Watching the End of the World – 6
Jenna spoke up. ���I tried to get Arnie to tell me more about the show but he acted very mysterious about it. All he would say was that it wasn���t quite like any reality show ever done, and the director wanted to keep the details secret until we got there. Something about not spoiling the dramatic intensity of the show.���
���Dramatic intensity,��� Nate said with a snort. ���Give me a break.���
Jenna turned her gaze on him. ���You don���t think reality TV has dramatic intensity?���
���No. I don���t. It���s all fake. It���s manufactured drama.���
���How is that different from a movie? Isn���t that also manufactured drama?���
���Yes, but������ Others were listening in now and Nate began to wish he���d kept his mouth shut. He had a feeling he���d stepped into a trap and it would only get tighter the more he wriggled. ���A movie���s different. It���s not trying to pass itself off as real.���
���And reality shows do?���
���Exactly. They try to make us believe that the drama, the interactions between characters, is all real.���
���But it���s not.���
���No. The actors on those shows know they���re on camera the entire time. I���m not saying they don���t actually get into real fights, but everything they do is based around the knowledge that the camera is always watching. No matter how convincing they might be, it���s still all fake.���
���You don���t think that after enough time that the people on those shows start to forget the cameras are there? That they become used to their presence to the point where their true feelings come out?���
Nate hesitated. He hadn���t thought about that. ���I suppose it���s possible. I���ll still take a well-written and well-acted play or movie any day over reality TV.���
���Why?��� She had piercing green eyes that seemed to pin Nate into place.
Nate looked to Tony for help. Tony held up his hands as if to say, you got yourself into this. ���Great drama, like great literature, gives us a window into the human condition,��� Nate said. Great. Now he sounded like his high school English teacher.
���So, watching a quality movie gives us a chance to see how people react to their lives and the other people around them?���
���Yeah. Pretty much.��� The edge of the cliff felt closer.
���Doesn���t reality TV do the same thing? Isn���t it popular for exactly the same reason, because it gives the audience a chance to see how real people interact?���
���But, it���s not the same,��� Nate spluttered. People were grinning. He definitely should have just kept his mouth shut.
���No, it���s not. One is only people pretending to react to things. The other is people actually reacting to things.��� She gave him a triumphant smile.
���Okay,��� Nate said weakly. ���I surrender.��� Jenna opened her bag and took out a magazine and started flipping through it.
Watching the End of the World excerpt.
Author’s note: Many people��believe that��WTEOTW is quite possibly the greatest gift you could give a loved one. Ever. Who are these people? I don’t know. But I’m quite sure they exist. :)
