Representation of Sexuality - Queer as Folk

Representation of Sexuality

Queer as Folk

Sexuality is represented through gender stereotypes, homosexual stereotypes, bisexual stereotypes, heterosexual stereotypes and through representations in the media. I will also make links to Tessa Perkins' Theory about the Truth to Every Stereotype.

The clip opens with a long shot which displays a crowded and lively school corridor. This immediately displays signs of homosexual stereotypes as it is viewed that teenagers are generally unsure about their sexuality and at this stage it is where homosexual tendencies occur in teenagers. As the audience are introduced to the main character, it becomes evident  the main character does not follow stereotypical homosexual stereotypes as the character appears to not have an interest in his appearance or fashion as the character appears to be apart of the atmosphere by wearing formal school clothing to ensure that other students do not assume the character is homosexual.

The camera then moves forward in a point of view type shot towards another male character. The movement is slow and could be representative that the homosexual boy is shy and reluctant when communicating with others, he immediately feels judged due of his sexuality; this could further link to how he has been treated in the past, thus giving the representation that many gay people are feel unwanted or even bullied because of who they are.

The homosexual male is shown to be smirking a little as he talks about his boyfriend. He could be attempting to make the other character jealous, this is clearly working as the other characters reaction is aggressive at best and he storms away from the scenario. This happens after a speed up in the editing of the shots between them increases in speed signifies the increase in tension/conflict between the two characters. His smile is instantly taken away but he still seems to be happy that his attempts to cause jealousy worked. This links to representation of sexuality as it represents how sometimes sexuality is utilised to create jealousy/conflict between people due to the use of common misconceptions associated with the topic as a whole.

The next scene shows a straight woman is talking about her sex life with a group of people at an event of some kind. She gives a lot of details and nobody else in the room/conversation react to what she is representative how as a straight woman she does not feel judged/alienated because is it usually perceived as being the 'norm'. She is also shown amongst many other people in the shot which further represents how she is part of the crowd and doesn't  stand out or being an object or curiosity like a homosexual person could be.

A overly camp homosexual character is also sat at the table with the female is portrayed to have a strong accent that is very feminine in the tone and style in which he speaks. He is holding a cigarette delicately, pursing his lips when he blows out the smoke and is wearing an eye-catching animal print shirt. These are all points that add to the typical stereotype of a camp homosexual man as he acts, speaks and dresses very feminine. Many of the shots of this character are of him alone or only with a few others, this represents the opposite of my last point as instead of being shown to be ‘normal’ he is segregated from others in the scene and made to look different or abnormal from other heterosexual people. Another male character that is sat at the table represents the typical butch heterosexual character that is often represented in TV dramas. His clothing is formal, masculine and typically worn by men, he is also shown to be slouching and acting like a typical man through butch actions and having a deep voice.

The two homosexual characters are walking down a street pavement, the gay man although seeming to be very confident in his posture and loud speaking is shown to be lower than the other man, this shows how because of his obvious sexuality it makes him regarded lower than people that may seem more heterosexual than others. It could also show how although trying to put on a front of being confident and out there, he is actually shy and maybe even secretly anxious about how people perceive and judge him.

A shot is shown of the family, including the two homosexual males, sat together at a table with the little girls back to the audience. This could be because homosexuality and even sexuality in general is not perceived to be a topic that is appropriate for children to be discussing with parents at a very young age. The little girls face is not shown to the audience showing how she is segregated from the topic of sexuality as a whole, homosexuality is seen as a taboo topic that can be seen as unnatural, many traditional parents don’t want their children to be subject of homosexuality in case of influences, as if gay people are something to be scared of. The feminine acting man speaks with a high tone in his voice; he speaks very quickly and seems to have a lot of energy and motivation for subjects he’s talking about. He is talking with lots of enthusiasm about acting in theatres and pantomime plays which is commonly a hobby associated with homosexual males as it’s seen as very energetic and feminine. He also wears tight costume adding to how the mise-en-scene makes him look like a show-off and trying to get attention from other men, this is also a common misconception and stereotype of gay men especially- the need for constant attention.

