representation Flashcards
what does the waist down medium shot of the women’s legs imply?
objectifying her and may engage a male audience
what is common in music videos?
sexualising women
why was sexualising women in music videos particularly old fashioned?
as many 80s music videos did this
who might these type of old fashioned videos appeal to?
an older audience who are familiar with these kind of representations
what does the close up on the men emphasise?
their close relationship
what does the low angle shot make the men seem?
powerful
what signifies their group mentality?
their collective gaze at the women
what does their suit connotes?
wealth and success
what does the dance sequences in unison create?
the idea of men being similar and having a close bond
how is there an interesting portrayal of gender in the video?
The emphasis is clearly on male camaraderie
what are all typically ‘male bonding’ behaviour?
The opening shots are close-up of hands shaking, slapping shoulders
what does the dance routine shows when the song starts properly?
dance routine does not focus solely on Mars, but rather shows him as a member of a team
by contrast, who are not hardly featured at all?
women
what mimics the videos and films of the 1980s?
The opening shot of a pair of long women’s legs, with later shots of a woman’s fur coat
what does these buddy movies featured?
a group of male friends chasing after girls - though the emphasis was on male friendship rather than sexuality
later in the video, what happens when a number of women walk past?
the boys whose eyes follow admiringly
how are the first female ‘character’ framed?
framed so we can only see their bodies
what could a feminist approach argue with how women are framed?
that this objectifies and de-humanises the women
what is the nature of the sequences?
the traditionally masculine nature
what are the a number of?
amusing subversions
what does mars seem to be mainly interested in rather than the passing women?
himself (narcissism)
when does Mars wears his pink jacket?
when he goes to a women’s beauty salon to have his hair styled
when he wears his pink jacket, what does he sing at one point?
“kiss myself / I’m so pretty”.
what are all of these subvert male stereotypes of?
not caring about appearance, and of ‘beauty being a feminine obsession
what are also subverted?
race and class stereotypes
where was Mars born?
Hawaii
what race is Mars?
mixed race
what race are most of his band?
African-American
what race is Mark Ronson?
white british
what does Mars, his band and Ronson are all represented as?
very positively as fun, talented people
why would there be signs of criminality (even though there is none in the video)?
might typically be associated with this type of ‘urban’ location
what is the neighbourhood represented as?
it seems poor but happy
what are 3 signs of criminality?
drug dealers, pimps or prostitutes
what is another subversion of the short sequence of the band?
the band have their shoes polished by white shoe-shine guys
what has the role of white shoe-shine guys usually been associated with?
Black Americans
what has the role of white shoe-shine guys become symbolic of?
racial inequality
By showing white shoe-shiners working for black characters, what does this video challenge?
deliberately challenges this stereotype
