1. Media – Doctor Who Clip Analysis Of Gender Representation
Amy Myers
When the clip begins an out of focus close up shot of the master has been displayed. The close up shot focuses on the Master
rather than Martha in which we see her blurred out in the background. The way that Martha has been blurred out in the
background portrays how she is a much lower level than the Master. The shot also allows the audience to clearly see his facial
expressions giving an idea of what is going to happen and how he is in control. This suggests to the audience that men are
represented as the more authoritative gender. Non-diegetic sound has also been used in which suggests a “face-off” between
the two characters; building up tension and making the viewer’s wonder what is going to happen. It also implies the opposites
between these two genders in which one is evil and one is good.
When we see the wide angle shot this enables all the speakers to be seen clearly showing the different representations between
these characters. The mise-en-scene implies how the Master is once again presented as the character with the most power and
the character who is most in control. He is surrounded by a beautiful who is dressed is a nice red dress having connotations such
as love and happiness proving how the woman is seen to be in his possession, as well as portraying her in a very provocative
way.
As we see Martha entering the scene she walked in with two security guards either side of her suggesting how she could be
imprisoned and the fact that women are represented as the lower gender who are inferior to male. The two security guards are
shown holding guns implying how they have power over the female character. The uniform they are also wearing suggests how
they are represented as a stereotypical male. The black clothing implies the strength and violence that they have. Similar the
non-diegetic music in the background also implies how the Master wants to be like God. This comes from the music being
biblical and relating to God.
As the clip goes on and we see Martha’s family we get the impression through the mise-en-scene that they are shown at a lower
status due to the clothing. Firstly the two women are presented in maid like outfits implying how they are associated with a
stereotypical woman who would be doing the cleaning. Likewise the male in presented in a jumpsuit also giving the
representation of a stereotypical male who would be given all the labouring jobs. The blank facial expressions that they are
giving shows how they have no power and no control over what is happening and that they simply just have to stand and watch
it happen. The security guard who is also standing with them implies how they are under the Masters control and thy have to do
what he says. Therefore the security guard is there to make sure they follow the Master, also proving the Master has the most
power as he has to have security guards watching to make sure that they follow what he says.
When we see captain jack in mid-shot next to a security guard this implies how they are opposites in which one of the men is
presented in a smart way and the other presented in a way which would be related to a male; with the mud on his face. Captain
Jack presented in this way with the mud on his face is showing how he is like a stereotypical man who doesn’t mind getting dirty.
This also suggests how the two men are completely different and how the security guard has more power over Jack.
When The Master is speaking to Martha a low angle shot has been used when she throws what The Master wants to him. This
low angle shot is once again proving how the Master has all control over her and she should follow what he says. It is also
implying how she has to look up to him as he is the bigger and most dominant character. As close up shot of the Master has
been used when he is commanding Martha to kneel. This close up shot proves his power and his facial expressions. The Master
used a low tone of voice when doing this highlighting his masculinity proving he is the dominant character. As Martha begins to
kneel the non-diegetic music of church hymns is being played which comes across in a very angelic way suggesting how she
could be a slave to the nation which could also be a biblical reference to Jesus. When we see the side on shot of Martha this
proves how she is inferior to the Master and is having to look up to him. Then going into a close up shot of her face the director
has done this in order to portray her as the inferior character who has no power. Also allowing the audience to see her facial
expressions this makes the audience feel sympathetic towards her.
The shot reverse shot used when the male and female are having a conversation also implies who is the dominant character. It
also allows the audience to see the facial expressions meaning that we can understand what is happening better. The editing the
director has made, implies what is happening. When going back to the Master the side on shot of him looking at his watch
clearly shows his facial expressions and what he is thinking. The concentration on his face suggests how he wants the time to go
quicker. It also portrays how he is wealthier than the others due to the expensive watch which he is looking at. We can also tell
that he is married due to the ring on his finger.
The over the shoulder shot which the director has then used when using the diegetic sound of “counting down” allows us to
understand what is happening. The over the shoulder shot is focusing on the timer showing how they do not have much time
left. The use of this type of shot enables the audience to see what the Master is seeing from his point of view. Following on from

2. this there is then a close up shot of the ticking clock whilst the non-diegetic sound of a ticking clock is playing suggests the
importance of this and builds up tension for the viewer.
