This document discusses several key concepts in media theories: Narrative refers to how a story is organized through elements like structure. Todorov identified three stages in narratives - equilibrium, disruption, new equilibrium. Genre categorizes media based on similar narrative elements. Audiences are important as media is produced with target audiences in mind. Representation refers to how media portrays social groups, and theorists like Stuart Hall and Laura Mulvey analyzed power dynamics and stereotypes in representation.

1. Media Theories
BY MARIAM EL GUENNOUNI

2. Narrative
 Narrative is the way the different elements in the story are
organised. This is to make the storyline mean something in an
organised matter and for the film to have a clear structure to it.
Narrative is another way of saying story telling, it is a key word in
media/film studies. There are many different narrative structures
which different films could follow, Such as an open or closed
structure. An open structure is when the film/story has no clear
ending, the ending is left open. However, on the other hand a
closed structure is when the story has a clear ending which is
used in most films where the story ends satisfactorily.

3. Todorov
 Theories;
Tzvetan Todorov is a narrative theorist who’s theories have been broken down into
three main areas. Todorov believes that, the text begins with a state of equilibrium, this
is where everything appears to be calm or normal. His second main part is where the
narrative has some sort of disruption or disequilibrium, meaning there could be some
sort of threat in a normal situation. Finally, his last part is a new equilibrium where there
are some sort of changes in the main characters life or outlook on life.
Todorov suggests that there are five stages in the narrative process.
He states that at first the equilibrium has to be carefully shown otherwise the changes
will not be as dramatic. Then after there becomes a disruption, followed by a
recognition that a disruption has occurred. Then there is an attempt to fix the damage
that’s been caused and finally, a new equilibrium is achieved.

4. Genre
 Genre is the term for any category which any
forms of art/culture could fit into. In film theory,
genre refers to the method of film based on
the similarities in the narrative elements from
which films are constructed. The word itself
means ‘type’ or ‘category’.

5. David Chandler
 Chandler was a British visual semiotician based at the
department of theatre, film and television studies. His best
known publication is semiotics: the basics. He said that
conventional definitions of genres tend to be based on the
notion that they constitute particular conventions of content,
such as themes or settings. He also stated that every genre
positions who participate in a text of that kind. For example;
as interviewer or interviewee or as a listener or storyteller,
each of these positions implies different possibilities for
response.

6. Audience
 An audience is an individual or a group of people who view or read
any media products. For example, Films, TV shows or magazines.
Audience is a very important media element as whatever is being
produced by a media institution the directors or producers always
have to ensure that whatever they produce has to relate to their
target audience. Otherwise their product will not be distrusted as
they will not have any audience to watch or view their product. Also,
the audience are the main investors in media as they are the main
people who could get a product distributed and become known
(raise awareness). Media organisations produce media texts to
make profit. Therefore, with no audience here will be no profit.

7. Stuart Hall
 Stuart Hall is a cultural theorist and professor of sociology at the open university.
Hall came up with a model suggesting three ways in which we may read a media
text. Those three were;
 Dominant reading, this is where the ready fully accepts the preferred reading
where the audience will read the text the way the author intended them to.
 The negotiated reading - Where the reader partly believes the code and broadly
accepts the preferred reading, but sometimes modifies it.
 The oppositional reading – where the readers social position places them in an
oppositional relation to the dominant code. In other words they reject the reading.
 Hall was concerned with media power to create dominant ideologies. In other
words brainwashing the public’s views for example, the role of women in todays
society. He believes that the mass media create and define issues or public
concern and interest through audience positioning.

8. Representation
 Representation In the media context is the ways in which the
media portrays particular groups and communities from a
particular ideology or value perspective. Key areas of
representation are; Age, gender, social class, ethnicity,
regional identity and sexuality. Some people say an easy way
to understand what representation is, is when you watch a TV
show which show ordinary people however, in an exaggerated
way which is different to seeing the same people in real life.
However, representations can change over time depending on
whether the stereotypes of the different social groups change
over time.

9. Representation theorists
 There are many representation theorists which all have different
statements about representations.
 Laura Mulvey was a feminist theorist, she extends this idea when
she suggests that the ‘silver screen’ operates like a metaphorical
mirror which reflects back to the female viewer. However, she
feels as though they are not genuine reflections of female identity
but representations of idealised feminity. For example, Nicki
Minaj’s Anaconda video is an example of what Mulvey means by
females are not genuinely reflected. The females in the video are
all seen to be half naked and craving for sex, this reflects them as
being objectified by males as a sex object.