Stuart Hall: Representations Theory Flashcards
What does Hall believe about representations in media texts?
There’s no one way for people or events to be represented, but there’s different ways it can be interpreted.
What do producers try to do in media texts?
Fix meaning for people or events
Ethnicity - what do audiences often blur?
Ethnicity and class, leading people to associate the two.
Ethnicity - what does Hall suggest about Western culture?
It’s still white dominated & ethnic minorities in the media are misinterpreted or presented as ‘other’ due to underlying racist tendencies.
Ethnicity - what 3 black characteristics does Hall outline are shown in the media?
The slave (someone devoted to their ‘master’)
The native (savage criminals)
The entertainer (performer)
What do all media products use?
How do they come about?
Stereotypes
Depending on whose in power (hegemony) - usually white, upper/middle class men.
How are women generally presented?
Submissive housewives.
How are men generally presented?
Strong and assertive
How are minority ethnicities generally presented?
Dangerous troublemakers
What is hegemonic power?
Leadership and dominance, particularly under one specific group.
Why does the newspaper industry present negative stereotypes of ethnic minorities?
To intently portray them in a bad way to promote ‘white dominance’.
When analysing representation in media using Hall’s theory, what do you need to consider?
Stereotypes and how/why they have been created.
What are the three approaches to understanding the relationship between reality and representations?
Reflective approach
Intentional approach
Constructivist approach
Explain the reflective approach
The media mirrors the real world.
Explain the Intentional approach
The producer constructs the world as they see it and the audience accepts those values encoded in the text.
