Representing masculinity It has been argued that The Public Enemy has a homoerotic subtext, in relation both to Tom and Matt’s close friendship and to Putty Nose’s interest in Tom. However, the film also tries to assert masculine values.The Great Depression created a crisis in masculinity, and in film the previously refined leading males were replaced by rougher, tougher ones. Clarke Gable and James Cagney became icons of masculinity, and Cagney uses this for the character of Tom Powers. (Social, cultural, historical context and Key Concepts – Representation)
Feelings of insecurity about male dominance are at least partially resolved when Tom pushes a grapefruit into the face of Kitty (Mae Clarke) in a scene that is both amusing and distasteful in equal measures, and which bemuses students every time I show this film (Textual analysis to illustrate Representation).
The roles of women are objectified in The Public Enemy. This is certainly true both of Kitty, as exemplified by the breakfast/grapefruit scene, where she fulfils no function other than to be humiliated by Tom, and Gwen who appears to be used as mere decoration. This is shown in the scene in which she accompanies Tom to the dinner dance and is nothing more than a beautiful object for him to show off. This does, however, demonstrate the patriarchal values of the society at the time; the women in the film are represented as having no power other than to attract men with their looks, or to cook and clean for them, as is the case with Tom’s mother. It is the men (and in this case the gangsters) who have the power. This reflects society in that men in America in the 1930s would certainly have held all the positions of power (Key Concepts – Representation and social context).
Conventions and realism It is argued that the major conventions of the gangster genre were laid down during this classic period of the 1930s: • the iconography e.g. the stylised suits, overcoats, shirts and ties etc., cigarettes, alcohol, guns, flash cars • the sleazy settings and urban backdrop, of bars, clubs and police precincts • the themes with which we have become so familiar, such as the ‘rise and fall’ structure, the mythology of the gangster as tragic hero, revenge as a prime motivating factor, the binary opposition between the family and the gang. But the convention that is particularly worth commenting on here is Realism. Gangster films reflect a realist representation of contemporary society, and this is certainly so of the 1930 films and in particular The Public Enemy. (Key Concepts – Genre)
The two main characters in Little Caesar and Scarface, Rico and Tony Camonte respectively, are based on Al Capone; in The Public Enemy, Tom Powers is based on Hymie Weiss. These were real life gangsters and deadly rivals; Weiss was the only man Al Capone ever truly feared. In real life Hymie Weiss had a partner called Dion O’Banion who saw him rise as a gangster (like Matt Doyle in the film). The reason for Weiss’s hatred of Capone was that Capone arranged a successful hit on O’Banion’s life. Similarly, in The Public Enemy, the Burns Mob kills Tom’s partner Matt. Like Weiss, Powers wants vengeance for his friend’s death, so goes into enemy territory armed with only two guns. He is shot and ends up in hospital. Capone later killed Weiss, just as Tom is kidnapped and killed by the Burns Mob (Historical context and Key Concepts – Genre).
The historical context: prohibition and poverty The backdrop to the narrative of The Public Enemy is twofold: Prohibition and the Great Depression. The era of Prohibition was between 1919 and 1933. The American government, under the Eighteenth Amendment, made it illegal to manufacture liquor with an alcohol percentage above 0.5%. This was formalised in law by the Volstead Act of 1920, and not repealed until 1933. This law however, only condemned the supplier of liquor, not the drinker. An underground world of clubs and speakeasies was formed and the illegal racketeering of alcohol gave way to a complex arrangement of organised crime (Social, political and historical context).
Prohibition is central to the narrative of The Public Enemy in several scenes, but at the very start of the film we are shown the brewery, with lots of people involved in the manufacture of beer and liquor. Then when we cut to 1920 (shown in text on the screen) we see a ‘Family Liquor Store’ selling off all stock due to Prohibition, and people clearly roaring drunk as a consequence, falling over in the street, and loading up their cars and babies’ prams with liquor. We then cut to a scene in a bar where Paddy Ryan the bar owner has a conversation with Tom and Matt about how expensive alcohol is and tells them that if they can get hold of it he will buy it off them. We see Matt and Tom loading up a gasoline tanker with alcohol, having broken into a warehouse. At this point in the narrative we realise that they have come of age as gangsters; the job does not go wrong, and they are now on a path of dealing alcohol during Prohibition (Textual analysis and social/historical context).
