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Abstract
This study speaks to the relative power of the text and the audience in the construction of meaning. Specifically, it is argued through the use of in-depth interviews and observations and further reinforced through textual analysis that The Bachelor serves as an impetus for a struggle over meaning (S. Hall, 1996; Williams, 1976). On one hand, this text reinforces a traditional, patriarchal portrayal of women in domestic roles: women must beat the other female competitors and win the man for their lives to be complete. On the other hand, The Bachelor could serve as a site of resistance against such representations by giving audience members the ability to be oppositional readers (S. Hall, 1973a) of the text. This dissertation investigates the ideological role of the mass media. The mass media shape how we view the world around us by providing us with dominant representations of ideas. I believe shows like The Bachelor, while making a media spectacle of dating and relationships, reinforce viewers' desires for romance and successful relationships, both on the television screens and in their own lives.