There are many stereotypes and uncivilised ideas that are associated with adding humour to those who are gay through props and even common saying that certain characters say. This next scene shows the camp male eating a sausage from a fork; this is represented as being humorous to the audience as the sausage simply associates with the male phallic symbol. Audiences can react to this in different ways as they can see it as light hearted humour or actually not very tasteful stereotypes. This represents to sexuality because it gives an impression of the gay man as being desperate or even animalistic because of the manner in which he eats the food type.

There is a mid-shot in the kitchen which shows the mother of one of the homosexual boys talking to her son with her back facing him. This may at first seem harmless to an audience as she is busy washing up and carrying out daily tasks however if you look into it more deeply it has a very strong meaning representing her as someone who turns her back on her son because of her sons sexuality. This is a very strong stereotype and representation that is associated with gay men; that their families often disown them or feel that they have failed as parents because their children are deemed unnatural because they are homosexual.

Representation of Gender - Sherlock Holmes

Representation of Gender - Sherlock Holmes
Essay Retake

The clip opens with an establishing shot to display the setting of the scene. The scene is London at around an early 20th Century perspective. This quickly changes to a long shot that pans the movement of a horse and carriage before getting an insight into the carriage where the camera zooms in on the main protagonist, Sherlock Holmes. In this part of the scene, Holmes appears wearing clothing that is not particularly associated with stereotypical male protagonists as the clothing is unique and out of the ordinary. This is compared to the surrounding characters who dress in formal suits and uniform to express that they are upper class and from the time as well as exerting order and power. The colour of Holmes' clothing is white which sets the character apart from the supporting characters and society as he appears wearing bright clothing whereas the other characters wear darker clothing, typically black clothing. This allows the focus of attention to be on Holmes as he is at this point. A stern facial expression from Holmes emphasises confidence and intelligence of the character as it looks like the character is probably being analytical at this point and thinking a head of what is to come at the end of the journey. The make-up of the character place emphasis on Holmes' face as the character appears to be beaten due to cuts and blooded areas on the character's face. This is a stereotypical characteristic of a male protagonist as they are perceived as strong, determined and can fight through punishment. As the character faces directly toward the character, Holmes' appears to provide a slight smile, which emphasises the character's confidence while trying to do so unnoticed by the other characters. A darkened lighting is present behind Holmes' and slightly over the other characters to further emphasise that the protagonist is the centre of attention in this scene. 

As the characters enter the Parliament building through an over the shoulder shot perspective, the point of view here is that the troops are darkened, which suggests that the characters are represented as superior due to higher authority. This then jump cuts to the front of the march where Holmes is restrained by another character. Holmes continues with the determined attitude by keeping a blank facial expression in which he may appear lifeless. Whereas the other male character confident as he retains appearing like a villain by turning Holmes in to the main antagonist. Following this, an establishing is displayed. Here we can see that the characters within the building are of high authority. This is shown as they are wearing high level clothes, such as suits, top hats and pocket watches. All of these items are associated with wealth. This gives the impression that women are generally accepted (due to a stereotype) to be inferior as these clothes are generally only made for males.

The next scene opens with a close up of the two characters, centred in the frame. This is then followed by a cut, leading to a close up of the main antagonist. The antagonist appears wearing formal black and white clothing, thus suggesting that the character has high authority and wealth. The character has black hair and a clean cut, these are factors that stereotype a character as a villain. The character also has a beard. These are often associated with strength and raw power, which is the desired image and stereotype (that men are powerful and always strong). Also in this scene is the fact that in all places where there is a male presence the decor is of gold or expensive items. This could be further representative of the importance that males have in society as gold is often associated and represents high class and superiority, in this particular scenario, the male gender as a whole. 

As Holmes wanders around the room with the use of a panning movement, Holmes goes to turn the extractor fan on. In this shot the camera is clearly pointing upward and by doing this the director emphasising is the characters control over the situation, this could further link back to the question as it could be representative of the fact that males are stereotypically level headed and in control of situations. The relatively calm colours of white and black used could also be representative of the commonly used stereotype that males are always level headed and can stay calm in an otherwise stressing situation/environment. Throughout this section of the video the transitions between different shots are largely jump cuts and fade effects, the latter could be representative of the tranquility and calmness in which men can stereotypically deal with stressful situations. The jump cuts in this scene are largely used in order to create tension as well as Holmes' intelligence as he analyses the other characters clothing to identify a necessary location. Both of these transition effects back up points made earlier, for example the jump cuts that are quick are generally used to increase tension, this is likely to give the effect that the situation is quite intense and this then represents the stereotype I talked earlier about that males are strong and have a lot of power. This would cause the situation to be more tense as it is more equal. 

