This document summarizes Richard Dyer's analysis of stereotypes from his work "The Role of Stereotypes". Dyer examines Walter Lippmann's definition of stereotypes as necessary cognitive shortcuts but also notes their tendency to present order as absolute and reflect the power relations of society. Stereotypes invoke a false consensus while expressing the values and traditions of dominant social groups. They make invisible social categories visible and draw firm boundaries where in reality there are none, serving to maintain the status quo.
This document provides an introduction to a book about social realism in British art and cinema from the 1930s onward. It argues that social realism has long been an important part of British film culture but has not been fully recognized as its own artistic movement in the way that Italian neorealism or French New Wave have. The introduction aims to analyze key British social realist films and movements through their aesthetic forms and styles, rather than just their social themes, to establish social realism as a legitimate national art cinema tradition. It seeks to move beyond definitions that emphasize social realism's observational or "kitchen sink" qualities to recognize its formal innovation and artistic merit.
This document provides an introduction to genre theory and discusses some of the key challenges in defining genres. It notes that while genres are commonly used to categorize different types of texts, there is no consensus on how to define genres or determine their boundaries. Generically classifying texts involves theoretical difficulties as genres often overlap and individual texts can belong to multiple genres. The document examines debates around whether genres exist objectively or are social constructions, and if they are defined by shared content, form, or both. It also explores how genres are not fixed but change over time as new hybrid genres emerge.
This document provides an overview of the concept of "the gaze" in visual media such as television and advertising. It discusses how the gaze refers to how viewers look at images of people, as well as how people are depicted looking in visual texts. Key forms of gaze are identified, such as the spectator's gaze, intra-diegetic gaze, direct address to the viewer, and the look of the camera. Direction of gaze and mutual versus non-mutual gaze are also examined.
This document provides a summary of the key themes and conclusions drawn from David Gauntlett's book "Media, Gender & Identity". The summary identifies several themes discussed in the book, including the fluidity of modern identities, the decline of tradition, the active construction of identity through popular media, concepts of masculinity and femininity ("girl power"), and the role of generational differences. It concludes that while gender categories have not been shattered, popular media has created more space for diverse identities and challenged traditional gender norms. Popular media also plays an important role in providing tools and guidance for individuals to construct their own identities and ways of living in modern society.
This document provides an overview of feminist perspectives and concepts related to analyzing media through a feminist lens. It discusses key ideas such as the male gaze, patriarchy, and underrepresentation of women. Specifically, it introduces Laura Mulvey's influential theory of the male gaze and how mainstream cinema constructs viewers as male and objects women for the male gaze. It also notes some criticisms of Mulvey's theory, such as its focus on older films and lack of consideration for diverse audience viewpoints. Overall, the document outlines foundational feminist media concepts and theories.
A2Y2 Media Studies Language Theory Postmodernism & HyperrealityKBucket
Postmodernism rejects the notion of objective truth and universal theories, instead believing that there are only individual interpretations of the world. It challenges social constructs and norms by bending and breaking rules. Key characteristics of postmodern works include self-reflexiveness by acknowledging the constructed nature of the medium, intertextuality through references to other works, and genre blending or hybridization. Postmodernism emphasizes style over substance and questions notions of reality through constant simulation and depthlessness.
A2Y2 Media Studies, Media Language theory Postmodernism hyperrealityKBucket
The document provides an overview of postmodernism and some key postmodern concepts. It discusses how postmodernism emerged after modernism and rejected notions of universal truths or grand theories. Some key postmodern ideas discussed include the breakdown of distinctions between high and low art, self-referentiality, intertextuality, pastiche, irony, and the blurring of boundaries between reality and simulation in a hyperreal world dominated by media. Jean Baudrillard's concepts of simulation and the simulacrum are summarized, where mediated experiences become more "real" than reality itself.
A2 Feminism and the Media part 1 (2020)
Stereotypes, Male Gaze, Symbolic annihilation, Bechdel Test, Beauty Myth, Objectfication and Dismemberment, Postfeminism
This document provides an introduction to a book about social realism in British art and cinema from the 1930s onward. It argues that social realism has long been an important part of British film culture but has not been fully recognized as its own artistic movement in the way that Italian neorealism or French New Wave have. The introduction aims to analyze key British social realist films and movements through their aesthetic forms and styles, rather than just their social themes, to establish social realism as a legitimate national art cinema tradition. It seeks to move beyond definitions that emphasize social realism's observational or "kitchen sink" qualities to recognize its formal innovation and artistic merit.
This document provides an introduction to genre theory and discusses some of the key challenges in defining genres. It notes that while genres are commonly used to categorize different types of texts, there is no consensus on how to define genres or determine their boundaries. Generically classifying texts involves theoretical difficulties as genres often overlap and individual texts can belong to multiple genres. The document examines debates around whether genres exist objectively or are social constructions, and if they are defined by shared content, form, or both. It also explores how genres are not fixed but change over time as new hybrid genres emerge.
This document provides an overview of the concept of "the gaze" in visual media such as television and advertising. It discusses how the gaze refers to how viewers look at images of people, as well as how people are depicted looking in visual texts. Key forms of gaze are identified, such as the spectator's gaze, intra-diegetic gaze, direct address to the viewer, and the look of the camera. Direction of gaze and mutual versus non-mutual gaze are also examined.
This document provides a summary of the key themes and conclusions drawn from David Gauntlett's book "Media, Gender & Identity". The summary identifies several themes discussed in the book, including the fluidity of modern identities, the decline of tradition, the active construction of identity through popular media, concepts of masculinity and femininity ("girl power"), and the role of generational differences. It concludes that while gender categories have not been shattered, popular media has created more space for diverse identities and challenged traditional gender norms. Popular media also plays an important role in providing tools and guidance for individuals to construct their own identities and ways of living in modern society.
