Faking It

FAKING IT
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Lisa Gray is a Castleford born chemist who is chosen to star in a reality show called ‘Faking It’. Hailing from an average-life background, the show requires her to undergo a complete makeover that will revolutionize her personality from its core, on areas such as speech, and transform her into a ‘Lady of London.’ Assisted by three professionals who have studied basic aspects of the elite culture, Lisa’s ultimate task is to attend a dinner party and fit into a group of about nine strangers, all of whom come from a noble background and fit in as one of them.
In her quest to rise up to the task ahead, Lisa undergoes a number of challenges. She is required to change her accent to suit that of a high-class lady. She is also required to adjust her posture into an upright one similar to that of the social elite in London. Her table etiquette also suffers as she is taught how to eat, hold wine glasses and converse like a true London lady. The intensity of the challenge of adjusting her whole personality is further fuelled by the fact she is required to assume all these traits even when in her subconscious and reflex state. Furthermore, she has to assimilate all that she has been taught within a limited timeframe of just a few weeks. At one point, the pressure gets too much and she becomes homesick leading to her being issued a break from the whole faking it routine.
Lisa’s case depicts the culture capital concept of sociology.

According to Matthys (2012, 238) this concept involves the accumulation of certain cultural knowledge and skills in order to fit into a particular social setting. The show also illustrates the social class concept. Defined as where a group of people is ranked as either superior or inferior based on demographic factors such as education, wealth and occupation (Liu, 2011, 18), it appears in scenarios where only members who belong to the high social class are invited to prestigious events and invites only dinner parties.
In line with the two social concepts, a few of theories can be related. First is the structural functionalism theory, which explains that social stability relies heavily on social institutions. These institutions or structures (e.g., economic activity, religion, and education) function independently but eventually interrelate to ensure society functions effectively (Dillon, 2009, 79). In reference to the reality show, Lisa is taught various aspects of the social elite’s lifestyle so as to fit into their society.
The most notable theory portrayed in the reality show is the conflict theory. According to Dillon (2009, 4-5), conflict theory, popularized by Karl Marx, depicts society as somewhat competitive with inequality on the bases of gender, social class, education etc. According to the show, high social status guarantees one the respect and prestige of sharing a table with the noble. Also, during Lisa’s training, she was informed that women are not entitled to an opinion on any subject such as politics and religion; in order to avoid scandals; clearly illustrating the conflict between male and female interests. To some extent, conflict theory seems to collide with the feminist theory as the latter advocates for representation and contribution of women in various aspects of the society (Dillon, 2009, 311).

References
Dillon, M., 2009. Introduction to sociological theory: Theorists, concepts, and their applicability to the twenty-first century. John Wiley & Sons.
Liu, W.M., 2010. Social class and classism in the helping professions: Research, theory, and practice. Sage Publications.
Matthys, M., 2012. Cultural capital, identity, and social mobility: The life course of working-class university graduates (Vol. 79). Routledge.