Representation of Age
White Girl
In this clip of "White Girl", the representation of age focusses mainly on a young girl, through the use of sound, editing, camera shots and mis-en-scene.
The program starts with an establishing shot, introducing the setting and the young girl. The sun is shining, which emphasises her care-free outlook on life and innocence throughout the show. She is riding her bike towards the camera which the audience can associate as a childhood activity, this therefore reinforces her youth. As the clip continues, the camera becomes shaky, presenting the movement of her bike, this emphasises the young girl's actions. Additionally, the audience can see extreme close ups as the camera focusses on various parts of the bike whilst she is riding, for example, the tassels which represent childhood and also, her trainers which has connotations of youth. There are also many close-up shots of the young girl, to display her emotions, suggesting she is fragile and is not strong enough to cope on her own. Later on, the girl looks up at her mother when she arrives at the flat, this presents her youth as she is obeying her mother, denoting that she has the power. When at the flat, the camera generally looks in at the events occurring, the audience are aware of this due to the visible window frame, this could suggest that it could be too dangerous in the flat, resulting in the audience sympathising with the family, hoping they can escape.
This clip also uses mis-en-scène to represent age. The use of props portrays this element, for example, the young boy in the clip is carrying an xbox which establishes his youth, suggesting his innocence. The clip appears to focus on a young girl who seems around 13 years old, at the start, she is riding a bike, which conveys an element of youth and playfulness, particularly as a man says to her, she is "too big for it". This emphasises she is too old for the bike with tassels on, and she perhaps knows this, however implying that she is trying to cling onto her childhood innocence. Additionally, this girly bike could display the family's lack of wealth as they may not be able to afford a new bike for her. The young girl's clothing also portrays an element of childhood, she is wearing trainers which depicts her innocence and carless attitude towards fashion. When the young girl arrives at the flat, her mother throws a pillow/duvet out of the window, and the audience can see lots of feathers land around where the young child is standing. The white colour and purity of the feathers conveying innocence and youth of the girl is juxtaposed against the dirty, dingy flat. Throughout the clip, the child is referred to as "good girl", denoting her innocence and inferiority to adults, which represents her young age. Towards the end of the clip, the audience can see the young girl hugging the the pet dog, which could be resembling a teddy bear, often connoted with youthfulness and innocnece. Also, this could make the audience feel sympathy towards the child as she may not have anybody else to hug and rely on. The girl leave her bike behind when they leave the flat, which could be symbolising her growing up into her teen years, consequently leaving her childhood behind. When the van drives away, the young girl looks out of the back window into the past, conversely, her mother is looking into the front window, smiling, displaying her forgetting her past and looking into the future.
Editing also plays a role in representing age throughout this "White Girl" clip. At the beginning, the sun is shining on the young girl riding her bike, which displays her innocnet, care-free attitude. However, soon after, the audience is shocked to discover she is dealing drugs, which contradicts her innocence. There are some jump cuts when handing over the drugs, and the music also continues throughout this scene, emphasising that the girl thinks this is the normal way to behave and there is nothing wrong with it. There is a lot of quick cuts when the girl is on her bike, displaying her trainers and showing the speed of the bike, portraying her youth.
Finally, the sound used when the young girl is riding her bike is a happy, cheerful piece of music, depicting her youth and innocence. This music is used throughout the clip, constantly reminding the audience of the representation of age.
Thursday, 24 February 2011
Thursday, 10 February 2011
Representation of Age
Representation of Age
After gender and ethnicity, age is the most obvious category under which we file people, and there are a whole range of instant judgements which go along with that categorisation. Age is the easiest way to categorise someone as "other" than yourself —everyone you meet will be, to some extent, older or younger, a different age than you. And with difference comes... a tendency to stereotype.
| Age | Stereotypical Characteristics |
| Young | Immature, stupid, greedy, lazy, selfish, unfit, obese, violent, callous, gullible, unreliable, careless, self-entitled, never going to achieve anything |
| Old | Grumpy, out-dated, slow, weak, whining, unable to use technology, unhealthy, miserly, hard-of-hearing, ugly, never go anywhere |
Age is explored through many different ways, such as Sound, Editing, Mis-en-Scene and Camera Shots/Angles.
