Thursday, 9 December 2010
Monday, 6 December 2010
'The Gaze' -key words
- 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).
Different forms of 'the gaze'
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.
Thursday, 25 November 2010
Monday, 22 November 2010
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.'
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.'
Thursday, 18 November 2010
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