Simran Chana and Annalee Neighbour will post a review of lecture 5 this week.
This Thursday Vikki Chalklin will be taking the session. She will talk about 'Consumption' and her lecture make will reference to John Storey's work on this subject.
I'd also like to remind you that she will need volunteers to review her session.
Richard
Monday 25 October 2010
Vicky Brien on Bend it Like Beckham
In our forth lecture we analysed the film Bend It Like Beckham and looked at how the film deals with issues of race, gender and identity, bringing in theories of hybridity, post – colonialism and the idea of the ‘third space’.
The film focuses on a British girl, Jess and her struggle to fulfil her ambition of being a professional footballer. We see her clash with her family, who represent a more traditional outlook. Jess’s character is very different and extremely unconventional compared to the rest of her family; we see how British culture has almost shaped her character and how her identity is ever changing throughout the film due to these influences.
The film explores this idea of cultural collision and how this creates a sense of double identity, or how Homi K. Bhabha calls – ‘Third Space’.
‘An ambivalent space of enunciation’ this idea explores how identity or culture is constantly being constructed therefore identity can never be fixed.
This is typical of the character Jess who, despite of her traditional upbringing insists on playing football and integrating more into British culture, where its seems that she is able to explore and enjoy her own identity more.
The character of Jess represents a more modern and perhaps positive outlook on identity, her character is willing to change and integrate with other cultures, whilst her family especially her parents seem more traditional and are un willing to break away from that tradition, in this sense we get an overview of ‘both sides’ of the family.
The film also focuses on the idea of gender and how it seems to be as transparent as identity. The character of jess and her friend Jules or Juliette challenges typical female stereotypes by playing football and dressing quite ‘boyish’, in contrast to Jess’s sister, who is very glamorous and quite traditional (we see her at the end of the film pregnant).
This type of film break’s away from the more traditional roles of femininity, such as housewife and mothers.
Overall the film has broken away from the more traditional British heritage films and created a new hybrid of films – Brasian (a mix of British and Asian) and focuses on more modern ideas of hybridity and cultural identity. This post-colonial film helps us analyse modern society and how culture and identity are ever changing and never fixed.
The film focuses on a British girl, Jess and her struggle to fulfil her ambition of being a professional footballer. We see her clash with her family, who represent a more traditional outlook. Jess’s character is very different and extremely unconventional compared to the rest of her family; we see how British culture has almost shaped her character and how her identity is ever changing throughout the film due to these influences.
The film explores this idea of cultural collision and how this creates a sense of double identity, or how Homi K. Bhabha calls – ‘Third Space’.
‘An ambivalent space of enunciation’ this idea explores how identity or culture is constantly being constructed therefore identity can never be fixed.
This is typical of the character Jess who, despite of her traditional upbringing insists on playing football and integrating more into British culture, where its seems that she is able to explore and enjoy her own identity more.
The character of Jess represents a more modern and perhaps positive outlook on identity, her character is willing to change and integrate with other cultures, whilst her family especially her parents seem more traditional and are un willing to break away from that tradition, in this sense we get an overview of ‘both sides’ of the family.
The film also focuses on the idea of gender and how it seems to be as transparent as identity. The character of jess and her friend Jules or Juliette challenges typical female stereotypes by playing football and dressing quite ‘boyish’, in contrast to Jess’s sister, who is very glamorous and quite traditional (we see her at the end of the film pregnant).
This type of film break’s away from the more traditional roles of femininity, such as housewife and mothers.
Overall the film has broken away from the more traditional British heritage films and created a new hybrid of films – Brasian (a mix of British and Asian) and focuses on more modern ideas of hybridity and cultural identity. This post-colonial film helps us analyse modern society and how culture and identity are ever changing and never fixed.
Thursday 21 October 2010
This week we look at the cultural effect the Beatles have had on British society. The key texts for this lecture are Adorno, Sandbrook and Storey. You all should have watched A Hard Day's Night and anaylised it in the context of two related themes: the 'Cultural Industry' and 'Consumption'. Both ideas that you will return to next week with guest lecturer Vikki Chalklin.
Richard
Richard
Sunday 17 October 2010
Martin McAnulty - Bend It Like Beckham
This week the lecture, in CU 200 Pop Culture, was analysing the movie Bend It Like Beckham, and looking at the theory of hybridity, post – colonization and gender. All these ideas link up with the definition of identity and how it has changed in relation to globalisation and post – modernism.
Bend It Like Beckham is a movie about a British Asian girl, called Jess, who dreams of playing football like her idol, David Beckham. However, her parents want her to go down the traditional path, which is to go to university. The movie is good at looking at the cultural collision between England and India.
