Michael Habak
Boczkowski
5/12/09
English 110C01
Throughout this quarter in class we have had the privilege of reading Everything Bad Is Good For You by Steven Johnson. In the book, Johnson brings interesting points about different media types and why they could actually be good for us. Many people say that television series are entertaining; however they do not do much for us and our intelligence. Johnson, however goes against this and says that in fact they are good for us and are not just ways to entertain ourselves when we are bored.
A perfect example of Johnson’s point is ABC’s television series Lost. Lost is a great way to prove Johnson’s point because of the shows multithreads and how they keep the viewer engaged in the show and keeps the viewer constantly thinking about what is going on. Johnson uses the Hill Street Blues as an example, “The narrative weaves together a collection of distinct strands.” (Johnson 67) Lost does the same thing with its many different storylines in just one episode. Also, the number of characters in the show helps his point. Johnson says that shows today have many characters that are connected in many ways: “…many popular television dramas today feature dense webs of relationships…” (Johnson 109) With so many characters in the show the viewer has to constantly pay attention to see what new developments and storylines the episode brings and how it will affect the show in the future. After seeing this show for the past several weeks, I have become a major supporter of the “sleeper curve” and would argue with anyone who feels that these types of shows do not help us in any way they are just pure entertainment.
Lost is one of the most popular television shows today. It airs on ABC and has a huge following. The show is about a plane that was flying from Australia back to the United States and crashes on onto a mysterious island. There were 48 survivors of the crash and the main character, Jack, is a kind of leader to all the survivors. He, being a doctor, provides medical treatment to everyone and stays calm under pressure. The island is extremely mysterious and has a strange way of providing miracles and weird happenings to people. The show has many side stories of the characters and constantly keeps the viewer on the edge of their seats. Unfortunately, I have yet to find out if they get off the island, but I have seen enough of the show to know that Johnson would see many of his points in this great show.
As a kid, I am sure that you heard the same thing that I did from my mother, “Michael, turn off the T.V. and go outside and play.” This was just a mom being a mom. Many feel that it is better for kids to go out and run around and play ball or play with the other kids in the neighborhood. They feel that the television should only be used on rainy or bad weather days when kids cannot go outside and play or run around. Barbara Ehrenreich wrote the article “Spudding Out.” In it she discusses how people have turned to television and turned into couch potatoes. She talks about how people stay inside and do nothing but watch television and how it upsets her. She writes, “This saddens me, because Americans use to be a great and restless people, fond of the outdoors in all of its manifestations, from Disney World to miniature golf.”(Ehrenreich 147) She is talking about the way television has brought us inside and how we do not go outside and interact with each other and how television has done bad things to our culture. But, has it really been that bad? Has television really turned us into these couch potatoes and made us more ignorant and dumb? Some would argue no, television has done good things for our society and culture.
One key aspect of this curve is the multithreading inside of these shows. Johnson says that earlier television shows only had one main thread. While talking about Dragnet and Starsky and Hutch, Johnson says, “The earlier shows follow one or two characters, adhere to a single dominant plot and reach a decisive conclusion at the end of the episode.” (Johnson 66) These shows were in their time popular because people watching these shows did not want to have to think much and just wanted the pure entertainment with no effort. As time moved on, people wanted more than just the one storyline and wanted some entertainment. This is where new television shows such as Lost come into the picture. Lost has three or four and sometimes more storylines in each episode. There normally is a crisis or two on the island that affects everyone. This goes on throughout the episode and by the end of the episode the crisis is solved. Then there is normally a side story on a character. For instance, in one early episode Jack sees a man on an island walking around in a suit. We come to find out that this man is simply a mirage of his father. This is important because throughout the episode we learn about Jack’s childhood and his relationship with his father and why he is actually on the plane, to go to Australia to get his father who recently died. This also explains to the viewer of why Jack is the way he is. This keeps the viewer engaged into the show to see what will happen with the crisis and what we will find out about the characters involved. There are other reviews that support this argument. Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly talks about the many threads and mentions the twists they take: “It’s the kind of show where I have to write “apparent” a lot because I know there are going to be lots of unexpected revelations about the islanders’ identities and motives.” (Tucker 1) This reviewer talks about the many threads and even how many of them can be unexpected.
