Youth Identity 2016 SOW

8/16/2019 Youth Identity 2016 SOW

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Youth, Youth Culture, Britain and IdentityDiscussion. What is it like being young and British? What films focuson this subject? 'Collective Identity' def.

Historical representations of youth- FilmEarly representations of the Teenager, and the so-called "Birth of theTeenager"Key Texts: Rebel Without a Cause (USA), Brighton Rock (UK),The Young Americans (UK), Boyz in the Hood (US)

Contemporary representations - FilmPositive and negative representations of youth culture through genre

films vs complex/realism filmsKey Texts: Perks of Being a Wallflower, My Brother The Devil,Selfish Giant

, Dope

Television! Another medium. How does TV represent identity differently to film?Key Texts: The 100, Top Boy, Some Girls

Social Implications - Media and society

"Life imitates art" - Hyperdermic needle teens!?"Art imitates life"- social anxieties reflected by film-makers?

Future Representations?Over to you! Where does the future lie for youth representation?

Exam prep!Questions/Answers/Past-Papers/Exemplar Answers/Techniques/

Advice

from OCR

Unit Overview:


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We will be studying "Media & CollectiveIdentity" (usually questions 6 & 7)


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‘The concept of a collective identity refers to a set of individuals' sense of belonging to thegroup or collective. It is possible, at times, that this sense of belonging to a particulargroup will be so strong that it will eclipse other aspects of the person's personal identity.’Collective Identity.net

‘A collective identity may have been first constructed by outsiders who may still enforceit, but depends on some acceptance by those to whom it is applied. Collective identitiesare expressed in cultural materials – names, symbols, verbal styles, habits, clothing.’Francesca Poletta, James M Jasper, Collective Identity and Social Movements

What isCOLLECTIVE IDENTITY?


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January 2010


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June 2010


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January 2011


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June 2014


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• What does youth culture mean?

Youth culture is specific to adolescents, and differs at least partiallyfrom the culture of older/younger generations.

Elements of youth culture include:• beliefs,

• behaviours,

• styles,

• interests.


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Issues/Anxieties that youngpeople face in 2016


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Watch this documentary making notes on the

journey and rise of youth culture

http://www.netflix.com/watch/70273709


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UK Post-war

Teenageanxieties

UK Post-war

General public

anxieties

Social Context Research Task : AnxietiesWhat concerns do teenagers have in Britain today? And what could

the concerns there have been following WWII. Either personal or

socially.

Then do the same but for the whole public. What concerns did thenations have?

Where there are similarities or duplicates write them in where thecircles join.

US Post-war

Teenage

anxieties

US Post-war

General public

anxieties


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Social Group = Teenagers (intro?)A teenager growing up prior to the end of WW II was forced to take life fairly seriously. Males were expected to join theservices or to go out get a job, help support his family or a new bride. Women were expected to meet a man, marry and havechildren. College was for a select few. Teens had limited freedom, not much economic power and little influence in decisions

made by the older generation. They acted responsibly without demanding freedom as payment.

In the 50's expectations for teenagers changed. With a booming economy, parents could now help their children achieve morethen they themselves had. More parents insisted they finish high school and paid for them to go to college.The parentsgeneration had gone through both a depression and a world war that made them acutely aware of the most important things intheir lives; the people they loved most and their happiness. Parents began to not want their children joining the armed forces andwere more indulgent of their whims.

As a result youngsters began receiving allowances and had free time after school.They had more time to themselves to besocial and form peer bonds. They began to have more fun and became less serious then prior generations.The new liberalizedculture allowed teenagers to make decisions for themselves which were often at odds with their parents.

Research 1950s Media representationsof teenagers. Have they changed much

from today's Media representations?


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• Use the posters and blurbs below to determine the genre of the

two texts.

• What differences are there between these two genres? (intent,

codes/conventions, audience pleasures)

Can you predict how each of these films will represent teenagers?

Pinkie is a 17-year-old small-

town hoodlum whose gang runs

a protection racket based atBrighton race course. When

Pinkie orders the murder of a

rival, the police believe it to be

suicide. But when his gang

begin to doubt his ability, and

his rivals attempt to take over

his business, Pinkie starts to

become more desperate and

violent.

After moving to a new town,troublemaking teen Jim Stark is

supposed to have a clean slate, althoughbeing the new kid in town brings its ownproblems. While searching for somestability, Stark forms a bond with adisturbed classmate, Plato, and falls forlocal girl Judy. However, Judy is thegirlfriend of neighborhood tough, Buzz.When Buzz violently confronts Jim andchallenges him to a drag race, the newkid's real troubles begin.


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Watch the following clips and

discuss how Youth are portrayed.

Brighton Rock

(John Boulting,

1947)

Rebel Without a

Cause

(Nicholas Ray,

1955)

Think about if the representations are positive

or negative? Sympathetic? Stereotypical?

Realistic? Biased?


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‘Rebel Without a Cause’ (1955)

Reflected anxieties in American society aboutteenage delinquency in the post-war era

related to the birth of youth culture.

Whilst the representation of youth is quite negative andcan clearly be linked to contemporary representations(young people are shown to be violent, engage incriminal activity, knife fight, car theft ) therepresentations are not as extreme. This can partly beexplained in relation to what was acceptable to 1950'saudiences, and much stricter censorship.

The representation is also more sympathetic to youngpeople, who are shown to be troubled. The film endswith the main character entering adulthood/acceptinghegemonic values – signified by him putting on hisfather’s grey jacket. The film shows young people to bein need of care and attention reinforces hegemonicvalues.

“Rebel showcased the high school outcast who

couldn’t fit in, while also considering alcoholism,

family dynamics, juvenile crime and in more concealed

terms, homosexuality."


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“ These films were all reacting to the swell of teenagers in the

population as a result of the post-war baby boom, teenagers who

were breaking with past customs of conformity to the norm. Most

‘50s delinquents found their motivations in troubled childhoods

and social expectatons, until later ‘60s films found youth rebelling

against the establishment, often under the influence of drugs.”

How has the representation of youth from the films of the 1950s and1960s influenced the TV and films of today?

40s/50s Rebels

Cooly challenge authority for effect


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Social Context Research Task : AnxietiesWhat concerns do teenagers have in Britain today? And what could

the concerns there have been in the late 80s/90s. Either personal or

socially.

Then do the same but for the whole public. What concerns did thenations have?

Where there are similarities or duplicates write them in where thecircles join.

US 90s

Teenage

anxieties

US 90s

General public

anxieties

UK 90s

Teenageanxieties

UK 90s

General publicanxieties


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• Use the posters and blurbs below to determine the genre of the

two texts.

• What differences are there between these two genres? (intent,

codes/conventions, audience pleasures)

Can you predict how each of these films will represent teenagers?

Tre is sent to live with his father,

Furious Styles, in tough SouthCentral Los Angeles. Although hishard-nosed father instills propervalues and respect in him, and hisdevout girlfriend Brandi teaches himabout faith, Tre's friends Doughboyand Ricky don't have the same kindof support and are drawn into theneighborhood's booming drug andgang culture, with increasingly tragicresults.

The London police is havingtrouble with organized crimecommited by juveniledelinquents. Their leader is an

American who is an expert atturning young men into ruthlessgangsters. American cop JohnHarris is asked to help theLondon police to break up theorganization.


