Music video representations REPRESENTATION Representation in Media Studies

Music video representations

REPRESENTATION Representation in Media Studies involves considering how groups of people are represented. This idea of re-presentation also reinforces that it isn’t reality that we are dealing with here.

Representation vs. Reality • Representation is the ability of texts to draw upon features of the world and present them to the viewer, not simply as reflections, but more so, as constructions (O’Shaughnessy & Stadler 2002). • Hence, the images do not portray reality in an unbiased way with 100% accuracy, but rather, present ‘versions of reality’ influenced by culture, people’s habitual thoughts and stereotypes.

Representation • Representation always involves the construction of reality. • We need to focus on how real. Is the representation realist or obviously fantasy- or does it have elements of both? • We need to focus on how the representation is constructed: - What is represented and what ignored? - How are individuals, groups (e. g. gender, ethnicity) and places portrayed? - How is media language (camera, editing, mise en scene etc) used to bring out the representations?

Your video – what type of representations have you created? Realist – aims to represent the world accurately Anti-realist – surreal or fantasy Positive – reflects group or place in a positive light. Negative- reflects group or place in a negative light Progressive – reflects an improvement on an old fashioned representation. • Regressive – reflects an old fashioned, probably negative, representation. • • •

Your media products and representation • What is represented in your film/ music video? In what way? Think of individuals, groups and places. • How, specifically, have you constructed these representations through camerawork, editing and mise en scene?

What types of representations can we look at in music videos? • • • Age Gender Socio-economic grouping Ethnicity Nationality Representation of places

Kanye West, Jay-Z - Otis http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=Bo. EKWtg. JAU

Representation and dominant values • Consider the world we live in today in 21 st century Britain- what are the important (dominant)values of our world? Are these dominant values? • Fairness and equality- of gender, race, religion etc • Liberalism- tolerance of others views even if they are different from our own. The rights of people to express their own views, beliefs, ideas, even if we disagree with them. • The ability of individuals to better themselves through hard work. • Celebrity culture • Get rich quick mentality • Materialism Are there any other dominant values? Do the representations in your video reflect the dominant values or do they reflect different messages and values? Do they directly subvert (go against) the dominant values?

What dominant values were presented in this video?

Star image ‘A star is an image constructed from a range of materials’ (Dyer, 1979) • For a pop star, one of these ‘materials’ is the music video. • A music video acts as a ‘star vehicle’ to promote the star. • The iconography (regular visual features of an artist’s music video that become associated with the artist such as costumes, props, jewellery and settings) help construct the star image. • Andrew Goodwin (1992) recognises the importance of star image and notes that the demands of the record label will often mean that there are many close ups of the star in the music video to emphasise star image.

• In what way is the star represented in your video? • How have you constructed this representation through media language (camerawork, editing, mise en scene)?

Voyeurism • Andrew Goodwin (1992) notes that music videos frequently involve ‘voyeuristic treatment of the female body’. • Laura Mulvey (1975) argues that because filmmakers are predominantly male (and this is still the case in 2012!), the presence of women is often solely for the purposes of display. This facilitates a voyeuristic response that presumes a ‘male gaze’ i. e. the woman is typically displayed in a passive, objectified way.

Gender & Laura Mulvey (1975) • Studied films of the 40 s-60 s and argued that mainstream Hollywood was a product of a maledominated and controlled industry and in such texts… • -Men controlled the action and were responsible for moving the narrative along. • -Women were represented as passive objects of the male gaze. • -Pleasure in viewing comes from narcissism and voyeurism.

Gender & Laura Mulvey (1975) • Narcissim- through this process we identify with certain characters, seeing them as an idealised version of our self. Mulvey argued that we are usually encouraged to identify with male characters’ motivations and actions as protagonists are most often males. • Voyeurism- through this process we view the forms in cinema as spectacle and Mulvey claimed that this is most apparent in relation to the female. • The female in film becomes an object of desire for an audience within the narrative: and thus serves as ‘spectacle’. • The attraction of the female is for the male gaze.

• Consider the male and female representations in your video: • Do the female representations follow Mulvey’s (1975) idea of voyeurism and the ‘male gaze’females being presented as objects of desire by a male-dominated industry? • Does narcissism apply to your video? Are we asked to identify with male protagonists as an idealised version of the self?