Lost fans are some of the most hard-core and dedicated fans out there. A perfect example this are the Lost fan websites that are online dedicated to the show. There of course is the official website but there are so many more websites or blogs created by diehard fans of the show. One of the more popular sites is Lostpedia. This website has everything dedicated to the show. It has an area where it shows what times the show is on in countries such as the United States, Great Britain, Italy and Australia. But the part that supports Johnson the most is the blog and the fact that this was created by fans. Johnson would say that this is proof that television is good for us because it makes us stay involved with the show and keeps us thinking while we are watching it. He says, “But the level of cognitive engagement, the eagerness to evaluate the show through the lens of personal experience and wisdom, the tight focus on contestants’ motives and character flaws- all this is remarkable.”(Johnson 106) This quote shows how involved they get over just one of the episodes, “that last scene is probably one of my favourites from all of lost. Its so happy… it makes me cry.” (hailey) This blog is talking about one of the early episodes in season one and shows how viewers get very attached to the show; even to the point over crying about it. Also, all the multithreads keep us engaged into the show and having to keep up with the characters and their lives is even more proof to the “sleeper curve.” The fact that we have to remember all the stories of people’s lives is very interesting and keeps us intrigued and always thinking about what could happen next. This thought process is exactly what Johnson is talking about and how Lost would be a great way for Johnson to prove his point.
Watching Lost has made me realize that Steven Johnson is truly right and is on to something with his theory. This show has everything that he is talking about in his book. It has all the multithreading to keep the viewer engaged into the action. It does not have many flashing arrows and also makes the viewer think and keeps them on the edge of their seat. The music normally intensifies when a big moment or a major event is going to happen. This makes the viewer think about what could be coming next. The fan involvement into the show also shows us that people are truly thinking about the show and just how involved people are into the show. I see people’s arguments that television has some negative effects. However, I feel that it still has good effects and it does not just drain your brain.
Works Cited
Ehrenreich, Barbara. “Spudding Out.”
Johnson, Steven. Everything Bad Is Good For You. New York: Riverhead Books, 2005.
“Tabula Rasa.” Lostpedia. 2009. http://www.liu.edu/cwis/cwp/library/workshop/citmla.htm
Tucker, Ken. “Lost.” Entertainment Weekly. 24 Sept. 2004. 1.
Boczkowski
5/12/09
English 110C01
Throughout this quarter in class we have had the privilege of reading Everything Bad Is Good For You by Steven Johnson. In the book, Johnson brings interesting points about different media types and why they could actually be good for us. Many people say that television series are entertaining; however they do not do much for us and our intelligence. Johnson, however goes against this and says that in fact they are good for us and are not just ways to entertain ourselves when we are bored.
A perfect example of Johnson’s point is ABC’s television series Lost. Lost is a great way to prove Johnson’s point because of the shows multithreads and how they keep the viewer engaged in the show and keeps the viewer constantly thinking about what is going on. Johnson uses the Hill Street Blues as an example, “The narrative weaves together a collection of distinct strands.” (Johnson 67) Lost does the same thing with its many different storylines in just one episode. Also, the number of characters in the show helps his point. Johnson says that shows today have many characters that are connected in many ways: “…many popular television dramas today feature dense webs of relationships…” (Johnson 109) With so many characters in the show the viewer has to constantly pay attention to see what new developments and storylines the episode brings and how it will affect the show in the future. After seeing this show for the past several weeks, I have become a major supporter of the “sleeper curve” and would argue with anyone who feels that these types of shows do not help us in any way they are just pure entertainment.
Lost is one of the most popular television shows today. It airs on ABC and has a huge following. The show is about a plane that was flying from Australia back to the United States and crashes on onto a mysterious island. There were 48 survivors of the crash and the main character, Jack, is a kind of leader to all the survivors. He, being a doctor, provides medical treatment to everyone and stays calm under pressure. The island is extremely mysterious and has a strange way of providing miracles and weird happenings to people. The show has many side stories of the characters and constantly keeps the viewer on the edge of their seats. Unfortunately, I have yet to find out if they get off the island, but I have seen enough of the show to know that Johnson would see many of his points in this great show.
