representation - theoretical research

7/30/2019 Representation - Theoretical Research

1/8


2/8

What is Representation?

Representation in Media means, by definition, all media texts are

re-presentations of reality. This means that they are intentionally

composed, lit, written, framed, cropped, captioned, branded,

targeted and censored by their producers, and that they areentirely artificial versions of the reality we perceive around us.

Representation is a fluid, two-way process: producers position a

text somewhere in relation to reality and audiences assess a text on

its relationship to reality.

Wikipedia The action of speaking or acting on behalf of someone or the stateof being so represented. Also, the description or portrayal of someone or something

in a particular way or as being of a certain nature


3/8

What Representation theorists

can you find?Tim Osullivan 2002 key concepts in communication and cultural studies - Representationis the way in which ideas, objects, people, groups and life forms are depicted by the mass

media and is the method used by the mass media to create meanings.

Michael Maffesoli Globalism, Nationalism, Tribalism: Bringing Theory Back 2006.Identified the idea of the urban tribe members of the small groups tend to have similar

worldwide views, dress styles and common behaviours. However, this leads to the decline of

individualism.

Louis Althusser on ideology 2008, the media can manufacture a representation which

then influences society thus the society becoming that representation. When a perception iscreated by the media which takes over society and then it becomes a reality. Stereotypes, e.g.

women are vulnerable and victimised and dominated by men.


4/8


can you find?Laura Mulvey is a British feminist film theorist. The concept of gaze is one that deals withhow an audience views the people presented, for feminists it can be thought of in three ways.

1 How men look at women. 2- How women look at themselves. 3 How women look at

other women. Laura Mulvey created the Male Gaze theory in 1975. She believes that in film,

audiences have to view all characters from the perspective of a homosexual male. Argues that

cinema positions the audience as male. The camera gazes at the female object on screen. Italso frames the male character watching the female. (We watch the girl; we see the male

watching the girl; we position ourselves within the text as a male objectively gazing at the

female. Can be applied to other media forms also).

Bell Hooks developed interconnectivity of race, class and gender theory. Focused on the

perpetuation of systems of oppression and domination in the media paying particularattention to the devaluation of black womanhood. The idea of lack or otherness refers to the

way that women and ethnic minorities are usually represented as other. Their primary

purpose is simply to be other than the norm (usually a white male hero). They are therefore

known more by the context of lack than by a realised or complex identity. This theory can be

linked to ideas of the monstrous feminine found in feminist analysis of literature and art.


5/8


can you find?Judith Butler created the Queer Theory which emerges out of field of gender studies (thestudy of males and female roles historically, politically, socially, etc.). Queer theory challenges theidea that gender being male or female is part of the essential self, that it s fixed, immovable inother words Queer theory suggest that out male or female gender does not control all aspects ofour identity or we perceive other peoples identity. In other other words gender, particularly as it isrepresented in performance on TV, Film etc, is fluid, flexible depending on the context in which itis seen. For example an audience can see Tom Cruise playing a straight pilot in The Right Stuffand interpret his gender, although males, as having very queer or gay attributes. The theorydeveloped as a way of combating negative representations of gay sexuality in the Media. It combatsthe idea that people should be divided and categorised, indeed marginalised, due to their sexualorientation or practice and that a persons identity should not be limited to their sexual preference.It asks us to consider how the media constructs gay representation. (Apply to representation of gaysexuality in Knocked Up? What about Graham Norton?)

Lacan theory of Psychoanalysis and The Mirror is an idea around the idea of identity. Heconsiders the point at which a person develops a sense of self and conscious identity. He considersthe point at which a child recognises their own reflection and begins to consider how othersperceptions of how others see them, modifying their appearance to satisfy their perceptions ofhow others see them. Mulvey extends this idea when she writes about the silver screen whichsuggest operates like a metaphorical mirror; reflecting back to the female viewer representationsof female identity, but these representations are not genuine reflections of the viewer but rather

male perceptions of idealised femininity.


6/8


can you find?Dick Hebdidge subculture- representation of books. In this book, Subculture and The Meaningof Style, Dick Hebdidge said that a subculture is a group of minded individuals who feel neglectedby societal standards and who develop a sense of identity which differs to the dominant on towhich they belong. Ken Gelder lists 6 ways in which a subculture can be recognised. 1) Often havenegative relationship to work 2) Negative or ambivalent relationship to class 3) Through theirassociations with territory (The street, the hood, the club) rather that property 4) Through theirstylistic ties to excess 5) Through their movement out of home into non-domestic forms of

belonging (social groups opposed to family) 6) Though their refusal to engage with they might seeas the banalities of life. Other ways of recognising a subculture might be symbolism attached toclothes, music, visual affections like tattoos etc. (Examples Ben and his friends in Knocked Uprepresenting a subculture some of the values of which Alison and as such the America she initiallyrepresents might benefit from). Subcultural values often associated with being cool.

Anthony Giddens Traditionalist vs Post Traditionalist views of society. Media representations

of society can be seen as traditional or post traditionalist. Traditional societies are ones in whichindividual choice was limited by its dominant customs and traditions. Whereas post traditionalistsocieties are on where the ideas set by previous generations are less important that those ofindividuals. Post traditionalist societies are no longer feel so deepen were limited to time andplace. Giddens says, we are living in a post traditional society where we are much less concernedwith precedents set by previous generations and that our options are only limited by what the lawand public opinion allows. We have replaced seen/discreet systems with remote expert systems,

institutions and corporations.


7/8


can you find?Representation of Youth and Teenagers considering Quadrophenia this film is great forthinking about subculture. The film looks at mods and their interaction with the rockers. Think

about how fashion, music, language, drugs and sex are used symbolically to make meaning and

represent values like rebellion, anger and disillusion. Dick Hebdidge said that subcultures use style

to represent their resistance to the dominant ideologies of a corrupt society. They take symbols

like the smart clothes or mopeds and modify or customise them to show their alternative values.


8/8

Laura Mulveys male gaze theory directly links to Horror as they are usuallyconstructed to follow how a male would view it. Horror movie audiences are

stereotypically male, therefore films are produced to best fit the male gender. The

suspect is usually a rugged, ugly and extraordinary looking male where as the victim is

usually a cute, innocent and good looking couple or female. By giving audiences thisinformation, media texts extend experience of reality. Therefore, not only do they suit

the audience, they suit experiences of males and females in reality. For example, a

male or female being savagely murdered.


link to the Horror genre?

representation - theoretical research

Documents