Textual Analysis and Representations (Notes)

Chapter 1
The Representing Text

Sohan-Rethel describes four forces at work in media production which we can use as a framework for analysis. These forces are:

• Technology
• Economic
• Cultural
• Regulatory

Beginning to consider the key concept of representation and start to apply it to television drama should be starting to happen. Representations is a cultural force as it relates to tastes, identity and interest. Representation is also related to regulation. People have legal means to respond to representations that they have considered inaccurate or harmful and OFCOM, the regulatory body overseeing broadcasting, can intervene when programme makers represent issues in a controversial way. representations is also linked to economic forces. Representations is increasingly shaped by technology, as the audience is able to watch a series in a staggered fashion or all at once or with a range of interactive features . This is described as a fragmented audience. 

Textual analysis is an advanced form of media literacy. Media literacy allows a person to understand the narrative of television drama and to make a critical response in relation to other programmes and to the ideas, themes, and people represented. To do this well, we need to work at both micro and macro levels of text. 

working at a micro level involves pulling apart the detailed aspects of the texts frame construction. Doing this kind of work, you will need to play, pause, and rewind a short second sequence several times to observe the creative and technical decisions made in the production process. This builds up to work at a macro level. This is all about drawing conclusions from the micro work about how the sequence overall represents people, events, places and themes. We must always bare witness to the complex range of interpretations and different viewers will create. Watching a television programme is an active process and that it is the audience that ultimately makes the meaning. The three stage process here is: 

1. Analysis the micro elements of the text
2. conclude from the micro elements a range of macro representations
3. Consider how different people might respond differently to these representations

Representation

The media do not just offer us a transparent 'window on the world' but a medicated version of the world. They don't just present reality, they re present it. An example from everyday life - why do men wear ties on some occasions but not on others? at first the answer could seems to be obvious but it isn't at all. If we take a step back from what seems natural. In our society a tie has come to represent formality. Another example is your name. It stands for you, like the clothes you wear don't just keep you warm and dry, they are a statement of you. Another example is your bedroom, they way it is decorated and laid out has been considered carefully, not just so you are comfortable in your space but so that a range of signs and symbols reinforce your identity to yourself. 

Metaphor

Gauntlett has developed a research method using lego. He asks people to make metaphorical models that actually resemble what they are representing. When he asks people to reflect on the models they have made, he gets a better understanding of of how people see themsleves than if he asks them to just use language. Metaphor could possibly be something we use all the time without realising. 

Verisimilitude 

TV programmes are a form of media text in the contents of representation. In order for a character to be believable, the actor must wear clothes that you would expect that type of person to wear. When we look at how media text represents the world, we are usually concerned with the representations of gender, age, and ethnicity. This all adds up to verisimilitude- the construction in a text, of a plausible, believable world. 

To explore representation in TV/Radio, you should consider:

• What kind of realism is being attempted by the programme? 
• Who is being represented in the drama (who is presented), and how?
• Who is not being represented in the drama (who is absent?) and why?
• Can we identify any characters that are stereotypical representations?
• Is there a dominant view of the world represented in the drama, or are there several different views to choose from?
• What different responses might audience members make to these representations?

Representational Codes
 A good example of this is 'Life on Mars.' The entire text relies on a scene of 'authenticity'- the clothes, props, settings, music and dialogue representing Northern England in the 1970s in a way that is accurate. The entire drama depends on the Juxtaposition (the marked effective contrast) between Sam Tyler's view of the world (taken from the twenty-first century) and the policing methods. Without the audience's complicity in understanding this contrast and accepting the 1970s representation as accurate, the text is meaningless. With the codes in place, the audience then has a variety of possible responses to make. Reflecting that things were simpler, more straightforward and thus better in those days and that life is too 'politically correct' now. 