The collision creates a double identity, or as Bhabha describes the ‘third space.’ This means that a person like Jess - born in Britain daughter of Asian immigrants – is not British or Asian alone, but a hybrid mix of these two cultures, thus, the creation of an identity, ‘Brasian.’
Also, in the movie Bend It Like Beckham traditional stereotypes of Britishness and gender were dismantled; the scenes where Jess and her sister go shopping in London, in an Asian immigrant district, the traditional Hindu wedding and the women playing football. All these scenes show that in a post – modern, post – colonial world, identity and culture are never static, but are constantly evolving over time.
Thursday 14 October 2010
Rachael penfold
Film and structuralism
Structuralism is a means of deconstructing texts. We do this by looking at linguistics, codes, and the meanings that derive from signs. We can only have signs when there are oppositional points of view, for instance, the red on a traffic light means nothing without the amber and the green.
Richard used the example of a cat, as a way of language relating to image. We understand the word cat and we understand it is an animal with four legs, whiskers and a tail, though the image conjured up by each person, the type of cat for instance, may vary from person to person.
Saussure explains this to be homogeneity and heterogeneity. ‘It is the Homogeneity of the structure that makes the heterogeneity of the performance possible’. (handout pg 74) When watching a film, language and image are the rules, the structure. Our own, heterogeneous, interpretations work with and inside those rules.
Post structuralism looks at the ‘gaps’ and the contradictions. This deconstruction is called Aporia.
Hollywood is the production line for high budget films, which in the nature of Americanization are publicised and made available to the rest of the world. During the seminar we were asked to decide on and feedback our favourite film, the majority of the class had chosen American films. This was just a small example of the impact America has on our culture and Britain.
Along these same lines, we spoke also of capitalism. These Hollywood films are funded by massive amounts of money. We could argue the transmission of certain ideologies, for instance, good overpowering evil, individualism prospering, i.e. happy endings is critical for the maintenance of a capitalist society. This type of story telling shapes our perception of what the world is like and keeps people from questioning the reality, because in front of us, on the big screen is ‘proof’ that this type of success is a reality and that it is possible for everybody.
Ghislaine Mann
Film and Cultural Studies – Lecture 3
In our third lecture of the course we looked at film and how it is analysed by structuralisms and post-structuralisms.
Structuralism (see Saussure and Levi-Strauss) tries to find meaning behind the texts in films, the way they are constructed and the rules they follow. We also looked at Will Wright’s theory of Hollywood Westerns. He stated that there are 16 ‘functions’ in most Westerns (e.g. the hero, the villain, the fight and the victory for the hero) that help the films to send out a message of Americas social attitudes and beliefs at the time.
Post-Structuralism aims to deconstruct the texts in the film and find the gaps between them. A good example of this is looking at soaps and how they are unrealistic because the characters don’t swear. Laura Mulvey’s theory of ‘visual pleasure’ is a good post-structural analysis of film. She argues that women in films are either objects of lust or a threat.
In the seminar we discussed our favourite films and what happened in them. We found that almost all of the Hollywood films still followed the same rules or ‘functions’ that Wrights Westerns in the 1930s-1970s did.
In our third lecture of the course we looked at film and how it is analysed by structuralisms and post-structuralisms.
Structuralism (see Saussure and Levi-Strauss) tries to find meaning behind the texts in films, the way they are constructed and the rules they follow. We also looked at Will Wright’s theory of Hollywood Westerns. He stated that there are 16 ‘functions’ in most Westerns (e.g. the hero, the villain, the fight and the victory for the hero) that help the films to send out a message of Americas social attitudes and beliefs at the time.
Post-Structuralism aims to deconstruct the texts in the film and find the gaps between them. A good example of this is looking at soaps and how they are unrealistic because the characters don’t swear. Laura Mulvey’s theory of ‘visual pleasure’ is a good post-structural analysis of film. She argues that women in films are either objects of lust or a threat.
In the seminar we discussed our favourite films and what happened in them. We found that almost all of the Hollywood films still followed the same rules or ‘functions’ that Wrights Westerns in the 1930s-1970s did.
Friday 8 October 2010
Lectures 1 -3
So far, the students have posted four 150 word reviews of weeks 1- 3(Amy de Castella, May Slingsby, Angela Warsnip and Grace Maclean). The topics posted have been: British Cultural Studies, Disney and the Post-Modern City and Structuralism and Film.
We have discussed the coherence between these topics. Week 1 traced how Brtish society has become increasing consumerist since the 1950s. Week 2 looked at the extent to which British cultural space, the cityscape, if you like, has been transformed by the hyppereal. In week three we discussed the semiotic codes which are the constituent parts of a film or visual text.
