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Media theory representation

Misfits case study

The plot:

Misfits is about a group of young people who have committed a crime and doing community service rather than going to prison but  then a storm came  and they all get different powers from the storm. The probation officer tries to attacks the group being turned into a maniac from the storm but the group  uses self defence to protect them selves by killing  the probation officer and by hiding the crime

Media representation meaning

"Media representations are the ways in which the media portrays particular groups, communities, experiences, ideas, or topics from a particular ideological or value perspective. Rather than examining media representations as simply reflecting or mirroring "reality," we examine how media representations serve to "re-present" or to actually create a new reality"

source https://media-studies.tki.org.nz/Teaching-media-studies/Media-concepts/Representation

"Media representation theory Media Representation Theory Representation refers to the construction in any medium (especially the mass media) of aspects of ‘reality’ such as people, places, objects, events, cultural identities and other abstract concepts. Such representations may be in speech or writing as well as still or moving pictures."

Source https://www.slideshare.net/Tomaskas/media-representation-theory

"The ways in which aspects of the society notably gender, race, ethnic and social classes among others, are presented to audiences by the media. It is equally the ways in which the media portrays communities, ideas, experiences and genders from a particular ideological, philosophical, or cultural perspective. Media representation entails media “re-presentation” or “re-creation” of reality."

Source https://www.igi-global.com/dictionary/exploring-us-citizens-perceptions-of-foreign-medias-representations-of-america/74399

First impressions on the characters

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The characters get themselves into a situation where they have committed crimes and they are having to do community services for what they did. While doing their community service a storm comes there way and gives the characters different powers. The   characters are dressed in orange jumpsuits this is to suggests that they have done something wrong but when they have finished their community services they change into their normal clothes. The characters facial expression is very straight faced they don't show any emotions. The characters body language  tells that they are not happy and that they don't care. They all speak different but they mainly they speak slang. The group  does their community services  while doing they have different conversations during these conversations they say things that make the others angry and  set them off. While they are not doing community service we see parts of  their lives and we see how they are treated they did this so that we have a bit of background of the characters. Negative representations because we see them either doing community services or their personal lives. They would fit into the stereotypes of being criminals, doing drugs, drinking and more. I think that the characters challenge the stereotype of all teenagers being negative.

The characters

Kelly Baily

In the first episode I find out why she was doing community service. The reason why she was doing community service was  that she go into a fight with another girl. Kelly is the person who is not scared to tell people the truth and what she thinking. She wears the jumpsuit on her body properly but it doesn't  button  it up all the way this tells us that she doesn't care. Her facial expression and body language shows that she doesn't care about what people say about her.  The power that she gains from the storm is that she can read peoples mind. I think that she is aged between 17-19 years old because of how she acts. Most people would say that she is a "Chav" because of the how she does her make up and hair  also on how she dresses and what jewellery she wears.  When she speaks I can tell that she is using slang.

Alisha Daniels

In the first the episode I find out why she was doing community services. The reason was that she was driving while she was drunk. Many people would say that she is being shown as the "party girl" because of  how she is dressed. The way she wears her jumpsuit is that it is revealing and also tells that she doesn't care. Her  facial expression and body language tells us that she is confident and that she is outspoken. She is the girl that doesn't care because we can  see that she's always on the phone. The superpower that she gains is when people touch her they start to be attracted to her but when they let go of they are no longer attracted to her.  She looks like she could be in her first year of college as she likes to party and how she dresses. She peaks informal.

Curtis Donovan

 In the first episode I find out why he was doing community service. The reason why he was doing community service is that he was doing drug possession so this means that he has ruined his future career.  The way he wears his jumpsuit tells us that he is not bothered about anything. His facial expression tells us that he isn't bothered but his body language is that he is calm and relaxed. The power that he has been given is that he can stop time or that he is able see what is going to happen before it happens. I think that he is aged between 17 and 20.

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Simon  Bellamy

In the first episode we find out why he is doing community service. the reason why he is doing community service due to that he attempted to set  someones house on fire. His body language is that he is shy, quiet and likes to keep to himself.  His facial expression is serious but he is a quiet character. He way he wears his jumpsuit is that he serious. His body language is serious and that he just wants to get his community service over and done with.  He looks like he is aged between 18-20.  The power that he gained is that he is able to turn invisible.

Nathan Young

In the first episode I don't  learn about why he is doing  community service. His facial expression is that he doesn't care about what people think or say but his body language is chill. The way he wears his jumpsuit is that he wants to be the group leader.From what I saw in the episode he was the most annoying character but also loud. He wasn't given a power. He looks like he is in his first year of college that is aged between  17-19.

A denotative and connotative analysis of misfits

Body Language denotation Simons is sitting on a bench. He is sitting straight up, his shoulders are hunched forwards with his hands in his pockets. Connotation  his body language and posture signifies that he is closed and that he is feeling defensive about what happened before  with the rest of the group

Facial expression denotation Simons look straight at the camera with a poker face. Connotation his facial expression signifies that he is serious and deep into his thoughts.