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The 1980s became a time of distinct change in youth studies as

the trajectories of sociology, history, and cultural studies merged

over concerns about refreshed conservative attitudes that werebroadly vilifying youth. Most hollywood films of the 80s relied on

formulas that exploited youth issues, specifically sexual

development, while gradually revealing an increasing tension and

confusion about the roles of contemporary youth. By the early ‘90s

in the wake of Reagan and Thatcher, teens in films had been

entirely reconfigured, if not often extinguished, as increasing

emphasis fell on portraits of the post-teen generation in movies.


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Watch the following clips and

discuss how Youth are portrayed.

The Young

Americans

(Danny Cannon,

1993)

Boyz n the hood

(John Singleton,1991)


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"The more unsettling and direct representations of youth

conditions presented in these films have had and will continue to

have a lasting effect on the cinematic depiction of youth, if only in

terms of questioning their cultural context, specifically issues of

race, class, and morality."

As much as these films addressed violence among youth, they

always condemned it within their narratives, and seemed to spur a

cross-generic incentive to raise critical issues about youth conditions

in other films too.

"Director John Singleton deals with a lot of issues here (in Boyz):

the permeance of psychological damage on children living with

unchecked violence; the degrading attitude of many black males

towards women; the economic opportunism of people from outside

the neighbourhood; and the frustration of many blacks towards

black cops in the community. But the point he drives home hardest

is the need for more african american men to take responsibility for

raising their sons, to give them more direction and make them

accountable for their lives.” - Jack Matthews


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What themes do

you think are mostcommon in the

youth film/TV?

"A film genre is 'static' because it is a familiar formula of

interrelated narrative and cinematic components" Thomas Schatz


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How do representations in Top Boy compare

to the historical texts you have looked at?

The series follows the plight of Ra'nell as he navigates the pitfalls of living in a

crime filled area after his mother, Lisa, is committed to a mental hospital. The

story also follows the rise of a local drug dealer, Dushane, and the tough

decisions he must make to stay alive and in business.

2011-2013, Channel 4, Ronan Bennett

1



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"Ephebiphobia"The irrational fear of youth is calledephebiphobia. First coined as the

"fear and loathing of teenagers,"

Today the phenomenon is recognized as the "inaccurate, exaggeratedand sensational characterisation of young people".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9kuMFPW0YI


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Giroux (1997)

Giroux argues that in the media, representations of youth become an

‘empty category’. This is because most media representations of

young people are constructed by adults. Because of this they reflect

adults concerns, anxieties, and needs. As a result these 'adult'

media representations of young people do not necessarily reflect the

reality of youth identity.

Theorist:


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Giroux (1997)

! ‘empty category’

! representations are constructed by adults.

! reflect adults concerns, anxieties

!do not necessarily reflect the reality of youth

Theorist:


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Do the texts you have watched support Giroux's theoryon youth representation?

***When applying Giroux to media texts you need to think; does the representation reflect adultanxieties or reflect the reality of youth identity?

Discuss the texts individually, and support your opinion with evidence!


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Angela McRobbie suggests that contemporary British TV oftencontains ‘symbolic violence’ against the working class

She states that Television constructs representations which

emphasise middle class dominance and depict the working class

in very negative ways. This is done by displaying them committingcrimes, not attending school, claiming benefits and not positively

contributing to society.

This can be seen in a number of texts that you encounter in on

TV, can you think of any?

Theorist:

Angela McRobbie


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‘Parents aren't always around to help socialize their

children — or even just to show them affection.

Compared to other cultures, British kids are less

integrated into the adult world and spend more time with

peers. - Britain's Mean Streets, Time Magazine

How relevant is this quote withregards to Top Boy and the texts youhave seen so far?


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Stephen Chbosky, the author of the book who also directed the

film, has described one of the life-lessons of the film in the

following way. What do you think about this statement and what

tone might the film have?"If you just reach out and you present yourself exactly as your are,

the right people are going to say yes to you and the right people

are going to befriend you and the right people are going to accept

you and you can make great friends forever."


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How are these 3 characters used to represent youth

differently?

Charlie Sam Patrick


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How is teenage life and its problems

presented?

• What are the problems that the young

characters have? How are they presented?• How do they deal with their situations?

• What kind of environment do they live in?

• How is the environment and problems

different from other texts?


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There is one night shown in this story that changed Charlie's life

forever. Which night was it? Why did you pick this night as being

the turning point?

There are many answers to this question. The justifications for the

choice should refer to themes of the story. The author/director

chose the night at the football game when Charlie went to sit near

Patrick in the hopes of striking up a conversation. This night

changed Charlie's life because he took a risk and reached out to

another person.


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Stephen Chbosky, the author/director, said that he wanted to

present a story in which none of the characters was a bad person.

Was he successful? Is this really a story without a bad person?

Explain the reasons for your answer.

He was successful in terms of the students. Brad is not a bad

person, he's just scared of his father and of being ridiculed as gay

by the other students. He acted badly in the fight with Patrick, but

regretted it. Remember when Brad thanked Charlie for stopping

his friends from beating up Patrick? Mary Elizabeth isn't bad, she's

just the wrong girl for Charlie. The girl who sits next to Charlie in

English class is pretty mean, but she is tangential to the story.Brad's friends, who beat up Patrick, are typical high school jocks.

While their behaviour was not exemplary, they are also not

important characters in the story. They are more a part of the

background in which the major characters operate. The one

character who could be said to be a bad person was Charlie's Aunt

Helen. This isn't immediately apparent because we see her

through the eyes of Charlie, who loved her, and because she, too,

was injured by others. However, there is never an excuse for an

adult to abuse a child, either sexually, physically or emotionally.

That is a line that simply should not be crossed. Sexual child

abuse is extremely damaging to a child, sometimes for the child's

entire life. There is a reason why child-abuse is classified as a

major crime. In that way, Aunt Helen was a pretty bad person.


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Aunt Helen tells Charlie that, "It's our little secret". This is often

said by abusers to their victims. Why would this instruction

resonate with a child?

It communicates the idea that the child shares a special bond

with the perpetrator; they share a secret that no one else knows

about and feeds into their need for belonging and connection. In

addition, many children are fearful of being hurt by the abuser or

of getting the abuser, whom the child cares about, into trouble.

Children also fear that no one would believe him or her. Or, it

may be a mixture of all of these emotions.


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Victims of childhood sexual abuse are torn by the following

conflicting and powerful emotions:

1) an important adult has chosen the child for a special

relationship and special favors, which means that the child is

special and favored; this is more than flattering; all children wouldlike to think of themselves as special and favored;

2) there is often pleasure felt in the act because the adult often

manipulates erogenous zones of the child's body;

3) the perpetrator will often try to convince the child that the child

seduced the perpetrator or that somehow the child is responsiblefor the relationship;

4) the child knows at some level that his or her boundaries have

been violated and that what is happening is wrong;

5) the child feels powerless;

Until the very end of the movie, Charlie thought his aunt

Helen was one of his favourite people in the world. Why

would he feel something like that and why didn't he

remember what she had done to him?