If any of the terminology is diificult from this lecture (week 3), I suggest you read the relevant chapter in John Storey.
Finally, if any students are having difficulty in posting, ask Damian O'Byrne in Room E122 to help.
Next week, Bend it like Beckham!So you already need to be thinking about issues such as gender, third space, British identity, Asian identity and hybrid identities. In the case of this film, 'Brasian identity.
See you next week,
Richard
We have discussed the coherence between these topics. Week 1 traced how Brtish society has become increasing consumerist since the 1950s. Week 2 looked at the extent to which British cultural space, the cityscape, if you like, has been transformed by the hyppereal. In week three we discussed the semiotic codes which are the constituent parts of a film or visual text.
If any of the terminology is diificult from this lecture (week 3), I suggest you read the relevant chapter in John Storey.
Finally, if any students are having difficulty in posting, ask Damian O'Byrne in Room E122 to help.
Next week, Bend it like Beckham!So you already need to be thinking about issues such as gender, third space, British identity, Asian identity and hybrid identities. In the case of this film, 'Brasian identity.
See you next week,
Richard
Thursday 7 October 2010
Lecture 2: Angela Warsnip
The Buying of the Post-Modern City, the Selling of Society
The idea of a perfect society or world in which to live is not a new one. This idea has been around for centuries and has probed the minds of many leading thinkers of their day. From Plato’s Republic to More’s Utopia the idea that life could be better has permeated throughout the ages and in 1955 the idea of a Utopian Society was brought to the real world by way of steel and concrete by the man who brought our childhood fairy tales to life, Walt Disney.
In 1955 Disney opened his first themed amusement park in Anaheim California. Disneyland was the first real concept of a post-modern city. Built upon illusion and turning the unreal into reality, Disney succeeded in creating a city in which you could visit with no crime or urban poverty. Disneyland was a place where for a short time you could live out your fantasies and purchase a piece of your dream to take home to your reality. The Happiest place on Earth was proposed to fail, however, within in its first five years made millions of dollars in profit. Happiness was now a commodity that could be bought and sold.
Seeing that research showed most of the visitors to Disneyland were from west of the Mississippi River (the Western half of the United States) and banking on the theory of purchased happiness Walt Disney began purchasing land in the State of Florida to create a bigger and better post-modern city and to entice visitors from the Eastern United States. In the early 1960’s the plans were set in motion for Disneyworld. Originally, Walt Disney wanted his planned city in Florida to be EPCOT, Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow and did not want to recreate Disneyland in Florida, however, with happiness selling at a good profit margins, the board of directors at Disney, raised objections and Walt Disney compromised and Disneyworld would open with the Magic Kingdom, a Disneyland theme park within Disneyworld. This would create a simulation of a hyper-real post-modern city within a planned Post-modern city,
Disney managed to purchase over 27,000 acres of land in two counties in Florida and through The Reedy Creek Improvement District, carries out most of its own municipal duties ( such as energy plants, EMS services etc..) and liaisons with the state of Florida. The State of Florida sensing the revenues that could be generated by such an endeavour from Disney agreed to the creation of The Reedy Creek Improvement District under Florida State Law. However, this is the real side of Disneyworld not the Hyper-Real that the public sees. Yet, although on some level, putting Disneyworld above the law, it serves a necessary purpose given the amount of land being used, permanent residents (workers, etc…), and visitors to the park each year, Disneyworld would need these municipal services to keep things running. It would also appear the State of Florida was one of the first to buy into the Disney commodity of happiness.
Disneyworld opened in 1967, however, Walt Disney would not be there to see his new city realised having passed away in 1966. EPCOT would never open as Walt Disney had envisioned. In 1982, the EPCOT themed park opened at Disneyworld. The architecture was experimental and the attraction itself so unreal it was real. Today EPCOT is not home to the 20,000 permanent residents Walt Disney had wanted living in a completely controlled environment with technology and modernism at its fingertips, instead it is, as mentioned a theme park to those ideas as well as a sanitized representation of 11 international cultures including Canada, Mexico, The United Kingdom and ironically, The United States.
With happiness now fully entrenched as a profitable commodity, the idea of hyper-real is moving out into the real world. The convenience of one stop shopping started on the Main Street at Disneyland has now spread worldwide. The concept of the Mall has now been embraced by most of the Western World ending such icons as the British High Street and gone are the five and ten stores that adorned American and Canadian Main Streets. All of our shopping is now neatly contained within one building and offers food choices in a food court from around the world. It is all neatly packaged and sanitized for the public to consume.
