Disability in TV Drama

Disability in TV Drama

Stereotypes of Disability:

The first stereotype of disability is that disabled people are represented as pitiable and pathetic. This the most common stereotype that is applied to disabled people as it persuades the audience to feel sorry for them as they are less able than able bodied people. This allows the audience to feel more compassionate towards disabled people as they can be portrayed as needing assistance to continue with life. In TV Drama, this stereotype is used as a shortcut due to it being common and is then applied to many disabled characters.

An example of a pitiable and pathetic disabled character is the disabled girl from The Inbetweeners. This is because she is pitied due to her state of being in a wheelchair and the audience are not aware of here condition. However, when the character is hit by a frisbee, the character produces a reaction that is viewed as an over exaggeration and pathetic.

A countertype to this is Donna Yates from EastEnders. A strong market trader who declares war on stall holders Bianca Butcher and Kat Moon. Despite her condition, she continues to be a competitive market trader who has a darker side to her outward appearance. She is not pitied and she does not act in a pathetic way.

Another stereotype is that disabled people can be viewed as humorous. Humour can be generated through the type of disability the individual has and be turned into jokes that can have a positive or negative outcome. This is used in the misfortune of others so can be used as an element that van target a specific individual or a group of people that have a similar disability.

An example of Leslie "Rem Dogg" Remmington from Bad Education. A pupil who uses a wheelchair and constantly wears a pair of headphones and baseball cap. He came across as a cheeky chap who poked fun at Alfie.

A countertype to this is Jimmy from Degrassi. Jimmy's paralysis was a huge turning point in Degrassi and Jimmy's character development in general. The audience saw as Jimmy struggled to maintain his passion with basketball and turn to art for solace, which led to some pretty powerful moments. His overall character is taken very seriously.

A final stereotype is that disabled people can be presented as sinister or evil. Through scarring and disability, TV Dramas can use these elements to represent a character as either evil or sinister. Supported by this, these elements are also used to signify violence and anger. This is from either within the character or actions exerted onto other characters in the TV Drama.

An example of a sinister and evil character is Nick Calshaw from The Street. Nick is a character that returns to the TV programme after fighting the war in Afghanistan with half his face terribly scarred due to a female suicide bomber. After attempting to return to his former job, Nick grows angry after his peers treat him differently due to his scarring. He then enters an army recruitment building and pitches the idea that he can be of assistance to the army because of him looking ugly and intimidating.

The countertype to this is Artie from Glee. Artie is a pretty endearing character. Not only was he in the Glee club, he also got involved in a passion for film direction. He's the definition of a go-getter, too. Plus, he's got a good heart. Thus countering the idea that disabled people are sinister or evil.

 

 

How Disability is Represented Through the 4 Areas of Textual Analysis

Camera Shots/Angles/Movements:

Establishing shot – This shot is used in the first second of the clip so that the audience are introduced to the scenery and the two main characters. This shot shows a typical camping area for tourists, including a lake and being surrounded by mountainous terrain. The two main characters appear to be walking towards their hospitality which are the tents set up by the lake.

 

Close-up – This shot is used to capture the facial expressions of the two main characters as they converse about female friends and whether they would have the opportunity to have sexual intercourse with them. The large amount of close-ups used suggest that the conversation between the characters is serious and that the relationship between them is strong.

Long shot – This shot is used to capture the scenery at night, this includes the characters from a distance and the objects to support them. The objects are lit up to place emphasis on the focus of the characters with in the shot.

Editing:

Jump cut - This transition is used when there is a conversation between characters in a scene. This I used in this scene to ensure that the following scene begins immediately without any details being lost. The quick reactions of the transitions allow the audience to capture the expressions of all the characters in the scene as well as what the conversation is about.

Sound:

Sound Effects – The main sound effects used on the clip is the crackling of the camp fire. The quiet cracking of the flames create a peaceful and tranquil atmosphere over the scene. Additionally this creates a warming gathering of the characters to extend their closeness.