The American Depression was part of a world-wide economic slump provoked by the collapse of the Wall Street stock market in 1929. By the late 1920s, audiences had begun to distrust the cheery optimism of Hollywood’s musicals and fantasies; Warner Brothers exploited this change of mood with the creation of the reality-based gangster genre (Social, cultural and historical context). When we do a textual analysis of the opening of The Public Enemy it is clear that the Great Depression forms a backdrop to the narrative. From its opening moments, we see that it’s set in 1909; there is a shot of a bustling street, then a rundown neighbourhood, a brewery, a Salvation Army band – and then we are introduced to a young Tom and Matt in scruffy clothes drinking beer from a bucket. They proceed to steal from a department store but get away. We are shown the first glimpse of their neighbourhood, which is quite clearly run down; although this is pre-Depression America, all the signs are in place for things to go rapidly downhill once the stock market crashes (Textual analysis and social/historical context).
Like most film genres, the roots of the gangster genre started in the silent era. The Musketeers of Pig Alley (1912) was directed by D.W. Griffith and featured the gangster villain ‘The Snapper Kid’ who leaches off society, but is rewarded with money rather than being punished for his anti-social crimes. This film already showed the signs of realism through its use of location and representation of gangs and crime in the slums (Historical context and Genre conventions). Although it featured a gangster character at this early date, it was the 1930s’ classic Hollywood gangster cycle that was the real beginning of the genre.
The 1930s were the defining moment, and it was this period which created the rules, conventions, and iconography of the genre as a whole (Historical context).
1) Citizen Journalist refers to Millions of people have constant access to filming capability through their mobiles, and footage can be uploaded and rapidly distributed on the internet. The power to make and break news has moved beyond the traditional news institutions.
2) One of the first examples of ordinary people generating news is the Rodney King incident. Video cameras had become more common and more people could afford them…unfortunately for four Los Angeles police officers. Having caught Rodney King, an African-American, after a high speed chase, the officers surrounded him, tasered him and beat him with clubs. The event was filmed by an onlooker from his apartment window. The home-video footage made prime-time news and became an international media sensation, and a focus for complaints about police racism towards African-Americans
3) Some of the formats News organisations now offer are forums, opinion polls, blogs, links to social sites, message boards.
4) UGC footage evokes more feeling out of the audience as it's a first hand account of what is happening directly in front of the person.
5) A gatekeeper has the job of deciding what is and isn’t news, and what will and won’t be broadcast on prime time television. Also, the gatekeeper (s) can also filter out irrelevant and misleading content
6) One of the main concerns held by journalists over the rise of UGC is that there will be fewer jobs for journalists
I want to study the representation of gangsters in both film and tv-shows and how over the years both ethinicity and location of gangsters have changed.
Within this video is a famous female rapstar, Missy Elliot, who is respected within the rap community and espcially for being one of the few most successful female artists, breaking the stereotype of male rappers.
There is one representation of women in this music video and that is dominant. This dominant persona is mainly connnoted by the dancers that partake in b-boy dancing that is usually partaken by males. This persona is also anchored by lyrics (diegetic sound)such as "Girls, girls, get that cash,If its not a foul shakin that ass,Ain't no shame ladies, do your thang, Just make sure you ahead of tha game". These lyrics connote that women are independant, staying away from the conventional women relying on the man persona and instead being more self reliant making sure they are "ahead" of their gender counterparts.
In this music video the men are mainly viewed as sex objects creating a female gaze opposed to the conventional male gaze.This gaze is used to make female audiences (paticularly post feminist)identify with Missy Elliot and she is empowering females in this song, espcially when she gives direct adress to the audience, telling them to be "ahead of the game". In a few scenes we see the men partaking in a voyeuristic gaze of the women, connoting that the women are controlling when they are ready to have sex.