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6) often the perpetrators threaten the child or tell the child that

terrible things will happen to a parent or to the perpetrator if "our

little secret" is found out. Thus, children will not tell anyone aboutthe abuse, they may even repress their memories of the abuse and

all that is left in the conscious mind are feelings of closeness to the

perpetrator, while full knowledge of what occurred is tearing the

child apart in the subconscious. This is what was happening to

Charlie. In addition, Charlie thought he was responsible for his

Aunt's death because she was on her way to get his birthday

present when she had the accident. When he had his sexual

encounter with Sam the day before she left for college, the similarity

between what they did as a loving couple and what was done to himby his Aunt Helen brought the memories close to the surface. They

were too painful to face directly and Charlie suffered a crisis.


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Flashback is a device that is usually used to fill in a backstory, that

is, to tell the audience what has happened before the story told by

the book or movie begins. Flashback is used in The Perks of Being

a Wallflower for that purpose but also for an additional purpose

which relates to the description of Charlie's character. What was

that?

Suggested Response: At the beginning of the film Charlie recallsthe past in disconnected fragments – he can't put the past

together. He has no cohesive view of the past. The snippets of

memory from the past, the flashbacks, come to Charlie as he

remembers more and more about what happened with his Aunt

Helen. The way the book and the movie is structured Charlie and

the audience discover these memories together.


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Counter, archetypes or stereotypes?

Genre

can't belabelled as a

but a documentary

style of social

realism

Narrativescomplex

original and challenging. How?

AudienceGive them less pleasures, thoughts?what does this film make you think about?

R epresentations

Ideology of inequality?teenagers are not just "bad", society and the lack of

opportunities around them, raises awareness

InstitutionsFilm industry is part of the

entertainment industry but does it only have to entertain?

Media Language

mise-en-scene

camera

editing

sound

MIGRAINlearn this

Apply the MIGRAIN table

to 'Perks of Being A Wallflower'


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to 'Perks of Being A Wallflower'Mr Mudd Productions - Films centered onteen issues (Juno, GW) 2012, £13mbudgetWriter of Novel/Director Stephen ChboskyIndependent Film Awards & Teen Choice etcBox Office gross= £33mil

The perceptions media texts

create of people and places

GenreNarrative

Audience

Representation

InstitutionProducers and Director

Media Language

mise-en-scenecamera

editing sound

MIGRAIN

story/plot/characters is the texteasilycategorised?

a collective body experiencing different media

I d e o l o g y a collection, or "atmosphere" of ideas, coming from the text and institution

The 7 Key Media Studies Concepts

The audience clearly young people who canidentify and older audiences seeking filmafter strong reviews?

Why did it win Film prizes from young andindependent audiences and not more matureHollywood ones? Content? Representations?

The mise-en-scene and camera workare used heavily to present the notionof freedom and connection that isdesired by characters.

Music plays a very important role inthe film, symbolising expression andescape, and togetherness.

Middle americaPersonal/Sexuality issuesYoung people, troubled but aspirationalLiberal minded equality promoting agendaFamily values and responsibilities for youngYouth being themselves to gain acceptanceNo bad people. Take risks

Teen drama though unconventional tothe Hollywood's usual take on genre

Causes behind behaviour/feelings ofyoung people given tangible reasonsbesides social environment.Young represented to be troubletowards themselves, with crime at aminimum.

Adults shown to be present yet absentin feelings and guidance process.

Socially awkward teen Charlie is a wallflower, alwayswatching life from the sidelines, until two charismaticstudents become his mentors. Free-spirited Sam andher stepbrother Patrick help Charlie discover the joysof friendship, first love, music and more. However, ashis new friends prepare to leave for college, Charlie'sinner sadness threatens to shatter his newfoundconfidence.


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"The progress that has been made in depicting queer youth

in diverse and realistic ways is perhaps the most promising

development in youth cinema since the turn of the century.

Dominant American cinema has been coming to terms with

non heterosexual people.

Perks exemplifies wholesome means by whichheterosexual youth have integrated with and come to

appreciate peers with other gender identities, a model of

understanding and tolerance for youth in terms of all

differences."


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!"#$%& ()%&$*+ $* % ,-.) "/ 0&+ 1)2() 34$#4 5%&6)* *67*,%2#) "5)( *,-&) %..)%($21 &"387691),

$2 ,)(+* "/ .("96#:"2 5%&6);


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'The SelfishGiant' (2013)Clio Barnard

Deconstruct the filmposters.

! What do you think the

film's narrative will beabout?

!

How do you think it willapproach representationof youth?


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Character & Narrative in 'Selfish Giant'

In what ways is the character of Arbor different to otherteenage characters we have watched so far?

Start to create a full character profile:

• Describe his personality - how does he act, talk, behave, dress

• What is happening in his life as we join him at the start of the film?

• Where is he from? Describe her home, family, area.• How do we feel towards him? Is he a sympathetic character? Why?• Is he represented differently to Swifty? If so, how?


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“Delinquency covers such a broad spectrum of behaviours: what in

one cultural setting or period is considered transgressive (say

skipping school) may be more acceptable in other settings, in which

teens would have to commit rather dramatic offences (such as

violent crimes) in order to demonstrate their deviance from the norm.

Not all teens become deviant simply as a means of testing their

social acceptability - the etiology of delinquency runs to class and

race issues, family dynamics, genetics and psychology and politicalconditions. Yet all teens find themselves accounting for their

delinquent behaviours through the very systems that determine

exactly what is delinquent: the family, school, society and the law.”


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Describe Arbour's home life -focus on his relationship with hismother.

Why is their relationshipfragmented? How does thismake us feel towards Arbour?

How does it differ from thehomelife/mother relationship ofSwifty?

Is this typical of what we have

studied so far in other texts?


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Who is The Selfish Giant in the film?


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What is the world like in Selfish Giant?

What role does the setting play in the film?

Think in terms of social class, poverty, employment,

education, leisure, crime.

Bradford's textile industry has been in decline for many years and the city has suffered from de-industrialisation.Some areas of Bradford are among the worst levels of social deprivation in the UK, with widespread pockets of

exclusion, and rates of unemployment in some wards exceeding 25%.


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• Why does Arbour scrap?

• What is the director saying about

teenage aspirations?

• What is stopping Arbour fromhaving higher ambitions?

Are there any aspects of the film thatcould symbolise Abour's situation?

Scrapping

A b & S ift


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Arbour & Swifty

1) Describe Arbour and Swifty'srelationship.

2) To what extent is Swifty a morecomplex character than Arbour?

3) Explain how their finalscenes together are

constructed to make theaudience feel?

4) What do you think is thedirector's agenda in theportrayal of their relationship

and the final scenes?


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A Complex Representation of Youth?

Can it be said that some aspects of 'SelfishGiant' are more complex than the other mediatexts we have looked at so far?

Think in terms of;-Narrative

-Genre-Audience-Media Language (micro to macro)-Institutions - what are the makers trying to do?-Ideology - Media/Film Theories-Representation


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What would you say is the ideology of

'Selfish Giant'?

A world where community and family has lost meaning and has disintegrated. Theprotagonist is in an environment where there are few ways ahead in life. Either hegets an education in a school that clearly cannot accommodate him and his needs,or he enters the world of scrapping and crime in an attempt to make money tosupport his family. Arbour is not unique to this struggle and we see the samedespair in other characters.

Ultimately the film presents the belief that working-class life is in crisis in the UK,with severe inequality and a lack of opportunities in many areas across the country.


