Summary of Laura Mulvey
-Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema (1975)
Mulvey states and puts across the fact that a patriarchal society is dominant in narrative cinema and that we are made to identify with male charcters and look at things through their perspective (audience positioning) which is why most protagonists are male and play more leading roles in hollywood films.
Hollywood cinema these days highlights the objectification of women and how they are just put into a movie to be looked at which in this case connects to scopophilia which means a pleasure in looking at something. Women are seen and made to be seen as fetish objects and are subject to the male gaze.
Women are usually seen holding what appears to be a phallic symbol which means an object which is representative of the penis and is used there to cancel out the feeling of castration that men hold towards females as they do not have what males have. This is known as womb/penis envy
Although you may argue away from Mulvey and say that men are also subjected to female gaze as they are put in tight costumes and their body is sometimes being exposed however a term called narcissim (where a man has self love) could be used to argue that men are put like that for the pleasure of other men to look at so that they can aspire to be like that and they are not put there to be objectified like women are. The men see an idealized veiw of themsleves therefore is beneficial to them.
Why is this relevant to my Independant Study
The girls in mean girls are subject to the male gaze as they all wear clothes that reveal parts of their body which is fetishized by men. The girls are more into their looks showug the change in society and how women are obsessed with their image and ther obsession to impress men.
In this film no males are being subjected to the female gaze and the focus of objectification is on females as they are seen in mini skirts and tight tops showing alot of their body of.
patriarchy is potrayed as the females actions are all being done for males and the dilemmas that they go thorugh evolve around a male character althoguh the main characters are not male the way they are represented fills the gap of dominant male characters. The females are seen as dependent on eachother and the males
However the movie is directed from a teenage females point of veiw as the narrator of the movie is the actual leading character (Kady)
Also the females characters emotions are recognised without any complaint like in any other hollywoood movie where guys have resisted to listen to female emotions and what goes on in their head. The more sensitive man "new man" is portrayed in this movie to a certain extent.
Sunday, 16 December 2007
Sunday, 25 November 2007
Delicious Links
Mean Girls (Sofia)
How are teenagers represented in Mean Girls?
to MediaStudies med5 med4 representation blogs A2coursework ghs ...
Sex & the City (Iena)
How does Sex and the City provide representations of women that challenge what they once were, and what does it suggest that they are becoming?
to MediaStudies med5 med4 representation women blogs A2coursework ghs ...
America's Next Top Model (Roohdip)
Relates to my independant study as it focuses on female representation combining with reality
to MediaStudies blogs A2coursework ghs ... on oct 15, 2005
Mean Girls (Anita)
How are teenage girls represented in Mean Girls?
to MediaStudies med5 med4 representation women blogs A2coursework ghs ...
The Stepford Wives (John)
How are women represented in the media and how has their roles changed over time? Looking especially at The Stepford Wives.
to MediaStudies med5 med4 representation women blogs A2coursework ghs ...
Mean Girls (Pardeep)
Focuses on the question i am focusing on
to MediaStudies blogs A2coursework ghs ...
Kidulthood (Alliya)
Teenage representation
to med5 MediaStudies ghs Blogs A2coursework representation women med4 ...
Charlies Angels (Heena)
represntation on women
to med5 MediaStudies ghs Blogs A2coursework representation women med4 ...
Sex & the City (Bushara)
Representation of women
to med5 MediaStudies Blogs A2coursework ghs representation women med4 ...
Notes on The Gaze
Involved media theorist
to MediaStudies med4 representation women ...
Mean Girls (Sofia)
How are teenagers represented in Mean Girls?
to MediaStudies med5 med4 representation blogs A2coursework ghs ...
Sex & the City (Iena)
How does Sex and the City provide representations of women that challenge what they once were, and what does it suggest that they are becoming?
to MediaStudies med5 med4 representation women blogs A2coursework ghs ...
America's Next Top Model (Roohdip)
Relates to my independant study as it focuses on female representation combining with reality
to MediaStudies blogs A2coursework ghs ... on oct 15, 2005
Mean Girls (Anita)
How are teenage girls represented in Mean Girls?
to MediaStudies med5 med4 representation women blogs A2coursework ghs ...
The Stepford Wives (John)
How are women represented in the media and how has their roles changed over time? Looking especially at The Stepford Wives.
to MediaStudies med5 med4 representation women blogs A2coursework ghs ...
Mean Girls (Pardeep)
Focuses on the question i am focusing on
to MediaStudies blogs A2coursework ghs ...
Kidulthood (Alliya)
Teenage representation
to med5 MediaStudies ghs Blogs A2coursework representation women med4 ...
Charlies Angels (Heena)
represntation on women
to med5 MediaStudies ghs Blogs A2coursework representation women med4 ...
Sex & the City (Bushara)
Representation of women
to med5 MediaStudies Blogs A2coursework ghs representation women med4 ...
Notes on The Gaze
Involved media theorist
to MediaStudies med4 representation women ...
10 *Key Words* related to my independent study
Dominant Ideology
The belief system that serves the interests of the dominant ruling elite withina society, generally accepted as a common sense by the majority and reproduced in mainstream media texts. In Mean Girls there are a few dominat ideologies to do with the teenage lifestyle.
Demographics
Information concerning the social status, class, gendre and age of the population. Audience profiles use demographic information, the best known system being the ABC1 scale.
Eyeline Match
a type of editing that maintains the eyeline or level when cutting from a charachter to what the character see's. The effect of the edit is to create a sense that what the camera sees is what the character sees. Cady has a flashback to what is not the real world so we are seeing what she is seeing.
Bibliography
the section at the end of a media project that lists all the information sources. A bibliography should be presented systematically using the Harvard system (author, date, title and publisher). A filmography or list of films researched should include the films title, the director and date of release. Television references should include the producer, title, series, broadcast channel and date of transmission. Internet references should include the address of the file.
Big Ten
The ten major hollywood film studios: Twentieth Century Fox, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayar (MGM), Dreamworks. Miramax, Sony Pictures, Paramount, Universal Studios, New Line Cinema, Walt Disney Pictures and Warner Brothers. Mean girls is made by one of the top 10 major Hollywood film studios: Paramount
Gender
Psychological and cultural aspects of behaviour associated with masculinity and femininity, acquired through socialisation, in accordance with the expectations of a particular society. Representations of gender increasingly challenge traditional concepts of masculinity and femininity. Girl power, launched as a marketing device for the Spice Girls in the early 1990's, created new role models of asserive young women, rejecting the traditional passive female role
Mulvey, Laura (1941):
Feminist academic and media and film critic, responsible for developing theories of the male gaze in her 1975 essay 'Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema'. Key media theorist for my independant study on Mean Girls
Pluralism
the veiw that where a society is comprised of a wider range of social and ethnic groups with different values, political and ideological beleifs, representations by the media will naturally reflect the diversity. There are many different ethnic group that are being typically represented in Mean Girls
Post Feminism
Part of the post modern perspective whcih takes the achievments of feminism for granted and veiws it as ineffective in explaining the current condition of women and the many identity cpoices they face
Teen Movie
a film directed at a target audience of teenagers and addressing teenage intrests and experience in areas such as sexual identity, values and rights of passage from school yeard into adulthood
The belief system that serves the interests of the dominant ruling elite withina society, generally accepted as a common sense by the majority and reproduced in mainstream media texts. In Mean Girls there are a few dominat ideologies to do with the teenage lifestyle.
Demographics
Information concerning the social status, class, gendre and age of the population. Audience profiles use demographic information, the best known system being the ABC1 scale.
Eyeline Match
a type of editing that maintains the eyeline or level when cutting from a charachter to what the character see's. The effect of the edit is to create a sense that what the camera sees is what the character sees. Cady has a flashback to what is not the real world so we are seeing what she is seeing.