During this scene, when it cuts to the male in the sewers, the initial camera angle is a sort of areal view, giving the effect of vulnerability and isolation, thus portraying that in some scenarios even males (agreeing with the stereotype that normally they can always cope with situations) can be out of their depth. In a way this can be seen to promote gender equality as it gives the effect that both men and women can be out of their depth and that men went always totality in control of everything. This effect is, however reversed when we later see an up-tilted camera angle, this re-imposes the genes superiority as a camera pointing up is indicative of power and superiority. 

The lighting in the house of commons scenes is natural while by contrast, the sewer scenes are darker. This is representative of the stereotype that males are conformable;e in most situations. This gives of the general effect that the stereotype that the male gender is the strongest and most easily adaptive, as they can deal with multiple scene changes and receive no effects.

When Holmes jumps out of the window and into the river and we see the male, Dr Watson, on the boat, he is higher placed in the set consistently, which could again be signifying in-gender superiority. In this same scene there are various shots of a woman, she is clearly not important though, as the shots are short and the editors have sped up the transition speeds. We do however, get a chance to see what she is wearing, it is a tweed style (grey) coat which could represent efforts to fit in to make society in order to get some importance. She has though still got lipstick on to keep her feminism. meaning that women always try to make themselves appealing to men, this is also caused with her hair, as it is nicely made up and is styled in a fashionable (for then) way. 

The conclusion is that this video focuses largely on male superiority. As the whole idea of men fighting with guns and action is what expected of a male in that situation, stereotypically. Also touched on is how women sometimes attempt to fit into society that is run by males. Another point we can conclude from this video clip is that it also emphasises in-gender superiority throughout.

Regional Identity in TV Drama

Regional Identity in TV Drama

Scottish Stereotypes

Common stereotypes that people associate with Scotland and Scottish citizens are with ginger hair, kilts, and bagpipes. These aspects are commonly applied to Scottish people and so TV Dramas can take advantage of this to paint a picture of a Scottish person and then apply it to a character.

An example of a TV Drama these aspects are featured is Outlander. The character Jamie Fraser follows these stereotypes as the character is presented wearing a kilt and having ginger hair. The character is a main protagonist in the Drama series.

A countertype to this is Leopold “Leo” Fitz from Marvels Agents of Shield. The character is Scottish born but does not have ginger hair, wearing kilts or play bagpipes. This character is super-intelligent but awkward engineer, specialising in weapons and technology.

Additionally, Scottish people are associated with alcoholism. This applies generally to Northern Scotland such as Edinburgh and Glasgow where citizens drink more and act wildly. This is another widely regarded stereotype that is applicable to Scottish people.

An example of an alcoholic Scottish character is Groundskeeper Willie from The Simpsons. Although this programme is not a TV Drama, the character in it follows the stereotype as he is seen drinking a majority of the time, which leads to actions that he would regret. Also, this character follows the aspects from the previous stereotype as the character has red/ginger hair, wears a kilt on occasions and plays bagpipes on occasions.

The countertype to Scottish TV character is Amy Pond from Doctor Who. This character is not captured drinking alcohol throughout the series; therefore the character is not alcoholic.  

Liverpool Stereotypes

It is largely stereotyped by people of other regional identities (primarily people from London and other "higher" areas) that people from Liverpool are unintelligent, uneducated, thieves, violent and hopeless. This is down to the fact that traditionally people in Liverpool did low paid jobs and left school early, now however this is largely untrue. Most current media representations of Liverpoolians are the old fashioned, outdated view.

An example of a family that follows this is the Barry family from Waterloo Road. This family have had a troubled past with money and domestic issues, which are possible causes for the students of this family to cause bad habits which result in an early suspension or exclusion. 

