Fan fiction

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

This is the first year for Harry, Ron and Hermione in Hogwarts. Since the sorting hat has put them into Gryffindor, they have begun an interesting life in Hogwarts. They study together, eat together, and play together. They have made a lot of new friends, since one of the three is the famous Harry Potter—the boy who lived.

It is a Saturday noon, after Harry, Ron and Hermione finished their lunches, whey went outside to the yard to take a walk. They were talking about homework and teachers, when suddenly Hermione saw a girlfriend of hers.

“Hey! Kelly!”

“Oh hi Hermione, how are you?” the girl whose name is Kelly walked towards them.

“I’m good, just finish my lunch. Let me introduce my friends, Harry Potter and Ron Weasley. Harry, Ron, this is my friend from my room, Kelly.”

“Nice to see you.” Both the boys said.

“Well nice to see you too.”

“So are you also a fresh year student in Hogwarts?”

“Yes, same as you guys.”

After that meet, Kelly became one of the friends of Harry. After the Christmas holiday, everyone was busy studying and preparing for their exams. But there was another very important thing in Harry, Ron and Hermione’s heads—the Sorcerer’s Stone.

Kelly overheard the conversation about the Sorcerer’s Stone between them three, and when she was hearing it, she had a very strong physical feeling. It was like something was trying to get out from her body. But it only lasted for a second or two, and then her body was back to normal.

Although Harry did not tell Kelly anything about the Sorcerer’s Stone, she knew that they have been researching information for the stone, and they have got some information from Hagrid. Kelly did not know if she should tell Harry that she knew they knew the Sorcerer’s Stone, but she did not really have the chance after all.

Meanwhile, while Harry was focusing on the stone, the three hated Snape. Although Kelly didn’t think that Snape is as bad as they thought, she didn’t like the way he treats students. In addition, he seems knew something about the stone.

One day, after lunch, Kelly was walking in the yard and thinking about why she would feel physically strange when she had heard the Sorcerer’s Stone, she suddenly saw Harry, Ron and Hermione were talking to Hagrid. Kelly walked closer to them and hid behind a tree, she started listening to their talking.

Harry was asking Hagrid how he got the dragon egg, Hagrid answered it, but there was something that he shouldn’t have said, such as how to make an animal fall asleep, especially he mentioned this crucial information to the stranger who sold him that dragon egg.

All the sudden, Harry, Ron and Hermione looked at each other for a second, and then they run away by letting Hagrid sitting there by himself and regretting.

Kelly had a feeling what Harry would do next, but she followed them. They run to’s office and asked where the headmaster was, but there was no answer. Harry mentioned the Sorcerer’s Stone in a hurry then Professor McGonagall was shocked. She told them to go back to their dormitories and stay away from this. Kelly thought they would not do that, instead, they will do something that night.

Kelly was right, in the midnight, after Hermione froze Neville, the three of them went to the forbidden room, where the giant dog with three heads was guarding. They passed every step and Kelly kept following them without letting them aware. When she arrived at the wizard chess board, she found Ron was passed and Hermione was trying to wake him up. She was surprised when she saw Kelly.

“What are you doing here? And how did you get here?”

“I was following you.”

“Why are you here?” Hermione still seemed very panic about Kelly’s coming. But Kelly didn’t care. She has put her concentration on Ron. Several minutes later, Ron woke up and shocked about Kelly’s coming.

“Kelly, what on earth are you doing here?”

“I don’t know either honestly. I just followed my intuition. It told me to be here, so I came.” She looked at the door for going to the next pass and kept speaking, “I think I’m going to find out now.”

“I don’t think you can go in there.” Ron doubted.

“Believe me, I can, and I have the very right reason.”

“Which is??”

Kelly didn’t answer. She just said “take care” and then left.

With the steps coming into this big room, memories kept recalled to Kelly’s head. She remembers now. She was the Sorcerer’s Stone. Dumbledore had changed her into a human being and made the sorting hat put her in the same school as Harry’s. It turns out that the Sorcerer’s Stone has always been by Harry’s side.

At the moment, Harry was forced to look into the mirror which in the inside, people can fulfill all their dreams. Kelly knew what to do now.

“Good luck Harry.”

Harry heard a female voice when he saw the same himself in the mirror. The voice was familiar to him but he didn’t really have the time to figure it out. Voldemort has ordered him to look into the mirror and get the Sorcerer’s Stone for him. Harry had no choice. He saw the Harry in the mirror is smiling at him, and showed him the stone then put the stone in his right pocket. Harry touched his right pocket and tried not to let Voldemort see it. He felt it. He felt the stone, it is right into his pocket now. He was surprised how he got the stone, but it does not matter now. The problem is how to escape under Voldemort’s eyes.