Representation in Crisis
Some media academics claim that representation is a concept in crisis. This arises from a rather obvious aspect of the effects of digital technology. As it becomes cheaper, easier, and quicker for people to make videos and upload them to the internet for an 'imagined audience.' The representation of people by the media is increasingly replaced by people representing themselves? As youtube is being used by young audiences, we see how the teenage group truly behaves rather than stereotypical stereotypes we seen in 'Hollyoaks' and 'Skins' 

Chapter 2

Television Drama
Despite stories of its demise in the wake of American imports, British television drama still attracts huge viewing audiences. Many of these shows are watched collectively as on-off peak- time broadcasts and this may provide some evidence that we are not yet consuming all of our media, creating our own viewing schedules or turning to Youtube and other aspects of web 2.0 for all our media. Media teacher, Steve Connolly, posted to his blog a post stating TV ratings show a significant downward trend in audience ratings for British TV drama, and a combination of a less investment and more competition has led some critics to worry for the future. Connolly concludes that while British TV drama is now something of a poor relation in comparison to the American producer HBO, it is still in a fairly healthy state so reports of its demise are exaggerated at this stage. Short drama sequences employ a variety of technical and symbolic elements at a micro level to create representations at the macro level. 

Background to TV drama
Don't necessary to study television drama in terms of its breadth, history, funding, or critical reception. However, you will probably be better equipped to offer a speedy response to a clip from an informed perspective if you are aware of some contextual detail. 
What is expected though is an understanding of how serious fictional television engages its viewers by representing real world events, themes, people and places through a series of technical and symbolic devices, as outlined in the list in the introduction to this section. There are, however, a set of sub- genres of dramatic types that have different conventions:

• Teen dramas (which depend entirely on the target audience empathising with a range of authentic characters and age- specific situations and anxieties) 
• Soap operas (which never end, convey a sense of real time and depend entirely on us accepting them as 'socially realist') 
• Costume dramas (which are often intertextually linked to 'classic' novels or plays and offer a set of pleasures that are very different to dramas set in our own world contexts and times)
• Medical?hospital drama (which interplay our vicarious pleasure at witnessing trauma and suffering on the part of patients and relatives with a set of staff narratives that deploy soap opera conventions)
• Police/crime dramas (which work in the same way as medical/hospital dramas but we can substitute the health context for representation of criminal and victims)
• Docu-dramas (which are set apart from the others by their attempts to dramatise significant real events which usually have either human interest, celebrity focus or political significance) 

Each of these types has its own set of conventions, its typical scheduling patterns, its target audiences, its narrative formulae and its history/expectations. 

ESSAY- Discuss the ways in which the Extract uses Camera shots, Mise en Scene, Sound and Editing to Represent Gender

                 In this scene from Some girls, we see stereotypical representations of genders. Firstly, men and boys are betrayed as irresponsible. When the main female character walks up to her flat, we see two teenage boys mucking about with a trolley, which is mise-en-scene. This presents boys as not taking things seriously and having a laugh, even if it means being a risk to theirs and others safety. To emphasis the impact of the crash into the lamppost,  the camera follows the trolley (tracking shot) and then the transitional to the next scene is a slide transition. This effect makes the audience follow the trolley and get some idea of the force and speed it is going. The next representation of male characters is her dad. When she arrives in from school, her dad has no food prepared for her and does the opposite of welcoming her home with open arms. This may be because this is usually a feminine thing to do and her dad is being a typical man. Even after she complains that she is hungry, he still says that she should get it herself and this may reflect the fact that he has old fashion views that women belong in the kitchen. Also, later on in this scene, we see her dad and brother hooked to their video games. Again, this is a stereotypical representation. 
                Women also have their own representation. For example, when the PE and her step mum comes out of the shower, we hear music which is soft and classical, which relates to feminine themes. Also the way she dries her hair with the towel is a very stereotypical way which comes across that everything she does is perfect. Men used to think that all women like that were perfect and it is still a stereotype which is used here. Also, within the programme as well, there is a strong theme of friendship seen through the group of girls. We see this in the PE class that they are all close and are fond of gossiping which we here through the dialect. Gossiping is seen as a female activity rather than a male one. 
                 Although all these points are stereotypical, there are also some points which are anti stereotypical. Firstly, we see the dad, who we assume has stayed home all day as he seems very relaxed, and, as we know, his girlfriend has been the one working. Later on in the same scene, she questions 'Are you going to let her talk to me like that?' This shows how she dominates the house and she uses this power over the kids and the dad. As mentioned before, we know the step mum is a PE teacher. Women are not traditionally associated with PE so this may represent the changing times and modern views. When the girl leaves the flat, her stepmother is laying down relaxing reading a magazine. In past generations the woman of the household always had housework to do so again, this may represent modern views.  When the girl finds out about the pregnancy, there is a cross cut between the couple and her, which may be to show all the different reactions. There is also a close up of the girl's reaction. This may be to show more shock, which is an unusual way for a girl to react to a pregnancy as they are expected to be happy rather than mention the idea of an abortion. 
               So in conclusion, the clip from 'Some Girls' shows a mixture of both stereotypical gender and unusual betrayals of gender. This is shown through; sound, mise en scene usually in the form of props, transitions, and camera shots. 

