institution ; introduction 15/3/19
This image of the Pyramid of Capitalist System is showing the hierarchy of power in a capitalist society. How the working class is working to support and feed the wealthier ones whilst they gain no money. The hierarchy starts from the working class at the bottom, the wealthier people, the soldiers, the religious group, the royal family, and the top of the hierarchy is money. This shows that money has the ultimate power of ruling a capitalist society.
institution ; An organisation or establishment founded for a specific purpose. This could be dedicated to education, public service or culture.
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Example: The institution that produces Inception is Legendary Pictures. The institution that distributes Inception is Warner Brothers.
synergy ; 2 or more institutions working together
Subsidiary; A company whose controlling interest is owned by another company.
Example: Legendary Entertainment is a subsidiary of Wanda Group.
Division ; discrete part of a company that may operate under the same name and legal responsibility but focuses on a specific different service or product.
Example: Legendary pictures is a division of Legendary Entertainment.
Conglomerate ; an institution made up of a number of different companies that operate in a range of mediums.
Example: The Conglomerate that own Legendary films and other subsidiary companies is Wanda group.
case study ; inception
media conglomerate
media company
/subsidiary
Power
profit
subsidiary/division
media product
consumer/audience
who is ceo wang jianlin?
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World's largest movie theater operator.
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20% of the Spanish football club Atlético Madrid
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In 2016, Wang agreed a deal with FIFA to launch the China Cup, which will see top international sides compete in Asia every year.
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Has broadcasting rights to film the Golden Globes.
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The economist called him ‘a man of Napoleonic ambition’
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2016 Forbes report – richest man in
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18th Richest man in the world. Net worth $31.3 billion
hegemony 18/3/19
the dominance or leadership of one social group or nation over another. It is the way in which those in power maintain their control.
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eg; how usa controls / dominates other nations
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The media is feeding audiences (especially passive audiences whatever they want audiences to think/know To influence the minds of the mass without them realising it. spoon-feeding whatever message the media institution would like audiences to receive.
information, ideology etc.
hegemony takes place through coercion or consent.
coercion
the practice of persuading someone to do something by using force or threats.
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It uses the army, the police, prisons and courts of the capitalist state to force other classes to accept its role
consent
Consent occurs when one person voluntarily agrees to the proposal or desires of another.
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It uses the media and values to persuade the subordinate class that its rule is legitimate (lawful/justified)
hegemony in the media
Hegemony has a massive impact on what is portrayed through the media (e.g. the TV). It does this by reinforcing ideologies through consent.
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A news report that shows strong support for a controversial foreign policy decision can be said to support the government hegemony for example with the US and UK invasions in Iraq and WMDs.
how do films reinforce hegemony?
- representation
- language
- through meanings
Using examples of films (screen grabs), explain how Media helps to reinforce hegemony? (beauty and the beast, little mermaid)
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2 arguments ; agree or disagree
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Say what your paragraph will be about
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Representation of……..
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Masculinity / femininity
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Gaston ; masculine, confidence
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Social groups in control of another
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Education
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Beauty objects
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Sacrifice
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Most films reinforce hegemonic belief
In my opinion, hegemony is reinforced in films to a large extent. I will be answering this question using examples of the films The Little Mermaid and Beauty and The Beast.
In the film The Little Mermaid, hegemony is reinforced through the representation of beauty and sacrifice. In the film, Ariel is seen as a very vulnerable subject, how she is protected and treasured by her whole family. She is portrayed as a subject of beauty, this is shown by how she uses her collections of different objects, including kitchen utensils to beautify herself. Ariel gave up a large proportion of her life to be able to have a chance with Prince Eric, this shows the perspective of how a women is ready to sacrifice her life for a man. Even though she did not have her voice in exchange for human legs, she was able to marry Prince Eric, this further reinforces the ideology that beauty is all women can and has to offer to get a man. As a result, this illustrates how hegemony is emphasized in the film.
