Even though parasocial relationships seem stupid and unreal, I am here to admit that I have a problem. I have a parasocial relationship with the characters on "Glee." "Glee" is a show that I have kept up with since the beginning. I related to the show by being a show choir kid, and loving living vicariously through the characters many ups and downs.
I did not realize my obsession until after our class time on the subject of parasocial relationships. I thought back to the many episodes I had watched of "Glee," and thought also about how crazy I seemed to my fiance and family. I remember watching the finale episode about three years ago when the seniors of the show, because they're in high school, graduating from McKinley High. I cried. The whole episode. I still can't listen to songs they sang during that episode because I still cry. I identified myself so much with the characters, I would recognize them not as Cory Monteith and Lea Michelle, they were and will always be Rachel and Finn.
Another thing that made me see how obsessed I am is when I found out about Cory Monteith's death. I have never felt so awful about a celebrity death before. More over, I thought more about the show and how they would deal with the death of Finn, his character. I still identify and see him as only Finn, and that shows how my parasocial relationship went up another level.
Parasocial relationships are not a fake thing, they are more real than we think. TV shows are not just shows, they are a way of life, people we identify with, and have characters we fight for and cry about.
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