Theories Flashcards
bell hooks femenist theory
the idea that feminism is a struggle to end sexist/patriarchal oppression and the
ideology of domination. the idea that feminism is a political commitment rather than a lifestyle choice. the idea that race and class as well as sex determine the extent to which individuals are exploited, discriminated against or oppressed.
Roland Barthes’ Semiotics theory
Barthes’ Semiotics theory focuses on how texts create meaning through the process of “Signification”, which includes Denotation, Connotation, Myth, Ideology. Media can be encoded in many different ways, Roland Barthes’ argued these were the main different “Codes” media could include;
Cultural code - a reference to other texts
Enigma code - unexplained/mysterious
Proairetic code - references action or suspense
Semantic code - conventions which connote ideologies
Symbolic code - binary opposites
Van Zoonen Feminist theory
Van Zoonen believes we, as an audience, gain our perspective on gender through “Discourse” which means we gain ideas on gender through all types of Media, spanning from TV shows to video games.
She also believes the construct of gender is influenced by cultural and historical factors; a stereotypical female in England alters from the stereotypical female in West Asia (for example).
She also believes that females in the media are strongly objectified, being no more than an appeal for male audiences due to something she calls the “Male Gaze” , an idea that men tend to “gaze” at women and lust to own their bodies, disregarding the feelings and the constructs of the women themselves.
Richard Dyer Star theory
Richard Dyer proposed the star theory, which proposes three suggestions;
The star is a Construction - (Not a real person, e.g Beyonce, she isn’t a real person but instead a celebrity construction who we admire - online personality - created by agents, designed by the media and its audience.) Keeping this online persona consistent is important for their business
The star is an Ideology - (Star represents certain social groups and views and will therefore create certain ideologies - unwritten social rules/ideas about the world - As a result fans may try to copy their style and adopt similar values. E.g Michael Jackson’s song “Black and White” is an ideology of an anti-racist society.
The star is a Commodity - (Stars are created in order to create a profit through music, concert sales and merchandise. Record labels create similar stars by looking at patterns and trends of what sells.)
Stuart Hall’s representation theory
the Media has the power to shape and form the ideologies of their audiences through the use of their media language and the way they deal with social factors like race, gender, ethnicity, age etc.
(Stereotypes)
Stuart Hall’s reception theory
Believes that although the media TRY and pass along particular messages, depending on the audiences’ background, they might interpret those messages in different ways.
He thinks audiences might take a:
- Preferred reading - where they accept the messages in the product
- Oppositional Reading - where they reject the messages in the product
- Negotiated Reading - where they partially accept and partially reject the messages in the text
Steve Neale’s Genre Theory
Genres are dominated by Repetition but also marked by difference, variation and change. He also states that Genres change over time as repetition and change alter the genres slightly in order to create fresh and original content.
Levi Strauss’s Structuralism theory
Lévi-Strauss believed that the human mind thinks fundamentally in these binary oppositions and their unification.
Use when analysing media language. What opposites can you see in costume, props, mise-en-scene and what is the effect of having one shown against the other? Is one seen as positive and one negative? Or is this view challenged and to what effect? E.g Reality VS Fantasy
Todorov’s Narrative Theory
Todorov believes that most media products follow a set linear narrative in different ways; the main narrative he believes they follow is:
Equilibrium - The calm before the storm
Disruption - something disrupts the equilibrium
Recognition - Understanding and identifying the disruption
Repair - protagonist “saves the day” to disassemble the disruption
New Equilibrium - Happy ending as everything is sorted out and back to the way it was before the disruption.
Jean Baudrillard - Postmodernism
Baudrillard argues that the media create hyper-realities based on a continuous process of mediation. What is encoded as “real” (and what we decide through media products) is not “real” but instead a “simulacrum” which offers us a hyperreality (“a real without origin or reality” - Baudrillard) that we accept as real because we are so consistently exposed to it. Thus media images have come to seem more “real” than the reality they supposedly represent. “Our mental pictures of the perfect body, house and sexual relationship” are created as we are shown depictions by the media in a harmful and repetitive way. E.g. Eating disorders created by repeated representations of how bodies should look, false sex lives created by representations in porn etc.
David Hesmondhalgh - Cultural Industries Theory
Maximise profits, minimise risk.
hesmondhalgh argues that major cultural organisations create products for different industries in order to maximise chances of commercial success through vertical and horizontal integration, and by formatting their cultural products (e.g. through the use of stars, genres, and serials)
Bandura’s Media Effects Theory
People copy actions they see on the media
After the Bobo Doll experiment, Bandura believed that:
- the idea that the media can implant ideas in the mind of the audience directly
- the idea that audiences acquire attitudes, emotional responses and new styles of
conduct through modelling - the idea that media representations of transgressive behaviour, such as violence or
physical aggression can lead audience members to imitate those forms of
Behaviour.
Very good for Assassins Creed III Liberation
Henry Jenkins Fandom Theory
He believes that fans take media texts, and sometimes interpret them / use them in ways which were not intended by the producers and he calls this ‘textual poaching’. He believes that fans construct their social and cultural identities by borrowing and adapting media texts / images and that this is a vital part of society.
Fans help with marketing and advertising for media, below-the-line marketing.
Clay Shirky’s End of Audience Theory
Shirky believes that the internet and technology has completely changed the relationship between producers and audiences.
He believes that the idea of a passive audience consuming the media no longer exists because technology has turned them into an active ‘prosumer’ who likes to ‘speak back’ to the media, and create and share their own content now.
Gaunlett’s Identity Theory / Pick and Mix Theory
In the past the media tended to convey singular, straightforward messages about ideal types of male and female identities, however, the media today offer us a more diverse range of stars, icons and characters from whom we may “pick and mix” different ideas.
The media gives us tools to pick and mix our identities
