Key Assessment 1
Short answer questions
Name three of Barthes's semiotic codes [1]
Hermeneutic code
proairetic code
symbolic code
Briefly define 'modes of address' [1]
The way the audience is spoken to in the media text.
Briefly define 'lexis' [1]
The language used in a media text.
Which two theoretical perspectives have we studied that can be 'credited' to Stuart Hall? [2]
Reception
Representation
Media language
How can media language communicate multiple meanings? Make reference to at least two of the following; the Tide print advertisement (1950's), the WaterAid audiovisual advertisement (2016) and the Kiss of the Vampire (1963) film poster.
In your answer you must:
- Consider how genre conventions create meaning
- Consider how audiences can respond to media language
- Consider how media language incorporates various viewpoints and ideologies [30]
In both the Tide Print advert and the kiss of the vampire advertisement, the advertiser uses media text to communicate ideas with the audience so they can interpret the adverts. This is done by using a range of media techniques including: Mise-en-scene, character archetypes, font style, shot types and Lexis. These are all used to get the adverts meaning across so the audience understands the advert and can then interpret it in their own way. Both of these adverts are from the 1950s and 1960s, this was the time of post war Britain. In these times women were more likely to stay at home and be 'the housewife' like the woman represented in the Tide advert and men were more likely to be out working for the household. It was also post war Britain so it was a time when both men and women liked to socialise, visiting movie theatres which is what the Kiss of the vampire focuses on. In my opinion the meanings created from the media language differ from person to person and this idea can focus on the reception theory.
In the Kiss of the vampire text it is very clear that the genre is Gothic horror which i think is a key focus of the advert, the audience can know this by the use of Mise-en-scene as well as the lexis. To begin with the mise-en-scene includes: bats, the moon, a castle and eerie weather. These all have connotations of the genre of Gothic Horror. Also focusing on the moon there is binary opposition with the dark sky compared to the light moon. This suggests the producer of the film wanted the audience to focus on the moon as this helps to communicate with the audience on what the poster is about. The use of Lexis shows that the genre is gothic horror as 'Vampire' has connotations of scary and horror. Also the font used is Sans serif which usually suggests the advert may be classy and fancy. But this advert is conflicting with this idea so the producer chose to make it fit more with the genre by adding shadows behind the text which suggests darkness and has made the text look older and quite worn, which fits in well with the idea of vampires.
In the tide advert one of the key focuses is on a character, 'The housewife', in which the whole advert is played around the character as well as the mise-en-scene. The audience can look at the use of: mise-en-scene, lexis and character archetypes to look at the focus of the advert. The use of the 'housewife' is a key character archetype especially in the 1950s when it was post war Britain. Women were made to stay at home and clean whilst men were out working. This is key to this advert as it has a target audience of women who are 'the housewife' to buy the product being advertised. Also the mise-en-scene is used to show the audience what type of women the housewife is, in order for her to be relatable to the audience. The use of her clothes and makeup suggests that this is a key thing to do in a 'housewives' life and for cleaning it is no different. The use of language also shows the audience that the target audience is women as well as it being able to clean better than any other washday products. So the overall use of the character can be used to help communicate with the audience on who the product is targeted at as well as the meaning behind the product.
With the Kiss of the vampire advert the character archetypes are both male and female suggesting their could be romance involved in the film. One of the pairs of characters follow the role of male dominance over females, as the female can be seen as helpless in the arms of the male. However the other pair of seem to not be following the stereotype where the female seems to have dominance over the male. This can be seen by the audience as the long shot shows the male on the floor whereas the female is standing over him, suggesting a role of power. Also both the female characters are wearing pale yellow dresses which has connotations of purity and quite dainty. But the audience can see that one of the female characters has a look of anger on her face and seems to be vicious not dainty and pure. Also the connotations of purity conflict with the idea of vampires who are not pure but more demonic compared to the pure blood of humans.
Continuing on the idea of romance the tide advert suggests to the audience that the housewife is in love with the product itself. This can be shown as in the close up of the characters face it shows her hugging the product which shows intimacy and also has hearts above her head which suggests romance and love. This goes against the ideology of romance in society as this an object rather than a human. But from this the audience can then get the idea that the product is something to love suggesting it is good and may make them want to buy it. Another thing that may suggest her love for the product is the housewife has makeup on and seems to be dressed up nicely. The audience then can get the idea that cleaning with this product is something to get dressed up for and it is a special occasion. Also the use of makeup is an ideology in society and it may suggest to the audience that women need makeup to look beautiful and without it they may seem ugly to males. So this may show that although no men are represented in the Tide advert they still have a role within the message of the advert towards women. This message could be that women should wear makeup even if they are cleaning so when there husband comes home they still look beautiful and when they use tide the job gets done well.
Another way in which media language can communicate multiple meanings is the use of the colour scheme in Kiss Of The Vampire. The use of the colour red suggests to the audience there may be themes of death and blood which are clear connotations of vampires. But contrasting to this it could also have connotations of romance, passion and sex. This means the audience is left to wonder what the meaning behind the poster is and decide for themselves but then could be a reason why they the want to watch the film as they want o find out the storyline. So this could entice the target audience of people who like scary movies as the colour scheme fits in with the genre as well as the use of Hermeneutic code as the colour adds mystery to the poster.
Finally in the Tide advert the colour is much more bright with the colour red, blue and white. The colour red has connotations of romance which can be seen as the character s hugging the product. The colour white has connotations of purity and cleanliness which represents the product well as it is a cleaning product. But the colour white could also be to do with race as there is only a white female in this advert and maybe thats who the target market is aimed at.
Representation
In both the Save the Children advert and the Water aid advert the audience gets a visual perspective of the situations portrayed in both adverts. The producers have used a range of shot types to get the whole picture portrayed as well as layout and design which they have chosen carefully to get the producers message across. Both the adverts focus on black, africans and mainly focus on children even though there are adults shown in the adverts. I think the positioning and representation have a key affect on how the audience respond to the advert.
In the Water aid advert it starts with a still shot of the field, this makes the audience get a visual of the surroundings as if they were standing in the field with the camera. I think the still shot has been used so the audience gets to know the character Claudia who is a black African girl. They have chosen to represent her in this advert as she comes across to the audience as a strong, independent child whom seems quite mature so the audience may be able to relate as the target audience is primarily working class but the secondary audience could be middle class. So it has to make sure it is produced well for a mature audience even though its using children.
In the Save the Children advert the mise-en-scene includes guns which is used as a close up next to a black African male soldier. I think the producer has chosen to do this to instantly make the audience feel as though they are threatened with the violence which surrounds the advert. So the audience feels as they they are looking at the violence head on. Also the long shot shows the surrounding of the area which look dirty and dilapidated. This grabs the audiences attention as they look at this image and it is associated with a child so they begin to feel sorry for that child.
By using African black children, it makes the target audience who are British feel sorry for them but also agrees with the picture they have in the audiences minds in which Africa is full of poverty and in places like Congo it is war torn. So this is a clever technique used in order to get the audience to donate and pay as they feel sorry for the children and this especially in the case of the save the children advert.
Whereas the Water aid advert starts off quite sad, but as it continues the mood gets happier and also the audio gets louder with more people joining in. This makes the audience feel as though they are part of this experience and may make them feel happy for the children who are singing in unison. The feeling of unity shown is meant to show what the outcome is when the audience do donate so as they watch on they may feel as if they want to help others become like that. It also shows that the group represented, the poor, can be happy with a little help from the audience which i think the producer aimed to do.
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