This document provides an overview of feminist perspectives and concepts related to analyzing media through a feminist lens. It discusses key ideas such as the male gaze, patriarchy, and underrepresentation of women. Specifically, it introduces Laura Mulvey's influential theory of the male gaze and how mainstream cinema constructs viewers as male and objects women for the male gaze. It also notes some criticisms of Mulvey's theory, such as its focus on older films and lack of consideration for diverse audience viewpoints. Overall, the document outlines foundational feminist media concepts and theories.
A2Y2 Media Studies Language Theory Postmodernism & HyperrealityKBucket
Postmodernism rejects the notion of objective truth and universal theories, instead believing that there are only individual interpretations of the world. It challenges social constructs and norms by bending and breaking rules. Key characteristics of postmodern works include self-reflexiveness by acknowledging the constructed nature of the medium, intertextuality through references to other works, and genre blending or hybridization. Postmodernism emphasizes style over substance and questions notions of reality through constant simulation and depthlessness.
A2Y2 Media Studies, Media Language theory Postmodernism hyperrealityKBucket
The document provides an overview of postmodernism and some key postmodern concepts. It discusses how postmodernism emerged after modernism and rejected notions of universal truths or grand theories. Some key postmodern ideas discussed include the breakdown of distinctions between high and low art, self-referentiality, intertextuality, pastiche, irony, and the blurring of boundaries between reality and simulation in a hyperreal world dominated by media. Jean Baudrillard's concepts of simulation and the simulacrum are summarized, where mediated experiences become more "real" than reality itself.
A2 Feminism and the Media part 1 (2020)
Stereotypes, Male Gaze, Symbolic annihilation, Bechdel Test, Beauty Myth, Objectfication and Dismemberment, Postfeminism
Theories of Media Representation refers to how media constructs and presents versions of reality to audiences. All representations are constructions that show one perspective, not objective reality. Key thinkers like Marx, the Birmingham School, Hall, and Lacan viewed representation as a process involving power dynamics between media producers and audiences. Representation raises questions about whose perspectives are included or excluded in media and how audiences interpret these encodings.
Postmodern films disrupt traditional narrative structures and character development in order to undermine the audience's suspension of disbelief. They do not pretend to be wholly real and may include characters that break the fourth wall. Postmodern films often use circular rather than linear narratives with ambiguous endings. They frequently feature disconnected characters who distrust authority figures. Some examples of postmodern genres discussed include pastiche, narratives involving flattened affect, hyperreality, time bending, altered states, and narratives questioning humanity. The film Fight Club is analyzed as an example of a postmodern film featuring a disconnected protagonist and circular narrative that subverts expectations.
The document discusses John Berger's analysis of gendered looking relations in Western art history from Ways of Seeing. Berger observed that men act and women appear, with men looking at women and women watching themselves being looked at by men. This dynamic determines gender relations and how women see themselves. According to Berger, women were often depicted in art as being aware of being seen by a male spectator, reflecting their submission to the male owner.
The document discusses postmodern theorists Jean Baudrillard, Fredric Jameson, and Jean-François Lyotard. It outlines Baudrillard's theory of hyperreality, in which the distinction between reality and simulation is blurred. Jameson believed that postmodernism is driven by consumer capitalism and results in a loss of historical depth and reality. Lyotard argued that the idea of truth needs to be deconstructed to challenge dominant narratives.
This document discusses several theories related to audience and representation. It covers key concepts from Uses and Gratifications theory, Stuart Hall's Encoding/Decoding model, Henry Jenkins' work on fans and participatory culture, and theories from Albert Bandura, George Gerbner, and Clay Shirky on media effects and the changing nature of audiences in a digital age. It also examines Stuart Hall, David Gauntlett, Liesbet van Zoonen, bell hooks, Judith Butler, and Paul Gilroy's work on representation, identity construction, gender, feminism, and postcolonial theory.
This document discusses various representation theories that will be applied in a magazine, including hegemony, stereotypes, and theories of gender and female representation. Hegemony refers to how dominant groups use institutions like media to maintain power by spreading ideologies. Stereotypes are social constructs that are often subverted in indie/rock music. Theories of empowered female representation and gender performance will also be applied to portray independent, active women and a subversion of traditional gender roles in the magazine's representations.
This document discusses role models and provides examples from media sources of people described as role models. It identifies six types of role models: 1) straightforward success, 2) triumph over difficult circumstances, 3) challenging stereotypes, 4) outsider status, 5) personal qualities, and 6) cautionary tales. The document analyzes examples of public figures described as role models and the qualities they are said to embody, such as athletes, celebrities, scientists, and politicians.
This document summarizes several theories of representation relating to race and gender:
1. Paul Gilroy and Stuart Hall theorized about representations of race in media, with Gilroy focusing on the "Black Atlantic" culture and Hall discussing strategies to subvert stereotypes like reversing them or making them work against themselves.
2. Liesbet van Zoonen analyzed gender representation in media through a feminist lens, noting how women are often objectified and gender is performatively constructed.
3. bell hooks' intersectional theory examined how media representations reinforce systems like white supremacist capitalist patriarchy through stereotypes based on gender, race, class and sexuality.
This document summarizes key concepts from several feminist theorists regarding gender representation:
1) Liesbet van Zoonen argues that gender is socially constructed and represented differently in media, often objectifying women. She disagrees that technology inherently empowers women.
2) Bell hooks introduced intersectionality - how gender, race, class intersect to create systems of oppression dominant in media representations. She advocates an "oppositional gaze" for black audiences.
3) Judith Butler's gender performativity theory holds that gender is created through the repetitive performance of gender roles, not an essential identity. This creates "gender trouble" for those outside heterosexual norms.
This document provides summaries of four major postmodern theorists:
- Jean-Francis Lyotard rejected rational theories representing reality and emphasized singular events and nonrational forces.
- Jacques Derrida rejected structuralism and the signifier/signified relationship, seeing language as producing other signifiers.
- Jean Baudrillard argued that in postmodern culture, simulations and maps precede reality, and the distinction between nature and artifice is lost.
- Fredric Jameson saw postmodernity as dominated by commodification, with the past reduced to empty stylizations and a loss of history.