Age Seven:
- Restricted Language
- Childish/Immature behaviour
- Early years of Primary School
- Toys and Books
- Lack of Power
- Innocence
- Some "geeky" children subvert the stereotypical portrayal of a child
- Seen with a teddy/blanket to depict infancy
- Troublesome child could be depicted by hitting a dolly, conveying violence
- Editing - Quick cuts to portray lots of energy
- Fashionable Clothing
- Stroppy
- Lazy
- Rebellious
- Colloquial language - slang
- Lots of Make-up, suggests teenagers concerned in appearance
- Stressed - due to exams
- Independant, however, there is a power struggle with parents, as they're not an adult yet
- Often associated with Smoking/Drinking
- Not a lot of money due to being a student or only a part-time job
- Causing trouble
- Sound - Mainstream Music
- Mature
- Dressed in smart clothing
- Focussed on Family/Career
- Money - been working in a professional career for a while
- Disposable income - some TV Dramas relate to the 18-35 year old age group as they are in this category
- Can relate to people and identify with characters and their problems
- Escapism - relating to viewers
- Smart
- Elaborate language - no slang - use old phrases and sayings
- Not really very old - others perceive them as being old
- Retired - Hobbies, such as golf
- Elderly people - dependant upon others, and not capable by themselves - ill/frail/boring/doddery
- Retired - look after grandchildren in spare time which keeps them young
- Wise/Intelligent - lots of advice through personal experiences
- Props - Walking Stick/Tweed Clothing/Perm (Haircut)
- Editing - Slow cuts - resembling their body language/movements
Tuesday, 8 February 2011
Representation of Gender
How is Gender represented in Waterloo Road?
The overall issues of gender representation in this clip from Waterloo Road are exploring that boys are more well-behaved and more mature than girls in a classroom. This is portrayed through many techniques such as, Camera Shots and Angles, Sound, Editing and Mis-en-scène.
Throughout the clip, there are various aspects which imply to the audience that both genders are looked upon differently. For example, the clip begins displaying the boys class in a home economics lesson which is not a traditional subject for boys, this presents an element of irony. The mis-en-scène displays the female teacher wearing a pink flowery apron, depicting her superiority and authority as she is allowed to wear her own apron, this demonstrates her power. On the other hand, the boys in the class are seen to be wearing plain, black aprons which presents them as generic and their lack of power. The dull colour also signifies masculinity. The girl's class are in a Citizenship lesson, which would seemingly appear less vocational as oppose to Home Economics. Both teachers are women, displaying that females are more intelligent as they can do stereotypical subjects and more academic subjects too. However, a male plays the senior role of Deputy Head demonstrating that he has power. for instance, he has the authority as he tells a boy off and is dressed in a smart suit, conveying an element of superiority. The audience can hear the Home Ec. teacher tell the boys that "all the ingredients measured out, so there should be no problems". This implies to the viewer that boys are not capable of performing a simple task, reinforcing their lack of power. Additionally, the girls are sitting civilised in rows in the classroom, showing the audience their maturity and motivation to learn. In contrast, the boys are messing around, throwing food which shows their lack of motivation and co-operation. The women teachers are disagreeing with the scheme of genders being segregated for learning which emphasises sex differences.
The editing also contributes to the representation of gender in this clip. There are lots of cuts throughout, allowing the audience to see shots from various different angles. Also, there are reverse shots displaying conversations occurring, the viewers can witness shots from character's points of view and understand the situation. They can therefore sympathise with certain characters, as there is a point of view shot looking at the deputy head from the Home Economics teacher's eyes. He is informing her that a new student causes trouble and it would seem that he does not care about the consequences as it is not his problem. Ultimately, the audience can feel pathos towards this female teacher. The editor has inputted a graphic match when filming the girl's classroom, the audience can depict the calm and peaceful learning atmosphere, proving it is a motivational environment to be situated in.
The clip starts with non-diegetic, loud, frantic music when the boys are displayed. This evidently shows their aggressive attitudes and reluctancy to work. The music quietens down when the teacher moves outside of the classroom, this has two main purposes. Firstly, for the audience to hear the conversation and be engaged, also to show that the noise is contained in the room, due to the bad behaviour of the boys. Ambient sound, for example, talking, is used to make the boys scene seem more aggressive and riotous, which contributes to making the males seem worse than they are in reality. Conversely, there is no music in the girls classroom, displaying a calm atmosphere, and proving how the females are well-behaved, which could be bias. In each classroom, the females receive positive language which provokes them to be encouraged and motivated. On the other hand, the boys receive negative language, such as moaning, proving to discourage them in the classroom, which is a highly likely cause of their disruptive behaviour.