Bibliography
the section at the end of a media project that lists all the information sources. A bibliography should be presented systematically using the Harvard system (author, date, title and publisher). A filmography or list of films researched should include the films title, the director and date of release. Television references should include the producer, title, series, broadcast channel and date of transmission. Internet references should include the address of the file.
Big Ten
The ten major hollywood film studios: Twentieth Century Fox, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayar (MGM), Dreamworks. Miramax, Sony Pictures, Paramount, Universal Studios, New Line Cinema, Walt Disney Pictures and Warner Brothers. Mean girls is made by one of the top 10 major Hollywood film studios: Paramount
Gender
Psychological and cultural aspects of behaviour associated with masculinity and femininity, acquired through socialisation, in accordance with the expectations of a particular society. Representations of gender increasingly challenge traditional concepts of masculinity and femininity. Girl power, launched as a marketing device for the Spice Girls in the early 1990's, created new role models of asserive young women, rejecting the traditional passive female role
Mulvey, Laura (1941):
Feminist academic and media and film critic, responsible for developing theories of the male gaze in her 1975 essay 'Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema'. Key media theorist for my independant study on Mean Girls
Pluralism
the veiw that where a society is comprised of a wider range of social and ethnic groups with different values, political and ideological beleifs, representations by the media will naturally reflect the diversity. There are many different ethnic group that are being typically represented in Mean Girls
Post Feminism
Part of the post modern perspective whcih takes the achievments of feminism for granted and veiws it as ineffective in explaining the current condition of women and the many identity cpoices they face
Teen Movie
a film directed at a target audience of teenagers and addressing teenage intrests and experience in areas such as sexual identity, values and rights of passage from school yeard into adulthood
Thursday, 22 November 2007
The cinema book:2nd edition (Pam Cook) *Blog Buddy Task
Laura Mulvey
questions about the place of women in the media in terms of broadcast and production and also the place of women in films and their role.
Chuck Kleinhan(1978)
argues that, in the piling on of domestic conflict and disaster, in its concenration on the personal sphere, home, family and womens problems and its closeness to real life
Kleinhan see's the family as a product of capitalist social relations residing in the split betweenproductive and reproductive life
Mulvey: it is in patriarchy that the pertinent and irresolvable contradictions lie. Ideologial contradiction is the over mainspring and specific content of melodrama, not a hidden, unconcious threat. The patriarchal need for coexistence with women which produces the crisis melodrama seeks to alleviate.
"She insists on the real contradictions of patriarchal ideology or women, rather than theirmetaphorical signifiance for menMulvey begins to show how melodrama can both function for patriarchal ends, bringing about a narrative resolution of its contradictions and at the same time perform a quite different function for women: offering a satisfaction of recognising those conradictions, usually suppresed"
Leads Mulvey to distinguish between those films which are coloured by a female protagonist's dominating point of veiw and those which deal with male Oedipha problems by examining tensions in family and between sex and generations
Womens pictures variousy known as 'Weepies', 'Sudsers', 'Four handkercheif pictured' etc.., were tailored to the female matinee audience, generally deriving from womensmagazine fiction or novelettes and had a tangential relation
questions about the place of women in the media in terms of broadcast and production and also the place of women in films and their role.
Chuck Kleinhan(1978)
argues that, in the piling on of domestic conflict and disaster, in its concenration on the personal sphere, home, family and womens problems and its closeness to real life
Kleinhan see's the family as a product of capitalist social relations residing in the split betweenproductive and reproductive life
Mulvey: it is in patriarchy that the pertinent and irresolvable contradictions lie. Ideologial contradiction is the over mainspring and specific content of melodrama, not a hidden, unconcious threat. The patriarchal need for coexistence with women which produces the crisis melodrama seeks to alleviate.
"She insists on the real contradictions of patriarchal ideology or women, rather than theirmetaphorical signifiance for menMulvey begins to show how melodrama can both function for patriarchal ends, bringing about a narrative resolution of its contradictions and at the same time perform a quite different function for women: offering a satisfaction of recognising those conradictions, usually suppresed"
Leads Mulvey to distinguish between those films which are coloured by a female protagonist's dominating point of veiw and those which deal with male Oedipha problems by examining tensions in family and between sex and generations
Womens pictures variousy known as 'Weepies', 'Sudsers', 'Four handkercheif pictured' etc.., were tailored to the female matinee audience, generally deriving from womensmagazine fiction or novelettes and had a tangential relation
Monday, 19 November 2007
Blog buddy: Jalna
The areas of research we will be working on are :
Theorists especially Feminist theories such as Laura Mulvey
The history of Women in the media and how they are represented including important dates
Other films and programmes that interprete women in different ways.
Theorists especially Feminist theories such as Laura Mulvey
The history of Women in the media and how they are represented including important dates
Other films and programmes that interprete women in different ways.
Sunday, 11 November 2007
Task 9
Blog Buddies..
Short summary of Jalna's study
How have attitudes towards homosexulaity changed in particular reference to sugar rush
Areas of overlap between each study (texts, topics, issues and debates)
We both talk about representation of women whcih is useful to me as that is the main subject of my study so it will help me further develop in my study, and also contemporary lifesytle is mentioned which links to my study as it is all about how recent socila culture affects these representations
What you have learned from looking at each others study that might be useful
Her historial wider and social context info is very useful to me which i have learned from as my study does not contain as much info on that.
Short summary of Jasmit's study
The representation of teenagers in particular reference to mean girls
Areas of overlap between each study (texts, topics, issues and debates)
Everything on her blog is useful to my study as we are doing the same topic and same text. everything overlaps, reveiws and key words and information sources are particularly useful to me as i can find out useful books to research from.
What you have learned from looking at each others study that might be useful
i know of more sources of information and where to get useful information from such as useful websites that include reveiws and articles on representation on teenagers in mean girls
Short summary of Jalna's study
How have attitudes towards homosexulaity changed in particular reference to sugar rush
Areas of overlap between each study (texts, topics, issues and debates)
We both talk about representation of women whcih is useful to me as that is the main subject of my study so it will help me further develop in my study, and also contemporary lifesytle is mentioned which links to my study as it is all about how recent socila culture affects these representations
What you have learned from looking at each others study that might be useful
Her historial wider and social context info is very useful to me which i have learned from as my study does not contain as much info on that.
Short summary of Jasmit's study
The representation of teenagers in particular reference to mean girls
Areas of overlap between each study (texts, topics, issues and debates)
Everything on her blog is useful to my study as we are doing the same topic and same text. everything overlaps, reveiws and key words and information sources are particularly useful to me as i can find out useful books to research from.
What you have learned from looking at each others study that might be useful
i know of more sources of information and where to get useful information from such as useful websites that include reveiws and articles on representation on teenagers in mean girls
BooK ResearcH
BOOK RESEARCH
1. Jackson, Stevi (1993): Womens Studies, A Reader. Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire: Harvester Whealsheaf.
Useful section called Women in the Media (Women and Television) presents the idea that the media is dominated by males and there are less female veiws broadcast in contemporary media.
2. Turner, Graeme (2002): The Film Cultures Reader. New York, USA: Routledge.
Mentions a turn in female cultures including beaty culture and how it is being faded out to make females play more masculine roles to change stereotypes.
3. Cook, Pam (1993): Women and film, a sight and sound reader. 5 Montague Road, London: British Film Institute.
This is about how female film makers are trying to go against the female sex symbol stereotype and tease the male audience into watching films that are not degrading to women but are still sexy in their own way (Annie Sprinkle)
4. Levy, Ariel (2006): Female Chauvanistic Pigs. Kingsway, London: Pocket Books.
Gives an example of a text (Sex in the City) and a potential text for me to talk about in my independant study. Gives the stereotypes which it creates and also the lifestyle and ideology it creates for adolescent minds
5. Walter, Natasha (1998): The New Feminism. Lancaster Place, London: Little Brown.
Talks about womens roles back in the day and how they were expected to be good housewives and involved in family life and to have no job and talks about how the 'new man' as well as modern women are trying to challenege that in contemporary media and also in society.