Postmodernism refers to social, political and cultural attitudes that emerged in the late 20th century in reaction to modernism. It is characterized by (1) the breakdown between culture and society due to media saturation, (2) an emphasis on style over substance in cultural products, and (3) the breakdown of distinctions between high and popular culture. Postmodern works often feature a confusion over time and space due to modern communication technologies, and reject universal "grand narratives" in favor of personal interpretations. The document provides several examples of postmodernism in art, architecture, literature and media to illustrate these concepts.
"Lyotard and Postmodernism" Key Terms and IdeasMaricelaJJBB
1. The document discusses key terms and ideas related to postmodernism, including modernity, postmodernity, modernization, modernism, and postmodernism.
2. It outlines Jean-Francois Lyotard's views on the postmodern condition, including his ideas that knowledge is being impacted by technological transformations and will be a major factor in global power competitions.
3. Lyotard also analyzed the relationship between narrative knowledge and scientific knowledge, and criticized the growing "mercantilization" and performativity of knowledge in industrial societies.
This document provides an overview of key concepts in representation theory, including how representations in media texts can reinforce dominant ideologies and stereotypes. It discusses approaches such as Marxism, feminism, and postmodernism for analyzing representations. Stereotypes are addressed as simplifying representations that provide shortcuts for meaning-making. The document aims to give students a basic understanding of evaluating representations in their coursework against these theoretical frameworks.
Jean-François Lyotard was a French philosopher and literary theorist known for articulating postmodernism after the 1970s and analyzing its impact on the human condition. He rejected grand narratives and universal claims, most famously arguing in The Postmodern Condition that we have become incredulous towards meta-narratives. Lyotard proposed that postmodernity is characterized by an abundance of micronarratives rather than overarching theories. He was also interested in the sublime and promoted modernist art that demonstrated the limits of conceptualization.
This document provides definitions for various key concepts and theories in media studies, including representation, mediation, situated culture, uses and gratifications theory, ideology, cultural imperialism, hegemony, feminism, post-colonialism, Marxism, stereotypes, Propp's theory, false consciousness, gaze theory, bourgeoisie, Todorov's theory, patriarchy, second wave feminism, binary opposition, and liberal pluralism. Each term is defined in 1-2 sentences.
No, Emmeline Pankhurst would not be considered an archetypal representation of femininity. Some key reasons:
- She was a political activist and leader who fought aggressively for women's suffrage through militant tactics like hunger strikes, which went against traditional expectations of feminine behavior.
- Her activism and leadership role disrupted traditional gender roles that relegated women to the private sphere of home and family. She took on a very public role advocating for women's rights.
- Images and descriptions of her from the time period often emphasized her defiance of femininity through her strong public speaking, willingness to be arrested and imprisoned for her cause, and other assertive tactics.
- She challenged patriarchal power structures and norms
A level media theory knowledge organiser with examMrSouthworth
This document summarizes key concepts and theories from media studies, covering semiotics, narratology, genre theory, structuralism, postmodernism, representation, identity, feminism, audience reception, and media industries. It outlines important ideas from thinkers such as Roland Barthes, Tzvetan Todorov, Steve Neale, Stuart Hall, David Gauntlett, Judith Butler, Paul Gilroy, Albert Bandura, George Gerbner, Henry Jenkins, and David Hesmondhalgh. The concepts discussed include how meaning is constructed through signs and codes, how narratives and genres function, how identity and representation work, how audiences interpret media, and the political and economic contexts of media production and regulation.
This is a presentation i've done based on postmodern theory and the media. It includes elements which are postmodern and examples of different genres. I've also analysed some film trailers and a timeline.
The document discusses the benefits of exercise for mental health. Regular physical activity can help reduce anxiety and depression and improve mood and cognitive functioning. Exercise causes chemical changes in the brain that may help protect against mental illness and improve symptoms.
This document discusses issues with demanding that films represent gay characters and themes according to certain aesthetic ideals, which are often rooted in heterosexual values that marginalize homosexuality. It argues that the notion of a distinct "gay sensibility" is problematic, as oppression alone does not produce subcultural identities. Even films with sympathetic intentions, like The Detective, tend to reproduce dominant negative images of gayness due to the power of established cinematic conventions. The document also examines how James Dean's possible gay identity was necessarily suppressed in his film roles due to narrative and character constraints, limiting his ability to truly express gayness on screen.
The document discusses the various narrative devices used in Alfred Hitchcock's film Psycho. It asks questions about what motivates the main characters, how the camera manipulates the audience's point of view, whether the narration is restricted or omniscient, how the camera disorients the audience, and how enigma and action codes drive the plot forward and build tension. It also asks how Todorov's theory of narrative applies to the film in terms of expectations, red herrings, and MacGuffins, and how Hitchcock challenges expectations of character roles. Finally, it asks about the film's themes using Levi Strauss' binary oppositions and how camera work and editing build tension in the black and
Theories of Media Representation refers to how media constructs and presents versions of reality to audiences. All representations are constructions that show one perspective, not objective reality. Key thinkers like Marx, the Birmingham School, Hall, and Lacan viewed representation as a process involving power dynamics between media producers and audiences. Representation raises questions about whose perspectives are included or excluded in media and how audiences interpret these encodings.
Postmodern films disrupt traditional narrative structures and character development in order to undermine the audience's suspension of disbelief. They do not pretend to be wholly real and may include characters that break the fourth wall. Postmodern films often use circular rather than linear narratives with ambiguous endings. They frequently feature disconnected characters who distrust authority figures. Some examples of postmodern genres discussed include pastiche, narratives involving flattened affect, hyperreality, time bending, altered states, and narratives questioning humanity. The film Fight Club is analyzed as an example of a postmodern film featuring a disconnected protagonist and circular narrative that subverts expectations.