“What do you see?” Voldemort asked.

“Nothing, I see nothing.” Harry tried to make his voice sound calm.

Voldemort didn’t believe him. He found out Harry was lying any way.

Voldemort tried his best to get the stone but he didn’t succeed because Dumbledore arrived in time.

When Harry woke up, he was lying in the bed of the school hospital. A week later, all their exams are finished and they can finally relax. Harry’s been feeling sad about the stone, which is also Kelly. Dumbledore told everything to Harry and Harry told Ron and Hermione. None of them was not surprised that Kelly was that stone. Harry recalled that female voice when he was looking at the mirror and trying the stone, he was aware that the voice was from Kelly, who was about to change back to the stone.

“No wonder I felt it was familiar to me.” Harry said to Ron and Hermione. They were having sitting on a long chair and enjoying the last few days before leaving Hogwarts.

“I still can’t believe it. This is really unbelievable. I mean how great Dumbledore’s magic can be to change a stone into a real person.”

“Then I guess it would be much greater if he changed me back to human again, forever.” Said by a girl’s voice which behind them.

They turned around and surprisingly found Kelly was standing there and smiling at them.

“Kelly?!!!” They yelled.

“Yes, it’s me. Professor Dumbledore gave me an actual body and changed me back. I’m not that stone anymore. I am a human being now.”

week 12

How have game shows influenced reality TV?

Hill (2005) said that “popular entertainment refers to programmes such as talk shows, game shows, sports and leisure programming, all of which are part of the development of popular factual television.” This sentence demonstrates that game shows have some influence on reality TV shows. And also, “in addition, talk shows, game shows, sports and leisure programming often perform well within the international broadcasting market, with successful formals sold worldwide, and locally produced to nationally specific requirements” (Hill, 2005). It means that some one has performed game shows on TV and it was successful. There are two reasons for game shows being acted on TV and they are “it is cheap and easy to produce and is extremely exportable” (Hill, 2005). Examples for these two reasons could be “who wants to be a billionaire” and “Survivor”.

Why is reality TV so popular for both programme makers and TV viewers?

“Reality television is a genre of television programming that presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations, documents actual events, and usually features ordinary people instead of professional actors” (Wikipedia.com). From this definition we can see that reality TV is mostly based on real stories and usual people, it is not totally act. For programme makers, reality TV as a new type of television can bring them profits and unlike drama and love stories, screenwriters do not have to make up a lot of story lines, they just need a little to connect facts together. For TV viewers, reality TV is new to them and the facticity is highly than other types of TV program. After watching so many unreal stories, they will feel that reality TV is showing them the truth. It may be cruel, and sad, but that is the reality that happens around them all the time.

Reference List

Hill, A (2005). The rise of reality TV. In A. Hill, Reality TV: Audiences and Popular Factual Television. (pp. 15-40). Oxon: Routledge.

Reality Television. (n.d.) In Wikipedia. Retrieved November 3, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reality_television.

Week 9

Wilox and Lavery(2002) identify 9 defining characteristics of “quality TV”—can you apply any of these to another television serious that you have reviewed recently?

1. Quality TV usually has a quality pedigree. (Gossip Girl)

2. Quality shows must often undergo a noble struggle against profit-mongering networks and non—appreciative audience” (Gossip Girl)

3. Quality TV tends to have a large ensemble cast. (Glee)

4. Quality TV has a memory. (Sex and the city)

5. Quality TV creates a new genre by mixing old ones. (Sex and the city)

6. Quality TV tends to be literary and writer—based. (Glee)

7. Quality TV is self conscious. (True Blood)

8. The subject matter of quality TV tends toward the controversial. (Gossip Girl)

9. Quality TV aspires toward ‘realism’. (The legend of the seeker)

Are there any other characteristics that you could add to their list?

Here, I would like to talk about story lines. This story line I am talking about is not really about how to attract audience’s eyes. It is about how to keep audience’s interest for next season. The screenwriter has to make up a really good and reasonable spot to hook the audience. The spot could be anything, for example, in Glee, the spot for the final in season one is although the glee club did not win the Regionals, they have got another year to beat their opponent; in True Blood, the reason for season two and season is very obviously—love, which is the relationship between Sookie and Bill, though Eric has stepped into this relationship. In addition, the spot for Gossip Girl is as the same as True Blood. What the difference is, at the beginning, audience may care more about the relationship between Serena and Dan, as the fourth season has been coming up, it seems like people care about would Blare and Chuck get back together. As a result, different TV serious has different Spot in order to keep the audience’s eyes for next season.

