Rethinking Daytime Part Four: Class Consciousness - Money as a Story Engine
The class disparities between American daytime dramas and British primetime soap operas are vast. For one, soaps in the United Kingdom actually feature class differences among their characters. Storylines are frequently driven by class and financial struggles, reflecting the reality of the world that its viewers live in day to day. On the other hand, soaps in the United States often depict a glamorized economic climate in which money doesn’t appear to be a factor in storytelling. Everyone seems to live comfortable lifestyles and above their means without financial hardship.
United States: One example of an unrealistic economic climate comes from ABC’s General Hospital, the longest-running American soap opera in production. Being set in New York State, the idealistic financial circumstances portrayed on the soap are quite jarring, given that it’s one of the most expensive places to live in the country. For instance, the character of Kai Taylor (Jens Austin Astrup) is shown to be a star player for the local college football team, who isn’t shown to maintain a job until a couple of months into his debut. He is on a football scholarship, even after sustaining an injury that leaves him unable to play. This is not an accurate portrayal of most college students in the country, particularly those of color, who often rely on loans to pay for their education.
On CBS’s The Young and the Restless, the African-American Winters family is a wealthy and powerful mainstay in Genoa City. Members of this family were integral to some of the soap’s most significant storylines, in particular, Olivia (Tonya Williams) and Malcolm (Sheemar Moore). Since their debut, the family has been shown to live an extravagant lifestyle. This portrayal is unrealistic to the average viewer and does a disservice to its viewers. The Winters family on The Young and the Restless is one of the few families of color on the soap, and, given their idealistic lifestyle, it feels like representation for representation’s sake rather than an accurate portrayal of an average African-American family.
United Kingdom: In contrast, British primetime soaps depict realistic families of color and their hardships. The working-class Trinidadian-American Trueman family on BBC One’s EastEnders is a pillar of the community in Walford. Patriarch Patrick (Rudolf Walker), a shopkeeper, is the heart and soul of the family. His wife, Yolade Trueman, is also a shopkeeper and was involved in a significant storyline with Patrick in which they are victims of racism. They reunite in 2024 when Patrick supports Yolade through her sexual assault by her pastor, Gideon Clayton (Howard Saddler).
The Bailey family on ITV’s Coronation Street was the first Black family on the soap. They were introduced to Weatherfield in 2019, when they were forced to downsize as a result of Ed’s (Trevor Michael Georges) gambling, and were the central figures of a racism storyline. He then opens his own company, EGB Construction, on Victoria Street. His wife Aggie (Lorna Laidlaw) initially worked as a waitress at Roy’s Rolls before returning to Nursing in 2020. They have three children: daughter Diana (Channique Sterling-Brown), and sons Michael (Ryan Russell) and James (Jason Callender). Aggie left Weatherfield in 2023 and divorced Ed in 2024 when he started gambling again.
Conclusion: Representations of class differ greatly between American daytime dramas and British primetime soap operas. Daytime dramas in the United States depict an idealistic world in which characters are seldom affected by financial struggles. While soaps in the United States have made improvements towards representation for characters of color, there is still work to be done in developing characters who accurately reflect the society of their viewers. Meanwhile, primetime soap operas in the United Kingdom frequently portray different social classes. This method of economic realism more accurately reflects the world its viewers live in, expanding narrative possibilities and strengthening audience identification.