The document discusses John Berger's analysis of gendered looking relations in Western art history from Ways of Seeing. Berger observed that men act and women appear, with men looking at women and women watching themselves being looked at by men. This dynamic determines gender relations and how women see themselves. According to Berger, women were often depicted in art as being aware of being seen by a male spectator, reflecting their submission to the male owner.
The document discusses postmodern theorists Jean Baudrillard, Fredric Jameson, and Jean-François Lyotard. It outlines Baudrillard's theory of hyperreality, in which the distinction between reality and simulation is blurred. Jameson believed that postmodernism is driven by consumer capitalism and results in a loss of historical depth and reality. Lyotard argued that the idea of truth needs to be deconstructed to challenge dominant narratives.
This document discusses several theories related to audience and representation. It covers key concepts from Uses and Gratifications theory, Stuart Hall's Encoding/Decoding model, Henry Jenkins' work on fans and participatory culture, and theories from Albert Bandura, George Gerbner, and Clay Shirky on media effects and the changing nature of audiences in a digital age. It also examines Stuart Hall, David Gauntlett, Liesbet van Zoonen, bell hooks, Judith Butler, and Paul Gilroy's work on representation, identity construction, gender, feminism, and postcolonial theory.
This document discusses various representation theories that will be applied in a magazine, including hegemony, stereotypes, and theories of gender and female representation. Hegemony refers to how dominant groups use institutions like media to maintain power by spreading ideologies. Stereotypes are social constructs that are often subverted in indie/rock music. Theories of empowered female representation and gender performance will also be applied to portray independent, active women and a subversion of traditional gender roles in the magazine's representations.
This document discusses role models and provides examples from media sources of people described as role models. It identifies six types of role models: 1) straightforward success, 2) triumph over difficult circumstances, 3) challenging stereotypes, 4) outsider status, 5) personal qualities, and 6) cautionary tales. The document analyzes examples of public figures described as role models and the qualities they are said to embody, such as athletes, celebrities, scientists, and politicians.
This document summarizes several theories of representation relating to race and gender:
1. Paul Gilroy and Stuart Hall theorized about representations of race in media, with Gilroy focusing on the "Black Atlantic" culture and Hall discussing strategies to subvert stereotypes like reversing them or making them work against themselves.
2. Liesbet van Zoonen analyzed gender representation in media through a feminist lens, noting how women are often objectified and gender is performatively constructed.
3. bell hooks' intersectional theory examined how media representations reinforce systems like white supremacist capitalist patriarchy through stereotypes based on gender, race, class and sexuality.
This document summarizes key concepts from several feminist theorists regarding gender representation:
1) Liesbet van Zoonen argues that gender is socially constructed and represented differently in media, often objectifying women. She disagrees that technology inherently empowers women.
2) Bell hooks introduced intersectionality - how gender, race, class intersect to create systems of oppression dominant in media representations. She advocates an "oppositional gaze" for black audiences.
3) Judith Butler's gender performativity theory holds that gender is created through the repetitive performance of gender roles, not an essential identity. This creates "gender trouble" for those outside heterosexual norms.
This document provides summaries of four major postmodern theorists:
- Jean-Francis Lyotard rejected rational theories representing reality and emphasized singular events and nonrational forces.
- Jacques Derrida rejected structuralism and the signifier/signified relationship, seeing language as producing other signifiers.
- Jean Baudrillard argued that in postmodern culture, simulations and maps precede reality, and the distinction between nature and artifice is lost.
- Fredric Jameson saw postmodernity as dominated by commodification, with the past reduced to empty stylizations and a loss of history.
Postmodernism refers to social, political and cultural attitudes that emerged in the late 20th century in reaction to modernism. It is characterized by (1) the breakdown between culture and society due to media saturation, (2) an emphasis on style over substance in cultural products, and (3) the breakdown of distinctions between high and popular culture. Postmodern works often feature a confusion over time and space due to modern communication technologies, and reject universal "grand narratives" in favor of personal interpretations. The document provides several examples of postmodernism in art, architecture, literature and media to illustrate these concepts.
"Lyotard and Postmodernism" Key Terms and IdeasMaricelaJJBB
1. The document discusses key terms and ideas related to postmodernism, including modernity, postmodernity, modernization, modernism, and postmodernism.
2. It outlines Jean-Francois Lyotard's views on the postmodern condition, including his ideas that knowledge is being impacted by technological transformations and will be a major factor in global power competitions.
3. Lyotard also analyzed the relationship between narrative knowledge and scientific knowledge, and criticized the growing "mercantilization" and performativity of knowledge in industrial societies.
This document provides an overview of key concepts in representation theory, including how representations in media texts can reinforce dominant ideologies and stereotypes. It discusses approaches such as Marxism, feminism, and postmodernism for analyzing representations. Stereotypes are addressed as simplifying representations that provide shortcuts for meaning-making. The document aims to give students a basic understanding of evaluating representations in their coursework against these theoretical frameworks.
Jean-François Lyotard was a French philosopher and literary theorist known for articulating postmodernism after the 1970s and analyzing its impact on the human condition. He rejected grand narratives and universal claims, most famously arguing in The Postmodern Condition that we have become incredulous towards meta-narratives. Lyotard proposed that postmodernity is characterized by an abundance of micronarratives rather than overarching theories. He was also interested in the sublime and promoted modernist art that demonstrated the limits of conceptualization.
This document provides definitions for various key concepts and theories in media studies, including representation, mediation, situated culture, uses and gratifications theory, ideology, cultural imperialism, hegemony, feminism, post-colonialism, Marxism, stereotypes, Propp's theory, false consciousness, gaze theory, bourgeoisie, Todorov's theory, patriarchy, second wave feminism, binary opposition, and liberal pluralism. Each term is defined in 1-2 sentences.
No, Emmeline Pankhurst would not be considered an archetypal representation of femininity. Some key reasons:
- She was a political activist and leader who fought aggressively for women's suffrage through militant tactics like hunger strikes, which went against traditional expectations of feminine behavior.
- Her activism and leadership role disrupted traditional gender roles that relegated women to the private sphere of home and family. She took on a very public role advocating for women's rights.