Mise-en-Scene:
 

Clothing –
The characters appear to be wearing thick coats and clothing. This suggests that the setting is a cold environment and warm clothing is needed to prevent the characters from becoming cold. One character is wearing a blue coat whereas the other is wearing a red coat. This suggests how the characters are opposites. Just as red and blue are opposites, an able bodied character and a disabled character are opposites.

Lighting – Throughout the clip, a pitch black lighting is used to place emphasis on the two main characters and the objects in the scene. This allows the audience to primarily focus on the characters and the conversation rather than the background scenery.

How Disability is Represented with the Other 6 Areas or Representation

Age – Differences in behaviour can occur in disabled characters. Typical stereotypes of age can be applied to the characters. For example, disabled children are more pitied and innocent compared to older characters who are either slightly pitied or sinister and evil.  

Gender - Behaviour and actions of disabled people can all depend on the gender of the character. Typically, female characters that are disabled are considered to be more pitied than male disabled characters. This depends on how the audience think that the characters are represented.

Sexuality – Paul Hunt’s representation of disability shows that most disabled characters are viewed as non-sexual and therefore are not very sexually active. The sexuality of disabled characters differ in representation in TV Drama such as a disabled character who appears to be in a wheelchair is not associated as being homosexual.

Ethnicity - Characters that are disabled are represented in both genders. However, there are a more white disabled characters in TV Dramas compared to coloured. This is used to portray real life issues in TV Drama in which there is no link between ethnicity and disability.

Class and Status – Disabled characters commonly occur in middle and lower class society. Middle class disabled characters can differ from the typical pitiable or sinister and the lower class disabled characters are viewed to be just as pitiable. But this depends on how the character is represented in the TV Drama.

Regional Identity – Differences in regional identity are not impacted by the disability of the character. This shows that there is no clear link between the disability of the character and their regional identity.   

 

 

Representation of Disability - The Secret Diary of a Call Girl

Representation of Disability

The Secret Diary of a Call Girl

The clip begins with an appearance of the main character. Her character at first gives the impression that she is formal due to her clothing and also warming because of the condition of the flat. The red coloured walls and the tidiness of the room suggests warmth and comfort of the character.  However, it is later discovered that the term ‘call girl’ means sex worker. So this impression of comfort and warmth can be seen as aspects to draw in men and express elements of pleasure through sexual intercourse. In the first seconds of the clip, the audience is introduced to the disabled character. It is clear to see that he is physically unable to move and the evidence to support this is the fact that the character is presented in a wheelchair. This character is wearing a black t-shirt which suggests that it is worn to shown how frail and weak, in terms of physicality, the character is. Additionally, there is more evidence to support the weakness of the male character as he is accompanied by his father. The clip shows that the male disabled character has difficulties to function in daily life without the support of a relative to provide for him and take care of him. The father figure appears to be a decorator or a painter due to the dungarees that the character is wearing. Also, he appears wearing a similar t-shirt to his son which shows emphasis on the closeness and the bond that they both share.

As the characters enter the apartment, the audience can get the impression of the comfort and the warmth in the atmosphere through the condition and the appearance of the apartment. The apartment is easily lit up due to the large window which is shown later on in the clip, this emphasises how it can draw in men as well as being presented as homely. Diegetic sound in this section include “So shall we get the formalities over with” which suggests that the female character is cautious of the disabled male character as she does not want to harm him in any way. The father character appears to be caring as he accompanies his disabled son and completes the tasks that he is unable to do. Such as retrieving a letter that is out of the young male characters reach. However he does appear to be clueless as he wonders around the apartment with a parted mouth. It is not until his son asks for him, for the father to react with a response. This response was to pick up the disabled character and place him on a comfortable bed. The character is placed down gently to ensure that he is again not harmed and is further comforted by adjusting his leg positioning and fluffing pillows for him. This again refers to Paul Hunt representation of disability as the disabled character in this clip is viewed as pitiable because he is needing attention more often to do things in life in which the audience and the characters feel apologetic for the disabled character due to the numbers of inabilities that he now has compared to an able bodied person.  The father does exactly what his son asks such as when he asks to untie his dungarees so that they do not look similar in order to try and raise the popularity of the character. The bed in which Blake is resting upon is large, wooden and pink which suggests comfort, gracefulness and pleasure. All aspects of pleasing men that appear on the female character’s doorsteps. As the female character appears in the frame once again, she stops and smiles. This suggests that she admires the closeness between the two male characters. An over the shoulder shot is used to show the conversation between the two male characters. The father assures his son that he will not be far away and then kisses him to express the bond that they share.