In the film Beauty and the Beast, hegemony is also reinforced through the representation of masculinity and sexism in the character of Gaston. Masculinity is often associated with male characters such as Gaston, who is massively self-centered and and narcissistic. He believes that he is truly the strongest, most handsome, and manliest man above all, he thinks that women are subjects of beauty and marriage, and has no necessity of education or knowledge. As a result, he was highly disappointed and shocked when Belle refused his marriage proposal. When he saw Belle reading, his response was surprised and disappointment. He said “Women aren’t supposed to read” This reinforces the ideology that women are only required to be beautiful and have skills as a housewife. Her knowledges about the world is seen as useless and a waste of time. Belle, in the film, is seen as a kind, generous, gentle and beautiful person whilst the Beast is portrayed as angry, moody, large and hideous. This shows how hegemony is represented through the outer appearance and size of people, how smaller, more beautifully-looking people tend to have nicer personalities, and larger, ugly or monstrous-looking people are seen as mean and angry.
In conclusion, although most films in the industry involves around the idea of hegemony, there are a number of films that resist the power of hegemony, such as Frozen and Moana, where female independence is promoted and brought up to attention.
ideologies 22/3/19
a world view, a system of values, attitudes and beliefs which an individual, group or society holds to be true or important; these are shared by a culture or society about how that society should function.
dominant ideologies
Ideologies that are told to us repeatedly by important social institutions such as the church, the law, education, government, and the media are called dominant ideologies.
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Dominant ideologies are ideologies or beliefs that we live by in our day-to-day lives and often do not question – they have become 'natural, common sense' things to do. This effectively dissuades people from rebelling against these beliefs, and keeps a sense of stability in society.
Dominant ideologies include beliefs about gender roles, about the economy, about social institutions.
antonio gramsci theory
Gramsci theorized that there is a dominant ideology in society.
This dominant ideology is designed to help those in power maintain their control over society. WHAT IS THIS CALLED?
This power, as well as being political and economic, is also cultural. He called this dominant ideology CULTURAL HEGEMONY.
CULTURAL HEGEMONY serves the interests of the power bloc (ruling class), and perpetuates their dominance over the rest of society.
The theory claims that the ideas of the power bloc come to be seen as the NORM; they are seen as universal ideologies, perceived to benefit everyone whilst only really benefitting the ruling class. This is done in the MASS MEDIA through CONSENT. He refers to these MEDIA TEXTS as HEGEMONIC FORMS.
This quote is metaphorical to the extent that Goebbels is saying that stereotypically, Pigs are consumers of an array of things, this represents passive audiences who consume any ideology, not considering if they are true or not. In this way, the "Passive audiences" are receiving ideologies with consent, this means that the institution does not have to force the ideologies into the audience. The "Pigs" are condemning to receiving hegemony and later slaughtered from being able to "Think freely" in the society.
hegemonic forms
The magazine perpetuates traditional views and stereotypes of femininity. (Busty, Thin, Hot, Sexy)
It therefore serves the interests of the power bloc (male-dominated).
We live in a patriarchal society = male-led and male-dominated
These views are called the Preferred reading.​​ (Stuart Hall)
Preferred Reading ; Producers of a media text design it with a certain meaning in mind. They hope that audiences will decode their text in a certain way. Preferred readings are those which tie in with hegemonic beliefs.
legally blonde extract
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American teenagers / white ; Blonde
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Beauty / grooming
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popular girls ; being catcalled / attracted by men
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Beauty magazines ; reinforce importance of beauty
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Portrayal of masculinity ; all men had their tops off
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Stereotypes ; looking after themselves, being pretty, cheerleading, makeup, clothes
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Preferred reading ; all teenage girls have to be wealthy, pretty, look after yourselves well, hang out together, have similar lifestyles (Beauty/party)
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Telling young girls what they should look like / what their lives should be like
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American teenagers / white ; Blonde
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Beauty / grooming
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popular girls ; being catcalled / attracted by men
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Beauty magazines ; reinforce importance of beauty
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Portrayal of masculinity ; all men had their tops off
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Stereotypes ; looking after themselves, being pretty, cheerleading, makeup, clothes
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Preferred reading ; all teenage girls have to be wealthy, pretty, look after yourselves well, hang out together, have similar lifestyles (Beauty/party)
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Telling young girls what they should look like / what their lives should be like
aliens extract
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Dominant ideology ; girls can take care and protect herself without the help of a man
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Contradicting the usual female stereotypes
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Being strong and independent
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Courageous
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Ready to face the danger
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Has to look fit / ready to fight ; tall, thin, short haired
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In men's clothing ; reinforce that men would usually look stronger / more powerful
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Empowering women on the outside but also reinforcing back to the heroic stereotypes of men
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Mainly targeted for men ; action genre, female protagonist
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Force / aggression is a solution to the problem ; using weaponry
Using examples of films, explain what preferred readings and ideologies they communicate.