6. Moore, Susan (1993): Sexuality in Adolescence. New York, USA: Routledge.
How adult behaviour influences adolescence. Also how media models promote sex which is resulting in young teenagers being involved in sex at a early stage in their lives.
7. Murphey, Peter F (2004): Feminism & Masculinities. New York, USA: Oxford United Press.
See's the change in masculinity and femisnism over the years and how it had come from dominance in males to males beings perceived as victims in media.
8.Tooley James (2002): The Miseducation of Women. York Road, London: Continium.
This goes back to the early days of the stereoptye of women and how men and women both pick particular subjects according to their gendre which stereotyped both male n females.
9. Wood, DR. Gary W. (2005): Sex, Lies and Stereotypes. Edgewere Road, London: New Holland Publishers
This focuses on how women and men are shown what they should look like or how they should act and how to fit into their gendre roles (Which they are given). Shows consequences of stereotyping and trying to fit into the role in which you are given.
10. Kaveney, Roz (2006): Teen Dreams: Reading Teen Film and Television from 'Heathers' to 'Veronica Mars'. 6 Salem Road, London: I.B Tauris & Co Ltd.
This looks into different types of Teen movies from the 1980's to todays popular teen movies and how they all generate a false lifestyle and hope for our youth today.
1. Jackson, Stevi (1993): Womens Studies, A Reader. Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire: Harvester Whealsheaf.
Useful section called Women in the Media (Women and Television) presents the idea that the media is dominated by males and there are less female veiws broadcast in contemporary media.
2. Turner, Graeme (2002): The Film Cultures Reader. New York, USA: Routledge.
Mentions a turn in female cultures including beaty culture and how it is being faded out to make females play more masculine roles to change stereotypes.
3. Cook, Pam (1993): Women and film, a sight and sound reader. 5 Montague Road, London: British Film Institute.
This is about how female film makers are trying to go against the female sex symbol stereotype and tease the male audience into watching films that are not degrading to women but are still sexy in their own way (Annie Sprinkle)
4. Levy, Ariel (2006): Female Chauvanistic Pigs. Kingsway, London: Pocket Books.
Gives an example of a text (Sex in the City) and a potential text for me to talk about in my independant study. Gives the stereotypes which it creates and also the lifestyle and ideology it creates for adolescent minds
5. Walter, Natasha (1998): The New Feminism. Lancaster Place, London: Little Brown.
Talks about womens roles back in the day and how they were expected to be good housewives and involved in family life and to have no job and talks about how the 'new man' as well as modern women are trying to challenege that in contemporary media and also in society.
6. Moore, Susan (1993): Sexuality in Adolescence. New York, USA: Routledge.
How adult behaviour influences adolescence. Also how media models promote sex which is resulting in young teenagers being involved in sex at a early stage in their lives.
7. Murphey, Peter F (2004): Feminism & Masculinities. New York, USA: Oxford United Press.
See's the change in masculinity and femisnism over the years and how it had come from dominance in males to males beings perceived as victims in media.
8.Tooley James (2002): The Miseducation of Women. York Road, London: Continium.
This goes back to the early days of the stereoptye of women and how men and women both pick particular subjects according to their gendre which stereotyped both male n females.
9. Wood, DR. Gary W. (2005): Sex, Lies and Stereotypes. Edgewere Road, London: New Holland Publishers
This focuses on how women and men are shown what they should look like or how they should act and how to fit into their gendre roles (Which they are given). Shows consequences of stereotyping and trying to fit into the role in which you are given.
10. Kaveney, Roz (2006): Teen Dreams: Reading Teen Film and Television from 'Heathers' to 'Veronica Mars'. 6 Salem Road, London: I.B Tauris & Co Ltd.
This looks into different types of Teen movies from the 1980's to todays popular teen movies and how they all generate a false lifestyle and hope for our youth today.
Friday, 19 October 2007
Self directed reserach
Self Directed Research
Books
Backlash:
The undeclared war against american women
By susan Faludi
More than a label:
Why what you wear or who your with doesnt define who you are
By Aisha Muharrar
Beyond Beauty: Girls speak out on looks, style and stereotypes
by Jane Pratt
Delicious Links
Notes on The Gaze
Involved media theorist
to MediaStudies med4 representation women ..
Mean Girls (Pardeep)
Focuses on the question i am focusing on
to MediaStudies blogs A2coursework ghs ...
America's Next Top Model (Roohdip)
Relates to my independant study as it focuses on female representation combining with reality
Mean Girls (Sofia)
How are teenagers represented in Mean Girls?
to MediaStudies med5 med4 representation blogs A2coursework ghs ...
Books
Backlash:
The undeclared war against american women
By susan Faludi
More than a label:
Why what you wear or who your with doesnt define who you are
By Aisha Muharrar
Beyond Beauty: Girls speak out on looks, style and stereotypes
by Jane Pratt
Delicious Links
Notes on The Gaze
Involved media theorist
to MediaStudies med4 representation women ..
Mean Girls (Pardeep)
Focuses on the question i am focusing on
to MediaStudies blogs A2coursework ghs ...
America's Next Top Model (Roohdip)
Relates to my independant study as it focuses on female representation combining with reality
Mean Girls (Sofia)
How are teenagers represented in Mean Girls?
to MediaStudies med5 med4 representation blogs A2coursework ghs ...
Thursday, 18 October 2007
Self Evaluation
SELF EVALUATION
Attainment - 2 - my work that i have done so far has been in quite good detail
Effort - 2 - i have made alot of effort in media so far but not as much as i could have
Punctuality - 2 -i have been to most of my lessons and the ones which i havent have been for valid reasons and i am almost never late
Submission and quality of homework - 2 - i have submitted most of my homework on time and put effort into all of it but sometimes have rushed it
Ability to work independently - 1 - i have got alot of information on my blog that i put there independantly
Quality of writing - 2 - to the best of my ability
Oral contributions in class - 4 - dont contribute in lesson as much as i should.would rather just listen
Standard of Module 5 blog - 1 - all my work is up to date and done in detail
Standard of Module 6 blog - 2 - could have been better but all the right information is there
WWW
-my blog is up to date
-my work is being submitted on time
-punctuality is good
EBI
-more contribution in class
-dont rush work
-organise when i do my homework to ensure better quality
Attainment - 2 - my work that i have done so far has been in quite good detail
Effort - 2 - i have made alot of effort in media so far but not as much as i could have
Punctuality - 2 -i have been to most of my lessons and the ones which i havent have been for valid reasons and i am almost never late
Submission and quality of homework - 2 - i have submitted most of my homework on time and put effort into all of it but sometimes have rushed it
Ability to work independently - 1 - i have got alot of information on my blog that i put there independantly
Quality of writing - 2 - to the best of my ability
Oral contributions in class - 4 - dont contribute in lesson as much as i should.would rather just listen
Standard of Module 5 blog - 1 - all my work is up to date and done in detail
Standard of Module 6 blog - 2 - could have been better but all the right information is there
WWW
-my blog is up to date
-my work is being submitted on time
-punctuality is good
EBI
-more contribution in class
-dont rush work
-organise when i do my homework to ensure better quality
Task 7 Key Words
Celebrity
An individual who has become the focus of media attention and is therefore widely known and recognised by the public..This related to my independant study as Lindsay Lohan is the celebrity in the movie and became even moe famous then she was once she had done this movie
Closure
The state of psycholocical harmony acieved when issues causing concern or distress to an indvidual are resolved and anxiety is removed or reduced..In the ed of Mean Girls the girls all go their seperate ways into other groups where they feel more happier and comfortable so everyone is happy at the end
Determinism
The marxist concept that individuls and istitutions have no choice in their behaviour because theirdecisions are shaped by socioeconomic forces beyond their control..The 'Plastics' are alll made to act in the same way due to the way they are shaped by society
Fabulation
The construction of moralising stories about the origin of conflict in society and the positive resolution of that conflict..This is kind of related to my idependant study, when Reginas's sister is watching an inappropriate music video and her mum and sister let her watch it
Femme Fatale
In the french film noir theory, a female charachter who uses her sexuality, often in devious, disreputable, secretive ways, to acheive the end she desires..In Mean Girls Regina uses her sexuality to take away Kady's crush from her, she is devious and is the villian of the film
Iconography
The distinguishing elements, in terms of props and visual details, which characterise genre..for example in mean girls it is sset mainly in a high school, just like any other teen movie, also there is alot of pink suggesting it to be a chick flick
Institution
Any of the organisations responsible for the production, marketing, distribution or regulation of mdia exts..Mean girls is distributed by paramount pictures a wide american institution suggesing a wide audience therefore heavy influence upon comsumers
Marxism Feminism
Ideology derived from the writings of the socialist Karl Marx. A feminist perspective which sees capitalism as the principal source of gendre inequalities..The plastics and Kady are all doing what they are doing due to a guy that they like and that they want, The ideology that females lives evolve around guys
Representation
The process whereby the medi construct versions of people, places and events in images, words or sound for transmission through media texts to an audience..Female teenagers are beingrepresented as bimbo's and girls that are all the same and have nothing different about them, also that thier lives evolve around boys etc..