As the character departs from the apartment, the female character firmly shuts the door and attempts to lock it. This can suggest that she may be taking advantage of the disabled character by preventing the possibility of the male’s father returning. However it is not until the female character looks at the disabled character for her to realise that he may need attention from his father, so she unlocks the door and approaches the disabled character. She approaches the other character whilst rubbing her hands together which suggests that she is preparing for sexual intercourse or is uncomfortable being around the character. After the female character’s speech about the ‘nice’ relationship between the two male characters, the disabled character appears to be very uncomfortable around her as his facial expression appears blank and occasionally looks in a different direction to the female character. When he asked for whether he wants a drink, there is no vocal response from the character but a head nodding gesture which furthermore supports the discomfort of the character. It is not until the female character has left the room for him to speak about the relationship between him and his father. He mentions ‘gigs’ which focuses on the clothing that the characters were wearing in the clip thus further emphasising the closeness of the characters. When the female character approaches the male character with the drink, she pauses as if she doesn’t understand what to do. In response, she acts like a mother figure by assisting the male character with drinking as he may have a difficulty doing so as well as watching over him to prevent anything from happening to him that may affect him.

The following scene follows with a close up of the father entering his vehicle and then a long shot of the building of which his son and the female character are inside. Diegetic sound in this scene includes music played on the vehicle radio which is classical to ensure that the character is calm and is not worried about his son. This allows the character to pass the time by thinking that his son is not harmed. Eventually, the radio is turned off and the character plays with functions of the vehicle further prevent the character from worrying and also to pass the time. However, the pace in which the functions emphasise that the father is concerned about his son. This is supported by the father character occasionally looking at the building to express his concern. Jump cuts are used throughout this scene to emphasise the anxiety of the character.

The concluding scene opens with the female character touching the disabled male character intimately using a close up as well as a panning shot to capture this. The closed eyes and facial expressions of the disabled character whilst the female character touching him express the uncomfortable position that he is in. A mid shot is included at the end of the intimate touching to show the female character’s realism of the discomfort of the male character. Diegetic sound here is ‘I’m not used to being touched’. This is related to Paul Hunt’s representation of disability because disabled people are viewed as non-sexual in which there is no sexual intimacy. Referring back to the clip, the disabled character is uncomfortable because he has not been touched intimately before. Regardless of this, the female character maintains here composure by continuing to smile at the other character to exert her confidence. The female character asks to take off the disabled character’s shirt, this then allows the disabled character to experience more sexual intimacy that may progress to sexual intercourse. The female character assists with the male character’s movement and taking off the clothing in not an intimate way, but again a motherly way. The soundtrack does not emphasise sexual intimacy but calm and caring moving. As she assists with lying the male character back down on the bed once again, she is positioned on top of him in a sexual position. This may show that she is taking advantage of him or allowing him to experience sexual intimacy. The clip concludes with this scene.  

Representation of Disability

Representation of Disability - The Inbetweeners

Representation of Disability

The Inbetweeners

Why is this clip funny?