Newcastle Stereotypes

This is one of the most stereotyped region in the UK, one stereotype of how a Geordie should be is that they are loud, usually drunk, always joking and many more things. These stereotypes are largely unfounded and not true. There are many successful people from Newcastle, thus contradicting the stereotype that people from Newcastle are uneducated. 

An example of a character that follows the Geordie stereotypes in media is Tosker and some other characters from Our Friends. This is due to the character largely following the common stereotypes towards Geordies.

Yorkshire Stereotypes

The dialect in Yorkshire is easily distinguishable. The most common stereotype of a Yorkshire person is as tight with money, there is a saying that "a Yorkshireman is a Scotsman with all the generosity squeezed out of him", which refers to how Scotsmen are also stereotyped as being tight but not as tight as people from Yorkshire . Yorkshire people are often stereotyped as friendly but they are also stereotyped to be "bloody-minded" argumentative and stubborn. Generally it is stereotyped that men from Yorkshire wear flat caps and tweed style clothes. There are certain foods that are commonly associated with Yorkshire, these include: Yorkshire puddings, potatoes and other similar foods.

A TV programme that situates in Yorkshire is the drama, Emmerdale.  The characters have the typical stereotyped Yorkshire accent to furthermore emphasis the TV dramas regional identity.  

Birmingham Stereotypes

Brummies as they are referred to commonly, are largely stereotyped to be relatively unintelligent, this stereotype was largely brought about by the fact that a lot of Brummies had low level manufacturing jobs. The intelligence stereotype is also related to their instantly recognisable accent.Which to some may sound unintelligent.

A TV Drama that supports the typical stereotypes is Peaky Blinders. This is because there is gangs, and criminal activity because it is such a huge city. The characters are seen as being uneducated in the program which tends to be brought across in how they speak. 

Welsh Stereotypes
Wales is sometimes known as the land of song, and is used for its singers. A very widely used stereotype of Welsh people is that they all like rugby, although many people in wales do, in fact like rugby it is not everyone. The welsh also have their own accent when speaking English but they do also have their own language.

An example of a TV Drama that supports Welsh stereotypes is Gavin and Stacey in which the Welsh characters in the programme behave and speak in a stereotypical Welsh accent. Another example is the Drama called Stella, where again the main character (who is Welsh) speaks and behaves by following the typical Welsh stereotypes.

Irish Stereotypes
There are many Irish stereotypes, one of the most widely used ones is that Irish people only eat potatoes, and cant be without them. This of course as with most stereotypes is not true and is a dated and passed view to take. Also a big stereotype area for the Irish is that they drink a lot, resulting in people getting drunk consistently. Ireland is often associated with lepricorns and people having ginger hair which is not true.

The TV comedy Mrs Brown's Boys includes a lot of the above stereotypes and many more to portray Irish as unintelligent and being insecure about their actions. This may seem comical to some, but to the Irish, this show may seem offensive as not all Irish people behave in the same way as the characters portrayed in the programme. 

London Stereotypes
London can be seen in various ways because, as with other big cities there are good parts and bad parts. The residents from the better parts are stereotyped to be rich, which is largely true, well spoken, which is again, largely true and snobbish which can depend on the person in question. 

These stereotypes can be seen in the TV Drama, Sherlock. Where the main characters and other acquaintances are well spoken, and dress in a fashion that suits the upper class society in London. 

The other side to London stereotypes is the poorer not so good side of London, which its residents are largely stereotyped to be gang members, ethnic minorities, uneducated and other similar things. 

These characters can be seen often on TV. Soap Operas such as Eastenders and Coronation Street both feature current narrative or previous narratives that have included these stereotypes that resemble people living in a lower or working class society in London.

Essex Stereotypes 
Essex is an area where many stereotypes are aimed at, most of these are appearance related. For example it is widely stereotyped that people from Essex have fake body features, are orange and have had their teeth whitened. It is further stereotyped that they can only care about their appearance and that that is their number one priority, which is true in some cases. 

The programme The Only Way Is Essex uses these stereotypes and to an extent that has allowed the audience to perceive people from Essex to be extremely unintelligent, resemble the colour orange, but the fake tan in which they apparently wear and the typical slow, and dim actions that agin support the idea that people from Essex are resembled as being unintelligent and a mockery. 

