1. Beyoncé’smusicvideofor‘Runthe World(Girls)’isahybridof narrative andperformance style.The
videousesLacey’sRepertoire of Elementsinordertoenhance the viewer’sexperience andconvey
the message of the song.The mainthemesof the video are feminismandfemaleempowerment,
and these are expressedstronglythroughthe fiveelements:characters,narrative events,
iconography,settingandtechnical andaudiocodes.
Charactersare usedinthe music videoinordertoadd to the narrative aspectof the video,andalso
performance. Beyoncé herself isthe starof the videoandisthe onlyrecognizable actress.The
movesthe focussolelyontoherandalsoallowsusto appreciate the huge castof otherdancerswho
accompany Beyoncé inherperformance.All of the female charactersare representedasstrong
womenwhobehave like soldiersatwar.The womenall standstraightin uniformlinesinthe formof
a ‘female army’ andevensalute.Thisrepresentationbreaksthe stereotype of womeninmusic
videos,linkingbacktothe themesof feminismandempowerment.Itmaybe arguedthat inthis
video,the womentake onthe personaof a stereotypical male,withthemesof strengthand
dominance.Thisrole reversal iseffectiveasitemphasise the women’sstrengthastheystandagainst
the ‘male army’.
The narrative aspectis displayedthroughastory,consistingof Beyoncé’s armyof womenstanding
up againstan army of men.Variousscenesof the twogroupsstandingupagainstone anotheroccur
throughoutthe video.The musicvideofollowsanonlinearnarrative,asvariousscenes are cut
togetherrandomly.Some scenesare arguablyconceptual,suchasscenesincluding Beyoncé holding
wildanimalsbychainsorBeyoncé standinginfrontof an explodingcar. Otherscenessuchas
Beyoncé fightingagainstthe male armydressedasriotpolice follow the storylinethatthe women
are at war withthe men.The random structure to the videoarguablymakesthe videomore exciting
and engagingasthe audience have newanddifferentscenestoexperienceall the time.
2. Iconographyisarguablythe mostextensivelyusedelementinthe musicvideo.The videousesgrand
and extravagantpropsinorderto make the videoappearto be epicand impressive.Forexample,
Beyoncé entersthe videoonahuge horse which rearsagainstthe sunset.Otheranimalssuchas
wolvesandbullsare includedtomake the videoseemalmostlikeaHollywoodfilmdue its
extravagance. Beyoncé alsostandsnexttoa lion,whichhas connotations withdominance,power
and pride,all of whichlinktothe message behindthe video.The costumeswornbythe characters
alsohave variousconnotations.The femalecharacterswearbrightlycoloureddressesand
accessorieswhere the menwearall blackandcarry riot shields,connotingconflictandviolence.
Otherepicyetviolentimagerysuchasexplodingcarsandfire are againall stereotypical of the male,
actionthrillergenre which Beyoncé attemptstobreakdownbyusingthese themesinafeminist
video.
The settingusedinthe videoisa vast anddesolate desertspace.The settingisarguablysimilartoa
warzone,whichlinkstothe narrative of the video.Some of the performance shotsseemtofilmedin
a sort of temple,withhuge brickcolumns.Both of these huge settingslinktothe epicnature of the
video.Shotsinclude imagesof mountains,sunsets,fire andburnttrees.The mise enscene of the
settingalsosuggestthatthe videoisfilmedinanareaof conflict,againaddingtothe masculine
imageryof the video.
Camerause is effectiveinthe videotohelpestablishthemes.Manyof the shotsin the videoare
wide-angledlongshotswhichare usedeithertoestablishsettingorto show the performance
elementof the groupof dancers.Many of the shotsincluding Beyoncé andthe groupof womenare
longshotswhichfittheirentire bodiesfromheadtotoe.These shotsare alsooftenshoteitherat
eye level orfrombelow,displayingthe female dominanceinthe video.Editingisusedeffectivelyin
3. orderto fitthe tempo of the song,where the beator change in rhythmreplacesthe needforSFXor
diegeticsound.Fastcuteditsare usedbetweendifferentscenesinordertobuildmomentumand
excitementinthe video.Longercutsare usedduringthe performance scenessothatthe viewercan
watch the dancingwithoutanydistraction,therefore displayingthe talentinthe video.One sceneof
Beyoncé alsousesa fastcut editwitha strobe lighteffect,inwhich Beyoncé’s closeupiscut withan
all-blackscreen.Thiseffectis disorientatingandenhancesthe viewingexperience forthe audience.
Highkeylightingisusedonthe womeninthe videoinorderto connote theirpowerandstrengthin
the sequence,linkingtothe feministmessage behindthe video.
In conclusion, Beyoncesmusicvideofor‘Runthe World’effectivleyusesLacey’sRepotoire of
Elementsinordertoconveythe keymessagesandthemesof the songandvideo,including
feminism,female strengthandempowerment.Byusingnarrative structure inordertoestablisha
storyof female uprisingagainstamale armyand iconographyandcharacters inorderto enhance
thissequence withperformance,the videosuccessfullyconveysthisideabylinkingbacktothe song
and itslyrics.