In terms of mise-en-scene, the clothing in this video does not differ between the genders as they seem to be wearing tracksuits most of the time, showing that the genders are equal in this sense, with no gender really being sexually objectified. The facial expressions on females gratly differ from male facial expressions as they seem to have blank faces while female expressions are much more lively and clearly show signs of emotions, further connoting that the men in this video act as robots, bending to the female's wills. An interesting medium shot is shown of all the men in a sort of police line as if they are being selected by the women, lining up for them.
Throughout the video Missy Elliot looks into the camera many times, inviting the audience in with an extra-diegetic gaze. By breaking the "fourth wall", Missy is in control and holds majority of power for the video as she chooses what not and what to show the audience.
There is low-key lighting throughout the video, with contrasts of black and white popping up occassionaly. These colours are quite masculine colours and to be viewed with dominating women juxtaposes the idea of masculinity. Missy stands out even more mainly wearing a baby blue tracksuit, which connotes a calming effect.
Missy displays narcissism as she takes an erotic interest in herself and her sexuality. Throughout this video we see her the object of men's affection and knowing this she continues to be flirtatuous anchored by the scenes of her interacting with men.
The ideologies this video holds is a very post-feminist message. From the lyrics and video we can see that this video promotes self-sexual objectification without fear of men either judging or dominating. Also subverting gender roles, the ideology of the patriarcle society seems to have deminished as women are seen as dominant, choosing their sexual partners at will.
In this scene from Apocalypse Now, we see Playboy girls entertaining male soldiers surrounding them. Already we see the gender positions established as the women are subordinate in entertaining the dominate gender.
In this scene. the men are represented as mainly having a primal instinct, wanting only to satisfy their sexual need (highlighted in Maslow's Hierarchy of needs). Seeing as they are men of war, they would seem to lose themselves playing more into the male stereotype of men who treat women as sex objects.
The lighting in this scene is mainly used from a spotlight perspective, accentuating female assets. As the spotlight suggests that the women are the main focus, it coulds be interpreted that they are sexually objectifying themselves as they would want to attract male attention. The costumes that the women are wearing encourages a fetishistic gaze as the costumes consits of cowgirl, policewomen and apache dresses. As these costumes demand authority, the women are wearing them given an alternative representation of being dominant as they choose what to show to the male audience.
The diegetic sound in this scene plays the song Suzie Q, a song that reflects the situation in this scene as the lyrics "i like the way you walk" instantly reflect male thoughts and draw the audience more deeper into looking at the women through a male gaze. Furhter diegetic sounds are used when the men use derogatory terms for women such as "baby" and "bitch", anchoring the set roles of men and women in this scene.
Throughout this scene we see many medium-panning shots of the soldiers adorning the women, giving the audience an idea that all these men want the same thing and also gives the feeling that throughout the whole stadium a male gaze is present with all eyes fixated on the women. We also see a few close up shots of the women, highlighting their bodies combined with the spotlight which signifies the male gaze. As the film assumes that the audience viewing this film is male and hertrosexual, the film sets out to exploit the women in this scene as intra-diegetic gaze from a male perspective is present throughout this scene, giving the audience a chance to view the women from a more voyeuristic point of view, appriciating the women's beauty and the power it holds over the men. This scene encourages identification with the soldiers as we only hear male voices in this scene, presenting the male voice as dominant and having the last word. As male audiences identify with these soldier's sexual urges, they too can gain sexual gratification almost as if the strip tease is aimed at them, making a male gaze more present.
The mise-en-scene displayed also gives us more of an insight into how the male gaze is constructed. The clothing that is worn between the men and the women is drastically different as we see the women half naked and the men fully clothed, already showing the audience how these males percieve the women as sex objects. In terms of props, the women are given a more dominant position as they are seem holiding phallic symbols such as guns, immediatly gaining the upper hand over men. The facial expressions on the men's faces blaintently show that they only want these "sex objects", giving them a representation of of a beast who wants nothing more than to fornicate.