Stereotype
The social classification of a group of people by identifying common charachteristics and universally applying them in an often oversimplified and generalised way, such that the classification represents the value judgements and assumptions about the group concerned..In mean girls the girls are stereotyped in a negative way and their stereotypes are bought out alot in mean girls
An individual who has become the focus of media attention and is therefore widely known and recognised by the public..This related to my independant study as Lindsay Lohan is the celebrity in the movie and became even moe famous then she was once she had done this movie
Closure
The state of psycholocical harmony acieved when issues causing concern or distress to an indvidual are resolved and anxiety is removed or reduced..In the ed of Mean Girls the girls all go their seperate ways into other groups where they feel more happier and comfortable so everyone is happy at the end
Determinism
The marxist concept that individuls and istitutions have no choice in their behaviour because theirdecisions are shaped by socioeconomic forces beyond their control..The 'Plastics' are alll made to act in the same way due to the way they are shaped by society
Fabulation
The construction of moralising stories about the origin of conflict in society and the positive resolution of that conflict..This is kind of related to my idependant study, when Reginas's sister is watching an inappropriate music video and her mum and sister let her watch it
Femme Fatale
In the french film noir theory, a female charachter who uses her sexuality, often in devious, disreputable, secretive ways, to acheive the end she desires..In Mean Girls Regina uses her sexuality to take away Kady's crush from her, she is devious and is the villian of the film
Iconography
The distinguishing elements, in terms of props and visual details, which characterise genre..for example in mean girls it is sset mainly in a high school, just like any other teen movie, also there is alot of pink suggesting it to be a chick flick
Institution
Any of the organisations responsible for the production, marketing, distribution or regulation of mdia exts..Mean girls is distributed by paramount pictures a wide american institution suggesing a wide audience therefore heavy influence upon comsumers
Marxism Feminism
Ideology derived from the writings of the socialist Karl Marx. A feminist perspective which sees capitalism as the principal source of gendre inequalities..The plastics and Kady are all doing what they are doing due to a guy that they like and that they want, The ideology that females lives evolve around guys
Representation
The process whereby the medi construct versions of people, places and events in images, words or sound for transmission through media texts to an audience..Female teenagers are beingrepresented as bimbo's and girls that are all the same and have nothing different about them, also that thier lives evolve around boys etc..
Stereotype
The social classification of a group of people by identifying common charachteristics and universally applying them in an often oversimplified and generalised way, such that the classification represents the value judgements and assumptions about the group concerned..In mean girls the girls are stereotyped in a negative way and their stereotypes are bought out alot in mean girls
Sunday, 14 October 2007
Task 6 textual analysis
'Mean girls' is directed by Mark S. Waters and is a teen movie mainly aimed at young teenage girls. It is produced by paramount pictures who are a large American institution therefore this movie would have been distributed to various parts of the US and UK. The scene from 'Mean Girls' which I am analysing is when Kady, Gretchen and Karen go to Regina’s house where Kady meets Regina’s mum for the first time and then the plastics rediscover their old burn book which is a book where they talk about other people in a bad way and write it in the book.
The scene starts with the four girls being driven by Regina in her car to her house. It is an expensive car for a 16 year old to have .You would expect a grown working person to be driving around in that type of car. Immediately you see that Regina comes from a rich family. A pan shot of the car is shown as it enters the gates of the house, this shot goes well with the style of the car and reinforced the fact that it is smooth and expensive. You can tell all about her and her families status just by looking at the car she has.
The next thing we see is a long shot of Regina’s house, which looks like a mansion from the outside. The long shot of the house is there to give the audience a good view of the size and see how big it is emphasising her rich background and that she gets things easy and doesn’t need to work hard to get what she wants. This represents the children of rich families and how they turn out spoilt due to them not working for things in life.
As they get our of the car there is a long shot of Kady showing the expression of shock on her face as she gazes at the house followed by her saying ‘Wow, your house is really nice’ This tells us that not many people are as lucky as Regina to have such a big house and that much money. Regina replies with ‘ I know, right?’ This shows that Regina knows she is lucky but is not appreciative of it as she doesn’t say thanks for the compliment.
The ‘plastics’ are all wearing mini skirts with high heels and are loaded with make-up on . This is how they dress and present themselves everyday even at school. The short skirts tell us that the girls like to show of their legs mainly to impress guys and get noticed by them. The same applies to them wearing make up, so they get the attention that the want from boys. This is a common image for girls to have in teen movies if they are the ‘popular’ ones. Their dress and how they look and appear to people depends on the way that guys like them to look. This is an accurate representation of teenagers as they aspire to be ‘popular’ girls that want to get the guys they want.
In the house is Regina’s little sister who is in front of the TV dancing to Kelis - Milkshake. The video for that song is inappropriate for a girl that young to watch. She is being corrupted at a young age as we see her imitating the dances she see’s on the TV. This is reflecting on how children are being exposed to too many things that they shouldn’t see on TV especially as they end up copying what they see therefore getting into older thinking at a young age which is resulting into what teenagers are like today, image obsessed, only interested in boys etc..
The mis-en-scene brings out a theme of pink which reflects on their girly image and typical girly teenager views and lifestyle but this is not necessarily every teenage girls favourite colour in which they would associate themselves in but in this case it is as the girls are all wearing something pink. The mis-en-scene is also bright and sunny , there is no dullness showing that Regina leads a happy life and is a happy person but this is contradicted when the girls all start to look in the mirror and complain about their bodies. This contradiction could show that even thought they seem happy on the outside to other people they have their insecurities as well and which is a relevant representation of any teenager these days.
One of the girls puts the radio on and they all agree on listening to a particular song. This emphasises that the ‘plastics’ are all the same and have the same tastes in music, clothes and in their thinking. None of them are different from each other and have no special qualities that makes them different. This is a accurate representation on girls who aspire to be ‘plastic’ or ‘popular’ because they wants to be like all the other girls that are like that so they all end up being the same.
The girls are showed to be bitchy and backstabbing towards other people as they have a burn book where they right bad stuff about everyone in their school. This makes them think that they are better than everyone else in their school and also makes them look stuck up and rude towards other people meaning they are probably not liked by other people as much as they think they are.
