Love and Loathing: The Responses to the Dramas

This chapter provides an overview of all the responses received by examining each of the five dramas screened in turn, drawing on comments made by the participants in written surveys and focus group discussions, as well as any relevant observations made during the screenings. Through their responses the feelings of the young people about the period drama genre are communicated, as well as their investment in the values and issues at the heart of many of the dramas. The chapter observes the great diversity in the responses received, with participants exhibiting vastly different reactions from group to group. Significantly, the power of social influences, and the impact that the group screenings had on the data collected is also clearly evidenced, with the data strongly suggestive of this as a key factor in the formation of judgements. The chapter notes that many participants expressed enjoyment arising from an engagement with historical representations, although opinions were split with regards to the relevance of the dramas to the lives of the young people.