Samantah McKelvie
The first time I watched Jersey Shore in my dorm room with my roommates, I laughed hysterically. I wasn’t laughing because I thought it was funny in a good way either; I was laughing because I thought it was the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever seen and could not believe it was an actual show on real television. I remember saying to my roomies, “This show is not going to make it past the first episode before it’s canceled and if it does, I will lose all faith in the American people.” Well, needless to say I was wrong. The second season of the show recently ended with a third one on its way.
To my surprise, Jersey Shore became a very successful show. The majority of the people I know watch the show and I rarely ever turn the TV on or open up a magazine without seeing something about it. Although the show wasn’t a complete flop like I thought it would be, I didn’t lose my faith in the American people because before I knew it, I found myself on the band wagon as well.
To me Jersey Shore was nothing more than a reality show about a bunch of mindless, obnoxious, drunken, sex crazy, partying “adults” that have no real goals in life and nothing significant to contribute to society. Harsh but true. The sad part is, even though I still believe this, I find myself sitting in front of my TV every Thursday waiting for it to come on. Why? Well at first I couldn’t really figure it out either, but now after much thought, I think I know why I enjoy it along with the rest of America.
First of all, Jersey Shore, and shows like it, make me laugh. Sometimes I’m laughing at how ridiculous the show is and other times I’m laughing because it’s actually funny. Regardless of why I’m laughing, the fact is that everyone likes to laugh; it’s good for the soul. Secondly, these shows are entertaining. Yes, watching people make fools of themselves is entertaining. Watching “Snooki” do and say the most ridiculous things is entertaining. Watching “Mike, The Situation” play pranks on his roommates is entertaining. I can’t speak for anyone else but I’ll speak for myself when I say watching someone else’s life is rather entertaining. This brings me to my next point; people like to watch other people’s lives. This is why celebrities are celebrities. This is why there are paparazzi and shows that are dedicated to giving the public information about other people’s lives. This is why people buy magazines and watch shows like Jersey Shore. We want to see more more more. We want to watch these shows and say “Gee I wish that was me” or “I’m glad that’s not me” or “That’s just like me.” We want to feel closer to these people.
Now here comes my big finale. All of the reasons for watching these shows sum up to one final conclusion. We watch these shows because we want to take a break from our everyday lives and jump into this other realm. We want to laugh, be entertained, and not worry about that math test we have tomorrow or that long workday ahead.
So yes, I like to watch Jersey Shore because sometimes I just don’t want to think. I want to watch this mindless garbage and fry my brain cells for an hour or so. I use my brain at school, I use my brain at work, I’m always thinking. So why on earth would I want to think while I’m watching a television show? And don’t get me wrong, I still love to watch educational shows where I do have to think, but I really don’t want to think every second of my day. I want to shut my brain off and watch the cast of Jersey Shore get drunk and do stupid things. So the next time someone says to me, “Why do you watch that mindless crap, it’s so stupid?” That’s going to be my response.