Regina’s mum is in the scene. She is represented as an unfit mother that doesn’t know how to bring up her children as Regina shows no respect for her mother and she is letting Kylie( Regina’s little sister) be exposed to Hip-Hop videos that influence her to dance inappropriately for her age. Her mum is also wearing pink as she tries to fit in with the ‘plastics’ representing the rich mothers of having a young brain and not being mature enough to raise children properly as they have their other priorities such as looking good and having fun else wear. We clearly see that Regina’s mother has these other priorities such as looking good as her boob job is mentioned by Gretchen as they were entering the house. This clearly tells us that she is materialistic and this is probably why Regina has turned out to be the person she is.
The primary audience for this movie are young female teenagers as they are likely to be interested in watching a teen movie as they are aspiring teenagers wanting to be ‘popular’. The secondary audience would be older female teenagers simply for entertaining purposes and to use as a form of escapism as older teenagers of around the age on 18 and over would not be as influenced by popularity ideologies that this film brings across but could relate to the insecurities that the ‘plastics ‘convey to us.
The main ideology that the film brings out to its audience is that all girls that are ‘popular’ are mean and stuck up and no matter how popular you are there is still a chance you will still be insecure about yourself as you saw when the ’plastics’ were looking at themselves in the mirror picking out something they didn’t like about their body. Also it doesn’t matter how rich you are, it doesn’t make you happy or necessarily a good person as Regina is rich and popular and she isn’t fully happy neither is she a good person.
The film consists of Todorov’s theory of narrative roles such as a protagonist who is this film is Kady played by Lindsay Lohan. She is also the hero of the film. Regina George is the villain. However roles change at the end when there is a resolution to the film. All of the characters end up happy and comfortable in the situations they are in.
The scene starts with the four girls being driven by Regina in her car to her house. It is an expensive car for a 16 year old to have .You would expect a grown working person to be driving around in that type of car. Immediately you see that Regina comes from a rich family. A pan shot of the car is shown as it enters the gates of the house, this shot goes well with the style of the car and reinforced the fact that it is smooth and expensive. You can tell all about her and her families status just by looking at the car she has.
The next thing we see is a long shot of Regina’s house, which looks like a mansion from the outside. The long shot of the house is there to give the audience a good view of the size and see how big it is emphasising her rich background and that she gets things easy and doesn’t need to work hard to get what she wants. This represents the children of rich families and how they turn out spoilt due to them not working for things in life.
As they get our of the car there is a long shot of Kady showing the expression of shock on her face as she gazes at the house followed by her saying ‘Wow, your house is really nice’ This tells us that not many people are as lucky as Regina to have such a big house and that much money. Regina replies with ‘ I know, right?’ This shows that Regina knows she is lucky but is not appreciative of it as she doesn’t say thanks for the compliment.
The ‘plastics’ are all wearing mini skirts with high heels and are loaded with make-up on . This is how they dress and present themselves everyday even at school. The short skirts tell us that the girls like to show of their legs mainly to impress guys and get noticed by them. The same applies to them wearing make up, so they get the attention that the want from boys. This is a common image for girls to have in teen movies if they are the ‘popular’ ones. Their dress and how they look and appear to people depends on the way that guys like them to look. This is an accurate representation of teenagers as they aspire to be ‘popular’ girls that want to get the guys they want.
In the house is Regina’s little sister who is in front of the TV dancing to Kelis - Milkshake. The video for that song is inappropriate for a girl that young to watch. She is being corrupted at a young age as we see her imitating the dances she see’s on the TV. This is reflecting on how children are being exposed to too many things that they shouldn’t see on TV especially as they end up copying what they see therefore getting into older thinking at a young age which is resulting into what teenagers are like today, image obsessed, only interested in boys etc..
The mis-en-scene brings out a theme of pink which reflects on their girly image and typical girly teenager views and lifestyle but this is not necessarily every teenage girls favourite colour in which they would associate themselves in but in this case it is as the girls are all wearing something pink. The mis-en-scene is also bright and sunny , there is no dullness showing that Regina leads a happy life and is a happy person but this is contradicted when the girls all start to look in the mirror and complain about their bodies. This contradiction could show that even thought they seem happy on the outside to other people they have their insecurities as well and which is a relevant representation of any teenager these days.
One of the girls puts the radio on and they all agree on listening to a particular song. This emphasises that the ‘plastics’ are all the same and have the same tastes in music, clothes and in their thinking. None of them are different from each other and have no special qualities that makes them different. This is a accurate representation on girls who aspire to be ‘plastic’ or ‘popular’ because they wants to be like all the other girls that are like that so they all end up being the same.
The girls are showed to be bitchy and backstabbing towards other people as they have a burn book where they right bad stuff about everyone in their school. This makes them think that they are better than everyone else in their school and also makes them look stuck up and rude towards other people meaning they are probably not liked by other people as much as they think they are.
Regina’s mum is in the scene. She is represented as an unfit mother that doesn’t know how to bring up her children as Regina shows no respect for her mother and she is letting Kylie( Regina’s little sister) be exposed to Hip-Hop videos that influence her to dance inappropriately for her age. Her mum is also wearing pink as she tries to fit in with the ‘plastics’ representing the rich mothers of having a young brain and not being mature enough to raise children properly as they have their other priorities such as looking good and having fun else wear. We clearly see that Regina’s mother has these other priorities such as looking good as her boob job is mentioned by Gretchen as they were entering the house. This clearly tells us that she is materialistic and this is probably why Regina has turned out to be the person she is.
The primary audience for this movie are young female teenagers as they are likely to be interested in watching a teen movie as they are aspiring teenagers wanting to be ‘popular’. The secondary audience would be older female teenagers simply for entertaining purposes and to use as a form of escapism as older teenagers of around the age on 18 and over would not be as influenced by popularity ideologies that this film brings across but could relate to the insecurities that the ‘plastics ‘convey to us.
The main ideology that the film brings out to its audience is that all girls that are ‘popular’ are mean and stuck up and no matter how popular you are there is still a chance you will still be insecure about yourself as you saw when the ’plastics’ were looking at themselves in the mirror picking out something they didn’t like about their body. Also it doesn’t matter how rich you are, it doesn’t make you happy or necessarily a good person as Regina is rich and popular and she isn’t fully happy neither is she a good person.
The film consists of Todorov’s theory of narrative roles such as a protagonist who is this film is Kady played by Lindsay Lohan. She is also the hero of the film. Regina George is the villain. However roles change at the end when there is a resolution to the film. All of the characters end up happy and comfortable in the situations they are in.
Wednesday, 10 October 2007
Delicious Links
How are teenagers represented in Mean Girls?
to MediaStudies med5 med4 representation blogs A2coursework ghs ...Sex & the City (Iena)
How does Sex and the City provide representations of women that challenge what they once were, and what does it suggest that they are becoming?
to MediaStudies med5 med4 representation women blogs A2coursework ghs ...
America's Next Top Model (Roohdip)
Relates to my independant study as it focuses on female representation combining with reality
to MediaStudies blogs A2coursework ghs ... on oct 15, 2005
How are teenage girls represented in Mean Girls?
to MediaStudies med5 med4 representation women blogs A2coursework ghs ...
How are women represented in the media and how has their roles changed over time? Looking especially at The Stepford Wives.
to MediaStudies med5 med4 representation women blogs A2coursework ghs ...
Focuses on the question i am focusing on
to MediaStudies blogs A2coursework ghs ...
Teenage representation
to med5 MediaStudies ghs Blogs A2coursework representation women med4 ...
represntation on women
to med5 MediaStudies ghs Blogs A2coursework representation women med4 ...
Representation of women
to med5 MediaStudies Blogs A2coursework ghs representation women med4 ...
Notes on The Gaze
Involved media theorist
to MediaStudies med4 representation women ...