Facial expression denotation  you can see that Simons mouth is wide open like he is screaming and his eyes rolling in his head. Connotation this signifies that he is going through a dramatic change

The mirror denotation You can see Simons reflection. connotation this signifies that he is still visible.

The mirror denotation You can see the mirror but dont see Simons reflection.Connotation this signfies that he has turned invisible.

The locker room denotation  wide angle shot and Simon is small in the frame.  Simon is  sitting by himself with a lot of space around him. Connotation this signifies that he  upset and that he feels alone and isolated. He also feels small.

 Camera movements- is that it moves towards Simon then to the side of him and they move in front of him again and starts to  zoom out on him.  They start as a long shot  then go to a mid shot and than a back to a long shot.

Misfits 2 episode season 1 notes/ observation

 

How's the young and old portrayed 

 Young:  At the community centre they looked like they didn't want to be there. For example Kelly was slouching in the chair and her face expression was like she didn't care and that she just wants to go home. Whereas Nathan is making a  fool of himself. tHey are dressed casually. They are easily distracted for example when Nthan meets the girl at the community centre. They don't care what happens for example when the girl goes back to the community centre and sees Nathan and they start running around th community centre and messing with things.

 

Old: At the community centre they really enjoyed what they were doing. They were having fun. They are dressed more formally for example when Alisha and the old man were holding hands you can see that he is wearing a tie and shirt and she is wearing a summer dress.

 

At the community centre Nathan meets a lady but he imagines her being young but then he stops imagining her being  young and then realises that she is an old woman.


 

Similarities

At the end we can see that they are all having fun except for Nathan

 

Sterotypes that presented the young and the old

Old is that the mobility  and that they young people don't enjoy doing the community service

 

The message 

Is that you they should be care ful becuse of the storm has given people different powers,

 

Signifers

Their expression when they saw the old man naked   was shocked and disgusted from what they saw.

 

The setting 

Community centre hall & lockers

Under the bridge

Nathans moms house

 

Camera movements:

Panning 

Tilting

 

Camera shots:

Two shot

Over the shoulder

Medium shot

Long shot

Close ups

Stereotypical representation of  the elderly and young in society

Stereotypes about young people

  • They do drugs

  • Dresses casual

  • Technology obsessed

  •  Likes to Party

  •  They drink

  •  Slang

  •  Irresponsible

  • They didn't care about anything

  •  They have different interest

  • Likes to learn new things

  • ​

Stereotypes about elderly People 

  • Not able to use technology

  • Not able to learn new things

  •  They don't want to learn anything new

  • They dress formal.

  • Nothing to say that will interest younger people

  • Able to do excersize

  • May have health issues

  • Able to move around more

  • They Talk formal​

3 Stereotypes from misfits

Limited mobility - When Ruth turns old again you see her at the   community centre looking at Nathan holding onto a Zima frame.

The way young and elderly  dress-  The young people likes to dress more casual where as the old dresses more formal.

You can see that the group is stand in a line. They are being told what to do and that they need to interact  with the elderly by there new probation officer. The group does not seem interested or impressed with the idea of having to interact with the elderly. This reinforces the stereotype that young people are not interested in anything else other than their mobile phones

The use of drugs- You can see that Nathan and Ruth are smoking  after they were messing around in the community centre. Ruth is 64 year old who enjoys smoking drugs this is not how the audience expects an elderly person to act and in retrospect it encourages the viewers to question the assumptions.

I think that  the character Ruth challenges  the stereotypes of elderly people because when Ruth turned  young  in appearance you see her doing things that an elderly person  wouldn't do but you see her doing things that a young person would do. When she turns old again in appearance that she does reinforce  the elderly stereotype because you see her with a Zima frame. Ruth has never changed but the perspective of her from the worlds point of  view has because of her image and how she  appear.

Positive Representation

I think that there are positive representation of young people in misfits because at first in episode two you see that the young people don't want to be there but then near the end you can see that they are enjoying themselves at the community centre at the end except Nathan because of what happened between him and Ruth but Nathan shows positive representation because he goes to see Ruth and he apologies to his mum.

Stuart Hall  reception theory 

Stuart Hall

Who is Stuart Hall

Stuart Hall developed the  reception theory. He says that all media texts are encoded and decoded. The producers of the production encode a message and values into the programmes and then the audiences decodes the messages and values. But Hall said that doesn't mean that the audience all receive the  message and the values in the  same way or the way the producer wants it to be taken.

Dominant and preferred readings-  This is how the producer wants the audience  to view the media text.

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Oppositional  readings-  This is when the audience doesn't like dominant/preferred readings and then makes their own meaning of the media text. 

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Negotiated reading- This is where the audience has compromised between dominant/preferred and oppositional readings but the audience accept the producers views but also has there own views on it as well.

 My personal response to the Misfits Series 1 episode 2?

