4. Aims
• To understand Stuart Halls Reception theory.
• To understand the 3 ways an audience can
understand and read a text.
• To create an advert and to see how an audience
can consume it in different ways.
5. Reception theory Stuart Hall
• The reception theory states that media texts
are encoded by the producer meaning that
whoever produces the text fills the product
with values and messages.
• The text is then decoded by spectators.
• Different spectators will decode the text in
different ways, not always in the way the
producer intended.
7. Dominant
• The dominant reading of a text is that the
audience view the media text in the way the
producer intended.
• The audience agree with the ideology and
message behind the text.
• The audience will view the message in the way
the producer wanted them to.
• i.e. a hand bag looks appealing to a female reader
encouraging her to want to go out and buy it.
8. Negotiated
• This is a compromise between the dominant and
oppositional readings, the audience accepts the
views of the producer but also has their own
input and understanding in relation to the text.
• They do not agree or disagree, they however can
see the point being made in relation to the
reading yet still have their own opinion.
• For e.g. they see a hand bag being advertised,
they like the bag as it is beautiful and luxurious
but could not justify spending x amount of money
on a bag making the bag less appealing.
9. Oppositional
• The audience rejects the preferred reading
and creates their own reading of the text.
• The audience reject the meaning fully as they
do not agree with the message created for the
audience.
• A woman sees an advert for a bag, they feel
that women are being stereotyped in relation
to the ad and reject its meaning fully as they
feel women are categorised by appearance.
10. How may a audience have a
• Dominant understanding of your product?
• Clear messages
• Audience is the same age so relates to product
• From the same culture
• Easy to understand narrative and they can relate
to the narrative in some way.
• Relevant to society
• Audience are choosing to consume the product
so must have a reason to like it in the first place
11. How may an audience have a
• Negotiated reading of your product:
• The audience may not have had the same life
experiences
• May not understand the narrative in relation so
therefore cannot relate to it in the intended way.
• Age may vary the reading and understanding
• Do not understand all of the messages making it
unclear what the dominant reading is supposed
to be.
12. How an audience may have a
• Oppositional reading of your product:
• Your product has controversial themes
• Disagree with the messages in the video
• Dis-like the genre
• No understanding/ cannot relate to the narrative
structure
• Is not reflective of society
• Different cultures have different understandings.
13. Task 1
• To design an advert for a new product:
• New ham burger at McDonalds
• New perfume for a man/woman
• New dress for a woman
• New jeans for a man
• On the back state what the preferred reading,
negotiated reading and oppositional reading
could be of the advert you have just made.
14. Task 2
• Swap you advert with a person sitting near
you.
• On the 3 post-it-notes state what the 3
readings of the product could be:
• Preferred
• Negotiated
• Oppositional
15. Exit pass
• Did the advert you created have more than
one reading?
• How do you think the mass audience would
respond to your advert in relation to Stuart
Halls theory?
• What have you found challenging in todays
lesson?