- Images and descriptions of her from the time period often emphasized her defiance of femininity through her strong public speaking, willingness to be arrested and imprisoned for her cause, and other assertive tactics.
- She challenged patriarchal power structures and norms
A level media theory knowledge organiser with examMrSouthworth
This document summarizes key concepts and theories from media studies, covering semiotics, narratology, genre theory, structuralism, postmodernism, representation, identity, feminism, audience reception, and media industries. It outlines important ideas from thinkers such as Roland Barthes, Tzvetan Todorov, Steve Neale, Stuart Hall, David Gauntlett, Judith Butler, Paul Gilroy, Albert Bandura, George Gerbner, Henry Jenkins, and David Hesmondhalgh. The concepts discussed include how meaning is constructed through signs and codes, how narratives and genres function, how identity and representation work, how audiences interpret media, and the political and economic contexts of media production and regulation.
This is a presentation i've done based on postmodern theory and the media. It includes elements which are postmodern and examples of different genres. I've also analysed some film trailers and a timeline.
The document discusses the benefits of exercise for mental health. Regular physical activity can help reduce anxiety and depression and improve mood and cognitive functioning. Exercise causes chemical changes in the brain that may help protect against mental illness and improve symptoms.
This document discusses issues with demanding that films represent gay characters and themes according to certain aesthetic ideals, which are often rooted in heterosexual values that marginalize homosexuality. It argues that the notion of a distinct "gay sensibility" is problematic, as oppression alone does not produce subcultural identities. Even films with sympathetic intentions, like The Detective, tend to reproduce dominant negative images of gayness due to the power of established cinematic conventions. The document also examines how James Dean's possible gay identity was necessarily suppressed in his film roles due to narrative and character constraints, limiting his ability to truly express gayness on screen.
The document discusses the various narrative devices used in Alfred Hitchcock's film Psycho. It asks questions about what motivates the main characters, how the camera manipulates the audience's point of view, whether the narration is restricted or omniscient, how the camera disorients the audience, and how enigma and action codes drive the plot forward and build tension. It also asks how Todorov's theory of narrative applies to the film in terms of expectations, red herrings, and MacGuffins, and how Hitchcock challenges expectations of character roles. Finally, it asks about the film's themes using Levi Strauss' binary oppositions and how camera work and editing build tension in the black and
1) The document provides an in-depth analysis and summary of the 1960 Alfred Hitchcock film Psycho. It discusses how the film draws viewers into the psychological states of the main characters and steadily transitions from normal to abnormal situations.
2) A key scene analyzed is the confrontation between the protagonist Marion Crane and motel owner Norman Bates, where Bates implies that we all have moments of madness and the line between normal and abnormal behavior is blurred.
3) The analysis highlights the shocking shower murder scene as profoundly disturbing in its meaninglessness and the abrupt end it brings to the viewer's identification with Marion Crane.
This document provides an overview of videogames and postmodernism. It discusses how videogames subvert traditional ideas of reality and simulation, and how concepts like flow and immersion help understand them as postmodern. It examines Grand Theft Auto IV as an example, and discusses debates around whether games should be analyzed through narratives or ludology. Fan productions are presented as an example of how games blur boundaries between producers and audiences, a hallmark of postmodernism.
This document provides an introduction to BTEC Firsts in Creative Digital Media Production. It discusses what media is, outlines the course structure including 4 mandatory units, and provides tips for success such as organizing work. It also explains how students will be assessed on a pass, merit, distinction scale. Key aspects of the production process are introduced including pre-production, production, and post-production. Students are tasked with creating a presentation about producing a new teen TV show for Channel 4.
This document provides guidance for writing a genre essay that analyzes the characteristics of a film trailer. The essay should consider visual imagery, plot, characters, setting, narrative development, music, stars, directors, iconography from both a descriptive and functional approach. The descriptive approach focuses on visual, technical, and audio signifiers, while the functional approach examines themes and binary oppositions portrayed in the trailer. The essay should be 750 words.
This document provides information about the media studies exam for audiences and representations. It will consist of 3 questions: 1) a textual analysis question on an audio/visual clip or print texts, 2) a stepped question with multiple parts of increasing difficulty focusing on either audiences or representations, and 3) a longer essay question that also focuses on audiences or representations and requires specific examples. It discusses why studying audiences is important and provides several theories for classifying and understanding audiences, including demographic profiles, socio-economic status, lifestyle categories, and uses and gratifications theory. It also discusses how media texts appeal to audiences through fulfilling needs, desires, and addressing fears. Students are prompted to apply these audience theories and concepts to specific media texts and examples
This document provides guidance and questions for a three-part exam analyzing texts from different industries. To fully answer each industry section, the document must analyze three texts from that industry. For each of the nine texts studied, answers of 300-400 words should address questions about the text's genre, narrative structure, representations of gender/ethnicity/age/nationality, success, targeting of audiences, factors affecting production, role of internet/technology, industry regulation, and marketing/promotion.
Creative Digital Media Production Btec revisionCat Davies
The document discusses various techniques, elements and concepts related to analyzing media texts including codes, narratives, stereotypes, camera shots, lighting, mise-en-scene, sound, audiences and research methods. It covers topics such as production processes, platforms, devices, regulation bodies, audience demographics and both qualitative and quantitative research analysis.
The document discusses representation in media and outlines several key theorists' perspectives on representation. It defines representation and discusses how representations have evolved over time. Several theorists are summarized, including their views that representations shape ideology and social order, and how gender and other groups are often represented through stereotypes that serve the interests of those in power. Later theorists discussed believe representations have replaced reality and audiences no longer distinguish between the two.
C.Wright Mills, ‘The Sociological Imagination” From Edwin Lemert, TawnaDelatorrejs
C.Wright Mills, ‘The Sociological Imagination” From Edwin Lemert, Editor, Social Theory: The Multicultural and Classical Readings, page 378-382.