Key words
Stereotype
The social classification of a group of people by identifying common characteristics and universally applying them in an often oversimplified and generalized way.In mean girls the female teenagers are stereotyped as ditzy and all into their looks
Mulvey Laura
Feminist academic and media and film critic, responsible for developing theories of the male gaze.In mean girls the girls are dressed in a way to be looked at by males
Antagonist
The principal opposing figure or villain in the narrative.Regina George is the villian
Feminism
A Movement in which encounters the challenging of female roles, social constructions. This includes the fact of women being able to do more in the society and to be able and excepted in doing them. Female roles are challenged in the end of the movie by Kady (Lindsay Lohan)
Representation
Representation is where the media has identification for an individual. E.g. Representations provides us with a description of a gender, social groups, and individuals. Mean girls are represented as rich spoilt teenagers who love pink
Cosmopolitan
Magazine Cosmopolitan is a magazine, which encounters a ‘typical’ lifestyle of the woman nowadays. This magazine shows of the ‘new woman’ with career opportunities and making it focus on her and not the fact of having you life revolve around a man. This is reinforced by the endong of the movie
Chick Flick
A chick flick is a film which is targeted at female teenagers.chcik flicks main purpose is to entertain, with a bit of romance. it usually focusses mostly on teenage girls lifestyles. Mean girls is targeted towards teenage girls
Propp
(Propp Viadimir 1995 - 1970)the propp is the charcters role and narrative... This includes hero, villians, the helper of the hero, fake hero, a princess etc... the hero being Cady and villian Regina
Resolution
This is the conclusion of a problem occured during the film which then gets resolved in the end.
Split screen
A split screen is a editing technique, this is where the screen is split into 2 or more showing the same scene in one frame. With all the girls on the phone to eachother this is when shown in splitscreen
The social classification of a group of people by identifying common characteristics and universally applying them in an often oversimplified and generalized way.In mean girls the female teenagers are stereotyped as ditzy and all into their looks
Mulvey Laura
Feminist academic and media and film critic, responsible for developing theories of the male gaze.In mean girls the girls are dressed in a way to be looked at by males
Antagonist
The principal opposing figure or villain in the narrative.Regina George is the villian
Feminism
A Movement in which encounters the challenging of female roles, social constructions. This includes the fact of women being able to do more in the society and to be able and excepted in doing them. Female roles are challenged in the end of the movie by Kady (Lindsay Lohan)
Representation
Representation is where the media has identification for an individual. E.g. Representations provides us with a description of a gender, social groups, and individuals. Mean girls are represented as rich spoilt teenagers who love pink
Cosmopolitan
Magazine Cosmopolitan is a magazine, which encounters a ‘typical’ lifestyle of the woman nowadays. This magazine shows of the ‘new woman’ with career opportunities and making it focus on her and not the fact of having you life revolve around a man. This is reinforced by the endong of the movie
Chick Flick
A chick flick is a film which is targeted at female teenagers.chcik flicks main purpose is to entertain, with a bit of romance. it usually focusses mostly on teenage girls lifestyles. Mean girls is targeted towards teenage girls
Propp
(Propp Viadimir 1995 - 1970)the propp is the charcters role and narrative... This includes hero, villians, the helper of the hero, fake hero, a princess etc... the hero being Cady and villian Regina
Resolution
This is the conclusion of a problem occured during the film which then gets resolved in the end.
Split screen
A split screen is a editing technique, this is where the screen is split into 2 or more showing the same scene in one frame. With all the girls on the phone to eachother this is when shown in splitscreen
Thursday, 4 October 2007
Jalna
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6230260013392947544&postID=90787066510506012
Tanya
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=2011388675289093128&postID=154380972087232412
Nazia
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=4862720983698072372&postID=4199500081481615970
Chintan
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=2574997224413995264&postID=375903521120953657
Dips
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=7017445002521195616&postID=8217961470735921244
Monday, 10 September 2007
http://www.middleweb.com/MWLISTCONT/MSLmeangirls.html
this lettter about the article is pinpointing some of the blame of girls behaviour these days to the media and the types of tv programmes being broadcasted and is the reason why we see our teenagers acting in certain ways
this lettter about the article is pinpointing some of the blame of girls behaviour these days to the media and the types of tv programmes being broadcasted and is the reason why we see our teenagers acting in certain ways
An article in our local paper bemoaned the "current" state of our girls. The article spoke of a rash of new sociological studies that are about to be published and went on to applaud our new willingness to discuss the negative aspects of female behavior. I was steamed and sent the following letter to the editor:
Jane Eisner's piece on girls in Sunday's paper, "Girls will be (mean) girls, and maybe that's part of maturing" (3/24), reminds me of the classic nature vs. nurture argument that inevitably lets adults off the hook for their roles and responsibility toward children. Can girls be mean? Has every woman experienced betrayal at the hands of another female? Instead of asking ourselves these seemingly rhetorical questions, why don't we step up to the plate and look at what we are doing to girls in our families, schools and in the media? What messages are we modeling when a major network launches new shows like The Bachelor, where women get to "compete" for the prized eligible man? How many diet, hair color and make up commercials does the average girl see in a week, a month, a year? Why are assertive males viewed as leaders, while assertive females are cast as loud, aggressive, unpleasant, unladylike and undesirable? Contrast these messages with the number of positive female role models we promote in our textbooks and schools, there's no comparison. Girls are not all "sugar and spice," and never have been, but they are also not inherently mean and evil. There is nothing "new and noteworthy" about the willingness to discuss the alleged inherently negative traits of females. Tales of evil, scheming, "curious" women like Eve, Pandora, the wicked stepmother, and the rest, are part of our collective consciousness. Our girls, and our boys, will become the best that they can be when we give them the room to grow and the supports they deserve. The problem is far from new, and the solution isn't a big mystery, we just need to face up to our roles in the process.
Jane Eisner's piece on girls in Sunday's paper, "Girls will be (mean) girls, and maybe that's part of maturing" (3/24), reminds me of the classic nature vs. nurture argument that inevitably lets adults off the hook for their roles and responsibility toward children. Can girls be mean? Has every woman experienced betrayal at the hands of another female? Instead of asking ourselves these seemingly rhetorical questions, why don't we step up to the plate and look at what we are doing to girls in our families, schools and in the media? What messages are we modeling when a major network launches new shows like The Bachelor, where women get to "compete" for the prized eligible man? How many diet, hair color and make up commercials does the average girl see in a week, a month, a year? Why are assertive males viewed as leaders, while assertive females are cast as loud, aggressive, unpleasant, unladylike and undesirable? Contrast these messages with the number of positive female role models we promote in our textbooks and schools, there's no comparison. Girls are not all "sugar and spice," and never have been, but they are also not inherently mean and evil. There is nothing "new and noteworthy" about the willingness to discuss the alleged inherently negative traits of females. Tales of evil, scheming, "curious" women like Eve, Pandora, the wicked stepmother, and the rest, are part of our collective consciousness. Our girls, and our boys, will become the best that they can be when we give them the room to grow and the supports they deserve. The problem is far from new, and the solution isn't a big mystery, we just need to face up to our roles in the process.
Media Audiences
To whom is the text addressed? what is the target audience?
Teenage girls ages 12-19
What assumptions about the audiences characteristics are implicit within the text?
the audience of this movie would be aspirers as the young teenagers would be looking up to the girls in the movie and would want to be just like them
What do tou know or can you consume about the likely size and constituency of the audience?
I assume there is a very wide audience for this text as it was accessable to all american teenagers aswell as the UK and had a massive amount of success when it was release
How do you as an audience member, read and evaluate the text? To what extent is your reading and the evaluation influenced by your age, gendre and background?
i read the text as a typical teen movie with accurate stereotypes of young females.im within the target audience of this text and do find text like these to my likeing
To whom is the text addressed? what is the target audience?
