Use of Melodrama in Soap Operas

Melodrama-

     Melo meaning "Music"
noun

“A sensational dramatic piece with exaggerated characters and exciting events intended to appeal to the emotions.

historical

“A play interspersed with songs and orchestral music accompanying the action”

Melodramas originate from the beginning of the 18th-century where they were used as a technique of combining spoken recitations that included poems, soliloquy's, monologues and speeches accompanied by short pieces of music which were also played between scenes and during intervals. Within these melodramas music and dialogue were alternated with the music that was used often accompanying pantomimes. The earliest known melo-drama included some scenes in Sigismudus (1753) and after that was Jean-Jacques Rousseau's Pygmalion. Some 30 other monodramas were produced in Germany in the fourth quarter of the 18th century. The first English melodrama was called "A Tale of Mystery" (1802) and was written by Thomas Holcroft. When two actors are involved the term duodrama may be used. It was after the restoration of Charles II in 1660 when most of the British theaters were prohibited from performing "serious" dramas and were only permitted to perform plays with music or comedies. There were permitted to perform serious drama these were the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane and Theatre Royal, Covent Garden.

Melodramas are no longer present in the western scene in television and movies although it is still popular in regions particularly in Asia where they are the main genres.

Some of the early classics:
- Broken Blossoms (1919)
- Way Down East (1920)
- Orphans of the Storm (1922)
- Stella Dallas (1925) (remade in 1937)


Modern day Melodramas-
-  Moulin Rouge (2001)
-  Far From Heaven (2002)
-  The Notebook (2004)
-  Brokeback Mountain (2005)
-  Marley & Me (2008)
-  Up (2009)
-  The Fault in Our Stars (2014)

Stereotypes within a Melodrama-
     Characters:

• They usually fit our stereotypical image, who are larger than life stock characters and tend to be two-dimensional.
• There is very limited character development so the story lines are never very long
• All of the characters fit into Vladimir Propp's theory (e.g The Hero, The Villain, The Helper...) as well as including some others.
• Hero- Handsome, strong, brave, honest and reliable. They are usually Middle or Upper Class.
• Heroine- Beautiful, courageous, innocent, vulnerable. They are usually Middle or Upper Class.
• Villain- Cunning, lack morals, dishonest, cruel and evil. They are usually Middle or Upper Class.
• Villain's Accomplice- comical relief, bumbling sidekick who are usually Lower Class.
• Faithful Servant- They also provide comical relief, does most of the manual jobs and usually discovers the evidence against the villain. This person is also usually Lower Class.
• Maid Servant- Female character who is lively and flirts with the faithful servants again usually Lower Class. 
• These characters are able to be male or female and usually have some comical value to them

[Alice]

     Plot:

• The most common themes of a Melodrama include romance, manipulation, murder and sensation however these story lines may lack logic and may be more suited towards a younger audience. 
• Stereo typically the hero and the heroine fall in love with each other and the villain has a hold over the heroine and uses this to entrap her.
• Fate will always intervene and the outcome of the plot will be what the audience want to see.
• Good triumphs over evil

Some of these elements can be found within modern day television in program's such as Soap Operas and other sub-genres particularly slapstick comedy and where the main focus is on a topical issue, recent events or action. Some television program's try to mimic melodrama and take it out of proportion.These program's are more popular with the younger generation and in particular students as it allows them to laugh at someone in a situation they can relate to and enjoy the verisimilitude, exaggerated humor and larger than life characters.

Functions of Melodrama

Soap Operas are significantly linked to melodrama, focused heavily on the representation of emotional relationships and family units. Researched through Nielsen ratings (an audience measurement system), it is clear that over the years there has been a decline in age of audiences, however also an increase in interest of melodramatic narratives involved in Soaps. This shows that those Soaps aimed at a younger audience, such as Hollyoaks, may be the most likely to utilise melodrama for interest, as well as escapism. It is clear however, that recent cases of reality shows, such as ‘Keeping Up with the Kardashians’, has provided an “alternative source” of melodrama, therefore decreasing ratings for Soap Operas.  Escapism is a major function of the utilisation of melodrama, especially on younger audiences, as they are made aware of events and how situations may turn out, such as the storylines involving accidental deaths or car crashes from reckless driving.

"Although melodramatically eventful, soap operas such as this also have a luxury of space that makes them seem more naturalistic” – Lloyd, R: Los Angeles Times, Dec 2013, Found Here: http://articles.latimes.com/2012/jun/18/entertainment/la-et-hollywood-heights-20120618

Melodrama is dissimilar to realism which is a key convention of Soap Operas, however the function may also emphasise the realism. By adding entertainment through the use of melodrama, it presents to the audience more clearly current affairs and issues which need to be raised and made aware of. Usually, melodrama is linked to tension and strong emotions, associated with the function of Catharsis, which is defined as “providing relief from strong or repressed emotions”.

The 1970’s saw a larger increase in the use of melodrama, with narratives involving homosexuality, rape-within-marriage and drug use, shocking audiences that were not used to the portrayal of melodrama on primetime TV. 

[Henry]

Conventions of Melodrama

Most Melodramas offer a sense of realism to its viewers, however, some characters may have an entrance theme which outlines their character (almost like a incidental music and score)

"Melodramas are built upon stock characters that have entrance music which suggests their personalities. In addition, the music gives these stock characters the timing they use, almost as though the drama is choreographed. These stock characters dwell in a very simple universe in which good and evil are easily identifiable with the hero and the villain always in conflict with one another." http://www.enotes.com/homework-help/melodrama-what-some-conventions-characteristics-319735
Non-diagetic sound that enhances things like explosions, slapping. Non-diagetic sound is used throughout and sometimes at the start of the scene before fading out when a character starts talking. Atmospheric music is also key to a scene when the mood is changed and a sound motif is heard to tackle a moment of shock.

The lighting in this melodrama however can not move too far away from realism. they usually range from natural lighting to very little artificial lighting to mildly enhance atmosphere.

Camera shots are usually fast paced to add to the drama and build tension for the viewers and close-up angles to dramatize the characters facial expression and movement.

[Kira]