Reference List

Wilcox, R. & Lavery, D. (2002). Introduction, in R. Wilcox & D. Lavery (eds) Fighting the forces: what’s at stake in Buffy the vampire slayer. Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield.

My Fan Fiction

Moro and Princess Mononoke
Moro was a wolf god who had freely roamed the forests for centuries without a care in the world. Lately however her world was changing and not for the good. Humans had started destroying her world. Every day they would chop down trees and every day she would retaliate by attacking them and sometimes eating them but only if she was very hungry as humans did not really taste so good.
One day she was paid a visit from the deer god who told her that something had to be done to restore peace to the forest before it all disappeared. Moro told the deer god that there were only so many humans she could eat. The deer god said that killing humans would never save the forest and then said that all forest creatures must find common ground with the humans if the forest was to survive. Moro could hardly believe what she was hearing. As far as Moro was concerned, the blame lay solely with the humans. The deer god could see how angry Moro had become and decided now was the time to leave but he said he would be back with a gift for Moro and she had better be ready. Moro had no idea what he meant and did not care much for what he had to say, even though he was the most powerful god.
As the months went by Moro went about her daily business of attacking the greedy humans. Then one day Moro felt a change in her body. It was a change Moro was familiar with; she was about to become a mother again. Moro was excited that once again she would have a new family member that depended on her. One morning when Moro awoke she was not feeling well at all in fact she could hardly move. Moro spent that whole day lying down and then later that evening as sun faded away behind the mountains Moro began to give birth. Moro knew that it was too early for her to be bringing new life into this world. It was only a few moments later and Moro had given birth but the little wolf was lifeless and Moro was unable to save her newborn. Never before had such a thing happened to Moro and never before had she felt as sad as she did now.
A short time later the deer god appeared and he had something with him this time and the little something made a crying sound just like a human. Moro moved closer to the deer god and then she recognized the scent of human. The deer god had dared to bring a human into this neck of the woods. Moro could hardly believe it. The deer god told Moro that this human would one day help save the forest and that it was Moro’s duty to make this happen. Moro was now becoming very angry with the deer god; after all how could he even think that she would consider anything that involved a human, especially after what she had just been through. The deer god looked at Moro and then told her that if she really wanted a future for the forest, then the only path for her was to accept this human as her own and teach it the ways of the wolf, for only then would man and beast be able to come together and form an alliance to save the forest. The deer god then left the baby at Moro’s paws and disappeared.
Moro felt insulted and just wanted to leave the baby however the baby began to cry which somehow had an effect on Moro. A part of Moro could not leave this baby to die even though another part of Moro knew that the path ahead would be difficult at best. Deep down Moro knew the deer god was wise and never wrong. Hesitantly Moro picked up the baby and canned it back to her den. Moro then lay the baby human on the ground. This baby was somewhat different to the babies Moro had seen the humans carrying round. It actually had a fine coat of fur that felt like silk and its eyes were bordering on a yellowish colour, similar to that of a wolf. Moro began to wonder if this gift from the deer god was actually a god itself. The days went by and the bond between Moro and her new arrival grew stronger and stronger. Moro decided to give her the name Princess Mononoke after a great wolf god who in a time passed was worshipped by both wolf and man.
Over the years Princess Mononoke grew up to know the ways of the wolf and identified herself as only a wolf. Together Moro and Princess Mononoke were a force to be reckoned with. They would kill any human who dared to destroy any part of the forest.
One day while hunting in the forest, Moro and Princess Mononoke were paid a visit from the deer god, who told them that the time had come for Princess Mononoke to make herself known to those who lived in the realm of the humans. Moro became very upset at the prospect of losing Princess Mononoke. Their bond was so strong that it was often talked about among the other animals of the forest. Moro asked the deer god why Princess Mononoke must leave when together they can fight the humans. The deer god said that Princess Mononoke was a gift to all those who live in the forest and then said he would return in a few days and send Princess Mononoke on her journey to save all who lived within the forest.
Once again Moro’s life had been turned upside down and once again she would find herself alone again. Moro struggled with the fact that she was going to lose Princess Mononoke. One night Moro explained to Princess Mononoke that here would always be a place for her at home in the den but for now she had to follow the wishes of the deer god. Later that evening the deer god turned up with a human who he introduced as Ashitaka. Ashitaka could see the sadness in Moro’s eyes, so he went over to reassure that he would protect Princess Mononoke and make sure she returned safely from their quest to save the forest. For Moro this was a sad day but also a proud day as she had raised a daughter who would be responsible for saving the forests of this beautiful world.

week10~

First, sorry for the late post.

Then this is my last blog, I post week 1,3,4,5,7,8,9,10,11,12. Please give me some comments

How do you think Buffy has influenced the contemporary vampire drama “True Blood” and the “Twilight” series of novels and films?