Teenage girls ages 12-19
What assumptions about the audiences characteristics are implicit within the text?
the audience of this movie would be aspirers as the young teenagers would be looking up to the girls in the movie and would want to be just like them
What do tou know or can you consume about the likely size and constituency of the audience?
I assume there is a very wide audience for this text as it was accessable to all american teenagers aswell as the UK and had a massive amount of success when it was release
How do you as an audience member, read and evaluate the text? To what extent is your reading and the evaluation influenced by your age, gendre and background?
i read the text as a typical teen movie with accurate stereotypes of young females.im within the target audience of this text and do find text like these to my likeing
Media values and ideologies
Hetrosexual ideology
Mother of Regina George is shown to be an unfit mother as she promotes sex to her daughter and exposes her children to things they shouldnt be seeing at their age, shows american values from mothers towards their children.Makes you think that she is to blame for what Regina has turned into and the way she thinks
Ideologies of body image and that you will only be popular if you look pretty and that if your ugly you dont really matter
Towards the end of the movie ideolgies that are given of from the movie is that you dont have to be pretty to succeed in life, its all about the person inside
Hetrosexual ideology
Mother of Regina George is shown to be an unfit mother as she promotes sex to her daughter and exposes her children to things they shouldnt be seeing at their age, shows american values from mothers towards their children.Makes you think that she is to blame for what Regina has turned into and the way she thinks
Ideologies of body image and that you will only be popular if you look pretty and that if your ugly you dont really matter
Towards the end of the movie ideolgies that are given of from the movie is that you dont have to be pretty to succeed in life, its all about the person inside
Media Representation
Who is being represented?
Teenage girls and todays societyIn what way?how image and popularity are connected - the better you look to other people the more popular you are
Is the representation fair and accurate?
in a way it is correct and fair but it is exagerated within the movie.This is an accurate representation of teenage girls in America and the UK these days.Too many teenagers are too obsessed with the way they look and try their hardest to be the best looking girl in their school.In mean girls they turn an african home schooled girl into one of the plastics just to keep thier image up.Image is everything to them.The plasticcs are also represented as uneducated and braindead meaning they have let their obsession with themselves interfere with their schoolwork.This is proven in the movie when Cady use to be good at maths but as soon as she turned plastic and had her interests in a particular guy her school work suffered for it
What opportunities exist for self representation by the subject?
There is opportunities for self representation as Cady shows to be a plastic with a brain as she wins a spelling Bee competition and increases her test scores by the end of the movie
Who is being represented?
Teenage girls and todays societyIn what way?how image and popularity are connected - the better you look to other people the more popular you are
Is the representation fair and accurate?
in a way it is correct and fair but it is exagerated within the movie.This is an accurate representation of teenage girls in America and the UK these days.Too many teenagers are too obsessed with the way they look and try their hardest to be the best looking girl in their school.In mean girls they turn an african home schooled girl into one of the plastics just to keep thier image up.Image is everything to them.The plasticcs are also represented as uneducated and braindead meaning they have let their obsession with themselves interfere with their schoolwork.This is proven in the movie when Cady use to be good at maths but as soon as she turned plastic and had her interests in a particular guy her school work suffered for it
What opportunities exist for self representation by the subject?
There is opportunities for self representation as Cady shows to be a plastic with a brain as she wins a spelling Bee competition and increases her test scores by the end of the movie
Media institutions
What is the institutional source of the text?
Paramount pictures (american institution)
Is the source a public service oor commercial institution?Whst difference does this make to the text?
it is commercial therefore isnt being created to necessarily educate buy is to entertain. This makes a difference to the text as information put into the movie doesnt need to be correct and can be used to give own opinions from director or writer.This could determiine the many stereotypes being made in the movie
What is the institutional source of the text?
Paramount pictures (american institution)
Is the source a public service oor commercial institution?Whst difference does this make to the text?
it is commercial therefore isnt being created to necessarily educate buy is to entertain. This makes a difference to the text as information put into the movie doesnt need to be correct and can be used to give own opinions from director or writer.This could determiine the many stereotypes being made in the movie
Genre
To which genre does the text belong to?
American teen movie
Generic conventions?
Teen slang is used to identify with target audience
Clothing is typical of a teen movie, teenage drss code
setting - high school, prom
Music is typical of this genre, mainstream rock pop and rnb
characters (actors) such as lindsay lohan usually play these roles
Generic themes
Girl moves to a new school makes friends who are not so trustworth but has backup friends to lead the way, girls meets a guy and falls for him but it is not that simple..
To what extent are the characters generically determined?
heroine is portrayed as innocent
villian is the popular girl who most people see her as bitchy and caniving
the guy she falls for is good loooking charming and often mislead by the villian
To what extent are the audiences generic expectations of the text fulfilled or cheated by the text?
generic expectations are fulfillled within this movie as the typical stereotype of teenage gilrs and a normal high school full of teenagers is shown in the text
Does the text feature a star, a director, a writer ect who is strongly associated with this genre?
lindsay lohan - who normally plays the role of a girly teenager
she has ginger hair making her perfect for the role of not fitting which is eased with her good looksSunday, 9 September 2007
Narrative
How is the audience positioned in relation to the narrative?
The audience go through the teenage life of 15 year old Cady as she moves to a new school after being home schooled in africa, the audience watch the process of her findiing friends and learning about the world of high school for female teenagers
How are characters delineated?what is their narrative function?how are heroes and villians created?
Cady is shown to be the hero as she is the innocent one from the start and doesnt know a thing aout where she is going.Although she looks angelic Regina George is the villian yet we only discover this half way through the film.we get an idea of what type of person the characters are when Cady's friend is introducing everyone to her so it is nmade clear by that.
What is the role of such features as sound, music, iconography, genre, mis en scene, editing ect within the narrative?
the iconography such as the fashion clothes on the popular people and the not so fashionable clothes on the unpopular people brings the typical narrative of a teen movie along with the prom scenes and the house pary scenes and also the library scenes when it is being used as a form of seduction.The genre is straight away shown with the use of this iconography along with the music surrounding the movie which is teen rock and pop
What are the major themes of the narrative?what values/ideologies does it embody?
ideologies of body image and how important it is to look good
How is the audience positioned in relation to the narrative?
The audience go through the teenage life of 15 year old Cady as she moves to a new school after being home schooled in africa, the audience watch the process of her findiing friends and learning about the world of high school for female teenagers
How are characters delineated?what is their narrative function?how are heroes and villians created?
Cady is shown to be the hero as she is the innocent one from the start and doesnt know a thing aout where she is going.Although she looks angelic Regina George is the villian yet we only discover this half way through the film.we get an idea of what type of person the characters are when Cady's friend is introducing everyone to her so it is nmade clear by that.
What is the role of such features as sound, music, iconography, genre, mis en scene, editing ect within the narrative?
the iconography such as the fashion clothes on the popular people and the not so fashionable clothes on the unpopular people brings the typical narrative of a teen movie along with the prom scenes and the house pary scenes and also the library scenes when it is being used as a form of seduction.The genre is straight away shown with the use of this iconography along with the music surrounding the movie which is teen rock and pop
What are the major themes of the narrative?what values/ideologies does it embody?
ideologies of body image and how important it is to look good
Media Representation
Who is being represented?
Teenage girls and todays society
In what way?
how image and popularity are connected - the better you look to other people the more popular you are
Is the representation fair and accurate?
in a way it is correct and fair but it is exagerated within the movie.This is an accurate representation of teenage girls in America and the UK these days.Too many teenagers are too obsessed with the way they look and try their hardest to be the best looking girl in their school.In mean girls they turn an african home schooled girl into one of the plastics just to keep thier image up.Image is everything to them.The plasticcs are also represented as uneducated and braindead meaning they have let their obsession with themselves interfere with their schoolwork.This is proven in the movie when Cady use to be good at maths but as soon as she turned plastic and had her interests in a particular guy her school work suffered for it
What opportunities exist for self representation by the subject?
