The last chapter critically reviewed the literature on emotion and affect primarily within feminist theory in order to outline some of the key developments in research on the concept of emotion. This chapter will turn to film theory, where the concept of emotion has been explored primarily through research by cognitive film theorists. Television is still a new area in terms of work on emotion and affect, so it is necessary to draw on theoretical ideas within film studies in order to think about how these ideas might be transposed to television studies. There are some obvious problems with the movement from film theory to television theory – such as differences in ‘gaze’, as Chapter 2 raised, or differences in audiences, as Chapter 1 considered, but alongside developments within cultural theory, as the last chapter discussed, this is the best way to work towards a model of how we can consider and evaluate the concept of emotion in television.

Two examples

In Star Wars, as Luke prepares himself to fire on the Death Star, Obi-wan Kenobi encourages him to ‘trust his feelings’; it is an iconic moment and precedes the rebel victory over the ‘dark side’ of the force. Obi-wan's insistence that Luke ‘trust his feelings’ instead of the computer targeting system privileges gut instinct over scientific/ technical accuracy and gives feelings/emotions new significance. Indeed the whole series emphasises the powerful role feelings play in our lives.