Thursday 20 November 2008
The hegermonic model or the pluralistic model?
Even though i believe in the false conscienceness theory and the fact that some audiences believe exactly what the media wants them to believe but that is only to some extent. In the 21st century, audiences are more active than and what makes it even harder for the media is that society is more diverse which means that they will have to appeal to different target audiences at the same time. Because of the consumer choice and the diverse in the media, the media will have to produce texts that will appeal to their paticular target audience or else they will not sell. I believe in the pluralistic theory as i do not believe that the hyperdermic needle theory is still in place as audiences today are more active and are not oppressed to believe what ever the media inforces.
5 key points i got from A grade essay
- " How are women represented in men's lifestyle magazines such as Loaded, FHM and Maxim? To what extent do these borrow from the conventions of Playboy and other pornographic titles?"
I really like the title as it forces the student to keep comparing men's magazines and pornographic companies such as Play which will make it easier for him because he can talk about the similarities and differences.
- " Nixon's comment refers to the growth in men's grooming products on the market due to manufacturers targeting a successful modern male audience who have a large disposable income."
This sentence shows SHEP as political issues are shown which proves why this is an A grade essay as it is very hard to talk abou the economical and political factors of SHEP.
- " Loaded and FHM both feature women on the front cover scantily dressed or even naked as their sales lure, a common convention followed by most pornographic publications."
I think this qoute from this essay is important as i think it is intresting. According to this essay, men magazine's sell purely because of the women in it which links with the male gaze as the men would by the magazine for their own pleasure from the women in the magazine.
- " It enhances the stereotype to men that women are only objects of their sexual desire, and should therefore conform to what they view as attractive. This relates to the 'hyperdermic needle' theory that audiences are 'passive' and are easily influenced by what they see and hear in the media, suggesting the media has a strong link with power."
These two sentences are prime examples of concept flow and how this essay includes more than one key concept and we can see this through out the essay which could be another reason why this essay got an A.
- " An identical ideology is also developed through the construction of Playboy's front cover that follows an identical set of codes that have been examined in Loaded."
In this essay the topic is constantly being referred to and this is one example of it. This is important as it makes sure that the essay does not lose focus on the topic which is a mistake I constantly do as I go too far off the subject and the title of the essay question.
I really like the title as it forces the student to keep comparing men's magazines and pornographic companies such as Play which will make it easier for him because he can talk about the similarities and differences.
- " Nixon's comment refers to the growth in men's grooming products on the market due to manufacturers targeting a successful modern male audience who have a large disposable income."
This sentence shows SHEP as political issues are shown which proves why this is an A grade essay as it is very hard to talk abou the economical and political factors of SHEP.
- " Loaded and FHM both feature women on the front cover scantily dressed or even naked as their sales lure, a common convention followed by most pornographic publications."
I think this qoute from this essay is important as i think it is intresting. According to this essay, men magazine's sell purely because of the women in it which links with the male gaze as the men would by the magazine for their own pleasure from the women in the magazine.
- " It enhances the stereotype to men that women are only objects of their sexual desire, and should therefore conform to what they view as attractive. This relates to the 'hyperdermic needle' theory that audiences are 'passive' and are easily influenced by what they see and hear in the media, suggesting the media has a strong link with power."
These two sentences are prime examples of concept flow and how this essay includes more than one key concept and we can see this through out the essay which could be another reason why this essay got an A.
- " An identical ideology is also developed through the construction of Playboy's front cover that follows an identical set of codes that have been examined in Loaded."
In this essay the topic is constantly being referred to and this is one example of it. This is important as it makes sure that the essay does not lose focus on the topic which is a mistake I constantly do as I go too far off the subject and the title of the essay question.
Monday 17 November 2008
Analysing Domino Scene
This video of Keira Knightley and Lucy liu shows us exactly how media language can be used in certain ways to potray characters in completly different ways. The low angle shots used make the protagonist, Keira Knightley seem more powerful and God-like. Her masculity is also shown in this video as she has cuts all over her face with short blonde hair and smoking a cigerrette. Her masculity is also highlighted in this video as the close up shots emphasise her darkness as her characterstics are underlined because she is not smiling at all.