Buffy is on show earlier than “True Blood” and “Twilight”. So Buffy is the “ancestor” of the vampire story. With the beginning of Buffy, all the vampire types are have the same plot. I haven’t seen the drama “True Blood”, so here I don't say something about it. But “twilight”, the most famous novel in 21^st Century, I can show you some influence from Buffy. First, the vampire theme. In the West Country, vampire is a mysterious thing. So this kind of theme can attract more audiences. Second, Buffy is not just a vampire drama, but a romantic story, in this drama, the heroine’s love is an attractive plot. The audiences want to know the happiness of the heroine. An in twilight, the most attractive plot is the romantic love. The funs of twilight all love the true love between the human and vampire. Third, the war of different race is also the influence from Buffy. In Buffy, the clash happened between human and vampire, and in twilight, it is the vampire and wolves’ clash. But in the end, the rights always beat wrongs, and the story has a happy ending.

In what way is Buffy influenced by the romantic gothic tradition?

“Buffy adopts and adapts many romantic gothic conventions”, In Rose (2002), there is a conclusion of that. So in what way Buffy influenced by the romantic gothic tradition? First,

“Buffy employs romantic ideology in contemporary contexts and terms and suggests alternatives within that framework.” Buffy’s story is happened in our date, so the story’s ideology is closed to our time. With the framework, Buffy’s story become a good story with the sense of time. Second,” the characters, story line, and outcome both acknowledge the issues rise in Shelley’s novel and suggest antipatriarchal and postfeminist solutions to the problems Shelley saw in romantic ideology.” In Shelley’s novel, the antipatriarchal and postfeminist is the main point. And in Buffy, it huge raises the main point of Shelley’s novel. Different with Shelly’s novel, Buffy put all the things more close into life.

Reference

Rose, A (2002) of creatures and creators: Buffy does Frankenstein, in R. Wilcox & D. Lavery (eds) Fighting the forces: what’s at stake in Buffy the vampire slayer. Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield.

week9~

Wilcox and Lavery (2002) identify 9 defining characteristics of ‘quality TV’ – can you apply any of these to other television series that you have viewed recently?

1. Quality TV usually has a quality pedigree. (Friends)

2. Desirable demographics notwithstanding, quality shows must often undergo a noble struggle against profit-mongering networked and non-appreciative audiences (Gossip girl)

3. Quality TV tends to have a large ensemble cast. (Glee)

4. Quality TV has a memory (lost)

5. Quality TV creates a new genre by mixing old ones (prison break)

6. Quality TV tends to be literary and writer-based. (Glee)

7. Quality TV is self-conscious. (Friends)

8. The subject matter of quality TV tends toward the controversial. (gossip girl)

9. Quality TV aspires toward “realism”. (Lost)

Are there any other characteristics that you could add to their list?

Add:

Quality TV must have the health story and actors. Here I want to introduce Glee to you. This TV play is a good play in this year. There are health story, and actors in this TV play. In America, even Obama also like it. The plot is that: some young people like singing, but they are also the strange people in the school; a teacher wants to organize a team called glee, so they get together to finish their dream. In this TV play, there always some person wants to stop glee, so something happened. In a word, the TV play is a high quality TV, so I think the health story and actor is also important for a quality TV.

Reference

Wilcox, R. & Lavery, D. (2002). Introduction, in R. Wilcox & D. Lavery (eds) Fighting the forces: what’s at stake in Buffy the vampire slayer. Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield.

week12~

How have game shows influenced reality TV?

Hill (2005) tells us “the reality gameshow has become an international bestseller since its arrival in 2000”. From the first gameshow survivor to now the different kinds of gameshow, it is a long and hard progress for both the programme makers and TV viewers. Now, the gameshow become an important part in TV programme. So how the game shows influenced reality TV? I found some answers in Hill (2005):

Firstly, the gameshow has the format which worked well with converging media, like website and telephones. This bring the television marketplace a strong economic.

Secondly, the famous of the gameshow bring the international trade for the producer of the programme. The country who has bought the format of one gameshow can have the main idea of the gameshow and change it into their country’s style.

Thirdly, the reality gameshow have the schedule in the peak time in weekend. With the fun and the reality, it can attract more viewers to watch. It also can increase the costs in the production of reality shows.

Reference

Hill, A (2005) The rise of reality TV. In A. Hill, Reality TV: Audiences and Popular Factual Television. (pp. 15-40). Oxon: Routledge.

Why is reality TV so popular for both programme makers and TV viewers?

