Representations and social imaginaries of the abuse of power in Chilean late-night soap operas
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2023
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Abstract
Even though there has been changes in technology and cultural consumption practices, soap operas continued to be viewed, making them one of the most watched pro-ducts on television in Chile; as a result, their represen-tations play a key role in the construction of social ima-ginaries. Based on the review of three Chilean late-night soap operas -El Senor de la Querencia (2008), Perdo-na nuestros pecados (2017-2018), and Juegos de poder (2019)- this article analyzes the representations of the abuse of power, and how they contribute to the creation of a common imaginary about the power and its legiti-macy. Narrative and tele-visual analysis was conducted, considering the hermeneutical synthesis of soap operas as situated discursivities. The results show that the sto-ries propose the foundations of the abuse of power on moral corruption and resentment. We conclude that, in late-night soap operas, through the use of melodrama and suspense, the abuse of power is a topic that builds a polarized value scheme from which the legitimate exerci-se of power is delimited.
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Night soap opera, abuse of power, open tele-vision, representations of power, social imaginaries