Showing posts with label gender. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gender. Show all posts

Tuesday, 11 November 2014

Gender representation - Sherlock Holmes



When the video starts There is an establishing shot with some upbeat music (diegetic sound), we are immediately drawn in my the combination of the sound and the shot, which focuses us on the fact that there are no women in the scene. This is quite an effective way of stereotyping that the world that we live in is a very much male dominated one. Also worth focusing on is that the people (men) in this scene all clearly have good jobs, and I will explain how I came to that conclusion below, it portrays the representation stereotype that women all occupy lower level jobs comparatively with their male counterpart, if we look in deeper we could see that this has been used to represent that they also occupy a generally lower role in society as a whole and that they are an inferior gender. 

In this same section of the video we find out that these men are represented to have high level jobs, we can tell this as they are wearing high level clothes, such as suits, top hats and pocket watches. All of these items are associated with wealth. This gives the impression that women are generally accepted (due to a stereotypee) to be inferior as these clothes are generally only made for males.

Of further interest is that the main character "Sherlock Holmes" is often looked down on by the camera which, points down. This could be representative of the fact that, despite the previous gender superiority idea, there can still be inferiority/superiority within the same gender. This is further portrayed as the character that tries to shoot Sherlock is often mounted higher in the shot, thus further representing the fact that there can be superiority/inferiority within the same gender. This is also further backed up when goes to turn the extractor fan on, in this shot the camera is clearly pointing upward and by doing this the director empesizing is the characters control over the situation, this could further link back to the question as it could be representative of the fact that males are stereotypically level headed and in control of situations. 

Also in this scene is the fact that in all places where there is a male presence the decor is of gold. This could be further representative of the importance that males have in society as gold is often associated and represents high class and superiority, in this particular scenario, the male gender as a whole. 

The relatively calm colours of white and black could also be representative of the commonly used stereotype that as mentioned before males are always level headed and can stay calm in an otherwise stressing situation/environment.

Also present in this section of the video is that most of the men have beards, these are often associated with strength and raw power. Which is the desired image and stereotype (that men are powerful and always strong).

Throughout this section of the video the transitions between different shots are largely jump cuts and fade effects, the latter could be representative of the tranquility and calmness in which men can stereotypically deal with stressful situations. The jump cuts in this scene are largely used in order to create tension. Both of these transition effects back up points made earlier, for example the jump cuts that are quick are generally used as I said before to increase tension, this is likely to give the effect that the situation is quite intense and this then represents the stereotype I talked earlier about that males are strong and have a lot of power. This would cause the situation to be more tense as it is more equal. 

In the scene, when it cuts to the male in the sewers, the initial camera angle is a sort of areal view, giving the effect of vulnerability, thus portraying that in some secnarios even males (agreeing with the stereotype that normally they can always cope with situations) can be out of their depth. In a way this can be seen to promote gender equality as it gives the effect that both men and women can be out of their depth and that men went always totality in control of everything. This effect is, however reversed when we later see an up-tilted camera angle, this re-imposes the genes superiority as a camera pointing up is indicative of power and superiority. 

The lighting in the house of commons scenes is natural while by contrast, the sewer scenes are darker. This is representative of the stereotype that males are conformable;e in most situations. This gives of the general effect that the stereotype that the male gender is the strongest and most easily adaptive, as they can deal with multiple scene changes and receive no effects.

Once the main character (Sherlock Holmes) jumps out of the window and into the river and we see the male on the boat, he is higher placed in the set consistently, which could again be signifying in-gender superiority. 
In this same scene there are various shots of a woman, she is clearly not important though, as the shots are short and the editors have sped up the transition speeds. We do however, get a chance to see what she is wearing, it is a tweed style (grey) coat which could represent efforts to fit in to make society in order to get some importance. She has though still got lipstick on to keep her feminism. meaning that women always try to make themseveles appealing to men, this is also caused with her hair, as it is nicely made up and is styled in a fashionable (for then) way.

