But Wait…It’s Over?

Final thoughts to the end of the semester…

At the start of this assignment, I’m not going to lie, I was a bit hesitant about how I was going to approach this. I mean after all I was going to be critiquing my fellow classmates and group members which, to some (including myself), can be a bit unnerving. But as I began to get into the breadth of the information and reading their blogs I found that it was actually going to be easier than I thought. I found myself reading their blogs and actually being entertained. Who would’ve thought? But I actually found it quite informative and the information that I read in their blogs proved to be quite interesting.

For my fourth and final blog I decided read the blogs of my group members for my final  project (Nicole Engler, Corey Baum, and Patrick Wilson). Although we all had to write blogs on the same topics I still found it interesting to get a feel for their writing style and the ways in which they organized their blogs. I also found that each person had a different take on each assignment and each one did a different option on how to write it.

As you read on you will see the names of each person along with a link to their blog.

For Nicole I read her third blog about ideological criticism and Disney

For Corey I read his second blog about Todorov’s five-part equilibrium model and how he applied it to the television show How to Make it in America

And for Patrick I also analyzed his third article on ideological criticism and the film Consuming Kids.

 

 

Nicole Engler http://lifestyleofamediaaddict.wordpress.com/

I really loved the way that you began to start off your blog by introducing what your topic is and diving right in to the bulk of what it is that you were specifically talking about (Disney Blog). I think that you did a really good job of drawing the reader in right away and keeping their attention.

I think that you did a great job of relating the material to your own personal experience (like how you used to pretend to be some of the princesses when you were little) and how after seeing the movie, your thoughts on Disney as a whole and your own personal point of view of the movies. You seamlessly integrated the definitions into your blog without it seeming “forced” which is always a plus. You also did a great job with the visual representations and linking the commercialization of childhood to real life examples (see Toddlers and Tiaras picture) which was great.

Overall I thought that you did a great job with it and there was not much room for improvement. The only thing that I could suggest is that maybe include some of the other points in the film about what Disney had done with some of the minorities in films because that also seemed to be a little scary. Other than that it was a great blog and is definitely something worth reading.

Corey Baum http://cbaum3.wordpress.com/

I analyzed your second blog about the television show “How to Make it in America” and where you analyzed it through Todorov’s five-part equilibrium. For your introduction I thought that you did a good job of luring the reader in. You possess a very welcoming tone which is good when trying to appeal to the reader. You then go into a detailed background of the show that you chose to analyze and I found that it was quite informative (especially considering I have never seen the show myself). The comparisons to other shows really helped me to understand what type of show it was, which is good.

You then begin to explain how you will analyze it using Todorov’s five-part equilibrium which include  equilibrium, disruption, recognition, repair, and reinstatement. I like how you organized it by paragraph form breaking each one down individually where you then proceeded to explain how each concept applied to the show. I also liked the visual images that you embedded within the text to make it more visually appealing to the reader.

Although you did well on those parts I would like to offer some room for improvement in some areas. I think that when you were applying the concepts from Todorov’s five-part model, that you should explain/define each one for the reader in case they did not know what they were. You did this for Equilibrium but you failed to do it for the other four. I also think that you should do a little proofreading before you submit it because there were some minor typos.

Other than that I think that you did a great job.

Patrick Wilson http://mcombroadcasting.wordpress.com/

The blog that I read was yours on the consumption of kids by way of advertising. You did a solid job of asking the reader a question. Although you say that it is your “lame attempt” at an introduction, I think that you did a good job of drawing the reader into your blog which is good. You then clearly define ideology, the theory of ideological criticism, hegemony and the political economic theory. I also think that you did a solid job of relating the material we used in the classroom to the film “Consuming Kids” and I also liked how you wrote with such animosity towards the message that the film was saying because it keeps the reader engaged.

When it comes to the visual messages I think that you did a great with your visual images especially the video clip. They were pertinent to the information that you were trying to get across to the reader which is good (random images can take away from your message). You also did a good job with your conclusion and answering the “so what?” question and you leave the reader with a lasting impression about that particular blog. 