In the film Snow White, the dominant ideology of stereotypical gender roles is reinforced through the use of personalities, behaviors and storyline. Snow White is a beautiful protagonist who is enslaved by her evil stepmother, the typical antagonist, who only cares about her outer physical appearance, also shows the “evil” side, how she doesnt look at people from the “inside”. Snow White is then later ordered to be murdered, but was saved because of her “beauty” and “kindness”. She then later discovered a house of dwarfs, which she cleaned and cooked for, typical housewives characteristics, whilst the dwarfs (men) are off to work. As a stereotypically naive and vain protagonist, she fell easily into the evil stepmother’s trap, mentally passed away and got saved by a prince charming at the end. Snow White reinforces the ideology that women are supposed to be beautiful, kind, naive, able to cook and clean, and being “white”.
On the other hand, the film Brave, has contradicted the stereotype of gender roles. In the film, the protagonist Merida, is highly skilled in horseriding and archery, and hates being “Girly” like dressing up in fancy dresses and getting into an arranged marriage created by her parents. She does not want to follow the traditional path of a princess. A character like Merida contradicts female stereotypes significantly, as doing outdoor sports and being “Talented” in something is not usually something that is represented in princesses. Moreover, Merida does not find a “prince” in this film which strongly indicates that a woman does not necessarily need a man to “fullfil” her life or make her happy, she can have a perfectly happy and successful life on her own, without following the dominant ideology.
WWW;
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good structure
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use of detailed examples
EBI;
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link to microelements ; cinematography, mise en scene, editing, sound (examples)
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time management
capitalism 27/3/19
This image represents the hierarchy of power in a capitalist society, how the more powerful people "consume" or get benefits from the smaller and less powerful ones. All of the "fish" are dressed in suits and ties, showing a typical capitalist society.
big fish = institution
small fish = consumers
capitalism ; An economic system in which the means of production of goods or services are privately owned and operated for a profit.
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4 major characteristics of capitalism
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Business Capital is privately owned.
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Buyers and sellers control the economy
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Free-Will to spend Money
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Minimal Government supervision
is capitalism good or bad?
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Only good for the wealthy not the poor
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Capitalism does not consider long term impacts
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Individual material gain ; The accumulation of Wealth, assets, celebrity or fame by one person.
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Not everyone receive benefits from capitalism
Trickle down economics
is a term used to describe the belief that if high income earners gain an increase in salary, then everyone in the economy will benefit as their increased income and wealth filter through to all sections in society.
examples of films that involve capitalism
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the great Gatsby
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the american hustle
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catch me if you can
Explain using precise examples how Films reflect the capitalist system in which we live?
In the film They Live, capitalism is contradicted through the use of metaphors and props, specifically the "sunglasses". Capitalism is contradicted when the protagonist was able to see the real "message" behind the media, through the use of a pair of sunglasses. This prop plays a highly significant role in telling the story of how every single media product contains hidden messages or sub-contexts that are plastered and disguised by the beautiful-looking covers of billboards or magazines. One way capitalism was represented in the film was one billboard showing the phrase "We're creating a transparent computing environment ". After the protagonist put the sunglasses on, the word on the billboard turned into "OBEY". This shows how media products and advertisements are glazed over with beautiful, influencing phrases in order to communicate the dominant ideology into the consumers through consent. After this, a full, long shot is used to show the audience a full view of the city, where the world is turned into black and white, and all signs, billboards and storefronts are turned into words like "OBEY", "CONSUME", "CONFORM" and "REPRODUCE".
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In the film The Great Gatsby, capitalism is reinforced through the concept of privately owned properties and individual material gain. One of the protagonists, Gatsby, is a wealthy man who believes that everything can be bought with money, even his love.
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- luxurious lifestyle ; fancy clothes, big mansion, large parties