"The new young women are confident enough to declare their anxieties about possible failure in regard to finding a husband, they avoid any aggressive or overtly traditional men, and they brazenly enjoy their sexuality, without fear of the sexual double standard".
"the degree of suffering or shame they anticipate in the absence of finding a husband is countered by sexual self-confidence. Being without a husband does not mean they will go without men".
"We are witness to a hyper-culture of commercial sexuality, one aspect of which is the repudiation of a feminism invoked only to be summarily dismissed".
"As a mark of a post-feminist identity young women journalists refuse to condemn the enormous growth of lap dancing clubs despite the opportunities available for them to do so across the media".
"This advert appears to suggest that yes, this is a self-consciously “sexist ad,” feminist critiques of it are deliberately evoked".
"the shadow of disapproval is introduced (the striptease as site of female exploitation),only instantly to be dismissed as belonging to the past, to a time when feminists used to object to such imagery. To make such an objection nowadays would run the risk of ridicule".
"The Wonderbra advert showing the model Eva Herzigova looking down admiringly at her substantial cleavage enhanced by the lacy pyrotechnics of the Wonderbra, was through the mid-1990s positioned in major high street locations in the UK on full size billboards."
"It was, in a sense, taking feminism into account by showing it to be a thing of the past, by provocatively “enacting sexism” while at the same time playing with those debates in film theory about women as the object of the gaze"
"My argument is that post-feminism positively draws on and invokes feminism as that which can be taken into account, to suggest that equality is achieved, in order to install a whole repertoire of new meanings which emphasise that it is no longer needed, it is a spent force. This was most vivid in The Independent (UK) newspaper column Bridget Jones’s Diary"
"Gentle denunciations of feminism (as in the film Bridget Jones’s Diary) co-exists however with the shrill championing of young women as a “metaphor for social change” on the pages of the right wing press in the UK, in particular the Daily Mail."
1) Post feminism as a backlash to feminism: This concept points out that women are past the gender wars and have almost reached equality with men.
2) Positive look at feminism: Post feminism is now widely accepted in society and looked at in a more positive light.
3) Post feminism as a colloquialism: Though being looked down upon, it is still present in society and moe modernised.
4) The ambiguity of the prefix post: This concept explores the question of if feminism has been achieved or has died with equality between the genders unstable.
In this advertisement, the representation of women is signified through the two binary oppositions of the ‘Librarian’ and the ‘Blonde Woman’. The ‘Librarian’ is represented as androgynous and somewhat of a feminist, due to her manlike clothing and bulky appearance which is heavily contrasted with the ‘Blonde Woman’. She is also working in a library, with a book, which represents her as an intellectual and self-driven woman, and the fact that she isn’t self objectifyingher, shows that she doesn’t seems to desire any male attention, creating a positive representationof a woman since she is not self-objectifying herself for the male audience and not fulfilling their needs for sexual allurement.
On the other hand the ‘Blonde Woman’, is astereotypicalrepresentation of a ‘Blonde Woman’. She is pretty, dim-witted and slow. Compared to the Librarian, the ‘Blonde Woman’ seems to be self objectifyingherself, since she has her hair done, dressed nicely in a fitted dress and is wearing make-up. She seems to be addressing themale audiencewith her appearance and to attract the male audience into buying the ‘Mercedes- Benz E- Klasse.
Advertisements mostly use humour, and the humour in this advert is placed on the Blonde Woman, following the ideology that blonde women are ‘dumb’ (Blonde Jokes- began in the 1900’s, which is obviously a negative representation of women, especially blonde women. Furthermore the advertisement is also objectifying her to the car; the ‘Mercedes- Benz E-Klasse’ applying the slogan/Tagline, ‘Beauty is nothing without brains’ on both the ‘Blonde Woman’ and the car, which is degrading and subordinating the woman in the advertisement, since she is compared to the car. Woman being compared to products and objects in advertising is something that is very popular in advertising, which highlights the fact that we live in a patriarchal society.