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Antonio Gramsci

Marxist theorist Gramsci developed the concept of cultural hegemony.This is the idea that one social class (usually the middle class) is able todominate a society by making their way of life and values appearnormal, natural, and common sense. As such all other ways of life areseen as deviant and do not conform with the norms and values ofmiddle-class society.

As a result other social classes accept these values as the normal way of life. Gramscisees hegemony as a site of constant struggle – societies are constantly debating what is

and isn’t acceptable.

You could relate this to the more positive and sympathetic representations of workingclass youth in ‘The Selfish Giant’ and ‘Top Boy' as representations which challenge theperception of working class as thugs. Though the latter both challenges and conformsacross the characters.

What is the the world of Selfish Giant

like in relation to British society's

hegemony?

Key Theorist


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Hegemony: Selfish Giant presents a bleak message. As such, it is pushed aside andintended for a 'niche' audience. This is not England presenting itself to the world as

a green and pleasant land. This film is exposing elements of our society that mostpeople would prefer were not a version of England. The Selfish Giant presents

something which feels much more real, it looks at what happens when community,

jobs and purpose go away.

As such it is evident that these characters do not fit in with the "norms" of societyand as a result are marginalised and deprived of opportunities to get ahead in life

in a way that conforms to hegemonic values.


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NARRATIVE/STORY

Denotations

Character

Connotations

Symbolism/Metaphors/

Analogies

Ideas/Ideologies

Integrating Theories

Description:

Stating the obvious, re-telling the story, lacking indetail and opinion.

Analysis:Looking beyond the obvious,making links to other texts,

finding symbolism and codes,linking to theory and stating your

opinion in detail.

E

D

C

B

A

A*


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BBC Radio 5, October 2013

How is youth represented in Selfish Giant?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMLkvtSkXNc


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NARRATIVE/STORY

Denotations

Character

Connotations


Analogies

Ideas/Ideologies

Integrating Theories

E

D

C

B

A

A*

Using your notes

on SG, write a

paragraph that

would fit the A/B

criteria.

Then share withyour group to

combine and

construct a

paragraph thatmeets the A*

criteria.

How is youth represented in Selfish Giant?

MIGRAIN


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The perceptions media texts create of

people and places

Genre Narrative

Audience

R epresentation

I n s t i t u t i o nProducers and Director

Media Languagemise-en-scene

cameraediting sound

MIGRAIN

story/plot/characters is the text easilycategorised?


I d e o l o g y a collection, or "atmosphere" of ideas,

coming from the text and institution


TE

XT

Apply the MIGRAIN table P t i t Fil UK Fil C il


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to 'Selfish Giant'Protagonist Films, UK Film Council,2009, £1.4m budgetClio Barnard director Won Best European Film at CannesNominated best film at BaftasBox Office gross= £882k

The perceptions media texts

create of people and places

GenreNarrative

Audience

Representation


Media Language

mise-en-scene

cameraediting sound

MIGRAIN

story/plot/characters is the texteasilycategorised?




The "pleasures" of this text are dubious, sowhat is the appeal to an audience? Whowould like to see this film? Working-class ormiddle-clss audiences?

Why did it win Film prizes from two middle-class audience of critics?

The mise-en-scene and camera workis dominated by the shots of thelocation and the protagonist Arbour .Both are somewhat downtrodden.

Working-class life is in crisis in the UK?Inequality and lack of opportunitiesUnder-represented livesLiberal minded agenda (equal opps belief)

Too narrative driven to be of a genre butit has a social realist/documentary style

Working-class teenagers are shown tohave minimal opportunities to followtheir dreams or even conform to socialnorms, and are highly vulnerable.

Arbour's behaviour is socially

unacceptable, but stereotypical of young

boys in similar areas, but we are given

more reasons to understand why he is

the way he is.

Excluded from school and outsiders in their own neighborhood, 13 yearold Arbor and his best friend Swifty meet Kitten, a local scrap dealer.Wandering their town with just a horse and a cart, they begin collectingscrap metal for him. Swifty has a natural gift with horses while Arboremulates Kitten - keen to impress him and make some money. However,Kitten favors Swifty, leaving Arbor feeling hurt and excluded, driving awedge between the boys. As Arbor becomes increasingly greedy andexploitative, tensions build, leading to a tragic event that transforms themall.


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Th 100 (2014 )


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The 100 (2014-)

Produced by: Warner Bros.TV for The CWShowrunner: Jason Rothenberg

Based on the books of Kass Morgan

4

What is life like for youth characters in the world


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of 'The 100'?

Different from in other texts?

• How is mise-en-scene used to reflect life for youth here?

• How is the contrast between life on the Ark and Earth

shown?

• To what extent is dominance shown from the adults/youth?

• What relevance is the setting in how life for youth is

portrayed?

H th t d i 'Th 100'?


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• Positively or negatively? Sympathetically or Harshly?

• Collectively or individually?

• What is their role in the text's narrative?

• How are the characters' actions motivated?

• Which theories best fit the representation of youth here?

How are youth represented in 'The 100'?

To what extent does The 100 conform


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To what extent does The 100 conform

to youth stereotypes?

• To what extent are the stereotypes a result ofthe particular audience/institution?

• Is the genre relevant to the representations

made?

• How realistic is The 100 in its representation of

youth?

Parental Relationships


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Parental Relationships

• What are the relationships like between theparents and their children?

• How is the behaviour of the youth characters

impacted by their relationships with parents?

• How do the parental relationships differ to the

other texts you have looked at?

‘R t h h i t d t th d f ti i i


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“The Youth are prohibited from speaking as moral and political

agents, youth become an empty category inhabited by the desires,

fantasies and interest of the adult world.”

Jonathan Epstein

What does these quotes mean and howcan they apply to the texts you have

studied?

‘Recent research has pointed to the dangers of romanticising

youthful resistance and the tendency to overstate the the political

dimensions of youth culture’

David Buckingham,


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Th i t


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Hebdige (1979)

Hebdige argues that youth subcultures are a way for young people to

express their opposition to society, and to challenge hegemony. This

is primarily expressed through style.

How does this apply to Dope?

In this context you may consider how the youths’ behaviour is a

response to their position in society (e.g. although Malcolm is from an

environment where deviance is the norm, he opposes and resiststhese expectations with higher aspirations and an eclectic style/

personality).

Hebidge also argues that representations of young people are quite

limited showing them as either fun or trouble. Again this suggests

media representations of young people do not really relate to reality.

Theorist:

“ Acts of Juvenile delinquency are born from origins more


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q y g

desperate than the need to rebel against norms or stand up to

oppression, and tend to find their root causes in poverty, parental

misguidance (or absence), abuse by elders, and on occasion

mental illness.” - Tim Shary

How true is this quote for Dope?

• How realistic is the crime in 'Dope'?

• Does it reflect society? Or is it present to

simply serve the genre?


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Select and discuss 2 examples for each of


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Select and discuss 2 examples for each of

MES and cinematography, where they have

been used to convey meaning for young

characters

Read the article on stereotypes in


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Read the article on stereotypes in

Dope and discuss how the film reflects

them

How is music used to represent the

th i D ?


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youth in Dope ?

• How is music used to reflect the individuals in

Dope?