In Hill (2005), there is a definition of reality TV: “reality TV is a catch-all category, and popular examples of reality programming, draw on a variety of genres to create ratings winners. And for reality TV, the formats were successful drew on the popular genres to create hybrid programmes. Why is the reality TV so popular for both the programme makers and TV views? I think the most important reason is the “real”.

For the programme makers, making such a programme can bring a big profit for them. Different with making drama, sitcom and comedy, the reality TV is a viable economic potion for them. The reality TV has roots in both tabloid journalism and popular entertainment, but it also has their owe characteristic. So for the programme makers, the area of reality TV is a wide area for everyone who worked in the television area.

For the TV views, watching the programmes of reality TV is a way to relax, or an advantaged way to win some money.

Reference

Hill, A (2005) The rise of reality TV. In A. Hill, Reality TV: Audiences and Popular Factual Television. (pp. 15-40). Oxon: Routledge.

week11~

How have they constructed our conceptualisation of reality (or at least what we recognise as being real at the visual level)?

I am sorry; I really can't understand what the meaning of this question is. So I decide to answer it in my first understanding. In Hill (2005), there are three ways to classify reality TV: the television industry, scholars and audience.

The television industry’s real may be the real thing which can make the programme. The television industry is flexible in its categorisation of reality TV. The television scholars can show its “real” in a variety of different ways. This one comes from the real life and real person. At last, the television audience is the real people who appreciate this kind of programme.

How does Hill define reality TV?

There are most definition of reality TV in Hill (2005), I will list it and then summarize one which has the main point of this paper.

1. The category of reality TV is commonly used to describe a range of popular factual programming.

2. In the early stage of the genre, reality TV was associated with on-scene footage of law and order, or emergency services. More recently, reality TV is associated with anything and everything, from people to pets, from birth to death.

3. The reality genre is made of a number of distinctive and historically based television genres, such as lifestyle, or documentary, these television genres have merged with each other to create a number of hybrid genres that we now call reality TV.

So the reality TV is a range of popular factual programme which combine several television genres, which include everything from every area.

week8~

Research thefilms that have been adapted from Philip K. Dick novels or short
stories. Which have generally been acclaimed as the most successful? Why?

Some films from Philip K. Dick’s novels or short stories.

Next

A Scanner Darkly
A Scanner Darkly

Paycheck

I think a Scanner darkly can generally acclaim the main point of Philip. This one is one of the most successful movies from his novels. This movie has the science part, and also has the speculative part. Some of the plot just involved in the polity. So this movie is a good movie.

How does Dick’s essay (1999; 1964) illuminate his use of Nazism as a motif in High Castle?

In Dick’s essay, he said using “Nazism is right and proper, because it is a true topic, far more so than any novel or any review……”

For some countries, Nazism is the bad dream. So in High Castle, using Nazism is not only a memory of history, but also a hope for the future. In this essay, Dick gave us a description of Nazism and Jewish, this is the real goal of the writer of High Castle. In the end, he said:” let’s live in the present and for the future, not dwelling neurotically in the outrages of the past.” That is just the writer’s hope.

Reference

Dick, P.K. (1995). Nazism and the High Castle. In Sutin, L. (Ed.), The Shifting Realities of Philip K. Dick (pp.112-117). New York: Vintage.

week7~

what is the difference in emphasis between the terms science fiction and speculative fiction? Which is The Man in the High Castle?
The science fiction put the emphasis on the word “science”, and in the fiction, all the thing can be the thing not in the world. Like in twenty kilometres under the sea, all the thing the writer writes are not the thing in that time, some of the new weapon even is made in the 21st century.

The speculative fiction of course put all the points on the word “speculative”. So this kind of fiction can happened in any time and any person. The thing described in the fiction must connect with the polity or social, and change a little thing which is very sensitive in that time.

The most different thing between science fiction and speculative fiction is the thing in the fiction is also in the real life or not. In the science fiction, the thing which is used by people can not find in real life, but in speculative fiction, it can be found.

The Man in the High Castle is just a good speculative fiction. In this fiction, something happened like the history, and something changed the main idea. The thing in this fiction is also the real thing in that time.

week 11

How does Hill define reality TV?

Hill(2005) has defined that “there are a variety of styles and techniques associated with reality TV, such as non-professional actors, unscripted dialogue, surveillance footage, hand-held cameras, seeing events unfold as they are happening in front of the camera.” Reality TV is based on reality and fact in people’s life to film or tell something to the audience. The examples of reality TV in New Zealand could be Big Brother and The Real World (Wikipedia).

How has the documentary genre influenced reality TV and how it presents the “real”?