As a kid, I am sure that you heard the same thing that I did from my mother, “Michael, turn off the T.V. and go outside and play.” This was just a mom being a mom. Many feel that it is better for kids to go out and run around and play ball or play with the other kids in the neighborhood. They feel that the television should only be used on rainy or bad weather days when kids cannot go outside and play or run around. Barbara Ehrenreich wrote the article “Spudding Out.” In it she discusses how people have turned to television and turned into couch potatoes. She talks about how people stay inside and do nothing but watch television and how it upsets her. She writes, “This saddens me, because Americans use to be a great and restless people, fond of the outdoors in all of its manifestations, from Disney World to miniature golf.”(Ehrenreich 147) She is talking about the way television has brought us inside and how we do not go outside and interact with each other and how television has done bad things to our culture. But, has it really been that bad? Has television really turned us into these couch potatoes and made us more ignorant and dumb? Some would argue no, television has done good things for our society and culture.
One key aspect of this curve is the multithreading inside of these shows. Johnson says that earlier television shows only had one main thread. While talking about Dragnet and Starsky and Hutch, Johnson says, “The earlier shows follow one or two characters, adhere to a single dominant plot and reach a decisive conclusion at the end of the episode.” (Johnson 66) These shows were in their time popular because people watching these shows did not want to have to think much and just wanted the pure entertainment with no effort. As time moved on, people wanted more than just the one storyline and wanted some entertainment. This is where new television shows such as Lost come into the picture. Lost has three or four and sometimes more storylines in each episode. There normally is a crisis or two on the island that affects everyone. This goes on throughout the episode and by the end of the episode the crisis is solved. Then there is normally a side story on a character. For instance, in one early episode Jack sees a man on an island walking around in a suit. We come to find out that this man is simply a mirage of his father. This is important because throughout the episode we learn about Jack’s childhood and his relationship with his father and why he is actually on the plane, to go to Australia to get his father who recently died. This also explains to the viewer of why Jack is the way he is. This keeps the viewer engaged into the show to see what will happen with the crisis and what we will find out about the characters involved. There are other reviews that support this argument. Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly talks about the many threads and mentions the twists they take: “It’s the kind of show where I have to write “apparent” a lot because I know there are going to be lots of unexpected revelations about the islanders’ identities and motives.” (Tucker 1) This reviewer talks about the many threads and even how many of them can be unexpected.
Lost fans are some of the most hard-core and dedicated fans out there. A perfect example this are the Lost fan websites that are online dedicated to the show. There of course is the official website but there are so many more websites or blogs created by diehard fans of the show. One of the more popular sites is Lostpedia. This website has everything dedicated to the show. It has an area where it shows what times the show is on in countries such as the United States, Great Britain, Italy and Australia. But the part that supports Johnson the most is the blog and the fact that this was created by fans. Johnson would say that this is proof that television is good for us because it makes us stay involved with the show and keeps us thinking while we are watching it. He says, “But the level of cognitive engagement, the eagerness to evaluate the show through the lens of personal experience and wisdom, the tight focus on contestants’ motives and character flaws- all this is remarkable.”(Johnson 106) This quote shows how involved they get over just one of the episodes, “that last scene is probably one of my favourites from all of lost. Its so happy… it makes me cry.” (hailey) This blog is talking about one of the early episodes in season one and shows how viewers get very attached to the show; even to the point over crying about it. Also, all the multithreads keep us engaged into the show and having to keep up with the characters and their lives is even more proof to the “sleeper curve.” The fact that we have to remember all the stories of people’s lives is very interesting and keeps us intrigued and always thinking about what could happen next. This thought process is exactly what Johnson is talking about and how Lost would be a great way for Johnson to prove his point.
Watching Lost has made me realize that Steven Johnson is truly right and is on to something with his theory. This show has everything that he is talking about in his book. It has all the multithreading to keep the viewer engaged into the action. It does not have many flashing arrows and also makes the viewer think and keeps them on the edge of their seat. The music normally intensifies when a big moment or a major event is going to happen. This makes the viewer think about what could be coming next. The fan involvement into the show also shows us that people are truly thinking about the show and just how involved people are into the show. I see people’s arguments that television has some negative effects. However, I feel that it still has good effects and it does not just drain your brain.
Works Cited
Ehrenreich, Barbara. “Spudding Out.”
Johnson, Steven. Everything Bad Is Good For You. New York: Riverhead Books, 2005.
“Tabula Rasa.” Lostpedia. 2009. http://www.liu.edu/cwis/cwp/library/workshop/citmla.htm
Tucker, Ken. “Lost.” Entertainment Weekly. 24 Sept. 2004. 1.
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