Television Dramas and the Global Village

Diana I. Ríos is associate professor in the Department of Communication and El Instituto: Latino/Latin American and Caribbean Studies at the University of Connecticut. Carolyn A. Lin is professor of communication at the University of Connecticut.

Introduction: Television Dramas as Storytellers of Race and Gender for the Global Village

Diana I. Rios and Carolyn A. Lin



Section I. Fantasy-Science Fiction, Horror, and Mystery



Chapter 1: Luke Cage is Harlem’s Captain America: Black Masculinity and Vulnerability in the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Graeme John Wilson

Chapter 2: Doctor Who’s 13th Doctor: Redefining the Female Lead in Science Fiction Television

Gwendelyn S. Nisbett and Newly Paul

Chapter 3: A Woman in Trouble in Twin Peaks: The Return: Gothic Texts, Magical Technology, and Dreams Within Dreams

Joseph Boisvere

Chapter 4: Arya and Sansa Stark of HBO’s The Game of Thrones: Abuse, Agency, Trauma Survival, and Redefined Destinies

Diana I. Rios, Mary Helen Millham, Karin A. Haberlin, and Graciela Quiñones-Rodriguez

Chapter 5: The Protagonists of the Fantasy Drama Lost: From Stereotypes to Flexible Identities

Jérôme David

Section II. Soap Operas and Telenovelas

Chapter 6: Pakistan Television Drama Serials and Telenovelas During Fifty Years: Gendering in Different Political Regimes

Saleem Abbas

Chapter 7: Primetime Brazilian Telenovelas and Gender Violence Representation

Lorena Caminhas

Chapter 8: French Television and the Audience: Examining Serial Dramas Un Si Grand Soleil and Plus Belle La Vie

Patricia Jullia and Frédéric Marty

Chapter 9: Brazilian Telenovelas and Multi-platform Audiences: Overviews and Industry Insights

Rosane Svartman

Section III. Historical and Period Drama

Chapter 10: Korean Historical Television Dramas: Cultural Meanings, Confucian Values, and Transcultural Identities

Suji Park and Carolyn A. Lin

Chapter 11: Thoroughly (Un)Modern Downton Abbey: Interrogating Gender/Sexual Dynamics and Whiteness Boundaries

Gordon Alley-Young

Chapter 12: From The Crown to Madmen: Historical Television as Commentary on 21st Century Ideologies

Nettie Brock

Chapter 13: The Story of Zheng Yang Gate: Chinese Television Representation of Female Entrepreneurs

Mei Zhang

Chapter 14: Exploring Gendering in Iranian Television Drama Serials

Ali Zohoori

Section IV. Comedy-Drama

Chapter 15: Being a Black Man on Being Mary Jane: Considering Complexities of Black Masculinity in a Female-centric Drama

George L. Daniels

Chapter 16: HBO’s Insecure and Issa Dee: Black Women’s Interpretations on Facebook

Morgan W. Smalls

Chapter 17: Pregnancy and the Back-to-Work Narrative: How Television Comedy-Dramas Navigate the Social Norms of Motherhood

Elizabeth Fish Hatfield

Section V. Crime and Medical Drama

Chapter 18: Historical Drama Peaky Blinders: Pitching Racial Allegiances and Ethnocentric Populism

Inna Arzumanova

Chapter 19: Zero Tolerance: Genre and the Politics of Reconciliation in a South African Crime Show

Ian-Malcolm Rijsdijk

Chapter 20: Doctor(ed) Representations: Physician Portrayals on Medical Television Shows

David Lynn Painter, Sarah Parsloe, and Hannah Jureller

About the Contributors