There is however some room for improvement. Although I thought that your introduction of the terms was detailed and very informative, I feel as if you could have shortened it a little bit and wrote a bit more information about the film itself and possibly hit on some more of its main points. Aside from that you did a good job with the blog and it was fairly entertaining to read as well as highly informative.

 

Last Words

And so the semester is coming to an end and that means an end to these blogs (or will it be? hmmm….). For the last assignment I was given the grueling task of analyzing and critiquing my fellow classmates blogs.

I thought that it was interesting to see each of their writings styles and how they were different. Nicole’s was pretty laid back and very conversational. I thought that that was a nice touch and I found that it was very inviting. She does a great job using pictures and although she is not so formal in her writing, I think that the informal writing style she uses is perfect and I don’t think she should change it at all. Corey was also pretty similar in his writing style. He took on the informal tone and was very conversational with the reader. His only weakness was in proofreading.

Patrick’s writing style was similar to mine in that he was semi-formal but was usually pretty formal in using definitions and sticking to the bulk of the information. I like the images and videos that he embedded with the blog too because I felt as if they flowed and meshed relatively well with his information.

Overall I really enjoyed this assignment because, although it was criticism of our classmates, it was positive criticism and opened up my eyes to different writing styles and different perspective on things. I thought the whole blogging assignments in general were actually fun and I didn’t look at them as an annoyance and I sometimes even looked forward to writing them (sometimes I may have even written a little too much ).

But as of now this will be my last blog and I hope you have enjoyed following me so far.

Adios!

 

Ideological Criticism: An Analysis of Disney and Commercialization of Childhood

Introduction

Before I get into the thick of what I intend on discussing I feel the need to first define Ideological Criticism, what it examines, and what it does not examine. I will also begin to describe what an ideology is, exactly, and I will also begin to define and explain the Political Economy Theory and how it applies to ideological criticism.

When you think of an ideology the way I would word it is  as a set of ideas that present the audience with a way to view the world. It is an instrument that is usually used by the dominant elites to extend their control over others.

What ideological criticism does is that it examines how these ideas are embedded in and circulated through texts. Essentially what this means is that it seeks to find ideologies that have been placed in texts. Ideological criticism also looks at how they reflect or serve the interests of the dominant elites as well as how they largely go unnoticed and unchallenged.

Ideological criticism is not just look at the text, but it is concerned with how it is produced, structured, and the ways it interacts with our life experiences.

Moving on to the Political Economy Theory. What is it? How does it relate to ideological criticism?

The answer is that it is based on the Marxist conception of socioeconomic order. That is that it examines how media institutions, texts, practices establish and sustain existing power relations. Additionally it looks at the link between media ownership (means of production) and the ideology embedded in media texts. Political economists are also genuinely concerned with the growing power and reach that media conglomerates have in the advertising and marketing industries.

The Wonderful World of Disney…

In one of the classes we watched a film about Disney and the huge effect that it has on children as well as the media industry and how it has became not just a company that specializes in childhood imagination, but rather a conglomerate that has its hands in everything, from ESPN, the Military Channel, Lifetime television network, Buena Vista Records, Touchstone, Pixar, Baby Einstein, and the Muppets.

It is safe to say that when most people think of Disney they think back to their fondest childhood memories of some of their favorite Disney films (Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, Peter Pan, etc). At first thought, one might look at them as harmless. However, if this is the first initial thought then there have been some glaring problems that have been overlooked.

There is undoubtedly some hidden ideologies embedded within some of Disney’s films that can have a profound impact on children. The main points raised in the film were that Disney has too much control over the narratives and information people have access to, there are distorted views of femininity in Disney films, race and ethnicity are skewed in films, and that commercialism plays a huge part in their films (ulterior motives).

How much control is too much control?

