Reception Theory

Reception Theory

Sophie Goodwin

The media text I have chosen is the American TV series American Horror Story. American Horror Story is a horror-drama television series. It is an anthology with each season taking place in a different setting. I would say the target audience of the media text would be the explorer as you could say the TV series is difficult to understand as each season has the same cast but as different characters and a different story each season therefore the explorer would find it in their interest to discover why the show does this.

People may take a preferred reading to American Horror Story as it is a fresh TV series, it strays away from the typical American shows it is very different. The show encodes that it is very for the idea that women should play dominant parts in television which is evident as every season, particularly Coven, has major parts which women portray. The show is not just what it seems, it may be about witches, aliens and haunted houses but it illustrates societies worst fears about race, gender etc... It makes audiences feel it is brilliant and is exactly what television needs.

An audience may take an oppositional reading to American Horror Story as again it is very hard to understand therefore the audience may find it hard to commit to it - a drop out. Also it is not shy to weird sex scenes which some people may find hard to watch. People will decode with the tv show by disliking it if they do not like horror texts. They will immediately reject the show as its intention is to encode horror. Yet it implies horror is not just about scaring people it is used to get other messages across.

An audience may take a negotiated reading as they may just not want to correspond with the show whether it be that they don't agree with it or just don't find an interest in it due to their cultural experiences. For example, watching the show with your peers may influence your decision on whether you agree with the encoded message, the message may have been misunderstood. A cultural experience like your religion or upbringing may find aspects of the show such as sex and violence too much and therefore leading you to not agree with it.