The Sociological Imagination [Wright Mills (1959)]
The sociological imagination enables its possessor to understand the larger historical scene in terms of its meaning for the inner life and the external career of a variety of individuals. It enables him to take into account how individuals, in the welter of their daily experience, often become falsely conscious of their social positions. Within that welter, the framework of modern society is sought, and within that framework the psychologies of a variety of men and women are formulated. By such means the personal uneasiness of individuals is focused upon explicit troubles and the indifference of publics is transformed into involvement with public issues.
The first fruit of this imagination-and the first lesson of the social science that embodies it-is the idea that the individual can understand his own experience and gauge his own fate only by locating himself within his period, that he can know his own chances in life only by becoming aware of those of all individuals in his circumstances. In many ways it is a terrible lesson; in many ways a magnificent one. We do not know the limits of man's capacities for supreme effort or willing degradation, for agony or glee, for pleasurable brutality or the sweetness of reason. But in our time we have come to know that the limits of 'human nature' are frighteningly broad. We have come to know that every individual lives, from one generation to the next, in some society; that he lives out a biography, and that he lives it out within some historical sequence. By the fact of his living he contributes, however minutely, to the shaping of this society and to the course of its history, even as he is made by society and by its historical push and shove.
The sociological imagination enables us to grasp history and biography and the relations between the two within society. That is its task and its promise. To recognize this task and this promise is the mark of the classic social analyst. It is characteristic of Herbert Spencer-turgid, polysyllabic, comprehensive; of E. A. Ross-graceful, muckraking, upright; of Auguste Comte and Emile Durkheim; of the intricate and subtle Karl Mannheim. It is the quality of all that is intellectually excellent in Karl Marx; it is the clue to Thorstein Veblen's brilliant and ironic insight, to Joseph Schumpeter's many-sided constructions of reality; it is the basis of the psychological sweep of W.E.H. Lecky no less than of the profundity and clarity of Max Weber. And it is the signal of what is best in contemporary studies of man and society.
No social study that does not come back to the problems of biography, of history and of their intersections within a society has completed its intellectual journey. Whatever the specific problems of the classic social analysts, however limite ...
Here are some key points about Roland Barthes' concept of mythologies:
- Mythologies refers to the ways in which cultural products and practices come to be regarded as natural and taken-for-granted.
- Barthes was interested in unpacking the unstated assumptions and ideologies behind these cultural myths.
- He analyzed how ordinary objects, gestures, and images come to take on additional layers of meaning and symbolism (their connotations) beyond their literal functions.
- For example, a BMW connotes traits like ambition and success, while a Citroën 2CV implies environmentalism - even though they serve the same functional purpose as vehicles.
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1. “The Role of Stereotypes”
by Richard Dyer
in Paul Marris and Sue Thornham: Media Studies: A Reader, 2nd Edition, Edinburgh University
Press, 1999.
To cite this source in-text, you should use paragraph numbers instead of page numbers. The works cited
entry will be the same as any similar works-cited entry, except you may omit the page numbers in the
original source. If you note any typos, please let me know after class, as this is a scanned and computer-recognized
document.
The word 'stereotype' is today almost always a term of abuse. This stems from the wholly
justified objections of various groups -- in recent years, blacks, women and gays, in particular --
to the ways in which they find themselves stereotyped in the mass media and in everyday speech.
Yet when Walter Lippmann coined the term, he did not intend it to have a wholly and necessarily
pejorative connotation. Taking a certain ironic distance on his subject, Lippmann none the less
lays out very clearly both the absolute necessity for, and the usefulness of, stereotypes, as well as
their limitations and ideological implications:
A pattern of stereotypes is nor neutral. It is not merely a way of substituting order for the great
blooming, buzzing confusion of reality. It is not merely a short cut. It is all these things and
something more. It is the guarantee of our self-respect; it is the projection upon the world of our
own sense of our own value, our own position and our own rights. The stereotypes are, therefore,
highly charged with the feelings that are attached to them. They are the fortress of our tradition,
and behind its defenses we can continue to feel ourselves safe in the position we occupy. (1956:
96)
We can begin to understand something of how stereotypes work by following up the ideas raised
by Lippmann -- in particular his stress on stereotypes as (i) an ordering process, (ii) a 'short cut',
(iii) referring to 'the world', and (iv) expressing 'our' values and beliefs. The rest of this essay is
structured around these topics, concluded with some tentative remarks on the relevance of what
has gone before [in Dyer, 1993] to the representation of alcoholism. Throughout, I move
between the more sociological concern of Lippmann (how stereotypes function in social thought)
and the specific aesthetic concerns (how stereotypes function in fictions) that must also be
introduced into any consideration of media representations. The position behind all these
considerations is that it is not stereotypes, as an aspect of human thought and representation, that
are wrong, but who controls and defines them, what interests they serve.
AN ORDERING PROCESS
Stereotypes as a form of 'ordering' the mass of complex and inchoate data that we receive from
the world are only a particular form -- to do with the representation and categorization of
persons[1] -- of the wider process by which any human society, and individuals within it, make
sense of that society through generalities, patternings and 'typifications'. Unless one believes that
2. there is some definitively 'true' order in the world which is transparently revealed to human
beings and unproblematically expressed in their culture -- a belief that the variety of orders
proposed by different societies, as analysed by: anthropo1ogy and history, makes difficult to
sustain -- this activity of ordering, including the use of stereotypes, has to be acknowledged as a
necessary, indeed inescapable, part of the way societies make sense of themselves, and hence
actually make and reproduce themselves. (The fact that all such orderings are by definition,
partial and limited does not mean that they are untrue -- partial knowledge is not false
knowledge, it is simply not absolute knowledge.)
There are, however, two problems about stereotypes within this perspective Firstly, the need to
order 'the great blooming, buzzing confusion reality' is liable to be accompanied by a belief in
the absoluteness and certainty of any particular order, a refusal to recognize its limitations and
partiality, its relativity and changeability, and a corresponding incapacity to deal with the fact
and experience of blooming and buzzing.
