ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the way that the long-running reality show used the techniques of ritual to create a powerful myth through the medium of television. In the ordinary course of renovations most homeowners must endure a period of living in a disrupted environment as their home is repaired around them. In this case, the homeowners are treated to an expenses-paid vacation and avoid the inconveniences of renovation altogether. An object from the family's life before the destruction of the home is preserved and transformed and then replaced in the new home to form a symbolic bridge to the past. Both media fall into the category of performances that profess to be "true" as contrasted with those that are understood to be "false" or fictional. There are many possible approaches to analyzing the makeover reality television show, including other analyses that, like this one, include ritual, morality, ethics, and other religious concerns.
