The Issue Of Status

The aim of the session:

To explore the subject of status within a television drama extract; An episode of "The Street".

Semiotics

"The language of signs" The distinction between denotation (what's unveiled to you, what you can actually see) and connotation (what's implied with the sign, what associations we make with a certain image).

Denotation Babysitter Connotation Single mother, no "other half"

Denotation Wad of cash Connotation The woman has a night job, cash in hand work

Denotation Cold Shower Connotation Lack of money

Denotation The woman and her sons clothes Connotation Her class and financial situation, also her marital status.

Denotation The look of the woman, her pale skin & messy hair. Connotation She's tired and overworked; in the morning you should be "fresh"

Denotation The mess of her house, small rooms & dingy lights Connotation How much money she has.

What's the purpose of sound in media texts?

To add atmosphere and create a sense of realism; sounds can create natural or unnatural atmospheres and give the text a "normal" feel that we as the audience can relate too. Sound can be used to portray moods as well; loud heavy sounds for an angry mood for example. The use of silence can also be used to create tension and awkward situations.

Voice tones can be used to show mood and also class- accents can be used to show different levels of society.

Different types of sound:

Diagetic: Sound that comes from the world of the text itself(like from a radio or a DJ in a night club)

Non-diagetic: Sound that is added as an extra over the top of a scene; not contained in the scene, added at the editing level of the production, e.g a theme tune or music that's used to add mood such as music in an explosion scene.

Synchronised sound: When there is a match between the visual and a sound a track; an action on the screen being bought to life; for example if we see an explosion in an action we would get an appropriate sound such a big bangs.

Selective sound: Used to emphasis to particular moments of dialogue or certain features of the text; music, sound effect or particular parts of dialogue.

Another extract from The Street:

Diagetic

None

Non-diagetic

Opening credits theme tune- helps link the program and a noise

(Dull and ambient) Very average type of program; ordinary life.

Synchronised sound

Car door slamming

front door keys

rustling of money

Water in the shower

The woman's scream in the cold shower

Selective

The kids shoutings- creates stress and tension.

You hear certain phrases over the rest; picks out the most important lines.

How the issue of social status is represented:

Status shows power differences, people exerting control and people being more upper class than other; money.

Is there a sense of status in this clip:

The mother is clearly in control; she marches her children down the corridor

pulling them by their arms.The body language of the more powerful people in shows that their more powerful as their leaning in as if they're leaning in properly.The woman feels she has to prove herself to the board she explains every point that she is making. She has to plead to the people with power.Her pleads and sobs become her only key to trying to get what she wants. You can tell by the clothes the woman and her children are wearing that they are at a fancy school as the board are dressed very smartly. Just the look of the mother compared to the board show a clear class difference. The camera angle is pointing upwards at the board as if they are a lot more important than the woman and her children.

How sound contributes to the representation of status in the clip:

The silence of the waiting room creates tension and angst as to what is to come; there are only faint sounds of children in the background. The silence of the mother as well also shows that she is nervous as to whats to come, perhaps a meeting with important people. The car noises (selective sound) creates a sense of realism for the peace. The dialogue of the mother is quite energetic and desperate. The mother speaks very quickly and hurriedly; however the replies of the woman are very posh and very slowly spoken; as if she is higher class and not very concerned with the situation. The lack of non-diagetic music helps us to concentrate of the importance of what she's saying, however a very ambient song begins to play as the woman becomes more and more desperate; creating a sense of sadness and helplessness.

Discuss ways in which status is represented in the clip:

In this answer you must use:

• media vocabulary and terminology
• Discuss the types of sound by name
• The answer is detailed; mise en scene, camera work, editing.

Camera work:

Long shots are used to show the grandness of the school, this also applies inside the school, the large amount of detailed contained in the shot helps show the superiority of the school compared to the woman and her man. The use of close ups on the woman's face helps us to focus on her dialogue. When talking to the board the camera looks subtly down on the woman and slightly up to the board; this shows the different of class between the two. The use of camera angles slightly exaggerates the size of the woman and her children compared with the board, thus showing the status of the woman in proportion to the board.

Editing:

There's no use of extreme editing; all of the scenes have a natural, subtly transition, the use of out of focus helps us to concentrate on the most important elements of the scene; this could have been the editing or the initial camera work.

Mise en scene:

The costumes of the woman and her son as quite scruffy and unpleasant; this is very contrasting to the outfits worn by the board, they're dressed sharply and look "more important" purely because they look like they have spent time and money on their appearances. There has been little to no use of make up on the board; however it's a different situation for the mother and the son. There has been considerable amount of stage make-up used to create black eyes for both the mother and the son, this helps to emphasis the point the woman is making in order to get into the school; this make up helps to create the sense of realness in the scene. The positioning of the woman and her family compared to the board shows how authoritative the board are, they're sat directly in front of them on a large table, this could help show the over whelming sense of the board in ratio of the woman to the board. the woman is sitting close to her children to show her protective sense toward hers children. The lighting although natural is very dark and dingy; this could be a reflexion of the mood of the woman and also the unforgiving(dark) attitude of the board towards the woman; it helps set the unpleasant mood that the scene contains.

Sound:

The use of non-diagetic music in the final few lines of her dialogue helps emphasis her point and make her case seem even more desperate than she was before. However the lack of non-diagetic music through-out the majority of the piece makes sure that we are focusing on what the woman has to say and that we are not distracted. The use of synchronised sounds of cars in the background help to confirm it's a TV drama as it makes the piece more realistic. The use of silence in the waiting room helps to create the tension of what's to come; perhaps a confrontation or a nerve-raking situation. The dialogue of the mother

is quite energetic and desperate. The mother speaks very quickly and hurriedly; however the replies of the woman are very posh and very slowly spoken; as if she is higher class and not very concerned with the situation. Selective sound also helps create an atmosphere the word please is emphasised and repeated over and over.