Tribal Warfare: Survivor and the Political Unconscious of Reality Television

Tribal Warfare thoroughly investigates a central element of the hit reality television show Survivor that the existing literature on reality television has overlooked: class politics. Christopher J. Wright combines textual analysis and survey research to demonstrate that Survivor operates and resonates as a political allegory. Using the work of Fredric Jameson, this book reveals how Survivor frames its 'characters' as 'haves' and 'have-nots.' For those new to Jameson, Wright breaks down the theorist's complex notion of the political unconscious into easily understandable language. Furthermore, using the results of a survey of Survivor viewers, Tribal Warfare demonstrates that viewers divide along gender, racial, age, and--most significantly--class-related lines in their consumption of, and reaction to, the program. The first book to explore the premise of 'Survivor as society, ' this unique work serves as both an engaging analysis of a popular television program and a highly readable primer for those new to critical theory.