 The first issue raised is that Disney has an overwhelming about of control over their product. Now you might be wondering, what does this have to do with political economy theory? The answer is simple. By allowing Disney to have the amount of control over their brand image as they do right now, they have the power to shape the way their perceived image to their own liking. A prime example is how Disney has been able to monopolize the market of their image. They have policed its image (cannot use the name Disney without permission, need permission to use photographs, etc) so that it can only be viewed in a positive light. In the film, one of the men being interviewed discusses how a writer was doing a book and was going to use an aerial photograph from space of Disney World, but was unable to because Disney would not allow it. It became the first copyrighted urban environment in history. Disney has been able to hide behind their innocence and has been able to skew the world view of their image due to the amount of control they have over their image.

Femininity: How Disney conceptualizes women in their movies

One of the most striking ideologies that are embedded in the Disney films is the way femininity is portrayed in the female characters. The sexualization of the female characters is all to clear in their films. The prime examples would be the big breasts, tiny waists,

Miss Bunny from Disney's, Bambi

fluttering eyes, seductiveness, and the overwhelming sense of vulnerability that they present. Often times the female characters will be viewed as having to rely on the strong male characters in the movies. This can be seen through personification of the animal characters as well. In the film Bambi you can see the rabbit, Miss Bunny, who seduces Thumper, by acting in a very seductive way, fluttering her eyelashes and really just emphasizes the fact that in order to get what you want you have to make yourself more vulnerable. This is again seen in the film Aladdin, when Princess Jasmine seduces Jafar in order to distract him. In The Little Mermaid, Ariel gives up her voice so that she can be with the one she loves, leaving only her body to offer him. And it is seen again in Beauty and the Beast with Belle and how she stays in an abusive relationship in hope of finding the “Prince” that is hidden away in the beast. All of these examples tie into the hidden ideologies that are present in the Disney films. That is that women are merely seen as objects and that they are reliant on men for protection. Without them they are helpless. That is until they offer their body up for the taking, which is seemingly their only option. The image that they present children with that in order to be beautiful you must have the long hair, you must have the big breasts, you must have the tiny waist, and you must be willing to flaunt these to men if you are ever hopeful of finding love.

Race and ethnicity: Stereotypes and Disney

It is not until you get older that you begin to see some of the racist undertones that exist in the Disney films. As a child it is hard to fully piece together the hidden meanings that some of the characters have. The racism can be seen with African-Americans being portrayed “‘jive’ crows in Dumbo, as human-wannabe orangutans in Jungle Book.” Why is it that when it comes to the portrayal of African-Americans, they seemingly play as characters who lack basic social skills and speak in broken English or slang words. The same can be seen in the way they portray Latino’s and Asian’s. In The Lady and the Tramp the Asian characters are seen as the Siamese cats (they have buck teeth, thick accent, slanted eyes, very cunning). The only Latino characters in the Disney world is, Tito, from Oliver and Company, and Toughy from Lady and the Tramp. Both were Chihuahua’s and were labeled as irresponsible characters. Tito can be seen in the movie as wanting to steal a car and take it for a spin. This is giving children a misrepresentation of what people from these backgrounds are like which only perpetuates the continuation of stereotypes.

The commercialization of a childhood

The last ideology that I will be discussing is how Disney has strategically positioned themselves as a company whose purpose is not to entertain children, but rather a company who seeks to present children with a fantasy world filled with characters, and then cash in on

Money Hungry Mickey

those characters. What children fail to realize is that when a new Disney film is presented to them they have now been targeted by Disney. I say they have been targeted because they are now viable consumers of a brand new Disney product and will be sought after. The films are merely being used as a vehicle to push through a wide array of products which range from plastic dolls, bed sheets, pajamas, t-shirts, lunch boxes, board games, video games, costumes, shoes, and the list continues on. You name it and it will be made into a Disney product. The ideology is that if you get the child attached to the film then they will want the costume, they will want the “actual” sword seen in the film, they will want the dress the princess wore, they will want whatever it is being sold to them because what Disney has been able to do is take away their ability to use their own imagination. The advertising that Disney does for these products has gotten to the point where they can’t not avoid it.

