2. DominantIdeologies
• Stereotypes are ‘socially constructed’ and reflect
dominant ideologies. They are neither ‘true’ nor ‘false’ but
rather societal clichés.
• Stereotypes can be reinforced, challenged or even
constructed by the media through representation
• The group of ideas that make up the dominant ideology in
Britain are not something that remains static - they
change as new ideas enter the are encountered and
people discuss them. For example one of the dominant
ideologies in Britain is that youths are thugs; there is an
anti-youth culture
3. Changingrepresentations
–Countertypes
• Independence Day: Will Smith’s character is clearly intended to be a
positive and strong hero. He subverts previous negative stereotypes
of black people in American films. In one crucial scene from the film
we see him responding to the danger of an alien's attack by simply
kicking it…
• Mars Attacks: there is also a black hero who also responds to the
attack of a bunch of aliens by punching one of them.
• Both of these films were made virtually simultaneously.
• The directors wanted a change from the ‘norm’ and they have in fact
created a new positive stereotype = a countertype
• A counter-stereotype is the reverse of a stereotype. Although
counter-stereotypes arise in opposition to stereotypes, they may
eventually become stereotypes themselves if they are too popular.
4. Mediation• Mediation…what is it?...
• Any representation is not a reflection of reality but
someone’s version of it
• Another way to look at it is through the following theory:
• Encoding and decoding model (Stuart Hall)
• The media encodes the representation
• The audience decodes it…
• Therefore your job as media students is to decode TV
dramas to understand the encoded message
5. Activity1a
Draw a table with the following headings and compile a list of what you
consider to be characteristics/adjectives that reflect each gender
(strong, dependent, fragrant, vein, soft etc.)
• Male • Female
6. Activity1b
Add to your table a list of objects you associate with each gender
• Male • Female
7. FeminineRepresentation
• Feminism
• Representations of women across all media tend to highlight
the following:
• beauty (within narrow conventions)
• size/physique (again, within narrow conventions)
• sexuality (as expressed by the above)
• emotional (as opposed to intellectual) dealings
• relationships (as opposed to independence/freedom)
• Women are often represented as being part of a context
(family, friends, colleagues) and working/thinking as part of a
team.
• In drama, they tend to take the role of helper (Propp) or object,
passive rather than active.
• Men are still represented as TV drama characters up to 3 times
more frequently than women.
11. MasculineRepresentation
• 'Masculinity' is a concept that is made up of more rigid
stereotypes than femininity. Representations of men
across all media tend to focus on the following:
• Strength - physical and intellectual
• Power
• Sexual attractiveness (which may be based on the above)
• Physique
• Independence (of thought, action)
• Male characters are often represented as isolated, as not
needing to rely on others (the lone hero).
• If they submit to being part of a family, it is often part of
the resolution of a narrative, rather than an integral factor
in the initial equilibrium.
14. Activity2
• Write down a list of the different
technical approaches that might be
used to construct stereotypical
representations of gender:
• Camera shots, angle, movement and
position
• Mise en scene
• Sound
• Editing
15. MASCULINEGENRES
• Dominant males
• Subservient females
• Masculine ‘action’
• Lack of emotion
• ‘Serious’ storylines
• Romance controlled
• Patriarchal ideology
(narrative closure)
• Male heroes
• Sole characters or
characters with one/two
side kicks
Margaret Thatcher - was a British stateswoman who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990.
She was the longest-serving British prime minister of the 20th century, and the first woman to have held the office. The Iron Lady