However theSlogan/Tagline puts across a positive representation on women, highlighting the Blonde Woman’s stupidity and that it is not appealing, showcasing the Librarian as a smart and intellectual woman. The binary opposition of the librarian and the blonde woman, allows the audience to judge which one of the women is better represented as women, and to ridicule the blonde woman for be so dim-witted.
This representation of women is very different, the fact the woman is singing operaconnotes that she issophisticated, talented and elite, which are very idyllic and desirable describtions for a woman and are also very positive representations of women. The fact that she is not shows that she is respected and is being celebrated for her talent. The woman in the advertisement is being presented in a self-objectifying male gaze high-angle shot facail expression of emotional stress allow the audience to feel sypathetic towards her. The intertexaulityof this advertisement (Je ne regette rien) puts forwards its idealogies and values herself or is being self-objectifyied shows that she is not adhering to the which protrays her as innocent and her into the product (Specsavers), such as its sophistication and eliteness.
WWW: Effective use of media terminology Good analysis on the representation of women
The representation of women can be positive: challenging the roles and expectations of women or negative: reinforcing a patriarchal society. This essay questions how and why these representations are constructed in an advert for Gucci Guilty Perfume and Stella Artois beer.
Firstly the Gucci advert is in widescreen which connotes a dramatic cinematic experience to engage its audience. More attention is gained by the female character first seen in the text and her protagonist is signified through this. The protagonist has female dominance which is signified through the use of colour- everything is in black and white while her hair is gold/blonde. This colour connotes gold, power and divinity signifying her importance in the text.
The use of intertextuality in this text will appeal to a particular audience. The film references a great deal to the neo film noir Sin City, with the use of colour and the female dominant femme fatale character. Sin City appeals to a male audience due to the action genre, this trailer could also appeal to the same audience due to the intertextuality. In terms of the Uses and Gratifications theory, a female audience might realise and accept the protagonist in the text is a form of escapism and also a male gaze, by theorist Mulvey, and therefore might aspire, from Young and Rubicam's 4Cs, to be the object of male gaze too.
Though the protagonist is an object of male gaze, it could be suggested that she sexually objectifies herself to tease the audience. The protagonist puts her leg into the frame of the shot. As she puts into the frame, it signifies self objectification, allowing the audience to fetishise her body. Another shot, a high angle, of their sexual activities signifies CCTV and spying which is voyeuristic. The fact she is on top signifies her control of the situation for both the male character and the audience.
Not only does the protagonist exert her feminity through self objectification she also presents herself as an anarchic character signified by adopting male stereotypes. The advert begins with a long shot of an unknown character speeding down the motorway, which stereotypically would be expected to be a male character. However, the audience's expectations are challenged when a medium shot of the driver shows to be a female.
In contrast, women are negatively represented in the Stella Artois text. The most obvious editing technique used in the advert is the split screen: one side shows the female getting dressed and the other side is of the beer getting "prepared". This use of split screen signifies that neither the beer nor the woman know they have been placed side by side. This puts the audience in position of control as they can voyeur the woman, in a socially acceptable way. Audiences may identify this control as patriarchy, and also identify with the unknown male character whose presence is felt within the text. This text then reinforces the idea of a patriarchal society and that women are subordinated by men.
Not only does the female share the screen with the beer, but the screen is split equally between the two "objects" which connotes the woman is equally objectified to the status of beer. It is suggested the audience is male due to the female and beer subject. Though the advert is targeted at men, it also negatively stereotypes men as people who have little respect for women which however is a dominant representation.
A range of close up shots of the female are used to fetishise her body. There is a close up shot of the female's leg slowly and elegantly rising from the bath tub. On one hand this could signify femininity and her control over it which is the oppositional reading. However, the more dominant reading is that her legs are an important part of the female body and connotes a male audience who can voyeur her body.
The text near the beginning of the trailer says "the preparation" which is an enigma code as the audience question "what event is the preparation for?". It is signified through the shots that the woman and beer preparation is for the male through the use of action codes. Action codes of both the preparation of the woman and the glass of beer are the same.
