Televised Morality: The Case of Buffy the Vampire Slayer
by Gregory Stevenson
Category: Religion

The increasing frequency of moralist critiques of television shows is an acknowledgment of television's growing role in the shaping of a culture's moral values. Yet many moralist critiques misconstrue the full moral message of a show due to a restrictive focus on sex, violence, and profanity. Televised Morality explores the nature of moral discourse on television by using Buffy the Vampire Slayer as a case study. Buffy the Vampire Slayer has simultaneously been heralded as one of the most morally sophisticated shows on television and one of the most morally corrupt. The program offers a fascinating look into the divergent issues involved in the moral evaluation of television today. Stevenson argues that analysis of this show's moral vision, its methods of moral reasoning, and its narrative function reveal the complexity of moral discourse on television and provides a good model for the moral critique of other television shows.