Sitcom

Grace Cuiming Li

          To begin with, letís just check on what a "sitcom" is. A sitcom or situation comedy is a television program, almost always half an hour long, with a regular cast and set in a regular location, which is usually a household or a workplace. By definition, sitcom is a comedy with a set cast, and a set location which goes on from week to week. In other words, a tendency not to change is built into the product. Although characters may strive to change, they are in a sense doomed to return each time to somewhere very close to their starting point. Hence, the sitcom is merely ìproviding a simple and reassuring problem/solution formula while the audiences are reassured rather than challenged or forced to reexamine their valuesî.