Topic > Understanding the Attention Behind Reality TV

It's 2015 and many people of all ages just can't watch enough reality shows; the glamour, the lights, the makeup, the camera crew following their every move, conversation and discussion. Many popular reality shows promote negativity and vanity rather than humility, resulting in a society more concerned with what people think. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayThe enthusiasm of twenty-first century reality shows should not come as a surprise to many of us considering the fact that our society displays an extreme love towards conceit and self-indulgence; but why? It's time to be aware of the void that we as people avoid. The French philosopher Blaise Pascal wrote: “What else do this longing and this impotence proclaim except that once there was true happiness in a man, of which all that now remains is the point and the empty trace? This tries in vain to fill it with everything that surrounds it...". In other words, Pascal prophesied and showed awareness of the inner emptiness that individuals have inside to fill the void with the void. Money, cars, sex, drugs, alcohol are some of the things Pascal was referring to. The society we live in often ignores virtue and jumps to “feeling good” and “looking good” in the eyes of the public. Reality television reflects just this. With or without a script, reality shows often aim for the goal of naturalness, regular life, but subliminally achieve the goal of empty inner emptiness. Reality shows give the idea, episode after episode, season after season, hour after hour, that there is no escape or destination to legitimate joy, but instead external happiness in having or possessing something inside. Reality shows often fail to mention that there is a positive way to overcome emptiness or the need for possession and that joy is achievable. Physiatrist Viktor Frankl also stated: “People who live with this existential crisis “do not have the awareness of a meaning worth living for. They are haunted by the experience of their inner emptiness, a void within themselves; they are trapped in that situation that I have called the “existential void”. Comparing this quote to reality shows, Frankl speaks of “existential emptiness” as a life without meaning, or an inner emptiness. Frank Sinatra once said, “He who dies with the most toys wins.” But are materials and goods the only key to life? Reality shows often fail to notice and subliminally promote that a person's life consists of owned objects and portray a void of self-esteem. Let's take a look at Keeping Up with the Kardashians as they celebrate their eleventh season. For starters, the Kardashian family owes its originality to their father, Robert Kardashian, who helped defend the OJ Simpson case. Kim Kardashian has also been a massive source of publicity for their family thanks to her sex tape with former rapper Ray J. As we've seen on back-to-back seasons of Keeping Up with the Kardashians, what do they appreciate? Kim appreciates the self-care and appearance of buying a $400,000 Rolls Royce, as well as trading it in for another car when she doesn't feel like driving it. Is Kourtney Kardashian having her third child, with Scott Disick, out of wedlock, perhaps to fill the void of her father's absence? We are exposed to their lives on a screen and see what they possess. They can literally have what they want at their fingertips whenever they want it. For example, in a throwback episode in 2010, Kylie Jenner was envious that Kendall Jenner could take photos of models, have her parents (Kris and Bruce Jenner) review them, and,.