At this moment in time, I am in our office trying to drown out the sobs of the woman who just found out that the man she wanted to marry is breaking up with her on TV. I'm attempting to drown it out by blasting Sigur Ross on the iPod. I can't seem to turn it up enough. Maybe it's the band...they're a bit mellow. I think I might need some Rob Zombie or something.
Anyway, my wife is enamored with The Bachelor. Always has, from season 1. After watching season after season of screw ups and jerks, the regular script of the "man who can't make up his mind" is getting old. Mind you, I don't regularly watch The Bachelor; Heroes is on at the same time. However, I do catch up on what's going on due to the gasps and shrieks of exclamation and disgust at what jerky thing the guy has just done. So I must ask...why? Why is this appealing?
There is so much heartache and drama in the real world, why do we as a society feel the need to broadcast someone else's pain and suffering. People get caught up in the drama and the suspense all to see the possibility that they might have a happy life. However, because it creates "good TV", it almost seems that these shows now are only people in sorrow and grief.
Now, I enjoy a good story like anyone else. Movies are full of drama, sorrow, grief, happiness and so much more. But the difference is, those are actors. People's lives are not being affected by the way that the script is written (unless you're the studio and it's a bad script). It seems to me that the reason people watch these shows is not to see true love or anything of the sort. Maybe it's the same morbid fascination we get when watching an accident scene or some other awful event.
Whatever the motivation, the situation is just sad and depressing and I hate that shows like The Bachelor and their lower class cousins on VH1 are so popular and prevalent. It makes me feel dirty inside, like I've violated that persons privacy.
In me saying all of this, I cannot speak to my wife's fascination with The Bachelor, but I'm grateful that I've found the love of my life and I know that I am her love. I have all of the reality drama I need in a relationship right here at home and that's enough for me.