Discuss the ways in which the extract uses camera shots, editing, sound, mise-en-scene to construct representations of relationships

    In the clip from 'Cutting it' we see many different themes presented in the two main characters relationship, such as; closeness, secrets and complications. It is presented through sound, mise-en-scene, editing, and shot types. 
                      In the first part of the clip, we see a cut in of the couple holding hands which shows off their wedding rings (props), so we instantly know their status, and also we can see they care for each other by holding hands. We see this closeness again shortly, this time through dialect. She mentions how she wants him to move on if something happened to her, and he replied stating that its not an option to love someone else. This obviously shows how strong his feelings are for her if he'd rather be single than not with her. At the end of the scene, when she has been hit by the car, he runs over to her and they lay together, which is similar to the way Romeo and Juliet laid together when Romeo finds Juliet dead. As we know, Romeo then goes onto kill himself so showing the couple impersonating the famous pair could indicate that he is going to struggle living without her, which is backed up by the previous point. With the shot looking down on them from above could be symbolising heaven looking down on them and admiring their last moment together. The final transition at the end of the scene is a fade to black, which could show how she lost her soul, or even how he lost his happiness. 
                   Even though the couple did come across as having strong feelings for each other, there was a scene of uncertainty or complexity to the relationship. We see this mostly through dialect and sound. In the taxi, there is a mention of 'third time lucky' which implies that they have a history, and this is backed up when she apologises for doing something to him, and then saying she knows about Melisa. This means that they must have had an extremely complicated relationship full of possible affairs. 
                  Following on from this, we see a lot of secretive behavior in the clip. For example, she goes to see the consultant without him even when he questions 'Why cant I come?'  This means she keeps information from him as well as the audience as there is music playing when she is in the consultant's office. This means we are at the same understanding as him, especially at the end when he runs across the road to look after her, we hear his heartbeat more than anything else which helps build suspense. Also, the fact she goes to the office alone, shows that they are in different locations, and the inter cutting between the locations represents separation between the newly weds. Going back to the music, also makes the audience question the stability of the relationship. For example, when they are separate, we see him playing with his wedding ring and the music says 'and you are free' which is not what you would associate with a wedding day. This is followed by a close up of her crying at the news the consultant gave her which shows she is keeping something from her, its almost as if she is saying the lyrics to him, again, relating to the dialect spoken in the taxi where she says she wants him to move on, almost as if she was expecting bad news, even though she says to him that she's sure its good news and puts on a smile. Also, in the office, she nods along to what the consultant is informing her with, like she knew already and was has already come to terms with it. 
                  In concision, through this clip, we see possible aspects of relationships but ones that rarely occur on a wedding day. We see this through mostly dialect, camera shots, and sound. However, mise-en-scene (represented as mostly props) and editing also play a role in presenting these themes. 