Grierson has defined documentary as “the creative treatment of actuality”. Documentary is based on the fact, it is real. Directors make documentaries in order to tell audience what happened to one thing. Documentary has a very strong facticity. As a result, people can believe documentary more than TV shows or programs. Reality is also not a very drama genre, so it can follow some ways of documentary. Because of the facticity of documentary, you can say it is mostly real. Directors use real situation, real things and ordinary people not actors and actresses to film, it makes the documentary easier to believe.

Reality Television in Wikipedia, Retrieved 21th, October, 2010, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reality_television

Week 10

How does Buffy deconstruct traditional literary notions of good and evil?
Good and evil are very popular in novels and movies of vampire themes. In the past, people always think that good is good, bad is bad. They do not think there is also good side in the bad people and good people can not do anything terrible. But recently, people are changing their minds. Good and bad people can have both good and bad sides within them, because they are human beings and human beings have every different feeling. In Buffy, Buffy and her friends are the good ones. On the other hand, the Vampires are the bad ones. But the director and the screenwriter have changed the traditional literary notion of good and bad. Although Buffy is a good girl, she also does something not perfect. She has weaknesses, she may make mistakes. On the contrary, even the vampires are evil to be thought of by human, they kill people and drink their blood to feed and fulfill themselves, and they have good vampires and good sides within them. Spike is a good example in Buffy. He is a vampire, he has to drink blood and he can not stay outside in broad day light, though he can not control his own fate, he knows that he should not bite people any more. As a consequence, he is not a total bad person. Buffy and he are good friends.

How do you think Buffy has influenced the contemporary vampire drama “True Blood” and the “Twilight” serious of novels and films?

In these two years, I have given more and more interests to Twilight as it has getting more and more hot and popular. The hot spot that attracts me is how things will go on between Bella and Edward. In addition, ever since Edward had gone for a while and left Bella alone, the relationship between Jacob and Bella has been getting better and better, stronger and stronger, and maybe I should also say more and more mysterious. Everyone has noticed that Jacob likes Bella a lot, and Bella do care about Jacob, but will Bella choose Jacob instead of Edward? This is a conflict in this novel. In the meantime, True Blood is kind of same as Twilight. True Blood is about a girl Sookie who has fallen in love with a vampire guy Bill and all the difficulties they must face in order to be together. In the end of the first season, a new vampire who is called Eric has attended in this story. Bill is a good no doubt vampire because he never killed a human being because of his hunger, he always drinks the true blood (a kind of fake blood that Japanese has created for vampires. In this TV serious, vampires do exist in people’s life has be known by human, so vampires can act freely) instead of drinking actual human blood. On the other hand, Eric drinks human’s blood and kills people. You may say he is evil, but he is still my favorite character. He is definitely loyal to his master and he is willing to die for him. From this aspect, how he treats his master is really moving. As far as I am concerned, the traditional literary good and evil concept has been deconstructed since Buffy, so it has been continued in Twilight and True Blood. Vampires are not all bad, there are good vampires and good sides do exist in other vampires.

Week 12

Week 12

Hi Guys. This is my final post.
My blog contributions: week 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,9,10,12 Please comment on. Thank you.
Hope you guys final assignment going well. (*^__^*)

1. How ‘real’ are game shows? / How ‘real’ is reality TV?

Game shows are a category of reality TV. Nowadays, Game shows become a popular. As Hill (2005) identified “the reality gameshow has become an international bestseller since its arrival in 2000” (pp. 31). Watching the game shows is one entertainment of ordinary people. There are many popular gameshows, such as Big Brother, Survivor.
A lots of people like watching game shows because it is ‘real’. This means you can join the show if you want.
For example, Hill (2005) cited Costera Meijier and Reesink (2000) described Big Broth “the voluntary locking up of nine people during a hundred days in a house, watched continuously by 24 television cameras, to which the viewers, at the intercession of the inmates, once in two weeks vote against one of the inmates who has to leave the house, until the last person to stay in can be called a winner” (pp. 31). Therefore, when audience watching the show, they will think it same to real life, no dress rehearsal and no script. Maybe they will want to join the show after watching. It is possible. Therefore, these game shows are ‘real’.

2. How does new-media (the internet, cell-phone technology, etc) play a significant role in the success of reality TV, as well as cult TV series such as Buffy?

New-media is an important tool of spread reality TV. It play a significant role in the success of reality TV.
For example, game shows, a point of that is most of game shows have prize. The prize not just for winner, sometimes they will set some prize for lucky audience. It is a method of increasing the view market share. Hill (2005) mentioned the format of Big Brother worked with converging media, such as websites and telephones, only added to its strong economic performance in the television marketplace (pp. 31).
With the successful of these game shows, new-media played a great role. The audience use website to communicate with others and put their views online. Hill (2005) states with the popular of Big Brother, for the website, it received 3 million pages impressions each day.

