Task 5: Hyperality

'The Gaze' -key words

Different forms of 'the gaze'
• the spectator’s gaze: the gaze of the viewer at an image of a person (or animal, or object) in the text;
• the intra-diegetic gaze: a gaze of one depicted person at another (or at an animal or an object) within the world of the text (typically depicted in filmic and televisual media by a subjective ‘point-of-view shot’);
• the direct [or extra-diegetic] address to the viewer: the gaze of a person (or quasi-human being) depicted in the text looking ‘out of the frame’ as if at the viewer, with associated gestures and postures (in some genres, direct address is studiously avoided);
• the look of the camera - the way that the camera itself appears to look at the people (or animals or objects) depicted; less metaphorically, the gaze of the film-maker or photographer.
• the gaze of a bystander - outside the world of the text, the gaze of another individual in the viewer’s social world catching the latter in the act of viewing - this can be highly charged, e.g. where the text is erotic (Willemen 1992);
• the averted gaze - a depicted person’s noticeable avoidance of the gaze of another, or of the camera lens or artist (and thus of the viewer) - this may involve looking up, looking down or looking away (Dyer 1982);
• the gaze of an audience within the text - certain kinds of popular televisual texts (such as game shows) often include shots of an audience watching those performing in the 'text within a text';
• the editorial gaze - 'the whole institutional process by which some portion of the photographer's gaze is chosen for use and emphasis' (Lutz & Collins 1994, 368).

Task 2 continued ...women wanting to be beautiful

When looking at popular music videos for the popular culture task 2 i came across this video by Pink and it linked so well with the seminar on 'the gaze' taunting girls that strived to be beautiful like the women we see in magazines. Pink tries to be a good role model for young girls and has taken this issue on within her song, although the song is quite light-hearted it is there to target these young girls effected by the gaze in society and teach them that they should not strive for beauty, that they should make the most of their personality and intelligence and it will make them a stronger individual.

Lecture 4. Communication Theory

 

Portfolio Task 2- On Popular Music

In Theodor W Adorno's article 'On Popular Music' he demonstrates his strong Marxist view of popular music, dividing music into two spheres popular and serious music. Adorno's theory is that Classical music follows no set rules therefor we have to fully engage with it where as Popular music follows a rigid set of rules, this in turn means that the music is pre-digested for us and is easy to listen to, it takes no understanding or engagement, it is there to entertain. Adorno says 'the whole structure of popular music is standardized, even where the attempt is made to circumvent standardization' this term refers to the technical structure of the song as well as its subject matter and he explains that even when music tries to avoid these rules it will still 'lead back to the same familiar experience'.

Adorno claims that popular music produces passitivity through rythmic and emotional adjustments, these are two types of mass behaviour that are created in response to popular music. In ballads we emotionally connect with the music, 'they consume music in order to be allowed to weep' we feel a connection as it lulls us into a false state of conciousness an ideological tool to control the way we think. Where as in dance music we obediently respond to the music as it controls the way we move our body, moving to the beat of the music it effects us all in the same way.

In todays society although we have a lot of mass produced music and world known popstars covering the news and magazines i think we also have a lot of music that cannot be standardised and tries to break away from the rules, it is only when other bands create similar music that this is again standardised. This happens a lot when labels sign similar bands, bands that they know you will like and listen to as they follow the same rules therefore becoming easily listened to.

I have chosen two different artists of the modern age to represent popular music and serious music..



I have chosen a song by the 'Battles' to try to show a band that isn't Standardized and doesn't conform to any rules, also it doesn't appear to control our behaviour in a certain way. We have to actively engage with the music, it makes us think and we react in different ways.



A Battles collaboration with celebrated light artists UVA (United Visual Artists), produced by Warp Films (This Is England, Rubber Johnny, Dead Mans Shoes etc.).




Key quotes:


'The whole structure of popular music is standardized, even where the attempt is made to circumvent standardization. Standardization extends from the most general features to the most specific ones. Best known is the rule that the chorus consists of thirty two bars and that the range is limited to one octave and one note.'


'The general types of hits are also standardized: not only the dance types, the rigidity of whose pattern is understood, but also the "characters" such as mother songs, home songs, nonsense or "novelty" songs, pseudo-nursery rhymes, laments for a lost girl.'


