This document discusses representation in media and outlines several representation theorists. It notes that representation can vary based on factors like age, gender, ethnicity, and social class. Theories discussed include Laura Mulvey's concept of the "male gaze" in film, bell hooks' analysis of the objectification of black women in hip hop, John Berger's view that women are there for male objectification, and Stuart Hall's encoding/decoding theory of media representation. The document then gives examples of how different groups may be represented, such as the elderly as helpless or black people liking chicken. It analyzes the representation of the main character Eldon Livermore, a 30-year-old divorced black male teacher, noting both potential stereotypes and

1. REPRESENTATION InfinityScope Studios

2. WHAT IS REPRESENTATION?
The oxford dictionary would define representation as ‘the
description or portrayal of someone or something in a particular
way’.
However, today this definition can be said to be completely
different to other people. Also, these representations may
completely vary; it may vary depending on things such as:
 Age
 Gender
Background/Social Class
 Ethnicity/ Race
There are many theories which a based on representations and
this can be seen on the following slide:

3. EXEMPLARY
REPRESENTATION
THEORISTS
Laura Mulvey:
 Theory based on ‘The Male Gaze’
 Film represent women as passive objects of male desire
Therefore audiences are forced to view women from the
point of view of a heterosexual male
bell hooks: (name is intentionally spelt with no capital
letters)
 Theory based on ‘The Colour Codes’
 Women are considered more desirable and fit better
into the western ideologoy of beauty
 Black women are objectified and sexualised in hip-hop,
reflecting the colonialist view of black woman (sexually
disposable)

4. … CONTINUED
John Berger:
 “Men look, women appear”
 Women are there solely for the objectification of
women within all platforms of the media
 Criticises western culture and focuses on depictions of
women
Stuart Hall:
 Encoding/Decoding theory
 Media appears to reflect reality and constructs society
 Meaning of a media text is not fixed, it’s open to
interpretation

5. WHAT REPRESENTATION MAY
CONSIST OF
 Age – people may be represented in terms of their age e.g.
the elderly are helpless and require a lot of attention or the
young are deviant and always in hoodies causing a nuisance.
 Ethnicity/ Race – representations may be used to depict
people’s race, e.g. all Asians own a corner shop or all black
people have a strong liking for chicken.
 Gender – also, females may be presented in terms of them
being weaker than males and males vice versa, males are
known to be strong and fierce.
 Social-Class – people may be represented in terms of their
social-class or background.
 Sexuality – for instance, bisexuals may be represented as
greedy and hormonal whereas heterosexuals may be
represented as say more ‘normal’.

6. REPRESENTATION OF OUR
MAIN ACTOR
Eldon Livermore is a 30 year old black male. An alcoholic teacher. A
divorced, with on child character. He lives in the heart of London and
our representation of him is negative; it allows our target audience to
empathise with him and his trouble-some life. It may be argued that
actually, the character of Eldon is a stereotype of black males. It may
be stereotyped that they are alcoholics or have some form of
negativity in their lives.
Eldon being divorced may also be a stereotype in terms of his
representation, he is a typical, lost character. However it may actually
be argued that well, perhaps deep down all humans feel this way,
therefore creating multiple representations. Perhaps Eldon can relate
to wider audiences more than it would be thought.
Finally, Eldon’s clothing is arguably the typical ‘male attire’ for a
teacher as his shirt is untucked indicating his uncaring attitude and
laziness as well as his tie, sort of, almost making up for his uncaring
attitude.