Assignment 2 Genre (Friends)

Friends

Do you still remember the Friends? There are six best friends who are struggling to survive in the real world. Maybe you don’t know. These six guys could become such popular not only in America, but also in the rest of the world. As for us, the English learners, Friends is one of the most efficient ways to study English and also a symbol of American culture. I was one of the Friends fans when I was in high school. I had seen all 10 seasons for that and even memorized some of the famous quotes.

As I said, there are six major characters in the show, and each of them has completely different background and personality. Rachel might be the most popular one of the six. She has the most beautiful appearance and a rich family, but she is a typical “material girl” and doesn’t even how to take out the trash. Opposite to Rachel’s spoiled, Ross is a fusty but studious guy who is an archaeologist. And, his sister, Monica, enjoys keeping everything well organized and always complains tiny little things with others. Then it comes Joey and Chandler, they are the funniest guys in the entire show. They always make jokes to each other and also make troubles in the same time. Last but not least, Phoebe is the most mysterious character among the six, and no one knows the meaning of her incredible wisdom and even where she comes from.

So to speak, those differences and conflicts have brought audiences a complicated and interested story which I think has successfully attracted people to watch the show and be willing to wait for the next part. Even if those characters have so many weaknesses and always fight, their friendship has never been broken. It’s all about understanding, forgiveness, trust and love. I think this is how their friendship can last.

Another thing I get from the show is that the differences between American culture and our culture. From Friends, people are laughing, dating, playing games and making jokes when they don’t have to work. It feels like the most important thing for them to play. This is quite different from our TV shows. You’ll find out every good guy in our show is absolutely perfect. They are honest and righteous, and never hang out with bad guys. They are trying to be the moral example of the society, and even if they do bad things, the punishment for them will show the audiences the right thing to do. Therefore, the main reason for making the TV shows in our culture is to educate people and teach us how to improve ourselves. Whereas, the purpose of the TV shows in American culture is to entertainment and relax. I think it is one of the biggest differences between the two cultures.

Furthermore, the topic about sex appears more frequently in American TV shows. It’s very common in the show that people are talking about sex and sharing their sexual experience with each other without being embarrassed. However, the thing is quite different in our TV shows. The characters are refused to talk about sex and some sex parts in the script have been removed by the direct in order to pass the verification.

Back to Friends, although, there are so many differences between cultures, we can still understand the true meaning of friends that the show is trying to convince us. When I finished watching it, I always find myself suddenly miss the six guys like they are my old friends. I feel like I should thank to them who have made the most successful TV show in my mind.