As we then see all of Martha’s family standing in a line proves how they are of lower status than the master. The male being the
tallest also proves how the male gender is the stronger and bigger gender. The blank facial expressions they are giving implies
how they are having to follow what he says and they can’t do anything about it. The mise-en-scene again also of the clothing of
her family implies how they are not as wealthy as the Master and don’t have as much as what he has. Similarly then going to a
close up of Martha’s face implies how she is very nervous and worried. The way her eyes are also looking up shows how she is
still inferior to the Master and doesn’t have control. The diegetic sound of the Master highlights all his control over her. The
laugh he gives after saying she will die makes her feel like she has no other option. When we laughs we see the shot reverse shot
between these two characters allowing the audience to see that Martha is worried about what is going to happen. Similarly
when the Master asks if she has any last words within a few seconds he automatically says no using a rhetorical question again
highlighting how she has no option and has to do what he says. The wide up shot of the whole scene highlights how Martha is a
lower level than everyone else also proving how the Master is in control of everything that happens. The way Martha is also
looking down at the floor implies her emotion of being worried. Again we see the mise-en-scene of the characters clothing. We
see the red dress on the woman implying how she is also a higher level than Martha. This in contrast to what Martha is wearing
highlights the fact that they are very different.
As Martha begins to laugh this implies how he is wanting to gain her power back. The Master then replies back saying “what’s so
funny” believing that he still has control of what she does. Again the shot reverse shot between these two characters presents a
flowing conversation, showing they are the main characters in the scene. The doctor has been presented in the cage implying
that he prisoner and is also powerless to the Master who is the dominant character. This also shows the binary opposites of
good and evil and how they are in conflict with each other. The flash back of Martha shows her speaking to the other women
and how she looks up to the doctor saying how he is the hero in the situation. She is also displayed sitting at the same level as
the other speakers implying how she is equal to them. The diegetic sound of “I love him” links to the typical representation of a
female as females are often shown relating to love and emotion. As Martha begins to explain herself the Master sits down
implying how there is a transition between the characters of power as Martha is gaining her power back and becoming slightly
cocky. Once again the ticking sound of the clock creates tensions and suspense for the audience keeping the audience interested
in what may happen.
The close up shot of Martha beginning to stand up proves how she is gaining the power and the Master is losing it. When she
begins to smile and becomes the same level as the Master this is when the audience realise that he is no longer superior to her.
The panning shot then showing her family displays how the male is taller than the women proving that he has the most power
and authority within the family. However the master then stands up again in order to try and regain his power and he is
beginning to loose. This gives the audience the impression that he is frustrated and annoyed.
He diegetic sound from Martha grow in volume and tempo showing the transition of power and Martha is becoming the more
superior character. The non-diegetic sound emphasises this change in power. The close up shot of the ticking clock once again
proves how they only have a short period of time left. As this is going down we notice that her tone of voice becomes quicker
and quicker proving she wants to finish what she is saying before the time runs out.
When the clock gets to zero the editing of the doctor in the cage begins and we see that the Master is unhappy about what is
happening whereas Martha seems happy as she is smiling. The non-diegetic music in the background makes it a lot more
interesting to watch and gives the audience as much better idea of what is happening. The sound also makes the characters in
the clip seem as lot happier as to what is happening. The repetition of doctor coming from the characters shows how everyone
is really happy, however then we see that the tone of voice from the Master saying “stop it” becomes really deep showing his
anger and frustration as he no longer has any of the power. No one seems to pay any attention to him and they carry on
demanding “doctor”. However at this point the Master still believes he may have control and commands them to stop once
again. The editing used to display the doctor gives the idea that he has more power over the Master. He then uses diegetic
sound in order to tell the master that one thing he is not able to do is stop people from thinking. This could also think to God in
which he is no longer like God as it is believed that God is able to tell what people are thinking, however the Master is unable to
do this and everyone begins to laugh louder proving he has lost his power.
The mid shot o show Martha hugging her family implies how she is really happy that she didn’t get killed and that she by the end
has more power than what the Master had. Similarly the final close up of the Master highlight his facial expressions and the
shock he is showing as he believed he had all over but he has lost it. When he puts his adds on his adds and shouts in a loud
deep tone of voice "it’s not fair” also adds emphasis to the point in which he has lost all his power. The final shot we see which is
a high angle shot looking down on the master implies how he now has no control and is now inferior and therefore looking up to
the other characters.