'This inexorable device guarantees that regardless of what aberrations occur, the hit will lead back to the same familiar experience, and nothing fundamentally novel will be introduced.'

Seminar 2. Critical Positions on the Media and Popular Culture

Lecture 3. Film Theory, 'The Gaze' & Psychoanalysis

Portfolio Task 1. Panopticism

Choose an example of one aspect of contemporary culture that is, in your opinion, panoptic. Write an explanation of this, in approximately 200-300 words, employing key Foucauldian language, such as 'Docile Bodies' or 'self-regulation, and using not less than 5 quotes from the text 'Panopticism' in Thomas, J. (2000) 'Reading Images', NY, Palgrave McMillan.

‘who take pleasure in spying and punishing’ (Foucault, 1977)

"collection of separated individualities" (Foucault, 1977 p65)

"a state of conscious and permanent visibility that assures the automatic functioning of power" (Foucault, 1977 p65)

"never know weather he is being looked at at any one moment, but he must be sure that he may always be so" (Foucault, 1977 p65)

"judge at a glance, without anything being concelaed" (Foucault, 1977 p67) 

"power situation of which they are themselves the bearer" (Foucault, 1977 p65).

“The plague that gave rise to disciplinary projects” (Foucault in Thomas, J, 2000: 62)

“Two ways of exercising power over men, of controlling their relations, of separating out their dangerous mixtures” (Foucault in Thomas, J, 2000: 62)

“He is seen, but he does not see; he is the object of information, never a subject in communication” (Foucault in Thomas, J, 2000: 65)

“This surveillance is based upon a system of permanent registration” (Foucault in Thomas, J, 2000: 61)

"It does not matter what motive animates him” (Foucault in Thomas, J, 2000: 66)         

French philosopher Michel Foucault developed the social theory Panoptiscm which is a disciplinary technique used in society which demonstrates the relationship between power, knowledge and the body. Panoptiscm is used within everyday society as a way to control us, it is all around us from security surveillance cameras to television, gyms and lecture theaters.

The social network site 'Facebook' is a key example of panoptiscm in our modern society

We allow ourselves to be watched by all through using this networking site, it is a "power situation of which they are themselves the bearer" (Foucault, 1977 p65) we are constantly reminded how visible we are on Facebook yet few choose to apply privacy methods to our profile we have to question how private can this be on the world wide web? The fact that all photographs uploaded to 'Facebook' become their property and are copyrighted by Facebook, our personal pictures now belong to a huge corporation. Even if the account is deactivated, Facebook store all your information so you can restore your account. 


Our profile exists of information which we choose to show, although we are asked for an amount of information before we set up an account and we are suggested certain information categories to be shown publicly such as location, job, email and phone number aswell as our relationship status and interests. This is ‘strict spatial positioning’ (Foucault, 1977) as everyone has the same template profile and space on the internet. This access to our information turns us into docile bodies where we obiede to Facebook and they develop our digital character,  we are infact releasing information that can be intercepted by anyone and is used by Facebook for money making advertising purposes. Facebook direct ads to us depending on our interests, age, location etc so we can be controlled into the exposure of certain products which in turn has power over our bodies.

Everytime we log into our Facebook account it is recorded, we are monitoring ourselves and each other, we share information about what we are doing right now and there is a new function that can allows you to show people constantly where we are at any given moment “This surveillance is based upon a system of permanent registration” (Foucault in Thomas, J, 2000: 61) The technology is increasing as Facebook has now become an app which can be used via smart phones, this has increased the surveillance so now we are visible everywhere. It stops being something we engage in at home for a source of communication and now has the ability of being a surveyor of our every move.

As Foucalt says ‘who take pleasure in spying and punishing’ (Foucault, 1977). What are these docile bodies that we have become that spend hours searching for people and spying into their lives, comparing our friend list and events which facebook encourages us to do, constantly updating and sharing information, it becomes the norm and we stop questioning our actions. Those embarassing photographs from a night out that you would choose not to share have been exposed to millions of people, not only friends but potential colleagues and could get in the hands of the wrong people and can have negative effects on society, after all we cannot trust that everyone using Facebook has good intentions.

Seminar 1. Suveillance & Society

Lecture 2. Critical Positions on the Media and Popular Culture

Lecture 1. Surveillance & Society