Cornwall Stereotypes
One of the most used and well known stereotypes for Cornwall is the fact that they are "inbred" this stereotype is incorrect and can cause significant offence to local people. a further stereotype is that the people there are "backward" again this causes great offence to residents of Cornwall. 

Representation of Ethnicity - Hotel Babylon

Representation of Ethnicity

Hotel Babylon

The clip opens with a black hotel worker handing a menu or a document to a customer. This character contradicts stereotypical attitudes towards black people because the character is dressed formal and professionally rather than wearing cheap, baggy clothing, the character is portrayed as friendly rather than being intimidating and a threat to society and lastly the character is very punctual and speaks formally instead of speaking in street language. The setting of the beginning of the clip is a luxury indoor pool area, featuring comforting soundtrack music in the background and darkened lighting to suggest a warm and comforting atmosphere. A panning shot is included to follow the character as he walks through the scene. This displays the sheer size of the room and the luxury that is provided in the hotel by using an establishing shot. After passing a pillar, the camera shot changes to a long shot due to cross cutting, and then another character is introduced. A Jamaican-like. As the second character appears, the first character becomes startled after witnessing him appear in front of him directly from the swimming pool. The second character repeatedly refers to the first black character as ‘bro’ or ‘bruv’, this suggests that the two characters share a bond or friendship. This character resembles a stereotypical black person as he speaks using street language and he can come across as humorous on occasions. In attempt to carry on the conversation the formal character attempts to act and behave like his friend by speaking and acting in a stereotypical way. An over the shoulder shot captures the discomfort of the character as the conversation escalates. A two shot is used to emphasise the distance between the two characters in terms of success. As the character tries to leave, the other character suggests an out of the ordinary party in which the formal character remains uncomfortable with. The other character tries to be persuasive about this party idea, however a close up captures the formal character thinking long and hard, may be concerning whether this is appropriate.

The next scene portrays two cleaners approaching a customer’s room. Both female characters appear to be dressed in formal clothing that is associated with a typical hotel. As the leading female character mentions the double payment of the customer, the other character looks away as if she already understands the protocol. She prepares herself and then enters the room. The wall painting surrounding the room is fuchsia which suggests that the customer living in the room provides pleasure and comfort to whoever enters the room. This introduces to the audience the customer in the room, a Chinese or Asian gentleman. The darkened lighting and thick duvet covers support the fuchsia wall painting by also expressing comfort and pleasure. Additionally, the character looks very eager to continue when the two female characters have entered the room. A close up of the extra money for the service is displayed to query to audience to what the extra service is. The money is a stereotype towards Asian people as they are considered to be wealthier than other people. The soundtrack in the background suggests that the extra may be sexual due to the upbeat tempo of the soundtrack. The camera pans a close up of the leading female character as she locks the door to the room. The other female character looks back at the Asian man as if she does not understand what is going on. The man then brings up a remote control and activates a nearby stereo. The loudness of the music is to drown out any noise from the females. The women are prostituting themselves for the extra payment from the customer service. A close up on the male character shows that he is prepared whilst the females remove their clothing. It becomes clear that the other female character is uncomfortable with the situation as she would have not expected this to happen. Whereas the leading female feels overly confident with this as takes her clothes off first and then dances flirtatiously. The uncomfortable female flees the room whilst the confident stops the male from reacting to this by continuing to flirt.

The next scene opens with a female hotel worker peeking through a door with toilet roll. The professionalism of the character continues here as she is dressed appropriately and appears to be sophisticated. The character appears to want to provide for here customers and so, she goes directly to them with what they desire. In this case, a customer has run out of toilet roll. Upbeat, action like soundtrack is included here suggests that the character may be heroic and attempts to achieve a task under any cost. As she apologises to the customer, this emphasises how white British people are sophisticated but she is not organised as the issue has happened and has never happened previously. After this, the character quietly mutters a possible situation where a shortage of toilet paper has occurred before.

