'Why do I like soap operas?' asks Mumford. The answer emerges from a feminist analysis engaged in current debates about popular culture, television, and ideology. She argues that the daytime soap has an implicit and at times explicit political agenda that advocates male dominance, racism, classism, and heterosexism. Unlike other critics of the genre, Mumford situates her argument within her own history as a soap opera viewer and her struggle to reconcile her pleasure in the genre with a recognition of the form's repressive tendencies. Copyright (C) Muze Inc. 2005. For personal use only. All rights reserved.