The conclusision is that this video focuses largely on male superiority. As the whole idea of men fighting with guns and action is what expected of a male in that situate, stereotypically. Also touched on is how women sometimes attempt to fit. Another point we can conclude from this video clip is that it also emphasises in-gender superiority throughout.
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Wednesday, 1 October 2014

Gender representation wire in the blood

When the video starts we can clearly see that the scene has been edited to appear dark, this may represent that the male is over mining the woman. It may also represent that they are dealing with the dark side of people as they are crime investigators. Throughout this particular scene a hand held camera effect is used, This may represent that their relationship is fractious and that the woman has done something wrong and thus there is anger. Also of interest is the fact that the male is then positioned in a way which makes him appear taller/higher than the female, this suggests that he is watching over her this could represent that she is "inferior" to the male in the argument. This fits with the stereotype of women having no power over men. The sound in this clip is what you would expect as it involves mostly them speaking loudly at each other, noteworthy though is the volume level for the background noise, this further concentrates the viewer in the argument. The cross cutting gradually gets faster thus representing how the argument is getting more tense (particularly for the woman as she is starting to be "put in her place", this is linked to the stereotype that women don't do skilled jobs and in this clip they are talking about a death investigation therefore indicating they are detectives. this is relevant as the woman is clearly struggling whereas the man is doing it with relative ease. The characters are wearing formal dress, however this is most interesting for the woman as she is wearing a turtle neck and a grey cote, this could represent an attempt do de-feminize herself in order to be taken seriously by the males. Noteworthy however is the fact that she maintains her feminism from her face upwards as she is wearing  earrings, make up and has clearly made an effort with her hair, this could represent the fact that although she wants to appear more masculine she still feels its her duty as a woman to appeal to the males around her, in essence fitting in with the stereotype of how women should behave, and she would also be conforming to the male gaze theory.
We then see that the male is looking at her whilst she is talking to another woman which may be causing her pressure, the male then turns away which further emphasizes the representation of his disapproval of her tiring to take charge, also interesting in this scene is the fact that whilst she is talking to the other woman he is positioned in the middle, thus representing that he is still in charge of the situation. This agrees with the stereotype that the men are always the ones in charge as women as a gender are inferior and thus should take orders from the men.
The woman then turns as the male is walking of and says "I need you're input" this is diegenic sound and represents the fact that she is undermining herself as she "needs" male input, the male continues to walk off thus turning this into a power play.

There is then a crane shot which emphasizes the difference between the male and female character, as the crane gets higher it represents the fact that she is powerless against the male.

The fact the man finds the job easy is further portrayed when we are in his home and he is looking through the pictures instantly recognizing why they are significant to the case and to an extent concluding the case. We see this via a series off close ups and mid shots these make the man out to be cleaver and successful. The male is also represented as clever and in control when he rolls his sleeves up as this shows that he can just get on with the work. also a emphesis on this is how the clips are edited to be jump-cuts giving the viewer the idea that he is progressing rapidly, something that stereotypicaly women can't do. The colour of the walls in his hose further link to the job he does as red is the colour of death and danger, red is also a dominant colour thus representing how he is superior to other genders. There are two more interesting items in his house, the first of these is a plant which represents that  he has a nurturing side as patience and care is needed to grow a plant, this would coincide with the stereotype that men have little weaknesses and can dominate most tasks, the second item is a butterfly, it is not clear wether is is a print or an actual butterfly that has been pinned but either way it represents the fact he is methodical and scientific, also coinciding with the above stereotype. The sound in this scene is non-diagenic, which gives the viewer a sense that they are walking trough his thought path which is sad as is the music. 

In the next scene the video cuts to the woman's house herewe can clearly see she is struggling to cope as the house is messy, which portrays her home life as chaotic and uncontrollable, this is portraying that women need men to rely on while they care for the kids.  Another interesting element to this scene is the way the house is painted similar colours to the males house, this could represent that she is trying to achieve masculinity, this could be down to the fact that she feels that there needs to be some kind of male influence in the household. A further interesting fact is that her son (Ben) is dressed in red, which cold indicate that he is surrounded by her job, as we already said that the colour red could represent the job, another aspect to Ben is that he is in a corner thus representing that she is neglecting him and that he comes second to her job, this sis then backed up by the fact we hear diagetic sound when she is trying to find a babysitter last minute, this also shows her lack of organisation. This references to an extent the fact that women need men to help them in everyday situations To an extent this is then reversed when she asks the man to care for Ben as she has taken on the stereotypical role of the man.

The roles are switched back when we are presented with a close up of the man and Ben, there is fast music to represent fun, this is further clarified when ben suggests that the man is more fun than his mother and that she has to work long days in order to keep the house maintained.
Furthermore, the stereotype that men are powerful and strong swell as being successful is further presented to us when we see a silver Mercedes S-Class (luxury car) enter the shot. a man gets out thus representing his success in life. He then enters an abandoned house and can control everybody in it.

