Personal Identity- Benefits Street

People might watch a text such as Benefits Street because it relates to them in a way. People who would be in similar circumstances might end up watching the TV shows to see how others in the same situation as them are being portrayed by the media. Furthermore this would fall under personal identity because people would want to see how other people in the same country as them live their lives, as the TV show was set in UK.

Some people might have taken the preferred reading to this show as they would've agreed with the way the people in Benefits Street were being portrayed and they probably wouldn't be in the same situation as the people on Benefits Street. People who would have stereotyped people the same way as the producers of this show would have accepted what they were seeing and these views would've made people on the show seem lazy and opportunistic.

People who would've taken a negotiated reading to this might be people who sympathised with the people in Benefits Street. They might have only agreed with parts of the text or they wouldn't have been watching the show to decode the message behind it, they might just be watching the show as they would have come across it.
The oppositional reading would have been people who are in the same position as the people in Benefits Street. They might watch this show and disagree with the text completely, they might argue that what is shown by the producers isn't necessarily what they go through and they might even say that parts of the text has been constructed to negatively present people on Benefits.

Adam Curtis: Bitter Lake

In the opening frame of the movie, the first thing that we see is an establishing shot which shows the setting which is quiet dark and gloomy, this suggests that the movie will be some kind of a thriller or horror movie as the opening shot has connotations that support this.

In the second frame of the movie we see a long shot, which helps to convey the environment that the movie is set in. Furthermore this frame uses natural lighting to help make the long shot more authentic. This type of camera shot helps us see where the movie might be set and it also changes the genre of the film from being a horror/thriller to more of an adventure type of movie or even a documentary. Additionally the mise en scene helps to she that the genre of the movie might be a adventure genre as the see a lot of very scenic features such as mountains, desserts and shrubs. Also other conventions such as the camera shots being taken from a car help to show how this movie may be seen as an adventure type of movie.

There is another frame in the movie were we see the se of a two shot. This helps to convey the relationship between the two characters between the people in the specific frame, from what we see it shows that we might see a king/queen and from this frame the audience might decode that these two people are happy as we see them smiling and interacting in a friendly manner. Additionally the use of the clothing mise en scene gave me the impression that they were royalty as they are seen wearing clothing that looks prestigious. This camera shot also helps to convey the man as an alpha male. This is as we see him him in clothing that .has connotations of power and leadership, this use of mise on scene helps to solidify that representation as an important person would have to wear clothes like this to help them look a certain way. Also the use of the rich colours such as white and gold help to show that the man in the frame is an alpha male and that the lady he is with is being represented in a domesticated role, this is because of the mise en scene that we see such as her clothing which helps her look just as important as the man but not as empowered and the facial expressions that she has.



Further into the movie we see the use of a mid shot. This would have to done to show the people in the movie and the ways that they are interacting in the environment that they are in and it helps us get an idea of how that person can be represented in the movie. For example in this specific frame we see a man walking with a crowd behind him and it looks like he has security and another person showing him around, which suggests that this person is a man of importance and he's being represented as an alpha male. This is because of the way he is walking in an established manner and because of the mise en scene like the security and the barrier the separates him from the other people, which empowers him and makes him look like a man of great importance.

American Apparel

In the American Apparel advert, the women are extremely objectified by the producers.For example in one of their adverts for bodysuits and socks, they have got the model in very suggestive poses. Furthermore they the camera shots that they use for these are extreme close ups, which they would have done to only show certain body parts for the purposes of objectification and pleasing the male audience.
Also these adverts include women who are young, slim and conform to the idea of beauty. This is a negative representation as they are choosing to represent women in a way that they really aren't and it also put pressures on to other women that this is how they should look. The American Apparel advertisers would have done this so that they can get their ideology across to people about what they think women should be seen, and how they want them to

look if they are to be buying their products.
Additionally the advertisers use certain conventions codes such as the girl being suggestive whilst on a bed, which gives sexual connotations. Once again the producers would have done this to satisfy the male gaze and as you can see in the picture, we don't see the models face we just see sexualised body parts such as legs, bum and the torso.
Also the way that the model has been made to position her arms has sexual connotations that would have been done for the male audience, she's grabbing her legs and putting her arms between her legs in a suggestive manner.
I think that this advert would have been targeted  towards young women who are looking to get the attention of males

This Girl Can Campaign

In the This Girl Can campaign, the women featured in this are represented in a positive way. This advert was made for the purpose of encouraging more women to participate in sport and as we can see in the first 20 seconds of the advert, they aren't discriminating the sport that they want people to play. For example we see a women putting a mouth guard and she's wearing hand wrap and she's in a boxing ring. This type of mise en scene would suggest that she is about to participate in boxing and this help to empower women and get the message across that 'This Girl Can' as women aren't usually associated with the sport.
Throughout the campaign video we see the use of extreme close up shots a lot. This would have been done by the producers of the campaign to help intensify the message behind the campaign, accompanied by the diversity that we see in the advert we get the idea that this campaign is for all kinds of women who are looking to try and join in with sports. Also the use of these extreme close ups show us the facial expressions of these women, and they look like they are having fun but at the same time they look tired as they are getting stuck in with whatever activity they are doing in the particular scene that we see. Furthermore the use of Missy Elliot's music helps to support the message that this campaign isn't about how you look, but rather about participating and being with others.
The producers also use other little conventions like the messages to accompany the sport that sends a message to help and encourage others and break the stereotype.