After reading a post on Savage Minds about how HBO’s The Wire might be ‘our best ethnographic text on the U.S. today’ I decided to check it out. I don’t typically watch TV let alone TV series, with the exception of a few choice shows, but I must say: The Wire is a masterpiece. It’s ability to weave such an intricate plot, be entertaining, and still accurately represent the reality of urban life and structural power is simply amazing. It’s refreshing to find a show crafted with such awareness and attention to detail (for example, the writers use a lot of contemporary slang, much of which is unique to the city of Baltimore, to enhance the shows realism).
I just started season 2 yesterday. Season 1 mostly focused on the Baltimore drug trade and black urban life (additionally, it seems that institutional bureaucracy, from the various police precincts to the catholic church is a common theme running throughout the entire show). Season 2 so far is focusing more on white urban life, in specific the lives of dock workers struggling to keep their jobs at one of the city’s deteriorating ports. To be honest, I found it hard to get into The Wire when I initially started watching it. The show is at times slow and methodical, building characters and situations in such a way as to heighten its realism. If you come from a habit of watching other more sensational shows like Nip/Tuck or CSI, it may take a few episodes to settle in – but it’s worth it. I wish I would have known about the show sooner. Coming from an anthropological perspective, it employs many of the themes common in Anthropology, such as Bourdieu’s various notions of capital and symbolic violence. The representation of structural power portrayed in many of the characters’ struggles with the various institutions within which they find themselves embedded is genuinely educational. I agree with many of the comments over @ Savage Minds that The Wire would be a nice addition to a course related to these themes (i.e. Anthropology, Sociology, etc).
It’s easy to see why many critics have claimed The Wire is the best TV series of all time. It’s a shame such a great show went under my radar for so long!
Tagged: anthropology, review, sociology, structural power, television, The Wire
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3 Comments
Heh, it seems kind of silly to say this given that I had the same “best show ever” reaction after the first season, but you haven’t seen nuthin’ yet. Season 4 is by far the best out of all the seasons, and the central focus happens to be on education.
I’ll have to check it out.
The other day I briefly saw an episode on BET where Pryzbylewski was teaching at a school – I quickly turned it off so it wouldn’t ruin the surprise! Can’t wait to see how the show develops!