids about TV and media. It may be that simple.
Parents can start while their children are young, explain advertising, editing, production and how
people can’t fly (Baras). If media literacy starts at home, parents have more influence in how
their children are both watching and understanding television.
In closing, I want to bring to light a few final thoughts from Dail and Way. According to
them, “Viewers who are parents as well as those who may become parents are receiving
information about the parental role from television which may contribute to their expectations
about what the role is or should be, as well as how others solve the common problems o f every
day parental life” (491). If this is to be believed then the cyclical relationship between viewer
and program becomes completely symbiotic; as the audience is influenced by television, it is also
influencing the production of the programming.
Finally, when discussing the breadth o f
parenting on television, they noted that “20 parenting behaviours were observed per program...
These interactions took up a total of... 3.7 minutes per program” (495).
amount o f time on screen for parenting.
This is a very small
If we consider the amount of time a parent actually
spends with a child, the ratio between time spent parenting on television and length o f program
must be changed. The onus is on parents to make these changes, though. Prensky believes that
parents and educators need to go beyond just preaching media literacy; they need to change the
pragmatic language and method to keep up with what he refers to as “Digital Natives” (1) or, the
generation brought up with computers. Parents and educators must adopt methods that youths
are already using in order to teach media literacy.
Take this into account with the fact that
children are learning from TV, even observationally, and the impact television has on building
identity in teens is evident.
B a ll 9 2
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