Revision Lessons - Representations in Magazines

• binary opposition between homeless woman and model
• neither model is hegemonically attractive
• strongly fluid representation of gender is constructed through the mise-een-scene of the highly androgynous representation of an alternative and striking fashion model
• this striking representation is both anchored and further constructed through the mise-en-scene of the hand being placed over the mouth of the model, constructing a powerful symbolic code, and suggesting a masculine mode of address
• challenging conventional representations of femininity, this representation constructs a highly performative representation that breaks down what it means to be a man or woman
• this constructs the ideology that gender is not fixed identity and reflects the idea that we live in a complex world
• the striking and andrygynous model constructs a binary opposition with the hegemonically unattractive homeless woman on the other side of the spread
• her representation is constructed through the combination of childlike clothing and the mise-en-scene of the individual sitting on a grate in the middle of a busy street
• directly addressing the audience, and clutching an empty cup of coffee, this atypical representation of women reflects the unconventional ideologies of the magazine, and exists to elicit sympathy, and draw attention to a complex and particularly problematic representation
• the lexis of the article directly situated to the right of the model suggests the fear of starvation
• however, the article explicitly refers to climate change and not explicitly the issue of homelessness in large American
• through the combination of these seemingly unrelated elements, a complicated narrative and set of representations addresses the educated target audience who are expected to absorb these complex representations and put them all together in a complex act of negotiation
• the producers of adbusters therefore argue that the representations of gender, social issues and inequality are all related, and to understand one of them requires understanding to understand all of them
• this highly complicated mode of address clearly targets a more educated target audience

• woman (1964) creates a binary opposition between the position of women and the way they are represented in this magazine
• women are more powerful than men- standing on his head - smiling as if its nothing
• a binary opposition is constructed between the challenging representation of women in the article, and the hegemonic norms and expectations of women living in the 1960s
• this potentially feminist perspective perspective may be able to help the magazine stand out from its immediate competitors (e.g Woman's Own magazine) and may also hope to influence the ideology of the target audience in subtle yet progressive ways
• however, this representation of feminism is simple, straightforward and unlikely to cause a revolution
• the main image features the surprising mise-en-scene of a woman standing on top of a man
• however, even this image is encoded in such a way so as not to incite revolution
• the dress code of the man formal, and presents him in a position of power, even though he is being trodden underfoot
• his facial expression connotes annoyance, and his pose with his feet outstretched connotes femininity, which presents a humorous mode of address to the target audience
• additionally, the woman treading gently on the man's head is both happy and hegemonically attractive, creating an intertextual reference to the conventions of the contemporary sitcom
• while the image can be negotiated as being revolutionary, it is far more likely that the preferred reading is that the situation is ridiculous and humorous
• additionally, the main image takes on fetishistic quality, and presents an exciting and alluring mode of address to the working class middle aged target female audience
• the persuasuve lexis of "keep it under your hat" creates a mocking and conspiratorial mode of address, that suggests that in order to have power over men, women are able to indirectly influence their significant other, through the selection of costumes, purchasing items such as ties and hats, and reinforces the patriarchal hegemonic ideology that women are only able to control a small part of their lives
• the satirical overtone of the article makes fun of the idea of feminism and women's liberation
• woman stepping on mans head shows he is more powerful than him
• Stuart Hall
• binary opposition between expected power and women
• men are in suits - power
• mise-en-scene and lexis
• feminism
• bell hooks
• Liesbet Van  Zoonen
• fetishism with the woman's bare foot
• Stuart Hall - Reception Theory - how are men and women represented?

To what extent are the choices made by the producers reflected in the representations in the magazine you have studied? (30 marks)

Representations refers to the re-presentation of a person, object, place or thing. This is how they are presented in a way to convey the ideologies of the producer. Representations are a reconstruction of reality, and can both shape the world and manipulate audiences to believe the ideological perspective of the producer. Additionally, representations cause stereotypes to form, which are used to help audiences understand media products, yet always are harmful, and reflect imbalances of power (Hall). In this essay, I shall argue that representations are a way producers of both magazines reinforce their ideologies to their audience, in order to influence their mindset through the use of often manipulative interpretations of representations.