• How is music used here to challenge

stereotypes?

• What might the director be trying to say

through the use of music here?

• Is music in 'Dope' used differently than in the

other texts you have seen?


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Yeah, first day of school(hey)Good grades are cool(uh huh)Tryna find a new way to rule

And land a new major booMy mindIs like a rideBumping Young Jeezy inside(yeah)I march to the beat of my own drumAnd tomorrow don't care about the outcome

[Hook]I won't act like a gansta wouldBut nawYou can't fuck with my hoodIt seems that latelyYour homeboys try to play meStay acting shadyMy ego might just make me


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What the filmmakers said...


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“I guess I see it as a universal film, because the themes in the movie are

so strong. It’s about trying to feel a sense of self, trying to get out ofcircumstances and get a life that you choose. It’s hard for me to imaginehardly any culture not relating to the internal messages of the movie.

“And then you have at the center a character who’s a little lost, trying tofind himself, trying to say something. He meets a girl, he wants her tolike him, he’s a little off. And then he goes on a journey to find himself. IfI told you it was a Latin story you’d say, ‘Oh, okay.’ If I said it was aWhite story, if I said it was a Filipino story, it fits all those things. So Ithink they’ll love it.” - Forest Whitaker (Producer)

"These three kids have ambition, it’s what drives the movie. Thatoptimism, Malcolm’s ambition, is the lense by which the audienceconnects. Whatever success the film has had, it’s because people relateto the honesty of this kid even if they’re not from that environment. It’s the

same way that I connected to The Breakfast Club or Ferris Bueller’s DayOff even though I wasn’t a white kid from suburban Chicago."

"The point was not only to immerse the actors in a wide variety of old-school obsessions but also to get them in mindset of disaffected youthswith something to prove, as there are so many instances where kids whohave talent and intellect have to navigate the world of low expectationsand resources" - Famuwiya

"I think that now with social media we are seeing things that have beenlatently living under the surface for a long time, and so this just happenedto come at that time. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't thinking about that as aninfluence. I was thinking about Malcolm and what black masculinitymeans and how that would be. How if you were a kid from this part of theworld, you could be looked upon as a menace and a geek at the sametime. [I wanted to explore] what that means." - Famuwiya

How does race politics and art promoting social justice relateto Dope?

What the critics said...


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"The movie comes down to a series of “us vs. them” situations. Malcolmfelt completely disconnected from every aspect of his neighbourhood,with the exception of his love interest, Nakia, played by Zoe Kravitz.Because of Malcolm’s isolation from his environment, and because the

movie is told from his POV, the audience sees everyone that isn’t a partof Malcolm’s crew, as less than. There were such great side characterswho could have lent a hand in breaking down the stereotypes in themovie, like the school security guard who defends Malcolm from bullies.He is young, tatted up and very dominant—you get the impression thathe walked away from a much harder life to pursue a more stable one. ButI can only imagine his back story because his character receives screentime only when it’s necessary for the street-dumb Malcolm to takeadvantage of him so he can cut Molly in the school’s science lab."

"Mr. Famuyiwa may be interested in mocking and subverting stereotypes,but he’s unwilling to go beyond them entirely, to populate his sunnySouthern California mean streets with fully rounded human beings. Healso leans too heavily on the audience’s presumed prejudices, or maybeon prejudices that some members of the audience will be eager toattribute to somebody else."

"Does 'Dope' treat Malcolm — an ambitious, intelligent, nonviolent blackadolescent — like a freak, or does it depict a world in which he’s viewed

that way? Does the film engage its precursors (movies like “Boyz N theHood” and “Menace II Society”) as update, pastiche or critique, or as somecombination?"

"In addition to revitalizing a genre, Dope has a social message aboutbeing true to yourself and about transcending one’s circumstances withoutleaving them behind or condemning them. And it joyfully humanizes agroup of people too often left to grim stereotyping in pop culture." - TheAtlantic Magazine


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GENRE VS REALISM


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Social Realism - what is it?

What has it got to do with documentaries?

Profit Understand the worldimportance of representingsocial issues and groups

Dope, Kidulthood, Eden LakeKen Loach/ShaneMeadows films

eg., 'This is England'

Genre Films

Promise, Expectation, Escapism

So, what has this got to do with Youth identity? Look at the mise-en-scene in the poster above.How does this film represent teenagers? What do you think the director's primary aims were?


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My Brother The Devil (2012) 6


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y ( )

Director: Sally El Hosaini

Writer: Sally El Hosaini

Production Company: Rooks NestEntertainment/Wild Horses Film Co.

Budget: Low

Lifetime Gross: £1.2mil

6

How is family and the home presented in the film?


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How is family and the home presented in the film?

Think environmentally, financially,

culturally, socially, politically...

How is criminality and violence


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y

presented in My Brother The Devil?

How are the young characters who commit crime and violence

presented?

What are the causes of crime and violence from the youth?

What are the relationships like with adults and youth?

Is crime and violence presented differently in the other texts you

have studied?


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"The progress that has been made in


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The progress that has been made in

depicting queer youth in diverse and

realistic ways is perhaps the most

promising development in youth cinema

since the turn of the century. Dominant

cinema has been coming to terms with non

heterosexual people.

Perks exemplifies wholesome means by

which heterosexual youth have integrated

with and come to appreciate peers withother gender identities, a model of

understanding and tolerance for youth in

terms of all differences." - Timothy Shary

Sally El Hosaini's Guardian Interview 2012

http://www.theguardian.com/film/video/2012/nov/12/my-brother-devil-el-hosaini-video


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I wanted to explore the importance of masculinity. I'd been living in

Hackney for 10 years. I could see teenage boys hanging around

my neighbourhood and they fascinated me, especially the Arab

boys who had a cultural upbringing to which I could relate.

At first I was interested in the gang as a surrogate family. But the

more I got to know the boys, I was drawn to their struggles. My

background is in documentary. I spent a lot of time in theircompany listening to their stories. I witnessed their attempts to

achieve happiness and their struggles to gain employment.

I'm interested in people on the margins of society; outsiders and

outcasts.There was the excitement of setting out to have a gay Arab

gangster as your lead character. I was also determined that the

film would end on a message of hope. I think as a film-maker you

have a responsibility about what you're putting out into the world.

http://www.theguardian.com/film/video/2012/nov/12/my-brother-devil-el-hosaini-video


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The perceptions media texts create of

people and places

Genre Narrative

Audience

R epresentation


Media Languagemise-en-scene

camera

editing sound

MIGRAIN

story/plot/characters is the text easilycategorised?




Apply a

MIGRAIN

reading to

the film.


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Stanley Cohen - Folk Devils & Moral Panics (1972)

Cohen studied the media response to the mods and rockers riots

in the 1960s. He argued that from time to time ‘folk devils’

emerge in a society which reflect the anxieties of society at that

time (e.g. mods and rockers reflect social anxiety about the

emergence of youth culture, rock and roll, etc.). A moral panicoccurs when the media reports on these ‘folk devils’ in a

sensationalised way which leads to intervention by politicians,

and the police. The effect of a moral panic is to reassert

hegemony by allowing a society to make clear what values it

does not accept.

The representation of working class youths suggest they have

become a contemporary ‘folk devil’, perhaps tapping into

economic anxieties, concern about a benefits culture, and long

term unemployment.