Final Thoughts…

So what does all this mean in terms of the bigger picture? Why did we just examine the Disney culture that, on the surface, appears to be harmless?

The answer is simple and straightforward. The reason why we looked at the ideologies embedded in the Disney culture is because, yes on the surface Disney is a seemingly harmless entity, but when looked at under a microscope, one begins to see some of the glaring issues that is associated with this company. The ideologies that were revealed here was that Disney has a skewed version of the world the surrounds them. They have a firm grip on their image and the power that they have over that image allows them to continue portray themselves in a positive way. They also have this obsession of sexualizing their female characters and continue to push a message to little girls that their body is an asset that they should use to get what they want, and that they should be reliant on men as their “saviors.” Up until 2009, Disney had never had a black character in any of their films and the princess’ were primarily white. The only roles that blacks had were as animals. This was also the case for Latino’s and Asian’s (until Mulan for Asian’s). Lastly one of the hidden ideologies that were embedded in the Disney culture is the commercialization of childhood. The films that they would release were merely seen as a way to push products onto generations of children.

This is important to look at because it allows the audience to see how exactly the media has been able to force their ideologies onto the mainstream culture, more importantly how they are subtly permeating these ideas into the minds of children.

Dexter: A Narrative Analysis

Dexter on Showtime

Dexter

Dexter is a television drama series that debuted on Showtime in October 2006, with its most recent series premiering in October 2011. The series focuses on Dexter Morgan (played by Michael C. Hall), a “bloodstain pattern analyst for the Miami Metro Police Department who moonlights as a serial killer.” The main premise of the series is that there is typically a serial killer who the Miami Metro Police Department are trying to catch. What Dexter usually does is that he tries to catch the killer before the Police do (even though he works for the Police Department), so that he can kill the killer. The way he justifies killing is that he only kills those who have killed others. So in many ways he is like a vigilante. His mother was murdered when he was three and it was after that that Miami police officer Harry Morgan and his wife Doris had adopted Dexter. As a child Dexter used to kill a multitude of neighborhood pets for several years. It was at that time that his father began to teach him “The Code.” It was here that Dexter was told that his victims must be “killers themselves who have killed someone without justifiable cause and will likely do so again.” He must also be absolutely sure that they are guilty. More importantly, Dexter must never get caught.  Despite all of this Dexter has successfully been able to present himself as “normal” and has been able to hide his dark secret from his adopted sister Debra Morgan.

The specific season that I will be analyzing is the most recent season, season 6. I will be using narrative analysis to break down this television series (more specifically Season 6) in hopes of opening the mind of the average viewer to a different way to look at the series characters and the roles that they play in the series. Before I go into detail I should define narrative analysis. According to the notes that I have taken in my media criticism class, narrative analysis is a “systematic study of texts and how they are structured into a cause-and-effect chain of events with a beginning, middle, and end.” By understanding the sequence of these events it helps reveal potential meaning embedded in texts.

I will be using Vladimir Propp’s “roles or spheres of action” to break down the sixth season of Dexter.

Season 6: Synopsis

As I break down Season 6 of Dexter I will be using Vladimir Propp’s “roles or spheres of action” and applying it to some of the central characters within the show. The question that I ask of the reader is, “why do we want to do a narrative analysis of Dexter?”. The answer to this question will come later on. But for now I will give a brief synopsis of the season before I break the show down; so if you follow the Dexter series and and have yet to see Season 6…

SPOILER ALERT!!!!
Stop reading now!!!

BUT for all intents and purposes I will assume that you have seen this season, you do follow Dexter, and that you don’t critically analyze television series for fun.

I digress….