The next scene shows a conversation between two other characters, a male and a female. Similarly to the white British females from the previous scenes, these two are also punctual, sophisticated and dress formally. The setting is a cramped corridor with many members of staff passing through. This can situate a chaotic situation that occurs and links to the conversation of the characters. The sound effects are of the supporting characters conversing themselves to add to the chaotic atmosphere. A long shot confirms this as a view of the corridor is displayed. Many close ups are used here to focus primarily on the two characters and the responses in the conversation. The quick tempo of the character’s speech further supports the chaotic atmosphere as the characters are having to respond to this appropriately and quickly. The dark coloured lighting and clothing suggest that the characters are of high authority. The scene concludes with a close up of the female character and action-like soundtrack, this suggests that the characters are attempting to resolve an issue following the conversation.

The following scene introduces the hotel’s kitchen. The kitchen appears to be a typical large, crowded and chaotic. This places emphasis on the work process of the chefs. A mid shot opens the scene as the female character enters the room. A short cut away focuses on a chefs hands prepping potatoes for food products. Then another cut away shows another character, who may be the person that the male and female where conversing about in the previous scene. The blank expression of this character gives the impression that he may be unintelligent or focusing primarily on chopping ingredients. Another cut shows the high authority characters advancing further into the kitchen, using a panning movement to allow the audience to view more of the details of the kitchen. As the female character approaches the head chef, the audience can see that he is of an Asian background. This character is stereotypically higher in authority and is considered to be more important than his fellow workers. A close up of the character allows the audience to capture a healthy greeting towards the superiors in an attempt to impress them. Although, the larger chef that the male and female may have been conversing about may possibly not accept or belief the other chefs response, and so he shakes his head subtly to express shame or disappointment. The female character remains sophisticated as she ensures that the demands of the chef are indeed met. This leads to the head chef bringing in the other chef into the conversation by tapping in on the shoulder to get his attention. To make amends, he kisses the chef on his forehead to express to create a positive impression in front of his superiors. This then follows with a speech from the chef that is said sarcastically. As the male and female character leave the room, a mysterious and eerie soundtrack is included in which creates the idea that an event is to happen. The chef turns to the head chef and begins a conflicted argument. In response to this, the head chef acts more harshly than he did towards his superiors. This expresses his superiority over the other chefs. As the conflict continues, insults and name calling are added to liven up the argument and grab the attention of the other workers. After this, a close up of the head chef picking up a knife from the working surface is included with additional emphasis using sound effects to try and intimidate the chef even further. This follows the stereotypical view that this character is a threat to society as the character is threatening another with a butcher’s knife.  

The final scene follows the worker that was previously visited with the toilet issue. It appears that she is returning to her former post. That is until she hears the music from the room that contains the cleaner that has prostituted herself. The character knocks on the door and then quickly hides. This draws out the female cleaner, looking suspicious and guilty. A cut of the female worker behind the wall is viewed through a close up of her hiding behind the wall and then peeking round. This extends her curiosity. As she looks away, the cleaner rearranges herself in attempt to show that nothing has happened. She then leaves and returns to her cleaning duties as if nothing has happened.

Representation of Class and Status - Shameless

Representation of Class and Status

Shameless

The clip opens with the main character waling down some stars. The setting clearly shows that the characters in the clip are living in a lower class society because of the clothing positioned on the stair case which suggest that the environment is dirty and cluttered, the paint on the stair case is faded away at parts which suggests that the building in which the characters are living in is old in which age can be associated with lower class as well as the clothes in which the main character is wearing, unclean and baggy clothing that allows the character to be presented in a poor state. Blue wall paint suggest cold temperatures which is also associated with a lack of wealth and lower class society. As the character enters the scene, he appears to be disorientated and confused due to the slow pace of his movements and the way in which he speaks. ‘Oooohhh’ suggests a slurred speech that is associated with disorientation. The mid shot allows the audience to witness the poor state of the environment of the characters and the main character. The additional soundtrack in the background creates a slow and disorientated atmosphere that further supports the idea that the characters in the household are lower class citizens.

