Representation Keywords Flashcards
Representation
The way a media product portrays a particular group, place or individual
Ideology
A set of ideas or beliefs.
Dominant ideology
A set of ideas that dominate within society
Stereotype
An oversimplified representation of a group of people - usually constructed through exaggerated physicality
COuntertype
A positive stereotype, usually created by reversing negative features within a stereotype
Beauty ideal
A socially constructed definition of physical beauty, often resulting in audiences feeling a pressure to conform to the narrow standards of beauty suggested by
Objectification
A representation that depicts someone as an object of sexual gratification
Subversive representation
A representation that deliberately seeks to deconstruct or de-stabilise preconceived ideas
Star power
Depictions that use celebrity status - often producing idealistic representations for an audience
Cultural hybridisation
A term coined to describe the representations created by the fusion of two different cultures
Realism
The attempt to represent the real world in a natural or authentic manner - often concentrating attention on social problems
Otherness
A term used to describe the way that media products privilege specific groups, whislt portraying anyone who falls outside of that privileged set as an outsider or other.
Portrayals of otherness are often negative.
Otherness is often used to describe the way that the media represents non-white ethnicities
Racial binary
A term used by Paul Gilroy to describe the way that some media products categorise all ethnicities into two groups - blacks and whites.
The construction of racial binary glosses over the everyday experience of all ethnicities and facilities stereotyping processes
Colonial discourse
A set of ideas that privilege a white viewpoint - suggesting that the Eurocentric perspective is superior to that of non-whites
Media plurality
A media landscape in which lots of different types of media institutions operate - media plurality allows audiences to choose between a multiplicity of products, institutions and producers.
Media plurality ought, theoretically, to enable healthy representations of all social groups.
Absent representations
The absence of key social groups within media products - the absence of such groups, it is argued, makes them invisible to audiences and reduces their value or social importance.
Hegemony
The set of ideas, values and ideals that are dominant in society. Hegemony allows particular groups or elites to dominate within society
Feminised masculinity
A representation of masculinity that moves away from traditional stereotypes
Gender trouble
A media product that subverts heteronormativity, offering an alternative representation of masculinity or femininity to traditional stereotypes
Socially constructed gender
A sociological view argues that our gender based indentities aren’t derived as a result of biological disposition, but are formed as a result of social learning. It is suggested that the media plays an important role in terms of defining the kinds of gender specific behaviours we ought to exhibit as men and women.
Gender binary
The presentation of gender as either masculine or feminine, male or female.
Media products, it is argued, reinforce this simplified view of gender identity
Gender as performance
An idea forwarded by Judith Butler that our gender identities aren’t who we are, but what we do. As such out gender identities are a performance rather a given
A heteronormative representation
A traditional representation that asserts heterosexuality and the simplified gender binary of male/female as natural
Fixed identities
A term used by David Gauntlett to describe the process of fixing an individuals identity through the application of rigid social rules.
Gauntlett argues that fixed identities were dominant in the 50’s and 60’s when rules regarding gender, class and ethnicity were heavily prescribed by society.
Fluid identities
A term used by David Gauntlett to describe the contemporary process of identity construction. Gauntlett suggests that individuals use a range of role models and social influences to continuously craft their thoughts, beliefs and attitudes.
Gauntlett argues that media plurality and the resulting diversity of media representations available to a contemporary audience facilitates fluidic identity construction.
Post-traditional society
A term used to describe a society that has transcended traditional expectations regarding gender roles
converged (adjective)
Combined or brought together, especially different technologies or systems.
E.g. The company’s new product is a converged device that combines a smartphone, tablet, and laptop into one.
advertorials (noun)
Advertisements that are designed to look like editorial content, such as articles or features.
E.g. The magazine featured several advertorials that promoted new products and services.
hypermasculine (adjective)
Exaggerated or extreme masculinity, often associated with aggression, dominance, and physical strength.
effeminate (adjective)
Having or showing qualities or characteristics traditionally associated with women.
cosmopolitan (adjective)
Including or representing people from many different countries or cultures.