So Season 6 starts out with a murder featuring strange religious symbolism that gets the attention of Miami Metro Homicide; the

Dexter Morgan

killers, as yet unknown to Miami Metro, are two men who seem to be a master and a student. The two men will eventually be labeled as DDK (Dooms Day Killers) and would later be identified as Professor James Gellar and his student Travis Marshall. Their main objective is to bring about the end of the world through killings based on the Book of Revelation. It is here where Dexter is led through his investigation to Travis Marshall. Upon first contact with Travis, Dexter is told that Professor Gellar has been forcing Travis to aide him in the killings. Dexter then decides to let Travis live and asks him to help him kill Professor Gellar. However, Gellar has been dead for years and has only existed in Travis’ mind. Dexter learns this and now marks Travis as public enemy number one. Dexter eventually captures Travis and kills him. However in the final scene Dexter is caught killing Travis by his sister, and the last words he says is “Oh my God.”

Season 6: The Breakdown

It is here where “the villian(s)” (according to Propp) begin to surface. They are described by Propp, as individuals who seek to disrupt the equilibrium and who struggle against the hero. It is safe to say that even though he does kill people, that Dexter is undoubtedly the hero. The hero is someone “who’s quest is to restore the equilibrium, often motivated by lack of something (money, love, respect, etc).”  For Dexter, his motivation is to simply rid the world of those who seek to destroy it.

One of Propp’s other roles, is “the donor.” He describes it as someone who gives the hero advice to help prepare the hero in his quest. In this season, the donor would be Brother Sam. Brother Sam was first introduced to Dexter because he was one of the potential suspects of the DDK case. Brother Sam was eventually dismissed as being a suspect but he would befriend Dexter. He presented Dexter with an alternative point of view on life and helps Dexter in becoming a better father to his son Harrison.

The “(magical) helper”, is someone who aids the hero in their quest for equilibrium. There are multiple “helpers” in the season due to the fact that most of the Miami Police Department is trying to catch DDK, but the one who directly tries to help Dexter, is his father Harry. Harry appear’s to Dexter as a “ghost” who comments on and gives advice on all the problems his son faces throughout the series.

The “princess” is someone who needs help, protecting and saving. The one who is in most need of protecting is Dexter’s adopted sister Debra. Although she is one of the most strong-willed characters in the show, she has a lot on her plate (especially this season). She was promoted to the role of Lieutenant at start of the season and was extremely stressed throughout the season. She began talking to a therapist at the police station and she revealed that she wanted Dexter to talk to her from time to time because he makes her feel safe and she looks up to him. It would later be revealed that she had hidden sexual feelings towards him.

The last one of Propp’s characters is “the false hero/anti-hero.” These are individuals who set out to undermine the hero’s quest by pretending to aid them. In this season, the false hero would be also be the villain. Travis Marshall who falsely tricked Dexter into thinking that he was a pawn in Gellar’s master plan to destroy the world had pretended to aid Dexter and would eventually try to kill him.

Why?  What does it all Mean?

I asked the question at the start of this, “why do we want to do a narrative analysis of Dexter?”

The answer is because it allows the audience to gain a better understanding of the show and the characters in the show. It is a way to really analyze the plot and all that it has to do with. When you do a narrative analysis you are able to identify who the key characters are in the series. You are able to see how the roles change as the series go on. It also allows the audience to better connect with the characters and understand who they are. Hopefully by pointing out the roles that each character plays in the series, you have gained a better understanding of who they are and will be able to watch the show with a new perspective.

 

Me and the Media: A critical analysis of the impact television has on society

About Me

My name is Trey Salas. I am 22 years old and a Senior at Towson University.  Before coming to Towson, I attended Howard Community College for 2 years. In my first semester here at Towson I decided to join a fraternity (Tau Kappa Epsilon) as a way to better immerse myself in the school as well as develop a network of friends.  This would become one of the main facets in life and it provided me with some of my closest friends as well as shape me into a better individual.  Although being in a fraternity is great, I had received multiple

My Fraternity/St. Jude's Event

opinions from family and friends.  In their eyes (friends and family), they thought that I had joined a frat and was now a stereotypical “frat boy” whose sole objective is to go out with his brothers, get hammered, and life a lifestyle that is filled with all sorts of debauchery. However, this was not the case. They overlooked the positive impact that Greek Life can have on the community (community service, raising thousands of dollars in philanthropy, campus cleanup, etc) and looked at it in the way Hollywood portrays it (see Animal House).

