Irish Soap Culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Irish Soap Culture - Essay Example This paper is built around the central idea that soaps structure and inform the realities of many, and examines the phenomenon of soap operas in Ireland within this theoretical framework. The term 'soap opera' bears little resemblance to the nature of the genre itself, and is a curious amalgam of connotations. The origins of the term, which brings to mind a visual image quite unlike anything that is actually the content of a soap opera, have evolved - or perhaps 'mutated' is a better word - into the current avatar of the genre, the history of the nomenclature of which may be pieced together through a brief examination of the semantics of the term. It combines various ideas, as analyzed in this description: The "soap" in soap opera alluded to their sponsorship by manufacturers of household cleaning products; while "opera" suggested an ironic incongruity between the domestic narrative concerns of the daytime serial and the most elevated of dramatic forms. ("Soap Opera," paragraph 1) As the term itself suggests, the patterns of plot and characterization in soap operas have reached a generic level, and many theorists have identified several distinctive features of the genre. M. E. Brown has identified the following as the generic characteristics of soap operas: According to Robert C. ... 6. male characters who are 'sensitive men' 7. female characters who are often professional and otherwise powerful in the world outside the home 8. the home, or some other place which functions as the home, as the setting for the show. (Brown, 1987, paragraph 1) According to Robert C. Allen in Speaking of Soap Operas, there is much ambiguity involved in the attempted definition of the genre. He writes: "Since the 1930s the soap opera has been defined by what it pretends to be but is not, by what it lacks rather than what it is" (2). He points out that with reference to the definitions of what soap operas are, "we need to examine not only what was said about soap operas but also what was assumed and left unsaid" (12). Allen speaks in terms of the soap opera's "sense of kitsch," and opines that the soap has "eventual psychosocial consequences [on] mass culture, suggesting that the agenda of the soap opera is to take the "place of art in the lives of the masses," and that "what has taken place is nothing less than a subversion of an important part of the social order" (18). Therefore, he suggests that the objective of the soap opera is to undermine the fabric of society itself by seeking to replace the role that art has traditionally played in society. Helena Sheehan, author of Irish Television Drama: A Society and Its Stories, points out that soap operas originated with the supposed attempt to represent society, and followed a distinct and recurring pattern which could easily be identified as well as predicted as one was subjected to a series of soap operas all revolving around the same ideas. She writes that many soap operas create the illusion that what they are presenting to their audiences are grand but authentic portrayals of reality,

Identity Theft Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Identity Theft - Essay Example Sometimes small gangs of people come together to create lies about someone or form false documents, which they will use to commit fraud. Due to the increased level of insecurity, the gangs have started using different techniques to get the information by using computer or internet related activities to acquire the information. Identity thieves use personal information, such as Social Security numbers, birth dates, and home addresses, to open new accounts in the victim's name, make charges and then disappear. While this type of identity theft is less likely to occur, it imposes much greater costs and hardships on victims. Identity theft starts when the identity thief gets another person’s personal information such as names, credit card numbers or any other financial document then uses this information to steal money from the victim’s account. Identity thieves use various methods to get this information and can do anything to get hold of this information. An identity thief will look through the victim’s trash to find their personal information, and use the information to get benefits such as medical and taking over accounts of the victim. Identity thieves also steal the credit and debit card information of the victim by using a device that records this information when processing their bills. Other identity thieves present themselves as financial institutions, which will ask the victim their personal information over the internet, and if the victim is not aware, they may end up giving up crucial information, which the thieves will use to steal. Other identity thieves pilfer wallets containing personal information and use it to steal from their victims. Identity thieves may also get records from the personnel offices or bribe workers to get personal information of a potential victim, which they will then use to pay for their own expenses.  Ã‚