Q9

Does the representation of your group vary in texts from different cultures and from different institutions in different countries (do they perhaps offer an alternative or oppositional representation)? If so why may this be the case? If not, why not?

Q8

Now consider the issues of consumption by an audience and production (e.g. supply and demand). Other than political reasons, why might it be that such representations exist?

Q7

How might the target audience respond to and or be affected by the representation of your group/place in your chosen texts?

Four lions

Traitor

My Name Is Khan

Q6

Who are the primary target audience for each of your three media texts and how do you know?

Four lions
15-25 Male and Female

Traitor


My Name Is Khan
12-35

Q5

Consider if your group of people have always been represented in the same way or has it changed over time? Give a full detail including a timeline and accounting for why it may have changed over time.

Q4

Is there evidence of any alternative representations of this group of people/place in the media, perhaps in different genres? If not, why do you think this is the case?

Comedic characters -
Four lions - Waj- Stupid/slow - 'I'm not confused brother! I just took picture of my face, and it's deffo not my confused face.'
Fessel- dopey/clumsy - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08QE9zR5wUQ

Majority construct muslims as terrorists as the growning terror attacks taking place over the world have been aclaimed by muslim extremists. However to add, the news potrays muslims within a negative representation which then gives society the idea that muslims are radicalised and have issues with the western world.

Q3

What other reasons might there be for why your group of people/ place is represented the way it is? Consider the role of politics and the media e.g. hegemonic structures and why it might be in the interests of the media/ hegemonic society to represent them/ it in this way.

islamic extremists
- osama bin laden
- sadam hussain

9/11

7/7

al-qeeda

Q2

What institution(s) is/are responsible for the production of your media texts? Consider both the production company (and channel of the broadcast if on the TV) and explore how this may affect the representations in the texts.


Four Lions
Film 4 Productions - Film4 Productions is a British film production company owned by Channel 4. Channel 4 being a terrestrial channel which is available to all TV owners and follow traditional and patriarchal views and values. The company has been responsible for backing a large number of films made in the United Kingdom.

My name is Khan
Fox Searchlight Pictures - Part of the major company 20th Century Fox, Fox Searchlight Pictures specializes in independent and British films. Being a american organisation Fox Search light takes a different perspective upon views and values compared to the UK.

Q1

How is your Group of people/ place represented typically in the media? Use detailed examples from your primary sources. Explore specifically how the representations are constructed.

The general representation of muslims within films are as terrorists/extremists who have disagreements with western traditions and values. This is reinforced by such characters:

Four Lions:
Waj- 'we'll blow something up'
Omar - 'What we gonna blow up waj?'
Barry - 'Yeah! Bomb the mosque, radicalise the moderates, bring it all on.'
Fessal - 'My plan is, right, to put a bomb on a crow and fly it into one of them towers full of Jews and slags.'
Hassan -'Let's blow up a load of fit slags at the marathon, yeah?'

My name is Khan:
Rizwan- 'My name is Khan, and I am not a terrorist.'

Traitor:
Samir: 'oh I'm a terrorist'

Case study

A study of the representation of muslims in contemporary flims.

Reason
After 9/11 representations of Muslims have changed.
Also the recent emergence of Muslim extremists plots.

Texts

Four lions - 2010
Traitor - 2008
The Kingdom - 2007
My name is Khan - 2010

Theorists

David Gauntlet
Stuart Hall
Theodor Adorno

Alternative representation

In general, the Hip Hop genre has a distinctive image where females in the hip hop videos are represented stereotypically as sex objects wearing skimpy dresses and showcasing flesh for the pleasure of the male gaze. They are further represented as weak and vulnerable while being under the power of men, therefore, they are depicted as the subordinate sex. Meanwhile, men in the Hip Hop videos are depicted as the superior sex and they are represented as aggressive, powerful and dictator's of women. However, the Hip hop video of Eve and Gwen Stefani (Let me blow ya mind) challenges these stereotypical gender roles within Hip Hop video’s in a number of ways to reveal alternative representations of male and female roles in Hip Hop genre.

The video begins with mug shots of Eve and Gwen, which has connotations of crime, trouble and resistance towards authorities that is normally associated with young male rappers, and is a total reversal of gender roles and an alternative representation of women in comparison to other Hip Hop videos. Furthermore, Eve is featured riding a quad bike sitting in a poised posture and wearing a leather jacket with tattoos of tiger paws revelled on her chest which all foreshadows an intimidating masculine gangster image and connotes power and superiority to challenge the male gangster role often featured in Hip Hop videos.
Where usually men are seen as the rappers in Hip Hop genre, the Eve featuring Gwen video challenges this stereotype to show Eve rapping throughout the video taking the male role. Moreover, she is seen riding a quad bike while being accompanied by a gang of female riders impersonating Ruff Ryder’s, a well known group of black male rappers who come across aggressive and as the stereotypical male hip hop rapper.

In the video, Eve and Gwen are shown to gate crash a high society party on their quad bikes causing affray which contrasts the gentle female image in Hip Hop as females are mostly seen as sex objects being caressed and hovering around intimidating dominant male rapper figures. In the video Eve is featured sitting on a bar bench position higher than two male figures on either side of her which shows her position to be higher than the males pictured alongside her and this also challenges the hierarchy of Hip Hop as females are always looked down on to as inferior sex objects.




In some way the video has created an alternative stereotype for females, a countertype. This can be connoted from the use of props, lighting, shots and costumes. The clothing gives the impression of a more male influence with leather jackets which are normally worn by bikers of male gender this connotes change of roles, where the females are more dominant and have equal power to what men are normally given. Also looking at costumes, within the scenes of the ballroom once Eve has enter and started rebelling it shows the females in classy formal clothing where as compared to the stereotypical representation where they are given clothing of short and skin tight clothing such as skirts and bikinis.