Aside from participating in Greek Life, I enjoy spending time with my wonderful girlfriend, going out with friends, going to movies, and in the summer, I love attending concerts. In my final year here at Towson I hope to finish strong and gain a better understanding of the Communications Studies major.

Media Criticism 101

The one class that I am taking during this minimester is Media Criticism. It is in this class where we will learn to look and the media and critically analyze it. Before I go any further, lets define media criticism.

Media Criticism:  A systematic process used to understand media texts as meaningful sociocultural symbolic forms and forces.

Essentially what this means is that it is a way for us to break down a media text and pinpoint the hidden messages and figure out how they impact our culture. We live in a society that is constantly fed messages from the media. This process is known as, “media saturation.” It is through media saturation that we (the general public) are told what is right and what is wrong. They tell us what is pretty and what is not. They are in many ways, the driving force for our culture. The constant bombarding of these messages have been placed in such a central position in our culture, that people have come to rely on it for their basic sense making and determining their roles within society.

Gucci Perfume Ad

One of the ways that we can critically analyze media messages is through the process of semiotics (Study of how social production of meaning is constructed through a system of signs). It is through semiotics that you are able to figure out what the media’s hidden messages are. An example of semiotics would be the Gucci ad for Guilty, one of their new women’s fragrances. In the image it shows a woman who is being caressed by a man while she is staring at the photograph. She is shown wearing a light pink lipstick and her facial expression has a look of desire and “guilt.” What the message is behind the ad, is that it if you buy this perfume it will make you desirable. It will allow you to indulge on those “guilty pleasures” and will ultimately make you feel more attractive to men. By looking at the semiotics of this message, you are no longer looking at a perfume ad, but you have critically analyzed it and looked at it for the deeper meanings associated with it.

 

Television Shows…A Critical Analysis

As I was writing this show I was thinking of a show that I would be able to critically analyze with ease. As I was thinking about shows, a commercial came on for the new season of Jersey Shore which debut’s tonight.

For those of you who have  not seen the show or heard about it, I will give a brief break down of what it is about. The premise of the show is a basic reality television show. The producers on MTV have thrown eight different people (although they are essentially the same people) into a house in Seaside Heights, New Jersey for a summer and followed them around with a camera crew. What do you get? Alcohol, no rules, partying, clubs, and sex all combine for a crazy show filled with drama.

When analyzing the show you begin to see who it is geared towards. Through the cultural diamond, you can find who the audience is as well as the cultural paradigm that the producers have tried to portray the characters as.

First let’s talk about the target audience that the show is geared towards.

The show mainly involves a lot of sex, alcohol, partying and fighting between roommates. So naturally it attracts the high school and college crowd. Why? Because both cultures involve partying, drinking, sex and fighting among peers.

The second critical analysis is the cultural paradigm that the cast members have been labeled as. They have been labeled as a set of “stereotypical, Jersey ‘Guidos’ ” who parade around Seaside Heights, New Jersey and wreak havoc. Now what I have come to notice is that when this show first debuted, the general public outside of Jersey began to associate all those from New Jersey to the cast members on the show. Essentially there was a paradigm shift and all those from Jersey were now assumed to be like those on the show. I would often times meet someone who say they are from Jersey which would then be followed with “but I’m nothing like the people on The Jersey Shore.” What the producers of the show were able to do was convince the general public (those outside the confines of New Jersey) that all people from Jersey were like that.

Final Thoughts…

So what does the future hold for me and media criticism? Well considering that this is my first blog I hopefully have been able to convey my particular point of views of how I view the media and I also hope to have demonstrated a basic understanding of media criticism. Throughout this course I hope to gain a better understanding of media criticism and apply the concepts to everyday happenings. 

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