The close ups also give the target audience an insight of the amount of pain Keira Knightley has been through as the darkness around her eyes connote the suffering she has over seen. We can also see from the media language the fact that her hair is covering her face which could imply that she is hiding a different person behind her manifest self or maybe it can suggest that she is not very confident however, she is proven to be the oppositte as she is very confident in her script and is very calm.
We can see from this short video that the genre is action and thriller from all the blood and cuts in Keira Knightley's face.As the genre of this film is action we can imply that the target audience will be young males as they would be intrested in violence and blood. However this film could also appeal to females as it is based on a female protagonist which means that the young women can identify with Keira Knightley according to the uses and gratification theory bexause they might have had the same disturbing lifestyle. They can also watch this film as they would aspire to be powerful and independent just like Keira Knightley.
When talking about SHEP i can mention social issues such as smoking raised in this video. Also violence is raised in this video as we can the amount of violence Keira has witnessed in this film. Also, historical factors could be raised such as the fact that women's priorities have changed over the years as if this film was released in the 20th century, a female character will not be seen bruised up smoking a cigerrette and wearing revealing clothing, instead, Keira Knightley would be a housewife in the kitchen taking care of her children and her husband. However, this film shows how the male dominant society of the 20th century has faded away and now women have been more powerfull than they ever been before.
The close ups also give the target audience an insight of the amount of pain Keira Knightley has been through as the darkness around her eyes connote the suffering she has over seen. We can also see from the media language the fact that her hair is covering her face which could imply that she is hiding a different person behind her manifest self or maybe it can suggest that she is not very confident however, she is proven to be the oppositte as she is very confident in her script and is very calm.
We can see from this short video that the genre is action and thriller from all the blood and cuts in Keira Knightley's face.As the genre of this film is action we can imply that the target audience will be young males as they would be intrested in violence and blood. However this film could also appeal to females as it is based on a female protagonist which means that the young women can identify with Keira Knightley according to the uses and gratification theory bexause they might have had the same disturbing lifestyle. They can also watch this film as they would aspire to be powerful and independent just like Keira Knightley.
When talking about SHEP i can mention social issues such as smoking raised in this video. Also violence is raised in this video as we can the amount of violence Keira has witnessed in this film. Also, historical factors could be raised such as the fact that women's priorities have changed over the years as if this film was released in the 20th century, a female character will not be seen bruised up smoking a cigerrette and wearing revealing clothing, instead, Keira Knightley would be a housewife in the kitchen taking care of her children and her husband. However, this film shows how the male dominant society of the 20th century has faded away and now women have been more powerfull than they ever been before.
Monday 3 November 2008
10 keywords and why they are important for my independent study
1- Laura Mulvey
Feminist academic and media and film critic, responsible for developing theory of the male gaze.
She is obviously one of the main people I am going to focus on in my study as I will be talking about the representation of woman and how not all women are there in the media to entertain males.
2- Hypodermic theory
Effects media texts have on audiences.
This will be used in my study as in the film I am studying, they women are challenging female stereotypes which could affect audiences and how they consume the text.
3- Hegemony
Total dominance achieved by the ruling elite in society.
Today, the ruling elite are arguably males which will mean male dominance in society is occurring. This is important as my study is basically about how women are normally kept in their place however in Domino; the protagonist is taking a masculine role.
4- Glass ceiling
I couldn’t find this in the pack nonetheless I have learnt this in my sociology class. It basically means that no matter how much women achieve in their life, they will still be under men. The glass ceiling comes from the fact that women can see what can be achieved but there is a glass ceiling stopping them from achieving this goal.
It is vital that I include this in my study as it shows that in today’s postmodern society, the only way women can get the power that men have is by taking a masculine role like Keira Knightly in Domino.
5- Oppositional reading
Reading of a media text that rejects the ideological positioning and apparent meaning intended by the producers of the text and substitutes a radical alternative.
This will be essential in my study as this film will get a lot of oppositional readings as it challenges nearly all women stereotypes.
6- Uses and gratification theory
An active audience theory that focuses on what people do with the media.
The audience could use this film as an escapism tool and will especially appeal to young rebellious women who can identify with the protagonist which is Keira Knightly.
7- Censorship
The practice, exercised by elite groups in society of monitoring and controlling media content by removing elements deemed offensive.
In Domino, there are lots of deleted scenes therefore including censorship in my study will come in handy.