Finally, the camera shots used represent the genders in opposing ways. There are low angle shots, looking down on boys, emphasising their lack of power and authority. In addition, the camera is outside the classroom, and does not film inside as the audience can clearly see the blinds blocking part of the view. This could suggest that it is too dangerous to enter the classroom, reinforcing their aggressive behaviour. The target audience of Waterloo Road is educated women, therefore they can empathise with the girls as they play the role of the outsider, viewing that the girls are more sensible, consequently agreeing with the gender segregation scheme. In contrast, the camera is panning the girls' classroom conveying the calm, gentle atmosphere, proving the females want to learn.
The overall issues of gender representation in this clip from Waterloo Road are exploring that boys are more well-behaved and more mature than girls in a classroom. This is portrayed through many techniques such as, Camera Shots and Angles, Sound, Editing and Mis-en-scène.
Throughout the clip, there are various aspects which imply to the audience that both genders are looked upon differently. For example, the clip begins displaying the boys class in a home economics lesson which is not a traditional subject for boys, this presents an element of irony. The mis-en-scène displays the female teacher wearing a pink flowery apron, depicting her superiority and authority as she is allowed to wear her own apron, this demonstrates her power. On the other hand, the boys in the class are seen to be wearing plain, black aprons which presents them as generic and their lack of power. The dull colour also signifies masculinity. The girl's class are in a Citizenship lesson, which would seemingly appear less vocational as oppose to Home Economics. Both teachers are women, displaying that females are more intelligent as they can do stereotypical subjects and more academic subjects too. However, a male plays the senior role of Deputy Head demonstrating that he has power. for instance, he has the authority as he tells a boy off and is dressed in a smart suit, conveying an element of superiority. The audience can hear the Home Ec. teacher tell the boys that "all the ingredients measured out, so there should be no problems". This implies to the viewer that boys are not capable of performing a simple task, reinforcing their lack of power. Additionally, the girls are sitting civilised in rows in the classroom, showing the audience their maturity and motivation to learn. In contrast, the boys are messing around, throwing food which shows their lack of motivation and co-operation. The women teachers are disagreeing with the scheme of genders being segregated for learning which emphasises sex differences.
The editing also contributes to the representation of gender in this clip. There are lots of cuts throughout, allowing the audience to see shots from various different angles. Also, there are reverse shots displaying conversations occurring, the viewers can witness shots from character's points of view and understand the situation. They can therefore sympathise with certain characters, as there is a point of view shot looking at the deputy head from the Home Economics teacher's eyes. He is informing her that a new student causes trouble and it would seem that he does not care about the consequences as it is not his problem. Ultimately, the audience can feel pathos towards this female teacher. The editor has inputted a graphic match when filming the girl's classroom, the audience can depict the calm and peaceful learning atmosphere, proving it is a motivational environment to be situated in.
The clip starts with non-diegetic, loud, frantic music when the boys are displayed. This evidently shows their aggressive attitudes and reluctancy to work. The music quietens down when the teacher moves outside of the classroom, this has two main purposes. Firstly, for the audience to hear the conversation and be engaged, also to show that the noise is contained in the room, due to the bad behaviour of the boys. Ambient sound, for example, talking, is used to make the boys scene seem more aggressive and riotous, which contributes to making the males seem worse than they are in reality. Conversely, there is no music in the girls classroom, displaying a calm atmosphere, and proving how the females are well-behaved, which could be bias. In each classroom, the females receive positive language which provokes them to be encouraged and motivated. On the other hand, the boys receive negative language, such as moaning, proving to discourage them in the classroom, which is a highly likely cause of their disruptive behaviour.
Finally, the camera shots used represent the genders in opposing ways. There are low angle shots, looking down on boys, emphasising their lack of power and authority. In addition, the camera is outside the classroom, and does not film inside as the audience can clearly see the blinds blocking part of the view. This could suggest that it is too dangerous to enter the classroom, reinforcing their aggressive behaviour. The target audience of Waterloo Road is educated women, therefore they can empathise with the girls as they play the role of the outsider, viewing that the girls are more sensible, consequently agreeing with the gender segregation scheme. In contrast, the camera is panning the girls' classroom conveying the calm, gentle atmosphere, proving the females want to learn.
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