Representation.  Definition and explanation.

representation

noun

[MASS NOUN]

1The action of speaking or acting on behalf of someone or the state of being so represented:you may qualify for free legal representation

2The description or portrayal of someone or something in a particular way:the representation of women in newspapers

2.1The depiction of someone or something in a work of art:Picasso is striving for some absolute representation of reality

2.2[COUNT NOUN] A picture, model, or other depiction of someone or something:a striking representation of a vase of flowers

Explanation:

Representation refers to the construction in any medium (especially the mass media) of aspects of ‘reality’ such as people, places, objects, events, cultural identities and other abstract concepts. Such representations may be in speech or writing as well as still or moving pictures.

The term refers to the processes involved as well as to its products. For instance, in relation to the key markers of identity - Class, Age, Gender and Ethnicity (the 'cage' of identity) - representation involves not only how identities are represented (or rather constructed) within the text but also how they are constructed in the processes of production and reception by people whose identities are also differentially marked in relation to such demographic factors.

Consider, for instance, the issue of 'the gaze'. How do men look at images of women, women at men, men at men and women at women?

Representation In The Media 

By definition, all media texts are re-presentations of reality. This means that they are intentionally composed, lit, written, framed, cropped, captioned, branded, targeted and censored by their producers, and that they are entirely artificial versions of the reality we perceive around us.

When studying the media it is vital to remember this - every media form, from a home video to a glossy magazine, is a representation of someone's concept of existence, codified into a series of signs and symbols which can be read by an audience. However, it is important to note that without the media, our perception of reality would be very limited, and that we, as an audience, need these artificial texts to mediate our view of the world, in other words we need the media to make sense of reality. Therefore representation is a fluid, two-way process: producers position a text somewhere in relation to reality and audiences assess a text on its relationship to reality.

This clip is a good starting point to discuss how the media shapes our understanding of the world around us.

EVERYTHING IS A CONSTRUCT.

For your summer homework you should have read this:

REPRESENTATIONS – COMMON STEREOTYPES

And read and printed out a copy of this:

Moving Image Glossary from MissCTurner

You will also need to make sure you have the summer work booklet, issued at the end of the last academic year:

2015 AS Media Studies Summer Work Booklet

5 x 5 Instructions

1. Choose 5 areas of the media that you like
2. Within each area pick your 5 favourites
3. Add a description/explanation/justification
4. Add images to illustrate
5. Post to your blog.

Use my version below to guide you.

My 5x5

5 Road Trip movies.

1. Thelma and Louise (1991).  A waitress and a housewife up and leave to go on an adventure in a '66 Thunderbird and things spiral out of control.  It also features Brad Pitt in one of his earliest film roles.  "You get what you settle for."
2. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015). Max (Tom Hardy) teams up with the warrior Furiosa (Charlize Theron) in this exhilarating, loud and crazy desert landscape.  "Oh what a day!  What a lovely day!"
3. Rain Man (1988).  A brilliant performance by both Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise (yes, Tom Cruise can actually act!  Who knew?!)  "What I said about being on the road with you I meant.  I like having you for my brother."
4. Little Miss Sunshine (2006).  A family take their daughter across America to get to a beauty pageant.  "A real loser is someone who is so afraid of winning he doesn't even try."
5. The Wizard of Oz (1939).  More like a "yellow brick" road trip movie, but a road trip nonetheless.  A classic.  "Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!"

5 Beatles songs

1. Eleanor Rigby. (Album: Revolver). Strings, harmonies, McCartney's lyricism at its best.  A story in a song.
2. In My Life.  (Album: Rubber Soul).  This puts you in a thoughtful mood and shows that Lennon's writing and voice make the perfect match.
3. Lady Madonna.  (The White Album).  An upbeat, honky-tonk vibe.
4. I am the Walrus (The White Album).  A strange, psychedelic song with odd lyrics.  Lennon wrote it because he found out pupils were being asked to analyse Beatles lyrics in their English lessons.  He wanted to confuse them.
5. Drive My Car (Album: Rubber Soul).  Happy, fun, one to sing along to.

5 American TV Dramas

1. Mad Men.  Who is Don Draper?  Step in to the world of advertising in New York in the 1960s.  This drama is subtle, stylish and sophisticated.  
2. Orange is the New Black.  More accurately described as a comedy drama, this show tracks a 30 year old New York woman who does time in a women's prison.
3. Homeland.  An American political thriller series.  The writing is incredible; you can't predict what will happen next and don't really know which character to root for.  Proper telly.  
4. True Detective.  Crime thriller.  Flashbacks from the present day to when the cops were investigating the case.
5. Damages.  Court room and behind the scenes drama.  Glenn Close plays the boss from hell, but do you trust her?

5 Bands 1990s-present.

1. Yeah Yeah Yeahs.  They can be loud, crazy and manic as well as soft, ethereal and pensive.  Plus if you look at the definition of 'cool' in the dictionary, you will find their lead singer, Karen O.  
2. Skunk Anansie.  They were big in the 90's/early 00's.  They are rocky, grungy with a punk edge and sound like they have been really really annoyed at people.  They also have some beautiful ballads and their lead singer (called Skin, yes, really) has a wonderful soaring voice. Good music to play loudly. 
3. The Kills.  A guy, a girl, two guitars and a drum machine.  Black skinny jeans and leather jackets are their uniform.
4. The Horrors.  I wasn't too keen at first but after playing their albums Luminous and Skying a few times, I found I couldn't get enough of them.  Melancholic voices over synths and guitars.
5. Arctic Monkeys.  The sound of my teenage and student years.  

5 film villains

1. The Joker (Heath Ledger).  The Batman's nemesis, he's clever and crazy.  A dangerous mix. "I believe whatever doesn't kill you simply makes you...stranger."
2. Cruella Deville (Glenn Close).  She just hates dogs and loves fur.  What's more, there is just a half-formed back story to explain why.  The best kind of villain. "I live for fur, I worship fur.  After all, is there a woman in this wretched world who doesn't?"
3. Bill the Butcher from Gangs of New York (Daniel Day Lewis).  Leader of the Bowery Boys and based on a real life gang member of the same name.  "Ears and noses will be the trophies of the day.  But no hand shall touch him."  
4. Bane (Tom Hardy).  Another enemy of Batman's from the Christopher Nolan trilogy.  He's big, brutish, speaks very strangely and you can't see all of his face.  Real scary.  You have to do the quote in his voice "Oh, you think darkness is your ally?  But you merely adopted the dark.  I was born in it, moulded by it."
5. Sid, the evil kid in Toy Story.  Sadist.  "Nobody has ever attempted a double bypass brain transplant before."