8- Antonio Gramsci
An important source for the development of theories of ideology and the role of the media in reproducing dominant ideology. He also talks about hegemony.
As I explained before about the term hegemony, he discusses the fact that male dominance can affect how audiences consume media texts.
9- Hero
The principle male or female protagonist in any narrative, with whom the audience identifies with.
Keira Knightly is like a hero in the eyes of females as she challenged a male dominant society and did not fit awful stereotypes given to women.
10- Male gaze
Term used by Laura Mulvey to describe what she saw as the male point of view adopted by the camera for the benefit of an assumed male audience.
This could link with the ‘strip scene’ I am analysing as in that scene Keira Knightly appeals to the male audience as they are entertained by her sexual actions.
Feminist academic and media and film critic, responsible for developing theory of the male gaze.
She is obviously one of the main people I am going to focus on in my study as I will be talking about the representation of woman and how not all women are there in the media to entertain males.
2- Hypodermic theory
Effects media texts have on audiences.
This will be used in my study as in the film I am studying, they women are challenging female stereotypes which could affect audiences and how they consume the text.
3- Hegemony
Total dominance achieved by the ruling elite in society.
Today, the ruling elite are arguably males which will mean male dominance in society is occurring. This is important as my study is basically about how women are normally kept in their place however in Domino; the protagonist is taking a masculine role.
4- Glass ceiling
I couldn’t find this in the pack nonetheless I have learnt this in my sociology class. It basically means that no matter how much women achieve in their life, they will still be under men. The glass ceiling comes from the fact that women can see what can be achieved but there is a glass ceiling stopping them from achieving this goal.
It is vital that I include this in my study as it shows that in today’s postmodern society, the only way women can get the power that men have is by taking a masculine role like Keira Knightly in Domino.
5- Oppositional reading
Reading of a media text that rejects the ideological positioning and apparent meaning intended by the producers of the text and substitutes a radical alternative.
This will be essential in my study as this film will get a lot of oppositional readings as it challenges nearly all women stereotypes.
6- Uses and gratification theory
An active audience theory that focuses on what people do with the media.
The audience could use this film as an escapism tool and will especially appeal to young rebellious women who can identify with the protagonist which is Keira Knightly.
7- Censorship
The practice, exercised by elite groups in society of monitoring and controlling media content by removing elements deemed offensive.
In Domino, there are lots of deleted scenes therefore including censorship in my study will come in handy.
8- Antonio Gramsci
An important source for the development of theories of ideology and the role of the media in reproducing dominant ideology. He also talks about hegemony.
As I explained before about the term hegemony, he discusses the fact that male dominance can affect how audiences consume media texts.
9- Hero
The principle male or female protagonist in any narrative, with whom the audience identifies with.
Keira Knightly is like a hero in the eyes of females as she challenged a male dominant society and did not fit awful stereotypes given to women.
10- Male gaze
Term used by Laura Mulvey to describe what she saw as the male point of view adopted by the camera for the benefit of an assumed male audience.
This could link with the ‘strip scene’ I am analysing as in that scene Keira Knightly appeals to the male audience as they are entertained by her sexual actions.
Sunday 2 November 2008
Book Research
I have pulled out a book from my local library about media studies by Ziauddin Sardar and Borin Van Loon and it has a section on representations of women. This section of the book is essential to my study as it underlines the fact that woman are always seen as 'objects of the male-gaze. This book also talks about the fact that women are constently stereotyped as 'bimbos' in the media. This tern 'biimbo' is seems to have very denigrating connotations in todays postmordern society we are living in. This book also identifies to us the characteristics of a 'bimbo'. She must be blonde with flashy make-up,large breasts, a mini skirt and high heels. She is also meant to be promiscuous stupid and uneducated.
The section of the book carries on to talk about the fact that there are two types of women and that a female can only fit one catogary. There is the pure maternal modestMadonna-like woman and there the loose,sexual, amoral and sinful woman. Also, Sardar and Van Loon go on to talk about a womans dependancy on make up and cosmatics and artificial modifications.
This book links perfectly with my study as it shows how oppositte the character of Domino Harvey is from a typical woman. Keira Knightly in Domino chalenges all the stereotypes as she doesnot take care of how she looks and she is notin anyhow stupid or uneducated as she excels her job as a bounty hunter. I will use this book and other books i find as a guide to see how Keira Knightly and a 'typical' woman juxtipose to an extent.
