Abstract

Pimp My Bride

Reality marriage television shows have angered conservatives who feel that the programs represent marriage as a kind of popularity contest. But one could easily argue that these shows take marriage for granted as a basic fact of life and revel in its endlessly fascinating details. And yet, the conservatives are ultimately right: "The Bachelor," "Joe Millionaire," "Average Joe," "My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiance" and all the other "win a husband/wife" shows surely trivialize the sanctity of marriage and, in the process, turn straight coupling, for better or for worse, into pure entertainment. The reality marriage shows actually replace family sitcoms about the drudgery and necessary hardship of marriage and challenge other sitcoms about the fun of single life. In the end, The Bachelor/ette openly depicts heterosexual mating patterns in a Darwinian, "survival of the cutest" way, in which men and women choose mates based on looks and immediate sexual chemistry alone. A whole series of shows that followed "The Bachelor," made it their mission to show that heterosexual men and women care about more than just money and looks. Few of the hopefuls on reality marriage shows actually marry their new mates.