This clip can be interpreted as funny because according to Paul Hunt, humour of disability can provide pleasure to others due to the misfortune of disabled people. The context of the clip provides humour because the situation is awkward as the audience would not have expected that the frisbee was to collide with the disabled person until the very last moments, in which were uncontrollable and could not have been prevented.

How is the disabled girl being represented?

The disabled girl in the clip can be viewed as pitiable and also pathetic. Her character is represented as pitiable because in order to protect herself, she is assisted with a guardian, most likely a relative and relies on others to support her and protect her, in this case Donavon and his friends, as it difficult when facing against prejudice towards disabled people.

Are we meant to laugh at the disabled person?

It is not recommended to laugh at disabled people in both the media and society. However, according to Paul Hunt, disability is has been projected as a source of humour since the Ancient Greeks. Laughing directly at disabled people is obviously wrong but people may find the behaviour and response to disabled people because they do not fully understand the misfortune and inability of the disabled person.

Are they the ‘butt’ of the joke?

The disabled girl is not the centre of the joke because she is the victim who happens involved be in an awkward situation. However, her reaction to the frisbee hitting her can be interpreted as over exaggerated which does create a small element of humour.

How do you think disabled people respond to this?

Disabled people who watched this could feel hurt because they could interpret the disabled girl in the clip as themselves and to think that it humour is the resultant to this, they would feel hopeless and hurt inside. Although a small minority of people may laugh at the reaction of Will and not the reaction of the disabled girl. However the large majority would feel angry and respond aggressively.

Are we as a society cultivated to think we should pity the disabled?

I would agree that society is cultivated enough to pity the disabled because society now have an interest in helping the less able by giving them advantages so they can live similarly to physically able people and now-a-days society respects disabled people and treat them as equally as physically able people. 

Why Did Dredd Flop at the Box Office Essay

Why Did Dredd Flop at the Box Office Essay

Representation of Gender - The Wire in the Blood

Representation of Gender

The Wire in the Blood

The clip opens with the two main characters, Alex and Tony, arguing about the case in which they are investigating. A hand held camera is used in this scene to emphasis chaos and tension between the protagonists along with the panning movement that applies to the camera shot to show that the characters are being rushed, to show emphasis of their dispute. This shot is viewed from behind a barred gate. This could represent that the two characters are trapped and imprisoned, linking to their occupation. The lighting is darkened to create an element of mystery and dark activity. The male character (Tony) is clearly viewed as the dominant character in the conversation due to his character arguing with the inferior female character. This applies to the Laura Mulvey’s Male Gaze theory because males are viewed to be more superior over women. Alex is viewed wearing thick clothing and a turtle neck top, which shows that her character is hiding her femininity by covering her female aspects. This allows her to appear more masculine. This contradicts the Male Gaze as women are shown as flirtatious and reveal bodily parts in order to appeal to men.

The following scene shows that after the dispute, the female character and the male character have reversed roles. This scene shows the female character taking the lead role leaving the male character behind. Although a close up of this scene shows that the male character is still superior by positioning him higher up than her, thus adding pressure onto the female character. This shows a power play between the two characters. When Alex discusses an investigative plan with another female officer, Tony turns away, indicating that he does not agree with her decisions. His character is placed in the centre of the frame which indicates that his ideas are separate to Alex’s. Tony’s character walks upwards to express dominance whilst Alex is left below him and undermining herself. She replies to his speech with ‘please’ which expresses weakness and the need for male support. Again this follows the Male Gaze as females are considered to be weaker and inferior to men, thus in need for male support. The scene concludes with a crane shot, capturing Tony continuing onwards expressing higher authority and leaving Alex below and helpless. This conclusion shows that distance between the two characters and how fractious their relationship is.