The sound of the voices of the homeless people echo somewhat, representing the emptiness of their lives, this is strange as they are men and in the video men are generally always represented to be superior. It does however link in to class and status and shows that whatever gender you are, if you don't have the status you will not over power anyone. These men are represented to have equal power to the women in the video. The homeless me are further portrayed as powerless  when we get a good look at the set of where they are, this is dirty and generally run down. this is designed to represent how their lives are.

The stereotype that men need to be strong and powerful is further backed up when the man that enters the abandoned house slams someones head against a wall. We get shown this via a closeup which shows that the man has all of the pose in that scene and thus represents gender superiority.
Once the video cuts back into the house with the man and Ben in we hear the fast music which automatically causes the viewer to feel positive, this feeling is backed up by a sort of long shot with the man and Ben in making some popcorn. they are making a mess which generally fits in with the stereotype that men are more careless and "messy" than the equivalent woman.

To conclude, gender in the video is represented in a variety of ways, this includes various stereotypes towards both men and women. Also included is the relation to class and status with the homeless men. The overall stereotype it creates for men is that men have to be strong and powerful as as all as being successful and still being funny and entertaining. The stereotype towards women is there are times where women can have power but they are quickly put back into their place. and struggle to manage with the home and work.


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Tuesday, 30 September 2014

Beyonce - 1+1 male gaze analysis

 

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Gender in TV drama

Word Document
 


Video Analysis
 
I decided to do a quick video analysis because I thought that this video clip was interesting as the stereotypical gender roles appear to be reversed.  
 




 
Camera Shots
  • Close Up: The first shot that we are presented with is a close up of some people these are extras as such. We are then moved on to the second shot which is a close up of two of the main characters. This is when we get to see the characters, they appear to be hiding in a sort of air vent cover. We automatically get the feeling that these characters are not very powerful in this situation. This turns out to be due to the fact that one of the men's dad (the previous king) is being striped of his crown.
 
  • Establishing Shot: There then is an establishing shot, this shows the audience the characters, and show a women leading what was (in that time) a primarily male dominated society, this gives the viewer a sense of what is to become and restores a sense of space.
  • Low angle: The next shot we are presented with is a low angle shot where the king (previously) is on the floor looking up (as is the camera) to a woman in front of the throne, this particular shot emphasizes the fact that the male on the floor has now been striped of all status and any power he had, we it also establishes the fact that the woman is clearly dominating and at this moment in time has more status and power than anyone else.
  • Mid Shot: We are then presented with a mid shot of the male that we now find out is named Uther, this further establishers his lack of power and influence over the situation as he is being held by two guards, this further emphasizes the woman's power over him.
Editing
  • Cross cutting: As the conversation takes place between Uther and the woman the editor flicks between views depending on who's talking, this allows the audience to full appreciate the power the woman has over him, as she is ignoring what he says and caring on with her proceedings
Sound
  • Crowd: The crowd in the shot are making no noise this increases the tension of the situation and makes the audience experience Uther's lack of power thus further representing the female as superior.  
Mise-en-Scene
  • Lighting: The room is primarily lit by candles and fire, these fires and candles are all at the front of the room this means that the fire is representing power and thus emphasizes the woman's status.
 
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Tuesday, 23 September 2014

Trevor Millum - Gaze Facial Expressions

Gaze Facial Expressions

Trevor Millum (1975) identified male facial expressions:

  1. Carefree: nymph-like, active, healthy, gay, vibrant, outdoor guy, often smiling or grinning.
  2. Practical: concentrating, engaged on the business in hand, mouth closed, eyes object-directed, sometimes a slight frown, hair often short
  3. Seductive: similar to the cool/level look (indifferent, self-sufficient, aloof, confident, lips slightly parted, usually looking the reader in the eye), eyes shaded, confident, self-sufficient, may include a slight smile
  4. Comic: deliberately ridiculous, exaggerated, acting the fool, pulling faces for the benefit of a real or imaginary audience, sometimes close to archness
  5. Catalogue: neutral look, artificial, waxlike, eyes open wide, smile, look remains vacant, personality removed

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The Gaze - Female and Male



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About Me

I am a Yr12 Media Studies Student at Lutterworth College, I will be posting my work throughout the year.

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