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Chapter 11. Guessing: The Microprocesses of Hegemony
- University of Pennsylvania Press
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Chapter 11 Guessing: The Microprocesses of Hegemony The previous chapter examined the way the hegemonic process works to win consent to the notion that females should be passive-pretty and nice-in their relationships with men, even as these relationships define them in key ways. An even more striking forum in which to see the hegemonic process at work was the viewers' pleasurable guessing about what was going to happen next on the show, both during the course of an episode and in other talk about it. Particularly clear in this type of talk is the way the narrative structure, described in Chapter 2, intersected with viewer constructions, and how the now-familiar construction of self as the author of reading concealed the hegemonic process. As mentioned earlier, the writers and producers demonstrate extraordinary skill in building in moments of suspense to sustain viewer interest . Such techniques as close-ups with music at the end of scenes provide reverberating pauses that encourage speculation about plot twists. Events as minor as a doorbell ringing or knock prompt viewers to guess who is arriving; cliffhanging endings (will David get arrested?) tease the viewer's imagination. The scripting does the same: Almost every scene contains some surprise, but carefully planted clues allow viewers to surmise what is coming next-usually (and most pleasurably) just ahead of the characters. Virtually all viewers tried to predict plot twists, and they often said guessing what was going to happen in the next episode buttressed their interest in the show: MARION: To me, to me, I mean, that's the main thing [ ... ] the curiosity , you know the cliffhanging. G: ·Yeah. KAREY: Yeah, it's not like a normal, like a sitcom, where it's [the plot is] different every weekMARION : Right, right. 218 Chapter 11 KAREY: -you actually anticipate what is going to happen. MARION: I don't think I would continue to watch it if it were [like a sitcom]. Needless to say, suspense is a key ingredient of most dramatic genres, and I am not claiming any distinction for 90210 in that area. I am simply establishing that viewers of 90210 said whenever they watched, they guessed, and that I often observed this phenomenon in viewing sessions. During one episode, for example, viewers were prompted to guess who was arriving for the next confrontation: Knock on the door. KRISTEN &JACKIE: It's Brenda! ALL: Laughter. Dylan: "Who is it?" Brenda: "Brenda." ALL: Laughter. * * * Doorbell rings. KRISTEN: Lucinda! It'sJosh. KRISTEN: It's worse than Lucinda! It's super-geek! ALL: Laughter. Guesses were greeted with and accompanied by delighted laughter, whether they \vere right or wrong. And viewers said, no matter how certain they were of their guesses, they were glued to the screen until they made sure they were right: CASEY: I think a lot of the fun is being able to sit here and know what is going to happen. ERIKA: Oh yeah, I always, I alwaysCASEY : We can call it. ERIKA: -say that I write this stuff, 'cause I know exactly what they're going to say before they say it. G: Vh huh. CASEY: But yet you'll still watch it to make sure that you're right. ERIKA: Just making sure. Conversations about what was going to happen, whether they occurred spontaneously during a scene, during commercials, or between episodes , provided another tie binding the community together. Whether they bet or merely speculated, viewers spoke with involvement and authority , rarely contradicting each other. Sometimes they injected an element of playfulness: Guessing: The Microprocesses of Hegemony 219 Kelly: ''It pays to have a mother with a fine taste in crystal and bone china. " MARION: Kelly's pulling out all the stops with those babydoll dresses, huh? (Laughter) KAREY: Yeah. MARION: This is the fourth one she's had on this episode. KAREY: Yeah, I wonder why. (Laughter) Maybe she's pregnant. (Laughter ) It's Brandon's. This prediction about Kelly being pregnant was lighthearted-fueled with laughter and building spunkily on itself. Karey was safe to propose far-fetched reasons behind Kelly's attire; there was no possibility that Marion would turn to her and say, "That's ridiculous, of course Kelly's not pregnant." Moreover, the prediction stemmed from a position of careful and specific expertise: "This is the fourth one she's had on this episode" (but who's counting?). And talk about pregnancy is completely relevant here, since Andrea-a member of this community-actually is pregnant. Repeatedly, predictions...