專四晨讀美文：Soap Operas

Soap Operas
Watching TV is a very popular pastime in the UK
but what kind of programmes do British people like to watch?
Well, the most-watched TV programmes every week
are very popular dramas
that are usually on at least four times every week.
They are dramas based in one neighbourhood
that try to depict ordinary life in the UK—
we call these dramas "soap operas" or "soaps".
In the early days of TV,
there were often dramas on during the day.
Back in those days,
it was traditional for the husband to go out to work
and for the wife to stay at home
and look after the house and the children.
Most of these daytime dramas
were aimed at entertaining the housewives
who would traditionally be at home,
probably doing the washing.
Companies selling washing powder
would advertise their products at times
when these dramas were on,
and sometimes those companies
would even sponsor the drama.
Hence the word "soap".
So what about the word opera?
Well, that's because these dramas
are often an exaggeration of real life.
They are supposed to represent ordinary lives
but to make them entertaining, lots of dramatic events
like murders, divorces, affairs etc.
all happen probably much more regularly
than they would in a normal neighbourhood.
Most soap operas these days are shown in the evening.
Each show will have several different storylines
happening at once that continue over several shows.
The same cast members will appear in every show too.
There are lots of different soaps on
in the UK on different channels
but there are 3 main popular ones.
"Coronation Street" has been on since 1960.
It is set in a suburb of Manchester
and it's supposed to represent working class life
in the north of England.
Then there's "Eastenders" which started in 1985,
set in the East End of London
and "Emmerdale", which is set on a farm in Yorkshire,
in the north of England.