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My personal response to misfits series 1 episode 2 is that  I understood the message that the producer encoded into the show. Others that may watch or has watched the show my take the message a different way. The message that the producer wanted the audience to take away is that young people should have a different view on elderly people. I did this by watching the whole episode and understanding what was going on. According to Stuart hall I have made a dominant/ preferred reading.

Gender and Representation

Female stereotypes

  • Delicate ​

  • In need of protection (Damsel in Distress) ​

  • Caring about appearance ​

  • Flirtatious ​

  • Gossipy ​

  • Sassy ​

  • Fragile

  • Receptive to being told what to do ​

  • Domestic Role / Cleaning & Cooking ​

  • Modest

Male sterotypes

  • Aggressive ​

  • Powerful​

  • In Control​

  • Strong 

  •  winner    ​

  • In to Sports ​

  • Heavy Drinkers 

  • Breadwinner ​​

  • Gentleman 

  • Respectful 

  • Physically Strong ​

  • Emotional Strong   ​

  • Aggressive ​

  • Athletic​

  • Intimidating  ​

  • Arrogant ​

TV shows that represent traditional stereotypes

  • Eastenders

  • Coronation street

  • Two and a half men

  • The big bang theroy

  • The real house wives of atlanta

  • Keeping up with the Kardashians 

  •  My wife and kids

  • Fresh prince of bel air

The real house wives of Atlanta

 The real  housewives of Atlanta represent traditional gender stereotypes because they show women that care a lot about their appearance. We see this through their hair, make up and clothes also by them criticizing the other women. They also represent  the female characters  as gossipy  because they talk about each other behind their backs.
 

Gender stereotypes on misfits series 1

Alisha reinforces female stereotypes because of how she dresses and cares for her appearance. She also reinforces it because we see a scene where she needs protection from a guy.  Alisha is  very flirtatious and she defines herself  by being attracted to men

I think that Kelly challenges and also reinforced female stereotypes because  she dresses differently to Alisha and that she does not care as much about her appearances like Alisha.  She  acts like she doesn't need any protection. Kelly is more involved  in moving the body. Kelly  head buts a girl and this  aggression is viewed as a male trait.

I think that Nathan reinforces stereotypes because he doesn't show any emotion but also  he challenges stereotypes because he is not strong and not muscular but he tries to dominate and become the leader of the group by using words and insults.

I think that Simon reinforces some of the stereotypes because we see him being aggressive as he slams the lockers but he also challenges some of the stereotypes because he is defensive and vulnerable. 

I think that Curtis reinforces some of the stereotypes because at the start series we see that he is confident, in control and  into sports but as the series goes on Curtis challenges some of the stereotypes because we see Curtis being vulnerable and not as in control as before.

Positive/ Negative  representation  of gender

  • mISFITS SHOWS BOTH NEGATIVE and psitive representations of the genre

  • The series both reinforces and challenges both gender stereotypes

  •  At the begininng of series one Alishia is represented as traditional female sterotype.( she cares about her apperance, men being attracted toher and her selfi of esteem 

  • Curtis is a stereo typical representatantion of masculinite-every thing a man should be ( strong, muscular, in control.)

  • As the series goes the viewers get to learn more about these characters these stereotypes are dismantled  curtis shows vulrabilty, Alisha shows that shows that she wants to be more than a mans desire

  • As a result viewers ae encouraged to question  stereotypes  as the characters traditoional gender representation ( summary of notes to be put in my own word) 

Positive gender representation  in current Tv shows

The big bang theroy:

  • The big bang theory  shows both positive and Negative representations.

  •  Many would say that she is a bimbo.

  • She is not smart like the geeks but she is street smart she understands the world better. 

  • Penny has power over the geeks both female and male.

  • Later on in the series  Amy comes along who is not attractive but intelligent whereas Penny is attractive and street smart

Gender representation- The male gaze

https://theconversation.com/explainer-what-does-the-male-gaze-mean-a
nd-what-about-a-female-gaze-52486

The male gaze is when they focus the camera on a women's body from a males point of view. The women are normally positioned as objects.

Male gaze in Misfits.

 I think that misfits uses male gaze on Alisha because we see her as the party girl . She flirts a lot. The camera also  focuses on her body  to view it from a males point of view.  Also in episode one we see them use male gaze on Kelly when she was in bed with her boyfriend. I think that when Simon was in the probation officer house we see from Simons point of view of what we see.

Presenting  women highly sexualised and in objectifying way is an issue because all the children that watches tv and looks at social media they give  the children the wrong idea of how women should be treated.

Conclusion

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Is there a female gaze?

I think there is a female gaze because if male gaze is how they view a female body . The female gaze is the way females point of view on a males body.

Summary of Misfits season 1 episode 5&6

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In episode 5 Simon is getting close to the female probation officer because Simon is starting to like her but she is only trying to find out who killed the male probation officer. 

In episode 6 a group of people comes to community centre and starts to  brain washing the group one by one by kidnapping them.

Bibliography

conclusion
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