Creating my own TV Soap Drama- Sunny-side Avenue

Setting
I have decided to not stick to the traditional soap setting which are set in the UK. I have decided to set my soap in California, USA. The Characters will mostly live on Sunny-side Avenue which is also the name of the soap itself. I decided to call it this as I discovered that successful soaps are named after the place where the soap is set or at least based around it. As implied by the name, it is a sunny place, with a local beach, cafe, supermarket, club, leisure centre, and is a popular tourist destination. 

Characters 
Even though the characters will consist of Americans, many of the known characters are British too. I decided to do this so it will give audiences an aspect of the other country's way of life. 

Jessica Cooper: played by Michelle Keegan: Age: 24

Dan Cooper: played by Jamie Borthwick  Age: 16

Haley Daniels: played by Kaley Cuoco  Age: 26

James Daniels: Played by Mathew Perry  Age:49

Sean: Played by Channing Tatum Age:27

Paul Davies: Matt Czuchry  Age:16

Kim Andrews: Emma Stone Age:25

These are a most of the main characters that are in my soap. I've only put in a few because as i mentioned, the soap is set in a popular tourist destination therefore they is a high demand for many guest stars. 

Plot  
The soap follows the story of siblings, Jessica and Dan, from London who are incredibly close and moved to the states to prove a point to their parents. They instantly find friends, Kim and Paul who live on the same street, sunny-side avenue. Jessica starts to work in the local cafe, run by James Daniels. Jess then meets Haley, James's daughter who works alongside her at the cafe. Dan then starts to develop a little crush on Haley, even though there is unmissable chemistry between him and Kim. Similar to this, there is also chemistry between the mysterious Sean and Jess. However, Sean is in a relationship with Haley. This may all come as over whelming but these storylines will develop over time and will become more clear when acted out. The soap is aimed at teens or people in their early 20's. Its a fun, and sometimes dramatic soap.  

Target Audience
I think the target audience will be 15-25 year old. This is because of the strong themes in the programme which consist of relationships and having nights out which are stereotypical of this age range. I think it would air at around 9pm or 10pm so it gives students time to study before hand and will fit into their daily schedule. there may also be a catch up on a sunday afternoon incase they have missed episodes in the week.

Key Words Glossary

Sound Key Words

Diegetic Sound: Sound or music that comes from something within a scene, such as a piano sound coming from a piano

Non-Diegetic Sound: Sound that the characters cannot hear and is not part of the imaginary world of the story. This includes a musical soundtrack or a voiceover (however this excludes a narration by a character within the story – referred to as an internal monologue and is diegetic)

Sountrack: A narrow strip running down a TV programme that carries the recorded sound in synchronisation with the pictures

Theme Tune:  A piece of music played at the start of a programme that relates to it

Sound effects (FX): Sound of actions to add to the effect of scene or the event that has just been seen to make it more realistic

Ambient Sound: Sounds that add to the atmosphere of the scene such as traffic noises if set in a city

Dialogue: Speech between the characters

Voice-Over:  Speech not heard by the characters usually found in documentaries


Source:  http://www.heanorgate.org.uk/visualarts.asp?pageID=MediaKeywords

Shot Types

Extreme Wide Shot (EWS): A view so far away from the subject (the main person in the scene) that they are not visible. This is often used to establish a setting

Very Wide Shot (VWS):  Where the subject is barley visable, but the main feature is still the setting around him

Wide shot (WS): The subject is now shown in full frame 

Mid shot (MS): Some part of the subject is shown in more detail while giving an impression of the whole subject

Medium Close Up (MCU): This is half way between a medium shot and a close up

Close Up (CU):  A certain feature or part of the subject that takes the whole frame

Extreme Close Up (ECU): This shot shows extreme detail of the subject, for example their eyes

Cut-in: Shows another part of the subject in detail

Cutaway (CA): A shot of something other than the subject, maybe what something that is happening in the subjects surroundings

Two-shot: Two people in one shot, similar to a mid shot

Over the shoulder shot (OSS): A shot showing the subject from behind a person

Noddy Shot: Usually refers to a shot of the interviewer listening and reacting to the subject. The opposite to an OSS shot

