Situation Comedy Analysis

Situation comedy has always been one of the most-watched TV genres throughout history. But what is it about situation comedy that allows it to have millions of audiences around the world? According to Richard Taflinger (1996) from Washington State University, the humorous contents built around sitcoms is what makes the audience like it. At the same time, Jake Martin (2012), an author from America: The Jesuit Review, wrote that the deep relationship between sitcoms and its audience is what makes the viewers want to come back for more. Also, authors like Beth Bulik (2010) and Ken Sanes (1996) believe that the shared common personality traits between sitcom stars and its audience are what maintains the viewers. Additionally, Sanes (1996) and Taflinger

Entertainment culture in general and sitcom in particular offer pleasures that are rarely questioned in society and in social norms. It allows people to simply entertain and doesn’t require its audience to think. For instance, Sanes (1996) believes that sitcoms also satisfy its audience desires with consolation. It gives the viewers a new perspective on life with happy endings, loving relationships where life isn’t so bad, and that life has its compensations (Sanes, 1996). He also said that “[Sitcoms] help reconcile us to the unfairness and incompleteness of life, and with all the limitations imposed from without and within.” (Sanes, 1996). This shows that people come to a sitcom as an escape from the reality that they are experiencing every day, in which they do not want any more of. Hence, people will tend to watch something that will make them laugh and free them from the real world instead of watching something that does not entertain and require them to think. Also, situation comedy gives us the permission to deal with subjected social norms with frivolity. Taflinger (1996) also explains that “[Sitcoms] avoid emotionally involving the audience, they understand and follow the established societal norms and act to violate them, the audiences perceive the acts as harmless, and the characters are inherently human and act in a mechanical manner

Furthermore, situation comedy celebrities play an important role in keeping the audience by delivering a relatable relationship with the viewers. Lastly, situation comedy was made to entertain, which make the viewers come to it with an expectation of entertainment and free from the real world. Hence, when it comes to the content and strategies employed in every sitcom show, it helps create what people think of when they hear