The next scene continues with an insight into Tony’s house. It contains references to his occupation, such as the red wall colour which represents crime, blood and death and the butterflies hanging on the walls which could represent biological science and intelligence of the character. Additionally, Tony is wearing the same clothes with his sleeves rolled up to express his masculinity. The darkened lighting suggests independence with emphasis on male characters. This links to the Male Gaze as the character is clearly motivated and consumed by his work. Diegetic sound in this scene is the character sharing to the audience the evidence that he has uncovered from the case, which questions the audience to what happened and whether they can solve the case. Non-diegetic sound in this scene is the soundtrack in the background which suggests the character is walking the audience through his though process and links to the concentration and seriousness of the character. The scene concludes with a close up of the character which again focuses primarily on the concentration of the character as well as the thought process. Throughout this scene, illustrates and highlights how much work has been put into investigation as well as working at a brisk pace in an attempt to get the answers needed quickly.

The next scene gives the audience an insight into Alex’s living area. In which the audience can pick out is that it is disorganised as the house is cluttered and her character is clearly rushing to get to an important meeting. A similar theme appears here as red coloured walls appear again here to emphasise masculinity. This is so that she can bring in a feeling of masculinity in the house because she is a single parent who is living in a man’s world so by projecting masculinity her character can exert more dominance. The diegetic sound in this scene is the narrative of the character as the speaking at a faster pace than normal and how she is rushing to achieve something which emphasises how disorganised her character is. As she is on the phone, her son, Ben, is sitting in the corner of the stairs. The character appears neglected and lonely. This character is wearing the same coloured clothes as the walls which show that this character is consumed by this job and is often left alone due to his mother being disorganised and spending very little time with him. As Tony enters the house, the double doors emphasise parts of a woman which indicates that they are inviting men in. This refers to the Male Gaze as women need companionship and one way to help with this is to appeal to men to draw them in. Tony enters the hallway to try and talk about the case with his working partner but realises that she is neglecting her son by not being there for him as her character puts her job in front of her family. Tony asks ‘What happened to the nanny?’ in a confused way as he is unaware of the story behind the babysitter and Alex. The gender stereotype becomes reversed when Alex asks Tony ‘Are you busy tonight? Which shows that the male is the figure that looks after the family at home, thus contradicting the Male Gaze.

The next scene opens with an establishing shot which gives the audience an idea of the setting. An abandoned house and dark lighting creates a dark and eerie atmosphere to the scene. The car that pulls up in the drive way is a modern Mercedes-Benz which indicates that the owner is wealthy and the colour silver emphasises violence. The audience is then introduced to the antagonist of the clip, a bald man dressed in thick, black clothing to exert masculinity. However this masculinity is expressed through violence. The character breaks through the door and storms into the following room. The camera is positioned and follows the antagonist to create a sense of chaos similarly to the beginning of the clip. For this another hand held camera is used again. As the characters in the main room begin the conversation, the audience hear of a character called Danny who has mysteriously disappeared. A flashback showing this Danny character being gagged a red lighting feature indicates blood and fear. The antagonist is positioned as the highest character in the scene to express his dominance and masculinity. Meanwhile the supporting characters look away from the antagonist as they express fear and fright towards the character.

The final scene of this clip creates the opposite atmosphere to the previous scene. The scene shows Tony and Ben playing with popcorn in the kitchen. The stereotype continues here as Tony has no idea how to control the situation. Uplifting music is played in the background for this scene to emphasise to emphasise the enjoyment and fun of the situation. However this only occurs when Tony is around, when Alex is around a feeling of tension between the mother and son. Fast paced editing is used to again place emphasis on the fun and enjoyment between the two character and the activity. The appearance of the kitchen is similar to the rest of the building and inside Tony’s house. Here it clearly shows that Alex is trying to represent herself and her family to be in a man’s world. By conversing, the two characters are bonding far better than the mother. Tony is presented to be higher than Ben as the close up positions Tony’s character in the background and higher than the child. This shows the dominance of the character. Lastly, when a conversation about the nanny occurs, the audience begin to realise that the nanny has spent more time with Ben than his own mother. This shows that there is a very little balance between a male job and a female lifestyle of Alex’s character.