At six seconds of the clip, the audience are presented with the other characters of the family. The male children of the family appear to be wearing fairly mainstream clothing that allow them to stand out from the lower class society and attempt to enter a middle class society. Although, one character is not wearing any trousers which suggests idleness and the lack of money needed to purchase more clothing. The female character is presented in a dressing gown which further supports the idea that the family are having money issues and therefore impacting the clothing choices of the children. Additionally, she is holding and feeding a baby that could possibly be her son or daughter. This again refers to the lower class society as some teenage pregnancies occur due to a parent living in a lower class society. Teenage mothers are associated with being poor, unemployed and stressed. The setting of the living area of where the characters are sitting in appears to be similar to a garage due the painted wall on the left, and the grey brick work on the right. The curtains are drawn which emphasises that the characters prefer to live in a darkened environment. And similarly to before, the room is cluttered with empty glass bottles and other discarded items.

As the father character is speaking, his arm gesture suggests that he is talking directly to his family, the wide distance between his arms suggest that his family is large. The slow speech continues here which suggests that the character is still disorientated. A handheld camera is used throughout the scene, this emphasises that there may be a possible tension in the family. As the father character speaks, the words that he is saying are slurred or repeated. This shows that the character is unintelligent and he is trying to use longer vocabulary to allow him to sound more intelligent and appear more like a father figure rather than alcoholic. An over the shoulder shot allows one of the sons to talk back to the father by contradicting his father’s speech. The hand held camera emphasises the tension between the father character and his son. The camera shakes more violently as the sibling faces up to his father and the conversation escalates. The father pauses to emphasise that he is clueless of thinking of a comeback to the point risen by his son and responds with an immature and sarcastic ‘I don’t know smartarse you’re the one with the answers’. This shows that the character is not portrayed as a father figure, but more of an older child. Another over the shoulder shot is included to allow the other siblings to join in with the conversation. To further support the idea that the father is appeared to be immature, it becomes evident that the character has edited details about a house to impress his family. In response to this, the father responds angrily by expressing through hand and arm gestures and facial expressions. Editing is used here, such as jump cuts to continue to idea that the character may be ‘crazy’ and tilting of the camera to create a sensation that expresses the insanity of the character.

Despite the argument, the female character raises the point that the family want to stay together by living in the same house. Following this response from the female character, a calm, tranquil soundtrack is introduced to create the realism that the family want to stay together.  The camera zooms in the characters to capture the expressions of the characters so that they can express their own thoughts and opinions. This creates a large pause to allow the father to come to terms with the situation. This generates that a ‘lesson’ is learnt here and strangely it targets the children rather than the father. This contradicts the idea of the conversation as the character that is needing to learn from a lesson is the father as he is meant to be responsible for his children and put them first instead of himself. The character appears distressed as he explains how being a father and telling lies to his children is a ‘job’.

The concluding scene opens with an up beating soundtrack that is included to raise the spirits of the children as a new home is introduced. The darkened lighting emphasises how the family have sunk to a new low by essentially downgrading themselves from a house to a caravan. A panning movement is used to quickly change from a scene of the caravan to a scene of the family. This allows the audience to witness their reaction to this. The father character continues to try and sound intelligent by using large vocabulary which again become slurred and not understandable on occasions. As a close up of the female character is displayed, it becomes clear that she is disappointed with his father as he already knew that it was not a house and therefore parts her mouth and shakes her head in disappointment. As the father continues to talk, the close up of a turtle moving closer to the road is displayed. This is used to eliminate the other characters from this part of the scene and focus on the turtle. This eventually shows that the family is unaware that an awkward event will soon occur. Quick cuts are used to change from when the turtle is being run over to the father continuing his conversation. It is not until a crushing sound effect of the turtle’s shell that a member of the family realise that the turtle is a priority and has now met its doom. They immediately assume that the animal was attempting to find its way home and eliminate the fact that none of the family were watching it to prevent an event like this from happening. Following this, an estate agent appears and explains that a buyer has been found. He then presents the father with the money which leads to a negative response. A close up shows the negative response from the father by focusing on his face. His mouth is parted and a blank expression is left on his face. The estate agent continues to talk whilst the camera focuses on the father. Unaware of the children laughing at the father from behind his back the father begins to join in, thus bringing together the family. The clip concludes with an aerial shot of the scene thus emphasising how low the characters are in modern society.

 

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.