The section of the book carries on to talk about the fact that there are two types of women and that a female can only fit one catogary. There is the pure maternal modestMadonna-like woman and there the loose,sexual, amoral and sinful woman. Also, Sardar and Van Loon go on to talk about a womans dependancy on make up and cosmatics and artificial modifications.
This book links perfectly with my study as it shows how oppositte the character of Domino Harvey is from a typical woman. Keira Knightly in Domino chalenges all the stereotypes as she doesnot take care of how she looks and she is notin anyhow stupid or uneducated as she excels her job as a bounty hunter. I will use this book and other books i find as a guide to see how Keira Knightly and a 'typical' woman juxtipose to an extent.
Bibliography
http://www.wikipedia.com/
http://www.mediagaurdian.com/
http://www.newline.com/
http://www.keiraknightley.com/
http://www.dominomovie.com/
http://www.variety.com/
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/
http://www.richard-kelly.net/news/news.php?id=79&from=2005
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3671572.stm
http://www.dominomovie.com/real_domino_harvey.html
http://movies.about.com/od/domino/a/domino072005.htm
http://www.hollywood.com/feature/Domino_Interviews_Mickey_Rourke_and_Edgar_Ramirez/2446166
http://www.dvdcompare.net/comparisons/film.php?fid=8773
http://www.mediagaurdian.com/
http://www.newline.com/
http://www.keiraknightley.com/
http://www.dominomovie.com/
http://www.variety.com/
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/
http://www.richard-kelly.net/news/news.php?id=79&from=2005
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3671572.stm
http://www.dominomovie.com/real_domino_harvey.html
http://movies.about.com/od/domino/a/domino072005.htm
http://www.hollywood.com/feature/Domino_Interviews_Mickey_Rourke_and_Edgar_Ramirez/2446166
http://www.dvdcompare.net/comparisons/film.php?fid=8773
Analysing poster (Migrain)
The poster potrays the darkness in Keira Knightly in every sense. Iam going to use Migrain to analyse how the personality of Keira Knightly's character is explored in the poster.Media Language-
The setting is significant as she is sitting in a dark place surrounded by blackness. This could connote that she is trapped in this evil world with no way out. The lighting is also important as the 'spotlight' is on her. This could suggest that she is the protagonist in this film and that all eyes are on her. The Mese en scene shows us Keira Knightly by her self which automaticaly connotes her independance and that she doesn't need anyone,
Representation-
Her short hair implies her masculinity which represents her as manly as she doesn't care about her hair or look. From the darkness around her eyes we can see that she is represented as very quite and that could suggest that she has a darker side to her and that she has a lot to hide. The blackness around her eyes can also connote the pain she has suffered. The injury in her hand can represent her as very daring and always living on the edge. Her blonde hair and her promescoues clothing potrays the fact that she is still a girl and will always be the second sex trying to impress the males in a patriarchal society.
Audience-
Independant women who slightly in the feminist side will be intrested as Keira Knightly looks like a woman who does not need any male power to help her i her life. As she is smoking a ciggerette, Knightly could appeal to the rebelious teenage girls as they might lead similar lifestyles.
Ideology-
The main ideology in this poster is the fact that even though she is living in a male dominant patriarchal society, Keira Knightly is still an independant woman taking care of herself. Another ideology could be rebeliousness as she is sitting their smoking a ciggerette with her legs up. She is like a rebelious young teenager who wants to be opposing society doing whatever she wants.
Most of the things that i have mentioned in this post are social factors in SHEP for example, smoking is a rising social factor upon young adults today as they believe that one way to rebel against the goverement is by taking drugs. Another issure is male dominance but today women are becoming more independant where they now are focusing more on their careers than becoming housewives.
Historically, films in the 20th century will not show a woman smoking a ciggerette and dressing promescuisly however, they will potray women as housewives taking care of children and being controlled by men.