Which representations of Youth do you think have been

sensationalised? And what could the effects of this be on

contemporary society?


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Charles Acland (1995)

Acland argues that media representations of delinquent youths

actually reinforce hegemony. They do this by constructing an

idea of ‘normal’ adult and youth behaviour, and contrasting it

with deviant youth behaviour which is shown to be

unacceptable.

Acland also claims that media representations of young people

out of control allows the state to have more control of them (e.g.

media reports about delinquent youths led to ASBOs). This is

something Acland calls the ‘ideology of protection’ – the idea that

young people need constant surveillance and monitoring. This

happens because youth is the time when young people learn

about social roles and values, and allows the state to make sure

they conform to hegemonic values.

Question: Do the representations you have seen show young

people as behaving in an unacceptable way? If so does thisidentify what behaviour society thinks is acceptable (i.e.

hegemonic)?

You may want to focus particularly on how the representations we

looked at show working class youths to be deviant, thus

reinforcing middle class hegemony. Reference at least two texts

and scenes within to back up your answer

What different representations relating to

th fi d th t t ?


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youth can you find across these texts?

How are these represented?

Positively or negatively?

Sympathetic or not?


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What different representations relating to



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How are these represented?

Positively or negatively?

Sympathetic or not?

C l a s s

E d u c a t i o n

Age

G e n d e r

W e a l t h

L o

c a t i o

n

Drugs

Adult/Youth

Relationships

S e x u a l i

t yCrime

Fashion L o c a t i o n

Ethnicity

Ethnicity

Linking the Representations

On your own discuss at least one of the same


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On your own discuss at least one of the same

representations that are made about these

characters. (Minimum of two characters)

Sexuality is clearly an issue that reoccurs in the youth film, as

characters struggle to interact with socially "normal" peers and

adapt to the newly found feelings and development they are


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adapt to the newly found feelings and development they are

encountering. This can be seen in Perks where Patrick although

confident in expressing his sexuality and personality is quite

clearly depressed and upset with how his peers interact with him,

even if at times he seems particularly happy. We can see this inthe scene where Patrick and Charlie go out and are drinking at

the 'make-out point'. In this low key lit scene we gain an insight

into Patrick's true feelings and a prolonged shot reverse shot

technique is used to show this gradual breakdown until the point

where his confusion leads to him kissing Charlie. In some ways

this contrasts to Rashid in MBTD as he represses his sexuality

due to his family beliefs and enviromental norms, yet at the same

time his peers are not accepting of his way of being and onceagain we see the characters struggling to not only deal with their

new found feelings but also the need to be accepted by their

peers and/or family regardless of their differences. By the end of

both films we see what Tim Shary describes as an example of

'heterosexual youth integrating and coming to appreciate peers

with other gender identities". Shary also states that cinema has

made significant progress in depicting 'queer youth' in diverse

and realistic ways, which can be seen as reflecting societies

gradual acceptance of different sexualities.

Media positively influencing society and a

significant change in youth representation

Could be seen as media reflecting reality

This need for acceptance and belonging, a recurring theme and

convention of the youth film is not only evident in Rashid's

character in MBTD but also in his younger brother Mo's


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character in MBTD, but also in his younger brother Mo s

character. In Mo we see a young person who idolises his older

brother and his friends and longs to part of their gang 'DGM'.

There are a number of scenes that exemplify this need to belongfor Mo, but the one that shows it more than any is in the opening

part of the film where Mo has just received his excellent GCSE

results and wants to go with his brother and his friends in their

car. This scene is set on a bright summers day that depicts the

opportunities one has after a successful results day, yet he is

drawn to the dark confines of a low key lit car containing his

brother and his gang. Mo's performance is one of nervousnessand awkwardness as he looks around at them win awe and

amazement. Fast paced editing and handheld camera are used

to reflect how overwhelmed he felt and to some degree star

struck by this gang. The bright pink t shirt he wears also

highlights his immaturity and innocence as he attempts to

assimilate with the older more experienced gang.

Cinematography is also utilised to emphasise the feeling ofinferiority for Mo as he is shot through a high angle over the

shoulder shot when Rashid is talking to him and giving him a

menial task to perform for the gang in an attempt to make him

feel included.

Could be seen as media reflecting reality

Recap


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On your own list the themes we have

encountered so far in youth film

p


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• Isolation/Alienation

• Loneliness/Outcast

• Coming-of-age inc. Loss of virginity

• Peer pressure inc. crime and drugs• Hating life/Wanting to escape/Depression

• Family Dynamics

• Belonging

• Education

Mo


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Theme/Issue

Alienation

Charlie

Representation Made

Scene Evident

Question 2: Collective Identity


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The “collective” group we choose to study here is “The Youth” so

all your case studies will involve young people in some way.

Students MUST discuss case studies from TWO different types of

media. Here we study Film AND Television examples. Students

who only refer to one of these cannot get higher than an E grade.

The focus is on contemporary media texts from the last 5 years

which means students must have lots of “modern” case studies to

refer from although they can refer to older texts to make pointsabout changes in identity. Students must also be prepared to

discuss the history and future of identity in any answer they give

and will be unable to obtain higher than a B grade if they do not

mention these in any answer.

y

On your tables, write an essay plan for

the following question.


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Analyse the ways in which at least one

group of people is 'mediated' (50 marks)

The "group of people" you will discuss are

' Youths'.




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group of people is mediated (50 marks)

• If the word MEDIATED comes up here’s a few ideas about it to

include in an introduction which then allows you go on to talk

about your case studies.

• "Mediation is the process of the representation of events/people

through the media." Gurevitch & Roberts

• Mediated experiences make us reflect upon and rethink our own

self-narrative in relation to others - Gary Giddens (1991)

• Almost everything we see comes to us through the media prism

which in turn colours not just our view of this life but our own

self-definition.

• Thomas de Zengotita, Mediated: The Hidden Effect of the Media

on You and Your World (2005)

• The word mediated is another way of talking how the media

represents things, but a word that emphasises the idea that

representation is a CONSTRUCTION of reality – fore-grounding,

selecting, filtering reality.




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• Intro - Explain who your chosen group is

• Define the term "mediated" and how your

chosen group of people are "mediated" -represented in the media

• Historic & present media representations w/

examples

• Media Institutions & their possible agendas

• How youth are represented in your keytexts

• The relevent themes/issues across your

texts

• How your key texts enforce or subvert

stereotypes and media representations• Micro elements and how they are used for

representations in your key texts

• Appropriate theories

• Possible future representations

NARRATIVE/STORY


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NARRATIVE/STORY

Denotations

Character

Connotations


Analogies

Ideas

Theories

Description:Stating the obvious, re-

telling the story, lacking indetail and opinion.



opinion in detail.

E

D

C

B

A

A*

How realistic are the youth representations in the films

you have looked at?


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Think about to what extent...

• The representations are imagined media representations

• The representation of youth in society is actually constructed

by the media

• The impact of these representations on the youth in society

• Youth (personalities, behaviours & habits) in society has been

formed by the media

Teen Trouble Documentary


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(Channel 4, 2007)

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/teen-trouble/on-demand


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Teenagers on Film - 26 December 2013


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Section B:

This part of the exam asks you to do three specific things,

whatever

topic you answer on:

1. You MUST refer to at least TWO different media (Film & TV)

2. You MUST refer to past, present and future (with theemphasis on the

present - contemporary examples from the past five years)

3. Refer to critical/theoretical thoughts on the subject.


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For 1. you will compare and contrast examples from film and TV.