There is opportunities for self representation as Cady shows to be a plastic with a brain as she wins a spelling Bee competition and increases her test scores by the end of the movie
Who is being represented?
Teenage girls and todays society
In what way?
how image and popularity are connected - the better you look to other people the more popular you are
Is the representation fair and accurate?
in a way it is correct and fair but it is exagerated within the movie.This is an accurate representation of teenage girls in America and the UK these days.Too many teenagers are too obsessed with the way they look and try their hardest to be the best looking girl in their school.In mean girls they turn an african home schooled girl into one of the plastics just to keep thier image up.Image is everything to them.The plasticcs are also represented as uneducated and braindead meaning they have let their obsession with themselves interfere with their schoolwork.This is proven in the movie when Cady use to be good at maths but as soon as she turned plastic and had her interests in a particular guy her school work suffered for it
What opportunities exist for self representation by the subject?
There is opportunities for self representation as Cady shows to be a plastic with a brain as she wins a spelling Bee competition and increases her test scores by the end of the movie
Saturday, 8 September 2007
The school is surrounding the 'popular' girls..glorifying them just because they are pretty.this reflects the pressured teeenage world of having to look good in order to be accepted and be popular.They are also dressed in a way that shows their legs which means your body has to be in shape and perfect aswelll in order to be popular
This image shows a typical representation of female teens who are amongst our generation today.The are wearing lots of make up,have fashionable clothes on, have faces which are not smiling..looks moody, and there are four of them in a group in which one of them is the leading hence lindsay lohan being more in front than the others..they are not seen as equal people as it all depends on their popularity..this reflects the teenage life in todays societyThursday, 12 July 2007
Reveiw of Mean Girls - 2
Cady is encouraged to infiltrate the Plastics by her new friends Janice (Lizzy Caplan), a gothy and arty outcast who possesses a Janaene Garafalo-style wit, and the flamboyantly out-and-proud Damian (Daniel Franzese), who fears the Plastics but admires their fabulousness. Cady agrees to the sabotage scheme, but it's not long before she succumbs to the glamorous life of the Plastics and starts to engage in their underhanded activities, such as writing in their "Burn Book," in which nasty (and hilarious) things are jotted down about every girl in their high school
Cady is encouraged to infiltrate the Plastics by her new friends Janice (Lizzy Caplan), a gothy and arty outcast who possesses a Janaene Garafalo-style wit, and the flamboyantly out-and-proud Damian (Daniel Franzese), who fears the Plastics but admires their fabulousness. Cady agrees to the sabotage scheme, but it's not long before she succumbs to the glamorous life of the Plastics and starts to engage in their underhanded activities, such as writing in their "Burn Book," in which nasty (and hilarious) things are jotted down about every girl in their high school
Reveiw of Mean Girls
The teen-movie genre returns with "Mean Girls," and it comes back with a vengeance. What could have been a tired and clichéd retread of "Heathers" is actually a clever and witty flick thanks to the talents of screenwriter Tina Fey. Fey, head writer for "Saturday Night Live" and co-anchor of their "Weekend Update," has an amazing flair for satire, and what better way to showcase it than with a analytical glimpse at the world of high school cliques? Lindsay Lohan is Cady, the previously home-schooled daughter of two zoologists, growing up in the African wilderness while Mom and Dad conduct their research. When the 'rents decide to settle down, Cady gets her first taste of public schooling, which is almost as wild as the jungles and safaris she's used to. Cady is introduced to the different factions that populate the cafeteria—including the nympho band geeks, the nerdy Asians, the cool Asians, the varsity jocks and of course, the Plastics, teen royalty led by the manipulative Regina George (Rachel McAdams).
The teen-movie genre returns with "Mean Girls," and it comes back with a vengeance. What could have been a tired and clichéd retread of "Heathers" is actually a clever and witty flick thanks to the talents of screenwriter Tina Fey. Fey, head writer for "Saturday Night Live" and co-anchor of their "Weekend Update," has an amazing flair for satire, and what better way to showcase it than with a analytical glimpse at the world of high school cliques? Lindsay Lohan is Cady, the previously home-schooled daughter of two zoologists, growing up in the African wilderness while Mom and Dad conduct their research. When the 'rents decide to settle down, Cady gets her first taste of public schooling, which is almost as wild as the jungles and safaris she's used to. Cady is introduced to the different factions that populate the cafeteria—including the nympho band geeks, the nerdy Asians, the cool Asians, the varsity jocks and of course, the Plastics, teen royalty led by the manipulative Regina George (Rachel McAdams).
Monday, 9 July 2007
Title How are teenage girls represented in films specifically refering to mean girls and are their stereotypes challenged at all?
Hypothesis: To find out how teenage females are represented within contemporary media making comparisond to less contemporary media texts focusing mainly on mean girls.Also to find out whether female stereotypes are ever challenged within these types of movies (teen movies)
Key Concepts
[M]edia Lainguage: camera shots,close ups to show emotion and reflect personality, music soundtrackto see what music is associated with this genre of film, mis en scene to reflect lifestyle
[I]nstitution:paramount pictures (american institution)
[G]enre: teen movie (romance,comedy)
[R]epresentation: females shown to take care in only their looks,not care about anybody else but themselves, worls evolves around boys and looking good, no interest in education
[A]udience: female teenagers, ages 12-20
[I]deology: promoting wrong ideologies such as you dont need an education to be happy, life is about impressing boys, you need to look good in order to become popular etc..
[N]arrative: hero (differnt girl who stands out of the crowd) villian (bitchy jelous teenager seeking revenge)
Wider Context
Teenagers especially american hav always been represented negatively, doing bad things not acceptable in society, they have always been seen as rebels in teen movies However there is always one or a group of teenagers who fit in to the sensiblle teeenage role
However teenagers are being represented strong mindedly and are given more say in issues to do with polotics and the media over the recent years, they have more say and control over decisions
Other Texts To Consider:
Not Another Teen Movie
Theories, Theorists:
Alex Aubrun and Alex Grady - 'How Tv Shapes Our Understanding of Teens'
'The media reflects complicated teen realities' by Michelle Goodman
'The media distorts teens' by Gohar Galyan
'Adults commit more crimes than teens' by Sarah Gustafson
Hypothesis: To find out how teenage females are represented within contemporary media making comparisond to less contemporary media texts focusing mainly on mean girls.Also to find out whether female stereotypes are ever challenged within these types of movies (teen movies)
Key Concepts
[M]edia Lainguage: camera shots,close ups to show emotion and reflect personality, music soundtrackto see what music is associated with this genre of film, mis en scene to reflect lifestyle
[I]nstitution:paramount pictures (american institution)
[G]enre: teen movie (romance,comedy)
[R]epresentation: females shown to take care in only their looks,not care about anybody else but themselves, worls evolves around boys and looking good, no interest in education
[A]udience: female teenagers, ages 12-20
[I]deology: promoting wrong ideologies such as you dont need an education to be happy, life is about impressing boys, you need to look good in order to become popular etc..
[N]arrative: hero (differnt girl who stands out of the crowd) villian (bitchy jelous teenager seeking revenge)
Wider Context
Teenagers especially american hav always been represented negatively, doing bad things not acceptable in society, they have always been seen as rebels in teen movies However there is always one or a group of teenagers who fit in to the sensiblle teeenage role
However teenagers are being represented strong mindedly and are given more say in issues to do with polotics and the media over the recent years, they have more say and control over decisions
Other Texts To Consider:
Not Another Teen Movie
Theories, Theorists:
Alex Aubrun and Alex Grady - 'How Tv Shapes Our Understanding of Teens'
'The media reflects complicated teen realities' by Michelle Goodman
'The media distorts teens' by Gohar Galyan
'Adults commit more crimes than teens' by Sarah Gustafson
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