Although Disneyland and Disneyworld are fake, creations of man, the ideas of commodities, commercialism and capitalism have bled out into real cities. Visitors to New York City would not leave without their plastic Statue of Liberty or a ‘Big Apple’ T-Shirt. People visiting London absolutely need to purchase a Big Ben Clock for their mantel and stand in line just to get a glimpse of Harrods. The list is amazing for major cities around the world that have packaged themselves neatly for the tourist industry to consume.
Through franchise opportunities if you cannot get to the real attractions someone will inevitably open a shop or themed restaurant that a customer can visit to purchase their happiness. If you want to see the Rain Forest but cannot afford to visit South America, it’s alright because you can have lunch at the Rain Forest Café. Jimi Hendrix is passed on but his guitar is available to be seen at the Hard Rock Café. Elvis Presley was a large draw for record sales and shows during his lifetime, however, after his death his life has become hyper-real. “The King” is dead but long live the commodity that has become his legacy. People can tour his house (Graceland), buy a deep fried peanut butter and mayo sandwich from the food kiosk and purchase a replica of his toilet seat on their way out of Graceland.
It would seem life has become a catch phrase, and you can put anything on a t-shirt.
The idea of a perfect society or world in which to live is not a new one. This idea has been around for centuries and has probed the minds of many leading thinkers of their day. From Plato’s Republic to More’s Utopia the idea that life could be better has permeated throughout the ages and in 1955 the idea of a Utopian Society was brought to the real world by way of steel and concrete by the man who brought our childhood fairy tales to life, Walt Disney.
In 1955 Disney opened his first themed amusement park in Anaheim California. Disneyland was the first real concept of a post-modern city. Built upon illusion and turning the unreal into reality, Disney succeeded in creating a city in which you could visit with no crime or urban poverty. Disneyland was a place where for a short time you could live out your fantasies and purchase a piece of your dream to take home to your reality. The Happiest place on Earth was proposed to fail, however, within in its first five years made millions of dollars in profit. Happiness was now a commodity that could be bought and sold.
Seeing that research showed most of the visitors to Disneyland were from west of the Mississippi River (the Western half of the United States) and banking on the theory of purchased happiness Walt Disney began purchasing land in the State of Florida to create a bigger and better post-modern city and to entice visitors from the Eastern United States. In the early 1960’s the plans were set in motion for Disneyworld. Originally, Walt Disney wanted his planned city in Florida to be EPCOT, Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow and did not want to recreate Disneyland in Florida, however, with happiness selling at a good profit margins, the board of directors at Disney, raised objections and Walt Disney compromised and Disneyworld would open with the Magic Kingdom, a Disneyland theme park within Disneyworld. This would create a simulation of a hyper-real post-modern city within a planned Post-modern city,
Disney managed to purchase over 27,000 acres of land in two counties in Florida and through The Reedy Creek Improvement District, carries out most of its own municipal duties ( such as energy plants, EMS services etc..) and liaisons with the state of Florida. The State of Florida sensing the revenues that could be generated by such an endeavour from Disney agreed to the creation of The Reedy Creek Improvement District under Florida State Law. However, this is the real side of Disneyworld not the Hyper-Real that the public sees. Yet, although on some level, putting Disneyworld above the law, it serves a necessary purpose given the amount of land being used, permanent residents (workers, etc…), and visitors to the park each year, Disneyworld would need these municipal services to keep things running. It would also appear the State of Florida was one of the first to buy into the Disney commodity of happiness.
Disneyworld opened in 1967, however, Walt Disney would not be there to see his new city realised having passed away in 1966. EPCOT would never open as Walt Disney had envisioned. In 1982, the EPCOT themed park opened at Disneyworld. The architecture was experimental and the attraction itself so unreal it was real. Today EPCOT is not home to the 20,000 permanent residents Walt Disney had wanted living in a completely controlled environment with technology and modernism at its fingertips, instead it is, as mentioned a theme park to those ideas as well as a sanitized representation of 11 international cultures including Canada, Mexico, The United Kingdom and ironically, The United States.
With happiness now fully entrenched as a profitable commodity, the idea of hyper-real is moving out into the real world. The convenience of one stop shopping started on the Main Street at Disneyland has now spread worldwide. The concept of the Mall has now been embraced by most of the Western World ending such icons as the British High Street and gone are the five and ten stores that adorned American and Canadian Main Streets. All of our shopping is now neatly contained within one building and offers food choices in a food court from around the world. It is all neatly packaged and sanitized for the public to consume.