For 2. the main thing is to ensure you have a majority of material

from the past five years.

There were a number of answers last year which were dominated

by older films, so beware of this! 2x historical text, 3-4x

contemporary texts. And don't forget to offer your thoughts on

future representations.

For 3. you need some critics/writers who have developed ideas

about representation and identity.

You can't cover everything in this exam, as you only have an hour,

so you need to be selective in your answer. Have case study

examples which really illustrate the kinds of points you want to

make.

!You must refer to at least two types of media (e.g. Film and

television). If you only refer to one type of media you won’t


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) y y yp y

be able to achieve above a Level 1 (E).

!You must refer to both the past and give a prediction future.

If you don’t you will not be able to achieve above a Level 2

(D).

!The majority of your essay must be about the contemporary

texts. Limit your discussion of historical texts to one

paragraph

!When applying theory remember that the theorists are not

discussing the texts you are talking about. You are applying

their ideas to your chosen texts

"Media simply represent collective identity, they don't

create it" How far do you agree with this statement?


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create it How far do you agree with this statement?

(50 Marks)


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In 'The Selfish Giant' one can find an alternative

representation of youth, compared to the ones

found in 'Perks of Being a Wallflower'. Although

both films present a rather sympathetic


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both films present a rather sympathetic

representation of youth, Selfish Giant, a British

Social realist film presents them in a realistic and

less optimistic way. In this case, Arbor and Swiftyby presenting them as young boys, making poor

decisions, while needing to grow up faster than

they should for the sake of their families.

The boys are positioned in an environment of

deprevation, and prolonged establishing shots

are used frequently to convey the impoverishedneighbourhood where they live. These images

are followed by harsh scenes depicting the

hopeless and bleak life they live. The costuming

of the boys enforces this image of poverty with

Arbor wearing clothes too small for him and full

of holes. There are a number of scenes in the

film where the extent to which the children areshown to be impoverished is evident, such as

the scene where Swifty pays for his fathers

debts with money obtained through scrapping. In

this scene we see Swifty, not for the first time,

act as a father figure in his family, by paying the

debt collectors the money owed.

Earlier in the film while his father sells their sofa,

we see Swifty holding his baby sibling as his


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we see Swifty holding his baby sibling as his

father acts irresponsibly selling furniture, this

juxtaposes Swifty as the responsible man of thehouse, while making the father look pitiful. The

lighting and set design reinforce the

dysfunctional family unit through the use of low

key lighting in the living room presenting adepressing and bleak living environment. There

is also a noticeable lack of furniture for the large

family to use, which is only heightened when the

father sells the sofa. The use of mise-en-scenehere emphasises the harsh life that Swifty has to

live, as a young boy who wants to take care of

his family, as his parents cannot.

This portrayal of incapable parenting can also be

seen in 'Top Boy' where Ra'nell has to care for

himself and his mother due to her inadequacies.


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himself and his mother due to her inadequacies.

Both of these texts present a world where the

nuclear family has disintegrated leaving children

to fend for themselves and needing to providefor the others around them. The environment in

which these characters inhabit offers few ways

ahead in life with neither child able to engage

fully in education and seeing opportunities to

make money illeagally become an enticing

option. Another scene that depicts the youth as

disengaged is when Arbor is sitting in the

corridor at school. He is shown here through along shot to be bored and disengaged in

education as he fidgits and messes around while

waiting for his teacher. This use of a long shot

here makes Arbor look small and irrelevent in

this educational setting and combined with his

agitated performance emphasise the themes of

belonging and Arbor struggling to fit into society'snorms of pursuing education. Again his dirty

appearence and costuming contrasts the newly

built school he attends, emphasising the this lack

of belonging in the school and marginalisation in

society.

The school with its wealth and facilities cannot

accomodate or engage Arbor and as such he

acts out seeks belonging and acceptance in a

different place This mirrors a similar scene in


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This need for acceptance and belonging is a

recurring theme in the youth film genre, being

one that drives narratives and is the source ofmuch conflict, both in US media texts and UK

ones, however the way is this need for belonging

and acceptance is presented is different and as

such has different outcomes and consequences.

In 'Perks' we can see a number of characters

seeking approval and belonging in social circles

different place. This mirrors a similar scene in

Top Boy where Ra'nell is walking through the

corridors of school discussing his family's

financial issues, when a woman asks him tocome out to help her grow drugs. Ra'nell sees

this as an opportunity to help his mother and

costume is used here to emphasise him being

out of place in the drugworld by him wearing

his school uniform while doing something no

school child should be involved in or feel they

have to do to provide for their family. Ra'nellNot only do these characters seek belonging

but they also seek to, though not consciously,

challenge the hedgemonic norms and values

through delinquency.

Revision Flashcards


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'Discuss the social implications of media in


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relation to collective identity.' (50 Marks)

I E l i h i b i l

'Discuss the social implications of media in relation

to collective identity.' (50 Marks)


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• Intro - Explain what is meant by social

implications, and introduce the effects the

media can have on society - Identify yourexamples

• Historic & present media representations w/

examples

• Media Institutions & their possible agendas

• How young people represented in your keytexts

• How your key texts enforce or subvert

stereotypes and media representations

• Micro elements and how they are used for

representations in your key texts

• Discuss how society can be affected by themedia

• Appropriate theories - Gerbner, Achland,

Cohen, Gramsci & Giroux

• Possible future representations and effects

Media and collective identity; how does one

affect the other? (50 Marks)


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affect the other? (50 Marks)

Social RealismHollywood Rebels

How has the representation of youth from historic texts influenced

the TV and films of today?


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Hollywood Rebels

Cooly challenge authority for effect Trapped by society/lack of opportunities


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NARRATIVE/STORY

D i ti


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Denotations

Character

Connotations


Analogies

Ideas

Theories

Description:Stating the obvious, re-

telling the story, lacking indetail and opinion.



opinion in detail.

E

D

C

B

A

A*


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In the texts you have seen, how has the

youth been represented with regards to

d ti d th i l ti hi ith it?


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education and their relationship with it?

What purpose does education/school serve?

What environment is presented?


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Think about who/

what is to blame forthe way the young

characters behave.

Top Boy Dope

Plenary:

In twos/threes, make a statement about the relationshipbetween genre and the representation of teenagers


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You should include one of the words described as a linkbetween the characters in the last lesson.

Think about how the genre dictates how teenagers arerepresented.

Theorist:


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Gerbner (1986)

Gerbner studied the effect of television on people’s perception ofcrime. He found that people who watched a lot of television tendedto overestimate the levels of crime.

Because the news, TV dramas, films, contain lots ofrepresentations of crime over time this influenced people’sperceptions of the world. This is called ‘cultivation theory’.

How could you apply this to media representations of youth?

The large numbers of representations of young people asdelinquents could, over time, influence how they are perceived bysociety.

Theorist: Theorist:


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• Claude Levi-Strauss - Binaryoppositions:

A film narrative's meaning andunderstanding comes from

placing things in

complete and direct

opposition to one another.