Women are represented as people who prioritise their looks and appearance, and this ad reinforces this ideology. Action codes including close ups of her: brushing her hair, doing her make up and putting on heels strongly represent women as image conscious. It could be said that the advert reinforces this representation, which is always seen in the media. Funnily enough, it could also be said that the media itself is the cause of this representation as this ideal, perfect woman is always represented in the media, and women feel they have to aspire to it.
In conclusion, both texts females are the protagonists and are sexually objectified for male audiences to fetishise and vouyer their bodies. However, while Gucci’s advert’s protagonist controls her sexuality through self objectification, the Stella Artois’ protagonist is objectified by an unknown but present male character.
In the Gucci’s ad, there are many examples in the text that signify the protagonist’s female dominance, but it is arguable whether this could be seen as a positive representation. The dominant reading is that the protagonist exerts her female dominance over the male challenging the historical patriarchal society and even subordinating males as easily manipulated and easily tempted by women and sex and this would favour feminism. However the oppositional reading which would favour the ideologies of the Stella Artois advert, might be that females can control their sexuality, but it is still for the male gaze and male dominant society.
Positive representation: In this advert women are represented as being uite independant, connoted by how she is driving alone, showing that she can take care of herself without a man, a concept which was still quite new back then. The narrative is fairly straightforward as we see a women on her way to meet a man and inbetween, getting ready by doing her hair. This advertisement's target audience can identify with this women as the demographic would mainly be young women aged 16- 30.
1. What sort of images of women and men dominated advertising pre-1970s? Why was this the case? Before the 1970's women were shown doing many women related jobs such as hairdressing, housewife. These images started to decline due to a number of factors such as a rise in feminism, WW2 etc. Men were advertised as being manly in the sense that they would provide for their fasmily and take on more important jobs in society that commanded a lot more respect than the jobs women had.
2. How did the advertising of the 1970’s continue to perpetuate the stereotype of women, despite depicting women in a greater range of roles? Though women had a greater role in society, the media still demeaned women as they were still stereotyped into roles of being a housewife. This sort of advertising was aiming to maintain a patriarcle society.
3. Can Gaye Tuchman’s quote regarding under-representation and the ‘symbolic annihilation of women’ still be applied in 21st Century advertising? If so, how? The "symbolic annihilation of women" can still be appilied in 21st century advertising as we see many advertisements still stereotyping women into roles such as the "dumb blonde" (who widely appeals to many male audiences), the housewife and a sexually objectified women who is only there to please the men. Self objectification could be argued but then that would mean that women who want to empower themselves would still need to please men in one way of another.
4. Do you agree that adverts, such as those for the 1990’s Boots No. 7, ‘It’s not make-up. It’s ammunition.’ campaign, are post-feminist (thereby representing women as better than men?). Explain your answer. These adverts are post-feminist as they show both female and male audiences that women have just as much "ammunition" in society as men. the very connotation of the phrase " its not make up its aummunition" connotes a gender war, with women fighting for an equal ground with men. As Boots advertise make-up, it is usually seen as quite a harmless company but this campaign shows that make-up can be just as deadly as any other male product.
5. Is the representation of women by the media accountable for the results of a survey in which ‘women were up to ten times more likely than men to be unhappy with their body image’?
The representation of females in today's media displays a "perfect women" with a near to perfect physique and being shown as the object of everyones affection. This would undoubtedly create insecurities for everyday women as they feel they are not "ideal" enough for men.
6. Is the contemporary representation of men in advertising perhaps also a negative one where they too are treated as sex objects?
The representation of men in today's media is equal to that of women as they also feel that they do not have the "perfect physique". Over the years men have become more subjected to being domminated by women in advertising through sexually connotated adverts.