References

Hill, A. (2005) The reality genre. In A. Hill, Reality TV:Audiences and Popular Factual Television. (pp. 14 – 40). Oxon: Routledge.

Week 10

Week 10

1. How does Buffy deconstruct traditional literary notions of good and evil?

Good and evil is a permanent topic in TV programs. People pay more attention on this topic; it because of the conflict between good and evil is interesting. Furthermore, the changes from good to evil (or evil to good) are a point that people interested. Recent years, fantasy became a popular genre. People are more and more familiar with inhuman characters, such as witches, vampires. The conflicts between good and evil will show more clearly on these characters.
The main notion of good and evil is moral ambiguity. As Braun (2000) considered “what is interesting about some of these newer representations of supernatural, however, is the moral ambiguity that permeates many of the characters, including both the inhuman beings and ordinary characters” (pp. 67). Furthermore, he thought moral ambiguity often seems to intersect with themes related to gender and sexuality (Braun, 2000).
We can find these all elements in Buffy, use sexual tension between various characters to drive the narrative, play with gender roles, hidden depths and characters with otherworldly powers (Braun, 2000).
As Braun described, “Evil with many characters demonstrating both decent and demonic traits and behavior across episodes or seasons. Good characters may develop in frighteningly sinister ways; villainous ones may surprisingly reveal complex and even selfless motivations” (pp. 67). It proves generally there is not a character is good or evil for ever in these shows. They need to change between good and evil. Because even a bad guy will has some good behavior. A good example is Buffy’s powerful ally in her quest—Angel. He is a moral ambiguous character in this drama.

2. How do you think Buffy has influenced the contemporary vampire drama “True Blood” and the “Twilight” series of novels and films?

Twilight is my favorite vampire film, because its romantic plot between Edward and Bella and tense conflict between vampire and wolf man.
Actually, the main conflict in Buffy is different with Twilight. In Buffy the conflict is between Buffy and vampire, but in Twilight, the conflict is between vampire and wolf man. But the same thing is they all have moral ambiguous character in the story, Angle and Edward. A successful story should be having some character like that to make the story more wonderful. Buffy series are focus on the conflict in young people’s heart and Twilight takes more romantic scene to us. In Twilight, the vampires have two kinds, some evil vampire eat human beings and Edward’s family who don’t eat human being, by contrary protect human (Bella ).
True blood has some same aspects with Twilight, the love between human being and vampire. Buffy series provide basis for the development of later films about vampire.

References

Braun, B. (2000) The X-files and Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The ambiguity of evil in supernatural representations. Retrieved 18 October, 2005 from:
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0412/is_2_28/ai_64688900

Week 9

Week 9

1. What role does Hills (2004) suggest the fans play in the construction of cult TV?

According hill’s (2004) article, we can considered he discuss three definitions of cult TV. These three parts are model of text, inter-text and audience (Hill, 2004).
Based on this question, we will focus on his third definition of cult TV. In my opinion, every cult TV should be having a lot of loyal and dedicated audiences. Actually, Hill (2004) defined cult TV through an audience’s passion for a TV show. A successful TV show must have lots of fans follow it. Thus, this TV shows has one factor to become a cult TV. Therefore, fans are necessary construction of cult TV.
Hill (2004) identified being a fan of cult TV just has subjective enthusiasm or a ‘special devotion’ is not enough. It has to defend one’s fan passions. As he quoted Jostein Gripsrud’s (2002) words “proper fandom exists when an enthusiasm for some cultural object or other takes on …a totalizing, defining role in people’s lifestyles and identities” (pp. 517).

2. How is new media central to this?

New media has important function of promotion of cult TV. Especially, Internet effect new generation deeply. Hill (2004) state “most of fan activities are carried out both online and in real life” (pp. 519). They can use Internet communicate with other fans. They can check the information of the cult TV online. As hill (2004) mentioned fans produce commentaries, fan fiction, episode guides and production histories. Therefore, Internet offers a platform for them to do these things. They can post interpretations, episode guides and fictions online. They will have their web pages. Hill (2004) identified “Fans of cult TV create a market for memorabilia, merchandise and props that relates to their much-loved TV shows” (pp. 519). Therefore, they can sell the memorabilia online. Hill (2004) quote Kirsten Pullen’s words “the Internet may have begun to mainstream fandom”(pp. 519).

References

Hills, M. (2004). Defining Cult TV; Texts, Inter-texts and Fan Audiences, The Television Studies Reader, R.C. Allen & A. Hill. London and New York: Routledge.

