Emotional Expressionism

Pribram presents the complex theory of socioemotionality through the lens of television and melodrama, providing concrete examples of how the theory may be applied to show how emotionality “embraces ‘political, contextual, ethical, and lived’ phenomena.” Using television serials such as How to Get Away with Murder, Killing Eve, Mad Men, and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Pribram applies specific aspects of the theory to illustrate how it combines fluidly with the aesthetics of the medium and its narrative modes to present a more robust reading of “character, structure, genre and content.” In addition, she examines the symbiotic relationship between socioemotionality and melodrama, explaining how the approach to a dramatic television serial, even set during the same era, can diverge based on the emotional context through which showrunners create the programs, especially those creators influenced by political and/or ethical nostalgia. Serving as an excellent resource for researchers and scholars, Pribram’s text demonstrates how the influence of society’s collective emotions directly impacts the narrative structures of mass media, specifically dramatic television serials, which lend themselves more readily to melodrama and, consequently, socioemotionality. Recommended. Advanced undergraduates through faculty. * Choice Reviews *
Applying the concept of socioemotionality to recent television series from the Anglophone world, Emotional Expressionism: Television Serialization, the Melodramatic Mode, and Socioemotionality presents readers with an excellent overview of the current research on melodrama and makes a convincing argument for the specific relevance of the melodramatic mode in contemporary ‘quality’ or ‘prestige’ television. Interdisciplinary in the best sense of the term, well-researched, and lucidly written, this book constitutes a much needed and important addition to the existing scholarship on public feeling, television culture, affect, and the melodramatic mode. -- Katharina Gerund, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg