2. What is it?
• Regional identity refers to the area in
which somebody comes from. It can
be defined right from the country in
which the subject is right down to the
street in which they live. Like most
category's of persons it doesn’t come
without stereotypes.
• Some examples of regional identity
are people from the north and south
of England who have their
differences, people from the north
often being depicted as hard to
understand, hard working and yet
somewhat relaxed, compared to the
on the go posh well spoken people
associated with the south.
WhatisIt?
3. What defines regional identity
Regional identity can be defined by many things and each one
almost has its own defining features however some defining
characters pop up more than others such as:
-Accent
-Intelligence
-Appearance
-Clothing
-family
These defining features often set apart differences in singular
category's for example ‘Scousers’ and ‘Geordies’ being fairly
similar in their features apart from their accents.
WhatdefinesIt?
4. What impact has media had on it?
• Like all stereotypes in media they can go one
of two ways directly address the regional
identity of a character or completely ignore it.
However this even more so as regional
identity is almost confined to the stereotypes
which define it.
• This is usually due to the somewhat singular
characteristic in which defines the character
as a specific identity, for example the accent
of someone form Liverpool.
• This usually makes almost any regional
identity come across as negative.
Whatisitsimpact?
5. Examples of regional identity
in TV drama
• Gavin and Stacy- set between Essex and Barry Island (wales)
following their relationship whilst showing their cultures and
regional identities on the way. It explores the religious and
slightly obscure nature of the welsh side whilst also showing
the loveable, loud, drunken nature of the Essex boys. It also
shows the indifference in the city through globalisation.
Examples
6. Regional identity summary
• Regional identity is mainly observed as binary opposition the
comparison of two or more groups of a certain region interact.
An example of this is the film hot fuzz one of the two
protagonists from London goes to a rural west country town
to become a police officer. This is a great example as it
highlights how everything seems alien to the protagonist.
• Overall regional identity is used throughout all of media but is
most effective when its shows the regional identity of two
opposites.
Summary
