https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5F-cqQ1Uwk
Sexuality can be represented in this extract form The Street through editing, cinematography, mise-en-scene and sound.
An editing technique used to represent sexuality was the slow motion camera shot and distorted musical editing after one of the gay men were mugged. This editing was used to bring about a point of view experience of the mans condition after being hit and mugged soon afterwards. This represented the gay person being mugged as weak and vulnerable since he was in a servier condition after being hit.
Cinematography was also used to represent sexuality such as the high angle shot of the two main characters near the bar. This high angle camera shot could be decoded by the audience as making the two gay characters as weak since the dangle showed them as smaller figures. However this decoding is contradicted by the low angle camera shot of the man dancing above which empowered him since he was viewed at a low angle.
The mise-en-scene used also represented the gay men as a stereo and counter stereotype. The dancing man with fake tan in the night club would be the general representation of a gay person since he is viewed as promiscuous and feminine. Branston and Staffords theory from 2001 is applied to this since this theory suggests that soaps such as this one rely on stereotype and archetypes to create their show. However the counter stereotype of both of the gay men are that they were dressed in working class clothing as demolition men. Demolition man are generally viewed upon as strong masculine males. Therefore the gay counter stereotype plays a role since demolition men are not generally viewed as gay.
Sound is also used to represent sexuality such as the dialogue used from the mugger. He called the man a "Dirty shit bastard" which represents the gay man as vulnerable since he did not retaliate after being called that. Branston and Staffords theory could be applied here since gay men are generally viewed as girly. Therefore having this girly trait could suggest vulnerability. This would then be the stereotype used for this theory. Another example of sound would be the dialogue after having "No police involved". This also represents the gay sexuality as having weak confidence since the man mugged did not want to revile his sexuality to other people.
I think a good assessment but not sufficiently detailed the text has several examples of stereotypical and counter stereotypical references to sexuality.
ReplyDeletee.g. first establishing shots (mid shots) mise-en-cene building site (male culture) costumes regular building gear stereotypical male representation followed by fancy a drink in a pub - again masculine stereotype. Enigma protagonist (fancy a drink out on my terms) indicating that something beyond the norm will unfold. Followed by close up shots of a "gay night club" showing male figures half naked with images of dancing torso's... the dis-embodying of the torso is linked to Mulvey's objectification except rather than female it is a tom of male objectification and shows how male homosexuals are stereotypically represented as being linked to sexual behaviour... There is a cutaway to a wide shot of the nightclub where the film editing shows several quick cuts of male customers (actors), some who are embracing each other and others who appear to be in drag outfits. This representation is linked to the stereotype of homosexuals as being represented as effeminate... the (mise-en-scene) low lighting atmosphere with the use of red-lights combined with the rhythms dancing (sound) of pop music is indicative through the semantic code (Barthes) of sexual activity within the club area... The diegetic sound of the protagonists discussing "he fancies you", "very funny" implies a narrative that this is a location where gay men "can pick each other up.
this short explanation is provided to help you to understand how you will need to evaluate the media texts in more detail...