Opposites can be visual (light/darkness, young/old) orconceptual (love/hate, good/evil).

Giroux (1997)

Giroux argues that in the media,representations of youth become an‘empty category’.This is because most media

representations of young peopleare constructed by adults. Becauseof this they reflect adults' concerns,anxieties, and needs.

As a result these 'adult' mediarepresentations, perceptions ofyoung people do not necessarilyreflect the reality of youth identity.

Theorist:


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Hebdige (1979)Hebdige argues that youth subcultures are a way for young people to

express their opposition to society, and to challenge hegemony. This

is primarily expressed through style.

In this context you may consider how the youths’ behaviour is aresponse to their position in society (e.g. although Malcolm is froman environment where deviance is the norm, he opposes and resiststhese expectations with higher aspirations and an eclectic style/personality).

Hebidge also argues that representations of young people are quite

limited showing them as either fun or trouble. Again this suggests

media representations of young people do not really relate to reality.

Theorist:


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Angela McRobbie suggests that contemporary British TV often

contains ‘symbolic violence’ against the working class

She states that Television constructs representations which

emphasise middle class dominance and depict the working class

in very negative ways. This is done by displaying them committing

crimes, not attending school, claiming benefits and not positivelycontributing to society.

Angela McRobbie


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Stanley Cohen - Folk Devils & Moral Panics (1972)

Cohen studied the media response to the mods and rockers riots

in the 1960s. He argued that from time to time ‘folk devils’

emerge in a society which reflect the anxieties of society at that

time (e.g. mods and rockers reflect social anxiety about theemergence of youth culture, rock and roll, etc.). A moral panic

occurs when the media reports on these ‘folk devils’ in a

sensationalised way which leads to intervention by politicians,

and the police. The effect of a moral panic is to reassert

hegemony by allowing a society to make clear what values it

does not accept.

The representation of working class youths suggest they have

become a contemporary ‘folk devil’, perhaps tapping into

economic anxieties, concern about a benefits culture, and long

term unemployment.


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Charles Acland (1995)

Acland argues that media representations of delinquent youths

actually reinforce hegemony. They do this by constructing an

idea of ‘normal’ adult and youth behaviour, and contrasting it

with deviant youth behaviour which is shown to beunacceptable.

Acland also claims that media representations of young people

out of control allows the state to have more control of them (e.g.

media reports about delinquent youths led to ASBOs). This is

something Acland calls the ‘ideology of protection’ – the idea thatyoung people need constant surveillance and monitoring. This

happens because youth is the time when young people learn

about social roles and values, and allows the state to make sure

they conform to hegemonic values.

Using the essay structure sheets, begin

drafting paragraphs using your own texts for

the following question.

"Media representations are complex,

t i l d t i htf d" H


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not simple and straightforward". How

far do you agree with this statement in

relation to the collective group you

have studied?

Remember to use two texts for both film and

TV, preferably ones that offer good points of

comparison.


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6. The Future!Over to you! Where does the future lie for youthrepresentation?

Think about webseries like these...


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Kids today are tomorrow's adults!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JqR3GVqib4https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DOlwLs9unA


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Future Representations.......?Points to consider in your conclusion:

• Has the representation of youth change from past to present? If yes, can you predict where it is headingin the future?

• Are we still going to have the same representations as we had before e.g. Demonisation,

Sensationalism, 'Popular notions of adolesence' etc? Will audiences become 'bored' of this? Will societychange and affect the media?

• Do you really think representations of youth will change? (N.B. remember our class' attitude to Year 7s -

rude, arrogant, thinking that they own the place - are you just going to become typical adults in terms how

you treat the younger generation? The norm, both in the past and currently, is for older creators toconstruct representations of youth: Eden Lake, Harry Brown etc. Inbetweeners is written by guys in theirthirties. Creator of Misfits, Howard Overman, is 36. Skins, however, uses experienced writers and writersof the age group they are trying to depict. So is this the future - younger writers/directors getting involved tocreate more truthful, relevant representations? At what age though do you stop being 'young'!?

• Or will truthful realistic representations be found on the internet where UK youth are already in control (to

a degree) of how they are represented through Youtube and Facebook - Social Networking? Consumersbecome producers!!!

There's no right or wrong answer - just don't say that in the future kids will be on hoverboards andlive under the sea

Theorist:

media and everyday life

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlzu8UYidTY


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Research David Gauntlett's theory

'Connecting & Creating' Media 2.0 internetallows us to connect and create- consumers becoming producers!!

How can this possibly be linked to future

representations of teenagers in the Media?

The most visible shift in the delinquent subgenre has

been in its moral addresses towards its characters:

many early to mid-80s deliquency films made deviance

Theorist:


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look fun and harmless, but by the early 90s the

dominant image of delinquency was the dangerousafrican american hold, and in the later ‘90s delinquent

roles incorporated both moral poles to neutralise the

potency of youth rebellion accordingly, until the

columbine killings in 1999 made the industry abandon

blatant images of delinquency altogether.

An argument can be made that adult filmmakers are only

producing such images of youth to appeal to young audiences who

patronise films and that these images are based on the social

realities and fantasies of most youth, or else the films would not

find an audience.

The access youth have to technology will not only change their

senses of identity, but it should provide them with the means to

take greater control over the production of their images, which will

be a radical development indeed.

Question 2:


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!"# %&'((#&)*+#, -.'/0 1# &"''2# )' 2)/34 "#.# *2 %!"# 5'/)", 2' 6(( 4'/. &62# 2)/3*#2 1*((*7+'(+# 4'/7- 0#'0(# *7 2'8# 1649 :)/3#7)2 ;


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8. Exam prep!Questions/Answers/Past-Papers/Exemplar Answers/Techniques/Advice from OCR

S i B


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Section B:

This part of the exam asks you to do three specific things, whatevertopic you answer on:

1. You MUST refer to at least TWO different media (Film & TV)2. You MUST refer to past, present and future (with the emphasis on the

present - contemporary examples from the past five years)3. Refer to critical/theoretical thoughts on the subject.


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For 1. you will compare and contrast examples from film and TV.

For 2. the main thing is to ensure you have a majority of material from the past five years.There were a number of answers last year which were dominated by older films, so bewarof this! 1x historical text, 3x contemporary texts. And don't forget to offer your thoughtson future representations.

For 3. you need some critics/writers who have developed ideas about representation andidentity.

You can't cover everything in this exam, asyou only have an hour , so you need to beselective in your answer. Have case study examples which really illustrate the kinds ofpoints you want to make.

! You must refer to at least two types of media (e.g. Film and

television). If you only refer to one type of media you won’tbe able to achieve above a Level 1 (U)


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be able to achieve above a Level 1 (U).

!You must refer to both the past and give a prediction future.

If you don’t you will not be able to achieve above a Level 3(C/B).

! The majority of your essay must be about the contemporary

texts. Limit your discussion of historical texts to oneparagraph

! When applying theory remember that the theorists are not

discussing the texts you are talking about. You are applyingtheir ideas to your chosen texts

mark scheme


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Y di i h

Key Reminders for 1a...

Section A


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• You must discuss your progression across the

AS & A2 course• No matter what the question is you should

discuss how you were creative, either through

RMT, R&P, P

Documents

Youth Identity 2016 SOW