The music video for "Blank Space" by Taylor Swift challenges common media representations of her love life and relationships. Through exaggerated scenes and settings, the video portrays her relationships in a ridiculous manner to push back on portrayals of her in the media. Various film techniques are used to present Taylor Swift in a powerful light at the center of attention, challenging depictions of her as attention-seeking or as not in control of her relationships. Symbolism through objects like apples and cars also push back on representations of her as harmful or frivolous in relationships. Overall, the video uses over-the-top scenarios and interpretations to redefine how Taylor Swift is seen by both media and fans.

1. How are media representations of TAYLOR SWIFT challenged in the music video “BLANK SPACE”?
BlankSpace by TaylorSwiftchallengesmanyrepresentationsof herinthe mediasurroundingherlove life withother
celebrities. Taylor, through this, is aiming to present these ideas in an exaggerated and ridiculous way of which
would therefore indoctrinate that audience and media to see her in a different light. The video uses many
compositiontecniquesalongside mise-en-sceneandoverall cameraworktorespectivelydefythe mediaand develop
her own realistic image for her fans and the world to see.
This shot depicts Taylor Swift in a palace like mansion which therefore elaborates on the idea that she is
important – the spacious setting reinforces this idea. This challenges how she is represented in the media
as the exaggerated amount of unsuccessful relationships shown in the news deems her as rather looked
down upon, whereas this shot alone places her in a more dominant position. The mise-en-scene of the shot
is intriguing due to the contrast in composition. We see how she is wearing a black night gown of which
completely contrasts the white – almost pure – location. This alone could infer that she is in the middle of a
perfect world of where she does not belong. Initially reinforcing media representations of her being
misplaced and misused yet also challenging the idea that she lives a perfect life.
This close up shot displays Taylor in a deeper fantasy setting as there is an obvious inter-textual reference
to Snow White. The apple in Snow white is red and connotes poison and danger of which is the same
colour as Taylors lipstick in the scene as well. In contrast to this, her eyes are a piercing blue of which is
more of a mellow and euphoric colour to therefore give an inference of kindness and purity. This overall
difference of colour determines how she is represented in the media as a pretty young female who – once
in a relationship – ruins it due to her words. As well as this, we see in future shots how her use of the apple
has an effect on the male actor. This could connote that the apple is acting as an almost voodoo doll and

2. Taylor has full control over her boyfriend. This exaggerates and rejects the fact that she is seen as
controlling in the media and therefore presents her as a liberating and caring woman in the long run.
This shot is composed similar to many of the other shots in the video. The centralisation of Taylor makes
her the focus of the audience, and the way that she maintains in/extremely close to the middle of the shot
emphasises this. With the media assuming Taylor uses relationships to grab attention and fame, her
exaggeration and overuse of the idea of being the ‘Centre of attention’ challenges this representation
vastly. The shot also presents the audience with some interesting mise-en-scene, the unopened
champagne bottle could connote how Taylor is waiting for the right man of whom she will then share it with.
As well as this, the gummy heart sweets are black of which could be a metaphor for Taylors heart and how
she is deadly/careless in a relationship.
This idea that Taylor Swift’s career is promoted solely on relationships is heavily hinted towards here. The
audience is presented with a second car and man of which is supposedly Taylor’s next lover. This is shown
directly after the shot of Taylor vandalising the primary lover’s car and kissing him on the floor – implying
that this is a constant loop. The cars of which the men are driving are relatively old fashioned and therefore
develops an idea that Taylor is looking for an old fashioned relationship, elaborating on the overall idea of a
dystopian fantasy of love. The way that the shot is almost hidden by leaves and walls could imply that
Taylor actually wants a private relationship and that the medias representations of her in relationships is
false due to hot they are not explicit to them.
To conclude, Taylor’s exaggeration of her representation through the media implies that she is – in reality –
far from how she is presented. The camerawork places Taylor in the centre of her world of which is a
dystopian fantasy and therefore develops a more fictional idea. With the inter-textual reference to Snow
white, Taylor is also seen to be either a princess or an evil queen, leaving the audience to decide on how
they see her. This shows a very good sense of morality as she isn’t trying to force an appearance of herself

3. as many moments allow the audience to interpret the meanings for themselves. The media representations
are challenged by being heavily conformed to in an over the top way. Furthermore, the parallel editing and
jump cuts through time provide the video with a sense of depth and background, preforming the entire
relationship and adding a lot more meaning and explanation for what goes wrong.