Keira Knightly
Keira Knightley is also a famous Hollywood actress. Even though she is not as famous as Angelina Joie, Keira Knightley's career kicked off after the release of Bend It Like Beckham and The Pirates Of The Carrabean Trilogy. Keira Knightly comes a rich childhood as her mother was an award winning playwright and her dad was a theater and television actor. Bend It Like Beckham was the film that launched Knightly's acting career as it was a success grossing about $18 million only in the UK. After Bend It Like Beckham, Knightly starred in the big budget action film The Pirates Of The Carrabean alongside Orlando Bloom and Johnny Depp.
Just like Angelina Jolie, Keira Knightly has been in a lot of action and thriller films that show her chalenging female stereotypes and one example of this is Domino itself. Another film that potrays Keira Knightly as chalenging female stereotypes even though it is not an action or thriller film is the football-themed Bend It Like Beckham. Females are not usually stereotyped to be sporty however, in this film, Keira Knightly and Parminder Nagra are both seen being very sporty playing a man's sport even though they are being criticised by their parents. This film, just like Domino, connotes the postmordern society we are living in where these kind of films which chalenge stereotypes completly are exepted and enjoyed.
Nevertheless, even though Keira Knightly has a lot in common with Angelina Jolie, the two actors also differ as in real life, Angelina Jolie carries out these manly actions and we can see that from her tattoos however, Knightly is the complete oppositte of what she is potrayed as in films such as Domino and Bend It Like Beckham as in reality she is a model and she takes care of her body as we can see from her figure.
Saturday 1 November 2008
Research on Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie is one of the most known and high-paid actresses in the bussiness winning oscars and acadamy awards. Angelina Jolie started acting with her father Jon Voight in the movie 'Looking To Get Out'. Throughtout Angelina Jolie's acting career, Jolie has been involved in lots of action and thriler movies. Examples of these films are Mr. And Mrs. Smith, Wanted, Tomb Raider etc. In most of her films, Jolie, just like Keira Knightly in Domino, chalenges female stereotypes for instance, Jolie is always seen with a gun in films like Mr. And Mrs. Smith and Wanted and she is not passive and girly like actors such as Hilary Duff and Lindsay Lohan. Jolie has always been the aggerasive woman in most of her films not only by bieng equiped by dangerous machinary but also talking with a manly tone and generaly being active. In her films she is very similar to Keira Knightly in domino as she takes care of herself and doesn't need any man to take care of her however, we always see her surrounded by powerful men for example Brad Pitt in Mr. And Mrs. Smith which makes the audience feel that woman do need men after all no matter how independent they are.
We can see Angelina Jolie's masculinity in reality as she owns a large amount of tatoo. To be specific, Jolie has 13 known tatoos which automaticaly underlines her manly behaviour and masculinity and that would affect her acting as she would take these manly actions with her when she is acting. We can see that in her films as she is normally an independant, strong, aggerasive woman who takes care of her self. However, In most of her films, the only power she possess is when she is armed with weapons and weapons such as guns are often seen as phalic symbols. This highlights the fact that woman will only feel powerful if they use something that reminds them of men.
We can see Angelina Jolie's masculinity in reality as she owns a large amount of tatoo. To be specific, Jolie has 13 known tatoos which automaticaly underlines her manly behaviour and masculinity and that would affect her acting as she would take these manly actions with her when she is acting. We can see that in her films as she is normally an independant, strong, aggerasive woman who takes care of her self. However, In most of her films, the only power she possess is when she is armed with weapons and weapons such as guns are often seen as phalic symbols. This highlights the fact that woman will only feel powerful if they use something that reminds them of men.
New Line Cinema
New Line cinema is an institution that is owned by Time Warner and is now a division of Warner Bros. New Line Cinema, created by Bob Shaye, used to be a small distrubution company in New York City However, today New Line Cinema is one of the biggest and most celebrated film producing companies in the world. New Line Cinema had lots of famous successes for instance films such as Serial Mom, The Lords Of The Rings film trilogy, the Friday trilogy and Get Out Your Handherchief which was the first New Line Cinema film to win an oscar. New Line Cinema's biggest success is The Lords Of The Rings trilogy as it grossed about $3 billion at the worldwide box office. New Line Cinema is known for the films they relsease and the variety of their genres for example as well as comedy films such as the wedding crashers and Friday, New Line Cinema also released action films such Chris Tucker's Rush Hour and most importantly Domino. The film Domino was first denied by 20th Century Fox and in the end the film was financed by New Line Cinema.
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