Secondly, as the work of Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann, amongst others, on the 'social
construction of reality' stresses, not only is any given society's ordering of reality an historical
product but it is also necessarily implicated in the power relations in that society -- as Berger and
Luckmann put it, 'he who has the bigger stick has the better chance of imposing his definitions of
reality' (1967: 127). I shall return below to these two problems of Lippmann's formulation --
order (stereotypes) perceived as absolute and rigid, order (stereotypes) as grounded in social
power.
A SHORT CUT
Lippmann's notion of stereotypes as a short cut points to the manner which stereotypes are a very
simple, striking, easily-grasped form of representation but none the less capable of condensing a
great deal of complex information and a host of connotations. As T. E. Perkins notes in her key
article 'Rethinking Stereotypes', the often-observed 'simplicity' of stereotypes is deceptive:
to refer 'correctly' to someone as a 'dumb blonde', and to understand what is meant by that,
implies a great deal more than hair colour and intelligence. It refers immediately to ber sex,
which refers to her status in society, her relationship to men, her inability to behave or think
rationally, and so on. In short, it implies knowledge of a complex social structure. (1979: 139)
The same point emerges from Arnold S. Linsky's analysis (1970-1) of the representation of the
alcoholic in popular magazines between 1900 and 1966, where changing depictions of
a1coholics are shown to express complex and contradictory social theories not merely of
alcoholism but of free will and determinism.
REFERENCE
Lippmann refers to stereotypes as a projection on to the 'world'. Although he is concerned
primarily to distinguish stereotypes from modes of representation whose principal concern is not
the world, it is important for us to do so, especially as our focus is representations in
media/fictions, which are aesthetic as well as social constructs. In this perspective, stereotypes
are a particular subcategory of a broader category of fictional characters, the type. Whereas
3. stereotypes are essentially defined, as in Lippmann, by their social function, types, at this level of
generality, are primarily defined by their aesthetic function, namely, as a mode of
characterization in fiction. The type is any character constructed through the use of a few
immediately recognizab1e and defining traits, which do not change or 'develop' through the
course of the narrative and which point to general, recurrent features of the human world
(whether these features are conceptualized as universal and eternal, the 'archetype', or historically
and culturally specific, 'social types' and 'stereotypes' -- a distinction discussed below).[2] The
opposite of the type is the novelistic character, defined by a multiplicity of traits that are on1y
gradually revealed to us through the course of the narrative, a narrative which is hinged on the
growth or development of the character and is thus centred upon the latter in her t)r his unique
individuality, rather than pointing outwards to a world.
In our society, it is the novelistic character that is privileged over the type, for the obvious reason
that our society privileges -- at any rate, at the level of social rhetoric - the individual over the
collective or the mass. For this reason, the majority of fictions that address themselves to general
social issues tend nevertheless to end up telling the story of a particular individual, hence
returning social issues to purely personal and psychological ones. Once we address ourselves to
the representation and definition of social categories -- e.g. alcoholics -- we have to consider
what is at stake in one mode of characterization rather than another. Where do we want the
emphasis of the representation to lie -- on the psychological (alcoholism as a personal problem),
on the social (alcoholism as all aspect of society) or in some articulation of the two? The choice
or advocacy of a more novelistic or a more typical representation implicitly expresses one or
other of these emphases.
THE EXPRESSION OF VALUES
It is Lippmann's reference to our tradition, and indeed his use of 'our' and 'we' throughout the
passage quoted, that takes us into the most important, and most problematic, issue in
stereotyping. For we have to ask, who exactly are the 'we' and 'us' invoked by Lippmann? -- is it
necessarily you and me? The effectiveness of stereotypes resides in the way they invoke a
consensus. Stereotypes proclaim, 'This is what everyone -- you, me and us -- thinks members of
such-and-such a social group are like', as if these concepts of these social groups were
spontaneously arrived at by all members of society independently and in isolation. The
stereotype is taken to express a general agreement about a social group, as if that agreement
arose before, and independently of, the stereotype. Yet for the most part it is from stereotypes
that we get our ideas about social groups. The consensus invoked by stereo- types is more
apparent than rea1; rather, stereotypes express particular definitions of reality, with concomitant
evaluations, which in turn relate to the disposition of power within society. Who proposes the
stereotype, who has the power to enforce it, is the crux of the matter -- whose tradition is
Lippmann's 'our tradition'?
Here Orrin E. Klapp's distinction between stereotypes and social types is helpful. In his book
Heroes, Villains and Fools (l962) Klapp defines social types as representations of those who
'belong' to society. They are the kinds of people that ')ne expects, and is led to expect, to find in
one's society, whereas stereotypes are those who do not belong, who are outside of one's society.
In Klapp, this distinction is principally geographic -- i.e. social types of Americans, stereotypes
4. of non-Americans. We can, however, rework his distinction in terms of the types produced by
different social groups according to their sense of who belongs and who doesn't, who is 'in' and
who is not. Who does or does not belong to a given society as a whole is then a function of the
relative power of groups in that society to define themselves as central and the rest as 'other',
peripheral or outcast.
In fictions, social types and stereotypes can be recognized as distinct by the different ways in
which they can be used. Although constructed iconographically similarly to the way stereotypes
are constructed (i.e. a few verbal and visual traits are used to signal the character), social types
can be used in a much more open and flexible way than can stereotypes. This is most clearly
seen in relation to p1ot. Social types can figure in almost any kind of plot and can have a wide
range of roles in that plot (e.g. as hero, as villain, as helper, as light relief, etc.), whereas
stereotypes always carry within their very representation an implicit narrative. Jo Spence has
argued in the context of the representation them an implicit narrative pattern:
visual representations which may appear to dea1 with diverse ideas but which are all aimed at
women tend to act as part of an implicit narrative. This has a 'beginning' and a 'middle' (birth,
childhood, marriage, family life) but there is on1y minimal representations of its 'end', of
growing old and dying. (1980: 29-45)
In an article dealing with the stereotyping of gays in films, I tried to show how the use of images
of lesbians in a group of French films, no matter what kind of film or of what 'artistic quality',
always involved an identical plot function (1977: 33-5). Similarly, we surely only have to be told
that we are going to see a film about an alcoholic to know that it will be a tale either of sordid
decline or of inspiring redemption. (This suggests a particularly interesting potential use of
stereotypes, in which the character is constructed, at the level of dress, performance, etc., as a
stereotype but is deliberateIy given a narrative function that is not implicit in the stereotype, thus
throwing into question the assumptions signaled by the stereotypical iconography.)
