This document discusses the representation of femininity and masculinity in media. It begins by defining representation as how the media presents the real world. It notes that the selection process used by media determines what is represented and how audiences are focused. As examples, it lists several key female characters from The Dark Knight and Batman films and notes that students should find and analyze images of men from those same films. The document concludes by providing an essay question that asks students to discuss similarities and differences in representations of gender in chosen American films and instructs them to create an outline answering this question through topic sentences and evidence from the films.

1. Starter
DISCUSS
Does the media reflect society
or society reflect the media?

3. What is representation?
The process which by the media
present ‘the real world’
(Rayner)
Basically it is what
we see in the media.
For today’s lesson we
are looking at the representation of
femininity and masculinity.

4. Key Point - Selection
Everything we see in media can link to representation
The selection process is…
0 The decision over what is chosen to be represented and
what is rejected
0 The choices made when organising the representation
0 The options taken to focus the audience in a particular
way

5. Key Female Characters
The Dark Knight
0 – Rachel Dawes
0 – Anna Ramirez
0 – Mrs Gordan
0 – Natascha
Batman
0 – Vicki Vale
0 – Alicia Hunt

6. Rachel

7. Messages and Values

8. Vicki

9. Messages and Values

10. The ‘Others’

11. The ‘Others’

12. Men
0 Using YouTube and other on line sources find at least
ten images of men in our two films.
0 Copy them into a word document.
0 Next to these, write a brief statement about
representation for each image – descriptive words,
messages, values.

13. Essay Question
“Discuss similarities and differences in the
representation of masculinity and/or femininity in your
chosen American films.”
1. Brainstorming everything that you could talk about.
2. Create a mind map of how you would answer this
question. Select the 4 -5 most important points and
write them as a strong statement (topic sentence).
Then list at least 3 pieces of evidence from the films
that would support your answer.

14. Mind Map