Although Disneyland and Disneyworld are fake, creations of man, the ideas of commodities, commercialism and capitalism have bled out into real cities. Visitors to New York City would not leave without their plastic Statue of Liberty or a ‘Big Apple’ T-Shirt. People visiting London absolutely need to purchase a Big Ben Clock for their mantel and stand in line just to get a glimpse of Harrods. The list is amazing for major cities around the world that have packaged themselves neatly for the tourist industry to consume.
Through franchise opportunities if you cannot get to the real attractions someone will inevitably open a shop or themed restaurant that a customer can visit to purchase their happiness. If you want to see the Rain Forest but cannot afford to visit South America, it’s alright because you can have lunch at the Rain Forest Café. Jimi Hendrix is passed on but his guitar is available to be seen at the Hard Rock Café. Elvis Presley was a large draw for record sales and shows during his lifetime, however, after his death his life has become hyper-real. “The King” is dead but long live the commodity that has become his legacy. People can tour his house (Graceland), buy a deep fried peanut butter and mayo sandwich from the food kiosk and purchase a replica of his toilet seat on their way out of Graceland.
It would seem life has become a catch phrase, and you can put anything on a t-shirt.
Tuesday 5 October 2010
Disneyland the father of the Post-Modern City
July 1955 saw the birth of Disneyland California, and thus the birth of the tourist industry. Walt Disney created this artificial world, which generated the Post-Modern City. This hyper-reality, or simulation of the real, blurs the line which divides what is real and what is fake. Disneyland is a hyper-reality because it is an exaggerated idea of the real world.
The Post-Modern City 'draws on the tendencies of consumer culture which favour the aestheticization of life'. This simulation of the real is emphasised by Disneyland's political influence, for example, having its' own city council and police force, and the fact that Walt Disney himself has almost complete control over the property.
Disneyland is a prime example of globalisation and Americanisation, which has ultimately influenced the outside world. It is suggested that the impact of Disney, has caused the rest of the world to become standardized and trivial, perhaps even sentimental and simple.
So whilst Disneyland forms the basis of the Post-Modern City, it is ultimately just a PR campaign for America.
The Post-Modern City 'draws on the tendencies of consumer culture which favour the aestheticization of life'. This simulation of the real is emphasised by Disneyland's political influence, for example, having its' own city council and police force, and the fact that Walt Disney himself has almost complete control over the property.
Disneyland is a prime example of globalisation and Americanisation, which has ultimately influenced the outside world. It is suggested that the impact of Disney, has caused the rest of the world to become standardized and trivial, perhaps even sentimental and simple.
So whilst Disneyland forms the basis of the Post-Modern City, it is ultimately just a PR campaign for America.
Lecture 1
Amy De Castella and May Slingsby have each posted a 150 word review of the first lecture. Next Grace Maclean and Angela Warship will review lecture 2.
British Culture Studies
In our first lesson of popular culture we were introduced to the course. In this course we will discuss British identity and how the USA has influenced British pop culture.
We discussed the year of 1956 and how it was a year of turmoil; this was the first year of pop culture. It saw Britain become second class to the US. We discussed the Suez crisis and how America stormed in and told Britain to withdraw from the Suez Canal. This resulted in a division in Britain; many believed it was the end of the British Empire. This also resulted in America infiltrating Britain’s culture, along with many other countries.
Everything was affected by this huge shift, many immigrants began to filter in to Britain, this influenced many things, for example, in 1951 there were only eleven restaurants outside of London that sold foreign food, after 1956 this all changed. Televisions became popular in the early 1950’s and many American programmes began appearing on ITV. Later BBC joined in. Consumerism rose, washing machines became widely available, however many people believed that consumerism lowered the standards of Britain. The founding fathers of ‘pop culture’ Richard Hoggart and Raymond Williams disliked pop culture very much and felt that Britain’s standards were never the same. The year of 1956 changed Britain forever, in good ways and bad.
We discussed the year of 1956 and how it was a year of turmoil; this was the first year of pop culture. It saw Britain become second class to the US. We discussed the Suez crisis and how America stormed in and told Britain to withdraw from the Suez Canal. This resulted in a division in Britain; many believed it was the end of the British Empire. This also resulted in America infiltrating Britain’s culture, along with many other countries.
Everything was affected by this huge shift, many immigrants began to filter in to Britain, this influenced many things, for example, in 1951 there were only eleven restaurants outside of London that sold foreign food, after 1956 this all changed. Televisions became popular in the early 1950’s and many American programmes began appearing on ITV. Later BBC joined in. Consumerism rose, washing machines became widely available, however many people believed that consumerism lowered the standards of Britain. The founding fathers of ‘pop culture’ Richard Hoggart and Raymond Williams disliked pop culture very much and felt that Britain’s standards were never the same. The year of 1956 changed Britain forever, in good ways and bad.
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