The social type/stereotype distinction ls essentially one of degree. It is after all very hard to draw
a line between those who are just within and those definitely beyond the pale. This is partly
because different social categories overlap -- e.g. men 'belong', blacks do not, but what of black
men? It is also because some of the categories that the social type/stereotype distinction keeps
apart cannot logically he kept apart in this way. The obvious examples here are men and women,
and it is this that causes T. E. Perkins to reject the distinction (1979: 140-1). As applied to men
and women, the social type/stereotype distinction implies that men have no direct experience of
women and that there could be a society composed entirely of men: both of these are virtually
impossible. Yet it seems to me that what the distinction points to, as applied to women and men,
is a tendency of patriarchal thought[3] to attempt to maintain the impossihle, hy insisting on the
'otherness' of women and men (or rather the 'otherness' of women, men being in patriarchy the
human norm to which women are 'other') in the face of their necessary collaboration in history
and society. (The distinction does also refer in part to a real separation in social arrangements,
i.e. the fact of male and female 'preserves': the pub, the beauty salon, the study, the kitchen. etc.)
What the distinction also maintains is the absolute difference between men and women, in the
face of their actual relative similarity.
5. This is the most important function of the stereotype: to maintain sharp boundary definitions. to
define clearly where the pale ends and thus who is clearly within and who clearly beyond it.
Stereotypes do not only, in concert with social types, map out the boundaries of acceptable and
legitimate behaviour, they also insist on boundaries exactly at those points where in reality there
are none. Nowhere is this more clear than with stereotypes dealing with social categories that are
invisible and/or fluid. Such categories are invisible, because you cannot tell just from looking at
a person that she or he belongs to the category in question. Unless the person chooses to dress or
act in a clearly and culturally defined manner (e.g. the working-class man's cloth cap, the male
homosexual's limp wrist) or unless one has a trained eye (as those dealing with alcoholics
have?), it is impossible to place the person before one, whereas many social groups -- women
and men, different races, young and old -- are visibly different, and this difference can be
eradicated only by disguise. Social categories can be fluid, in the sense that it is not possible in
reality to draw a line between them and adjacent categories. We make a fuss about -- and
produce stereotypes about -- the difference between women and men, yet biologically this is
negligible compared to their similarity. Again, we are led to treat heterosexuality and
homosexua1ity as sharply opposed categories of persons when in reality both heterosexual and
homosexual responses and behaviour are to some extent experienced by everybody in their life.
Alcohol use is clearly in this category -- it is notoriously difficult to draw the line between harm-free
and harmful drinking. But stereotypes can.
The role of stereotypes is to make visible the invisible, so that there is no danger of it creeping up
on us unawares; and to make fast, firm and separate what is in reality fluid and much closer to
the norm than the dominant value system cares to admit.
In the widest sense, these functions of rendering visible and firm can be connected to Lippmann's
insistence on stereotypes as ordering concepts, and to the tendency towards rigidity that may be
implied by this. All societies need to have relatively stable boundaries and categories, but this
stability can be achieved within a context that recognizes the relativity and uncertainty of
concepts. Such a stability is, however, achieved only in a situation of real, as opposed to
imposed, consensus. The degree of rigidity and shrillness of a stereotype indicates the degree to
which it is an enforced representation that points to a reality whose invisibi1ity and/or fluidity
threatens the received:; definitions of society promoted by those with the biggest sticks. (E.g. if
women are not so very different from men. why are they subordinated?; if alcoholism is not so
easily distinguished from social drinking, can we be so comfortable in our acceptance of the
latter and condemnation of the former?)
[...]
NOTES
1. I confine myself here to the discussion of stereotypes as a form of representing persons,
although the word itself (especially in adjectival form) is also used to refer to ideas,
behaviour, settings, etc.
2. It is important to stress the role of conceptualization in the distinction between, on the
one hand, archetypes, and, on the other, social and stereotypes, since what may be
6. attributed to a type as a universal and eternal trait, hence making it archetypal, may only
be a historically and culturally specific trait misunderstood as a universal and eternal trait
-- it is, after all, the tendency of dominant value systems in societies to pass their values
off as universally and eternally valid.
3. By patriarchy I mean the thought system that legitimates the power of men and the
subordination of women in society; I do not mean that it is necessarily and simply how all
men think of women, although it is an overwhelming determinant on that.
REFERENCES
1. Berger, Peter and Luckmann, Thomas (1967) The Social Construction of Reality,
London: Allen Lane/Penguin Press.
2. Dyer, Richard (1977) 'Stereotyping', in Richard Dyer (ed.) Gays and Film,
London:British Film Institute.
3. Klapp, Orrin E. (1962) Heroes, Villains and Fools, Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall.
4. Linsky, Arnold S. (1970-1) 'Theories of Behaviour and the Image of the Alcoholic in
Popular Magazines 1900-1960', Public Opinion Quarterly 34: 573-81.
5. Lippmann, Walter (1956) Public Opinion, New York: Macmillan. (First published 1922.)
6. Perkins, T. E. (l979) 'Rethinking Stereotypes', in Michele Barrett, Philip Corrigan,
Annette Kuhn and Janet Wolff (eds) Ideology and Cultural Production, London:Croom
Helm, 135-59.
7. Spence, Jo (1980) 'What Do People Do All Day? Class and Gender in Images of Women',
Screen Educatlon 29.