coronation street textual analysis

Coronation Street is a soap opera set in Manchester, however it also contains an underlining sense of comedy throughout. The genre conventions that it includes are things such as cliffhangers, in which after a dramatic scenario is revealed the opening theme song will play and a break will start, adding to the dramatic tension. The conventions of a soap opera were followed as the scenes were set in different characters houses and told the story of different families. The scene changes were quick and would show a few minutes of each different story before going back again to follow up each family and their current affairs. A prior knowledge of each character however is needed as there is no back story given at the start of each episode.

The main target audience for Coronation Street would be adults aged 30+ however the actual audience may include teenagers and people in their 20's as some of the characters are younger and have story lines that are relevant to themselves. 

The narrative was quite informal, as if we were sat in the characters living room having a chat with them. There is distinct northern dialect used, this may become confusing to understand for people who do not live up north. There is a serious tone as the story lines are hard hitting however there is a comic theme running throughout to make it easier and more enjoyable to watch. The style is rather conventional and traditional however some of the characters are and situations are exaggerated for entertainment purposes. The purpose of the programme is not only to entertain but to inform as it can help with ways to deal with situations that the audience may be dealing with in their life.

There are many stereotypes portrayed within the short clip of Coronation street that we watched. The first one can be seen in the opening titles for the show in which a stereotype of Manchester was formed. The first thing you see is a pigeon which is a stereotype that all people in manchester have pigeons. You then see the houses which are all backed on to each other with alley ways in-between each house. I wouldn't say that either of these were negative stereotypes as it is just celebrating the culture of Manchester.

Another stereotype which I think came across as negative was the way the teen mum was portrayed. She wasn't working and was home alone all day with the baby in a very messy house. I would say this is a sweeping statement and that it chose to pick the 'worse case scenario' when it comes to single mums. It chose to ignore the many other single parents who look after their children and yet still go out to work and can keep their houses tidy. It also portrayed that the father of the baby didn't help much with the child, it showed the dad joking around saying he got too much sleep last night and then he went out to work. This was trying to portray the typical situation where the father goes out to earn money for the family and the mother stays at home to look after the child and do all the work around the house. This ignores the many members of society who go against gender stereotypes, for example, that the father can be the one who stays at home with the baby or that the family can be dual earning in that both the mother and father got out to earn money. 

There was also another stereotype that the character 'Rosie' was going to London to get her 'big break'. This stereotype suggested that the only way you can get somewhere in an acting/television career is to move to London. I think this is a positive stereotype for London as it gives off the impression that it is a place where dreams come true. However I think it can be a negative stereotype for Manchester in that it is portraying that you can't really amount to much if you stay up north and that to be worthwhile you need to go down south. 

The last stereotype that I spotted was of "Jason" who could be seen as the shows 'heartthrob'. Jason was portrayed as your typical could looking, muscly man who worked as a builder and was relatively dumb. This is a negative stereotype that all men who care about their looks and also many builders are not that intelligent. 

Comparison to Eastenders

The main difference between Coronation Street and Eastenders is that Corrie is set in Manchester (up north) and Eastenders is set in London (Down South). These differences can be seen in many ways, the first being the dialect used. In coronation street a strong northern dialect is used, for example, incorrect verb tenses such as "we was going to". In Eastenders there is a strong south London dialect, for example, one of the characters played by Danny Dyer uses a lot of cockney rhyming slang. 

Another difference can be seen in the opening credits of both shows. In Coronation Street the first thing you see is a pigeon which is a stereotype that all people in manchester have pigeons. You then see the houses which are all backed on to each other with alley ways in-between each house. In Eastenders the first thing you see is the iconic river themes, instantly you can see that it is set in London, this will be known from people all across England. Many iconic landmarks can be seen as the camera pans to a Birdseye view of London. By using so many iconic shots of London is gives the show a sense of prestige so even if you weren't sure what the show would be like you would have a sense that its going to be good if its set in the middle of London.