Positive Respresentation: The narrative in this advertisement focuses around a women who has just woken up with a man in her bed (most likely a result of a drunken night.) Usually in a senario such as this, the women is usually branded as a sex object in a one night stand but in this advert it is the man who is sexually objectified as the women uses her cunning to rid the man from her room. Already the women is seen as more dominant as she controls the situation. Her actions also hint at a more post-feminist world where men are more subordinate and women take on a more manly role and this seems more anchored by the product advertised (Whiz Biz.) The Whiz Biz can also be seen as a phallic symbol as it is advertised as a "substitute penis", causing a rift in the status quo. This represents women and empowered and not subjected to being stereotyped as a sex object.
Negative Representation This Lynx Effect advert heavily relies on its representation of women in order to get its message across; all men crave the women in this advert becuase they are "ideal", immediatly putting women in a more subordinated position with the men more dominant. The narrative follows a man and his day-to-day activities (male gaze) as he is talked to by many women. Many phrases are said by the women including, "Oh nice, you noticed my breasts" and "Of course you can have some money for a lap dance". Already the women in this advert are represented at stupid or "blonde" as they are offering themselves just to please this man. An alternative representation of females in this advert could be that they are being self objctive, empowering themeselves so that the male is being used and removing tthe view that the females in this advert are victims of male desire. The diegetic sound within the advert is mainly the women speaking connoting that women bend to this man's whim just by looking at him, tapping into more sterotypical gender roles of the stone-cold, silent male. The non-diegetic sound is reminicient of a "ladiesman" soundtrack, further connoting the type of person this man is. Opening and closing with a POV shot, the audience is immediatly forced to identify with the male character and the situations he is in i.e. seeing both women and surroundings from his perspective. This POV shot also gives the audience a chance to view the women's "essentials" and seeing as this advert mainly appeals to a male demographic, this shot is very effective, adding a sense of voyerism. This advert could have both a negotiated and oppositional reading as the women portrayed could be seen as either sex objects or self-empowering females. These readings hint at the ideologies the insitution holds as they could be promoting post feminism or just displaying a patriarcle society. In terms of the mise-en-scene, facial expressions of the women in the ad are mainly overly-cheery while willfully offering themeselves to this man, again touching upon the sterotype of the "blonde bimbo". The position of all the women in the POV are all in the middle of the frame connoting that women are the only thing this man is after which in turn also gives females more power.
1) The media guardian 100 is a list of the 100 most powerful people in television, radio, newspapers, advertising etc. The panellist is Trevor Phillips, Jane Martinson, Janine Gibsonn, Chris Powell, Brent Hoberman, Sioban Kenny, Andrew Neil, Tessa Jowell, Peter Baron, and Peter Bennett Jones.
2)18 women are in the top 100.
3)The companies these women work for and the jobs they do are things like Radio 4 controller, Directors, Chief executives, Chairmen, Actors, Co-founder.
4) 18%
5) Taking into consideration the amount of women on the list and the jobs that they have, it still seems that men are still dominant with women trying to make a living in a patriarcle society. With this. women are still being viewed as subordinate, making the representation of them inferior.
Sharon Stonne plays femme fatale Catherine Tramell in this movie. From this trailer we see many things to suggest her femme fatale role e.g. phallic symbols such as cigarette, sitting posture, dress sense etc. From this we can see that she is portrayed as a stereotypical femme fatale.
Suzanne Stone: To Die For 1995: In this movie Nicole Kidman plays Suzanne Stone, a womeen willing to do anything to get to the top. In the trailer she is seen as a "temptress" which is anchored by shots of her having sex with men and dancing seductivly. Being portrayed as a negative character using others, she is automatically cast under the light of being a femme fatale.
This scene highlights a stereotypical femme fatale as she is both seductive and dominant at the same time. She dances, ensuring that the men in the rooom are staring at her and through this she is the object of attention and sexual desire. The mise-en-scene connotes a sense of independancy as her dress sense is glamourous yet she wants no man to dance with her.
Elsa:The Lady From Shanghai 1948: In this scene, we see a phallic symbol e.g. cigarette which is usually a manly trait. As she is singing we see that the male characters are enticed with her singing which connotes that she is dominant in this scene as she controls it.