Point-of-view shot (POV): Shows a view from the subjects perspective

Weather shot: This is used when the conversation is focused around the weather. It could also be used for backgrounds for graphic products

Other Media terms

Mise en scene: is key to any scene. Focuses on the styling, props, lighting, sound and certain editing in the scene

Story: A sequence of events, also known as the plot

Narrative: The way events are put together to be presented to an audience 

Technical codes: Refers to all aspects of narrative construction that involves technical decision making

Verbal codes: The use of language

Symbolic Codes: These are the signs contained in the narrative that we decode as being significant and having meaning 

Different Shot Types used in TV Dramas

For this post, all my still shots are from soap drama, Eastenders.


Over the shoulder 


This over the shoulder shot is very commonly used in soap dramas such as Eastenders as its an ideal way of showing an in depth conversation. The reason for this could be because you can see the other persons reaction relatively more clearly than any other shot that still gives of the feel of a deep conversation. For example in this scene, Sharon (the person who's face is not seen) is the one talking at this moment. Showing Phil's face lets us know his reaction as the scene progresses. The over the shoulder shot can also show the person talking face on, and this may be added so the audience can tell if there is a specific way the character is talking via their facial  expressions. Who ever is talking face may be shown or not and this varies throughout the scene. It may vary so the audience feel like they are in the middle of the conversation meaning they will keep swapping who they are looking at, depending if they think the other person will give an interesting reaction.
The over the shoulder shot can be used at an angle also, as shown in the picture. The camera is pointing upwards, looking up at Phil, this may add to the fact that Phil may have a considerably high amount of power over Sharon.


Very Wide Shot

This shot is usually used at the start of the scene or programme to set the time of day, bring attention to changes/events or to maybe make the audience see something suspicious. In this shot, we see the edge of Albert square. Regular viewers would recongise the part of the square and who lives there, so they could start to consider who is involved in this scene.  There is a suspicious car so the audience may sense that something will happen. 


Two Shot 

This shot is called a two shot as it simply shows to characters. This is usually used when there is a group discussion or conversation. These two characters are talking to a fellow friend. Here we can see Poppy giving advice or her opinion and we can clearly see Fatboy's reaction to what she is saying. His reaction could reflect on what Poppy is saying a d what the other person is thinking in one simple shot. It could be used for humor or give a range of opinions for the viewer to chose from. 



Close Up

Close up is a fairly straight forward shot. It simply just zooms in on a characters face to express their emotion to the viewers. It is usually found at the end of a scene, when there is usually a view seconds of silence to give a chance for the characters and audience to absorb what has just happened. Deciding to show a close up of an emotion could be to set the mood of what the audience should be feeling or to show them how the character is feeling. 

Roles and Jobs In TV Dramas

Many think that making TV drama may only involve a few directors and a handful of actors. However most are unaware of the many different roles that go on behind the scenes of many of the nations most loved drama. Obviously the roles of the actors (The people whoa re shown on TV as the characters of the drama)  and directors (the people who decide different screen shots, placings and expression)  are vital in making a successful drama. However this success would not be possible without the hard work with other members of he crew.
Many other types of jobs include:

• Writers- They write the script and make up the storyline or plot of the episode
• Stylist/make up artists- they are responsible for the outfits and look of the characters. this role is more crutial then meets the eye as many people judge characters on style alone, therefore the directors/writers need to feedback to the stylists explaining how they want the character to come across.
• Lighting director- Designs the lighting for multi camera televison productions
• Foley Artist- responsible for recreating everyday life sounds in films or TV drama
• Art directors- They build needed sets, and coordinate camera angles and lighting with the director and lighting director
• Production Manger- hires the crew and handles budgets and insurance as well as eveyones pay
• Sound engineer/boom operators- they are responsible for recording the audio and dialogue
• Script supervisors- ensure script continuity
• Art department assistance- handles props
• Production assistants- run errands, control traffic, keep the set tidy and help in any other way until the job is done

There are many other jons involved in media, but these are some of the key ones.