Magical Realism, Emotion, and Gendered Television Forms: A Practice-Based Enquiry

This thesis examines the emergence of magical realism in American prime time television during the 2010s, arguing that its emergence is inherently linked to masculine forms of television and displays of “emotion” on screen. Through a mixture of traditional research methods and practice-led enquiry, this thesis investigates the gendered use of these techniques, and considers whether they must remain inherently masculine-coded. Through the integration of critical writing and creative work (the writing of an original television series entitled Confinement), this thesis attempts to explore the intersection of television genre, gender, and character emotion.

Traditional research methods such as historical poetics and close analysis are used to investigate the use of magical realism within television drama of the 2010s, examining both how these magical realist techniques were used (for what dramatic purpose) and why they emerged when they did. This enquiry is conducted alongside (and intersects with) a practice-led interrogation of those techniques in which I explore their use within a separate context; that of the female-led, female-focused story of Confinement. Confinement is original 6-part television series (for which I submit a bible and two episodes) in which I use my own lived experience of pregnancy and childbirth to create a story which draws on magical realist techniques to explore inherently feminine experiences.

This research interrogates the intersection of television form, character emotion, and audience engagement. By combining textual analysis, aesthetic evaluation and my own lived experience, I explore how television can use magical realism to create personal and female-centred drama which is effective, emotive, and compelling.