The thesis examines American teen dramas on Australian television in the period 1992 to 2004. It explores the use of the genre by broadcasters and its uptake by teenagers in an environment where American popular culture has frequently been treated with suspicion and where there are perennial arguments about the Americanisation of youth and their vulnerability to cultural imperialism. The thesis argues concerns about Americanisation and cultural imperialism in relation to youth culture, young people and the media are misplaced. American teen dramas are investigated as an example of the ways imported programs are made to cohere with national logics within the Australian mediasphere (Hartley, 1996). Utilising Yuri Lotman's (1990) theory of cultural 'translation' this thesis argues teen drams are evidence of dynamic change within the system of television and that this change does not result in a system dominated by imported product, but rather a system that situates foreign programming amongst domestic frames of reference.

[pt] Esta dissertação tem como objetivo refletir sobre a construção e o desenvolvimento dos relacionamentos afetivos heterossexuais entre os jovens, tendo como base ilustrativa a série da Netflix Areia Movediça. A partir da representação do relacionamento amoroso entre os personagens principais da série, Maja e Sebastian, foi proposto um debate sobre as transformações sofridas pelo amor romântico na contemporaneidade, a forma como as juventudes lidam com essa área da vida e, por fim, como a interlocução desses dois aspectos pode resultar em uma relação abusiva. Para isso, a pesquisa é dividida em três partes. Na primeira, discutem-se as juventudes e a importância da prática de se assistir a séries na perspectiva dos jovens. Na segunda, há uma breve introdução a Areia Movediça, com o objetivo de contextualizar o leitor. Por meio da análise das cenas, são debatidas temáticas intrínsecas ao universo juvenil consideradas tabus, até se chegar ao tema dos relacionamentos amorosos. Na terceira parte, discutem-se a desigualdade entre gêneros e como ela atua na construção dos relacionamentos abusivos, a partir da história sobre o amor vivido pelos protagonistas de Areia Movediça. / [en] This thesis aims to reflect upon the construction and development of teen romantic heterosexual relationships having the Netflix s Quicksand series as background for the analysis. Maja and Sebastian s relationship helps shed light into the transformations romantic relationships have underwent in modern times, and on how teenagers deal with this aspect of their lives. Quicksand shows us that the combination of romance and teenagers may eventually trigger abusive relationships. In order to elaborate on those topics, the research has been divided into three different parts. The first part debates youth and the relevance of watching television series for teens. The second part is a short introduction on Quicksand. Scene analysis reinforces themes intrinsic to the teen universe that are still considered taboo. The third part reflects on gender inequality and its role in the construction of abusive relationships as depicted in the Quicksand protagonists love story.