1. Essay on Representations in the media
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A representation is the portrayal of someone or something in a particular way.
Representations are everywhere around us. Forms of media are often following
previous representations that may exist or creating new ones. I aim to discuss
representations of people in the media. A representation can be of an individual or a
group of people. They can be false and true depending on how the creator would like
to portray that group. For example this has long gone out the window but in the past
black people were portrayed as unintelligent, lazy and lesser than everyone else. This
is how representations can be used to portray something false in a negative light.
Alternatively someone’s portrayal in the media can be glorified, for example in
wartime soldiers are portrayed as savours/defenders/keepers of the peace (in some
circumstances). Advertising is a form of representation. Before it became illegal
cigarette adverts depicted someone very stylish or cool that we should aspire to be
like. Whether it be television, film, literature or radio we will find representations all
around us in the media. I find that a good place to look for examples is in magazines
as they can have entire collections of similarly themed topics, which allows me to
understand what variations there are and what the representations are of a certain
group of people.
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Acting on this understanding I have aimed to decipher the representations of people in
woman’s magazines. A woman’s magazine produces content that is exclusively aimed
at women, content will feature fashion, life organisation, sex, holidays and an
incredible amount of adverts that target women. These adverts are heavily orientated
around the aesthetic market. Make up, perfume, clothing, accessories such as
sunglasses, jewellery are all rife in these magazines. I have been looking at the best
selling and most famous of this magazines types consisting of Vogue, Cosmopolitan,
Glamour, Fashion, Bazaar and Elle. The types of adverts present in these magazines
tells me a lot without reading any further. Vogue is packed with about 40% adverts.
The people who read Vogue aspire to be like the models and women represented in
the magazines. The women that are featured in the magazines are absolute pinnacle of
what we perceive as attractive, stylish and classy in our culture. As a basis the models
are famous people that hold good standing in our community, they are people that
women would like to be like. For decades we have seen this to be desirable because of
characters in films, magazines such as these and crucially how celebrities portray
themselves. Actress Nina Dobrev is shown on the cover of an issue of Cosmopolitan
what she is wearing and the pose she is positioned in is highly expressive of her
figure. She is 27 years old and in top physical fitness, the clothing she wears is
elaborate and classy. The choice of camera angle is down low implying power,
leadership and independence. Women throughout the magazine are seen as
independent. This is a key word, women are the number one here, there is little
presence of men. The archetype of this female power is won over through Dobrev’s
looks and aura of stable cultural success.
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Women who read the magazine see this a something to aim for. The adverts and the
article content point in this direction. The content of the articles teach women how to
2. become more like the model they have displayed in the imagery. The model however
is not living the perfect live, as they would have us believe. The articles point the
reader in an artificial direction that cannot be achieved, the article is not written by the
model, it may feature questions for the model however it is really a draw to believe
and appreciate the content of the magazine. I have noticed a heavy presence of
Mediterranean holiday and luxury living (this is likely to be as the issue I have looked
at is a summer issue, although in other seasons the expensive holiday theme is still
present) featured in the various magazines. This creates a representation of glamour
and decedent living. The photo shoots show a very wealthy living, boats and
expensive dining. The images are very heavily controlled and undergo an extensive
post-production process. This puts a strain of women who read the magazine to spend
money to achieve the expensive lifestyle they are implored to live.
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There are other representations present in women’s magazines. In Vogue I found an
article about a women traveling the across Canada. There was a photo of her sitting on
the back of a motorbike. There was a man sitting with her on the bike. The text that
accompanied the magazine had virtually no mention of the man’s opinion; nothing is
seen from a male perspective. He was there as a prop for the photo shoots. There are
other articles that I found of a similar nature. This leads me to believe that men are
only represented as eye candy with little more to them than that. Sometimes points of
view are given from a male perspective however the content of the interview is in
context to only female related topics, which does make sense give the genre of
magazine. Ofter men will be talked about from a female perspective although they are
seen as outsiders. Children are represented as well in the magazine although they
really are there for no other reason than to provide an established setting to the article.
The family life is often portrayed in the various magazines with the woman as the
main feature and men and children as supporting cast.
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Something that I haven’t yet mentioned is the various representations amongst
women. Firstly age; there is a clear overriding dominance of young women in their
20s early 30s. Older women are featured less commonly when they are they are
treated with the same respect however there is large variation in the content of the
article. They will also be photographed fully dressed. They will give lesson of life
experience and less about sex. There is a balance between the various magazines on
how much they indulge in sexual topics. Cosmopolitan for example will print sex tips
on the front cover and Vogue will be more fashion orientated as the more
sophisticated of the women’s magazines. Cosmopolitan has headlines to do with
impressing and stunning people, I think men are featured here as an audience.
Whereas Vogue (the magazines with the motorbike article) choses to see men as
secondary. There is this spectrum here which all magazines of this genre fit into. The
classy and decadent (Vogue) or the casual, which talks of sex and life tips
(Cosmopolitan).
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The magazines has evolved greatly over time. Cosmopolitan was once far more
sophisticated. The sex themed magazine has only made an appearance in recent
decades was not always the norm. The models now wear far less clothing; originally
3. the front cover was a drawing of only a woman’s face back in the 1910s. Since then
models have been photographed for their body figure in a bikini this is a large contrast
and dramatic change of direction that reflects the time the magazine existed in.
Something else that is noteworthy is the introduction of models of different ethnic
backgrounds; the magazines that predate the 50s were would all feature a white and
upper class model. The magazine has adapted to fit the times, the modern world
expects cultural equality whether the divide may be race or class.
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As time has passed women’s magazines have morphed into something different the
representation of the women in the magazines have also changed. What we now find
ourselves with is a genre of magazines that glorifies female beauty and fashion.
Clothing is expensive with all the accessories under the sun to accompany. The model
who feature are shown to really be treating themselves, the magazine hopes the reader
will do the same. Men who make little appearance, are a silent presence. They are
acknowledged as a group that are there to impress in some variations of the women’s
magazine and in some they lack any major representation. The main point to take
away is that these magazines are about what women like and are therefore made for
women. Which of course means they are represented in that way.
