ABSTRACT
This chapter analyzes the first season of the reality television show 'The Bachelor', including all six episodes and the 'Women Tell All' episode that aired before the finale of the show. It investigates The Bachelor to uncover mediated myths of sex, love, and romance, as explained by Galician in her book Sex, Love, and Romance in the Mass Media: Analysis and Criticism of Unrealistic Portrayals and Their Influence, perpetuated in this reality television show. The chapter describes the heterosexual imaginary and heterosexuality as an institution in detail to help explicate how this belief contributes to the myths of romantic relationships present in The Bachelor. It deconstructs The Bachelor to provide an in-depth discussion of the myths embedded within this romance reality text. The chapter discusses the implications of the myths in the text, the nature of 'Must Marry TV' as a damaging form of romantic narrative, and the embedded nature of the heterosexual imaginary in our society.