Final Posting :) I did not complete weeks 3&4


Why is reality TV so popular for both programme makers and TV viewers?
Hill (2005) states, that most Reality shows “Draw on a variety of genres to create ratings winners.” Reality TV has the unique ability to combine a multitude of genres and known popular elements into one program. This is the prime reason for its success; its ability to satisfy the wants of a huge cross section of society. Hill (2005)-“Reality TV is a Catch all category,” Personally, although I used to be disgusted with the concept and entertainment value of Docu-soap American Style Reality TV; in recent years I have found there are many Reality TV shows I do enjoy (such as Hells Kitchen), perhaps for other reasons besides the melodrama that can turn some people off.  This is a great example of the power reality TV holds in winning over a huge amount of viewers. I enjoy Hells Kitchen, mainly because I enjoy cooking and am interested to hear the various techniques, chefs and experts use to create better dishes. Another viewer- of a totally different mindset- may watch because they enjoy the drama and tension of the kitchen, and the constant over the top insults dished out by Gordon Ramsey. People from vastly different backgrounds and value systems, can easily find entertainment value from the same show. “There is something for everyone in the reality genre.”- Hill (2005)


How does new-media (the internet, cell-phone technology, etc) play a significant role in the success of reality TV, as well as cult TV series such as Buffy?
In my opinion, the internet is simply an aider and empowerer of certain forms of Reality and Cult TV. These shows usually owe their success to word of mouth promotion by individuals, the Internet gives individuals the capacity and power to spread word of mouth promotion of a program; far more than any traditional medium could offer. This allows shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Reality TV like Survivor, to quickly be taken up by its audience. Perhaps this is the main way in which New media plays a role in the success of certain TV programs. Although, im sure shows like Buffy would have been successful before the days of the internet; this modern exposure maybe gives the show near instant success, perhaps allowing for series renewal, whereas in the past it may have been eventually cancelled because of poor profits. The other forms of instant communication (such as Cellphones) work in much the same way as the internet; but on a more local level. Friends will often text message eachother, to tell them about their favorite new show etc.

The Internet and Cellphones can also promote TV programs, by creating a new interactive level in which the audience can participate. This gets people more involved and creates passion and a sense of realism surrounding that particular show. Any activity including competitions, forums, extended narrative, games, memorabilia of the show and online viewing of the series, can be used to hook people in; even if when the series is not showing on TV. Online continuation of a series, will also result in increased profit margins through advertising and sales etc

Advertising for Reality TV and Cult shows, is very prominent on the internet; especially utilized on social networking sites such as Facebook. This may be one of the most successful forms of modern advertising; since sometimes social networking sites allow companies to pull peoples private data, and essentially bullseye their advertising at the intended audience



References


Hill, A. (2005) The rise of reality TV. In A. Hill, Reality TV: Audiences and Popular Factual Television. (pp. 15 – 40). Oxon: Routledge.

Week 11

How does Hill define reality TV?
Hill (2005)-“There are a variety of styles and techniques associated with reality TV, such as non-professional actors, unscripted dialogus, surveillence footage, hand-held cameras, seeing events unfold as they are happening in front of the camera.”
From what I could extract from Hill (2005), there doesn’t seem to be a definitive label for the genre of reality TV. Traditional Reality TV covers anything from investigative documentaries, to onsite reporting of the news. Modern notions of reality tv can range from reality game shows (survivor, big brother), to more documentary-like formal programs, sometimes referred to as factual soap operas (Airline, Middlemore). Hill (2005)“The television industry is flexible in its categorisation  of reality TV. Popular factual programming can fit under a range  of traditional categories,”

Although the definition of “reality” can very easily be applied to the more traditional forms of factual entertainment; some of the modern variants have the title applied very dubiously, for in the case of reality game shows, what the audience see as reality can be a highly edited reality; production companies often take liberties in crafting people into characters, no doubt making their shows more dramatic and interesting.


How has the documentary genre influenced reality TV and how it presents the ‘real’?
This is a hard question. In my mind its not necessarily a matter of what parts of the documentary genre, Reality TV is influenced by; for me it seems more a question of what parts of the documentary style, does modern reality TV use to give the portrayal that something being witnessed is indeed real. Modern reality TV uses  imperfect camera movements and other techniques  usually associated with documentaries, to give the actors or events involved a feeling of  being real, even if the scene is totally constructed,; the perception  of reality is crafted. Hill (2005) has a very novel way  of interpreting the difference between documentaries and modern reality TV- “The continuum between fact and fiction is a useful way to think of the relationship between contemporary factual programming and the various types of popular factual television that make up the reality genre.” 



References


Hill, A. (2005) The reality genre. In A. Hill, Reality TV:Audiences and Popular Factual Television.
(pp. 14 – 40). Oxon: Routledge.