Laura Mulvey essay

Laura Mulvey essay 

In Christina Aguilera's video of "dirty" the use of the camera invites sexual glaze by the angles in which the camera is showing christina, The camera is focused on Christina Aguilera's lips as soon as the music video starts this shows that women are presented as objects of desire to the people watching the video. Furthermore the camera is focusing on her performing in a boxing ring against another girl while she is doing this she is being spectated by men some in and around the ring.
 
   The audience views this video in a voyeuristic way because The music video actor (Christina Aguilera) is shown an object of desire for example dressing very exposed and showing a lot of flesh. The audience of the video watches with a desire, because the video girl is presented in a sexual way. The video girls most of the time is wearing either a bikini or underwear. Even when the video girl may be wearing full clothing she will still be surrounded by men.

   The actors interact in a way that results in the female being looked at as an object of desire. This occurs when in the Christina Aguilera video she  is surrounded by other men and when she is dancing for them like a piece of meat that has no personality but everyone wants.

   In jessie J's video of "do it like a dude"the use of the camera invites sexual gaze by showing the women are in control and dominating the men and as the video starts the camera is zoomed in on Jessie J's lips. However this video tries to challenge the typical stereotype of a music video by showing the women are like men and are being very aggressive and in control.

   The audience views this video in a voyeuristic way because in the first few seconds of the Jessie J video there are short clips of women kissing each other and a women is standing topless this may convince Men or even women to watch the video.

   The actors interact in a way that result in the female being looked at as an object of desire. This occurs when in the Jessie J video she is pouting and also shows a lot of her lips and seductive movement. This is clearly trying to drag the audience in and see her as an object of desire.

   The target audience for these two artists is young females.  However, the way they represent themselves as sexual objects does not appeal to young girls, it appeals more to men.  I believe Christina Aguilera and Jesse J choose to represent themselves like this because they would like to gain attention from the male audience and possibly wish young girls watching would see them as role models and someone to look up to when genuinely it should be the opposite of that. Representing themselves as objects of desire the audience can see however they may not see there input like that at all so possibly they don't wish to present themselves like this.

   In summary, Laura Mulvey’s theory applies to these music videos because she argues women are presented as objects of desire and it is obvious that in Christina Aguilera's this is present for example wearing revealing clothing, seducing the other male cast and also posing sexually to the camera. Furthermore it is also present in Jessie J's video that women are presented as objects of desire for example when Jessie J is seductively bitting her lip in the first few seconds of the video and also posing sexually and kissing with other female actors in the video. All these thing present to the audience that these women are there to have sex with and thats almost it. There is no feelings or caring in the emotions of the desired audience.

Questions to apply to my cover

Questions to apply 
1. On my magazine cover i have used a celebrity on the cover in this case Taylor Swift. I have done this to possibly show my audience that if they use the tips from my magazine they could look like her. Furthermore i have used direct mode of address to show my audience that they could look like a model/celebrity.
2. My magazine has a symmetrical balance making it sophisticated and making the audience feel possibly more grown up and adult like. The colour of my cover is mainly pink and white aiming it at a female audience. Furthermore the language I use in my magazine cover is quite genuine towards the audience possibly giving them a feel that they know the author in some kind of way tempting them to purchase the magazine. Furthermore the text I use is quite element and almost posh however also bold so the cover lines and title is clear to the audience so they can see it and decide if they want to purchase it.

3. My magazine may be seen as quite a feminine magazine due to the colours and use of speech e.g. "New summer looks for you". Furthermore the colour being used are pink purple and white. The celebrity on the front taylor swift isn't pouting or sexually posing to the camera suggesting the magazine is just focusing on women's clothes and looks rather than a sexuall magazine such as nuts.

Lifestyle magazine colour connotations

This magazine cover features a brown backround. This may represent that the magazine isn't aimed at a certain audience and also it makes the cover look more professional and adult like. The title 'Gloria' is in yellow text balancing against the brown backround. The cover lines on the front of the cover are talking about things such as healt fashion etc this may suggest the magazine is about looks. Furthermore the model on the front of the magazine is looking directly at the camera almost if she is looking at the buyer possibly intriguing them to purchase the magazine.

This magazine has a pig background. The background starts of with light pink at the top and as it goes down it gets darker. This may suggest the magazine is aimed at women.The cover lines on the magazine are mainly about looks suggesting the magazine is baised on fashion further increasing the possibility of the magazine being aimed at women. Furthermore the celebrity Adele is wearing a blue flowery dress balancing the tone of the pink background.

This magazine has colours such as vibrant pinks bright yellows and a purple backround these colour may suggest the magazine in aimed at women. Furthermore the cover lines on the magazine cover are talking about things such as clothes sex etc. The model on the cover of the magazine is looking at the camera making it look as if she is looking at her audience this may suggest the magazine is aimed at them therefore they are entreged to buy it.

AMBER

This is a good start and you have the basics here. However, this does not have a huge amount of detail and you will need to explain your answer more.

10 Magazine Titles and cover lines

10 Magazine Titles and cover lines

Summer new looks for you


Next years summer styles for you


New holiday styles for you

Top new fragrances



summer glamour


lose 10lbs quick and easy

Exclusive interview with kim kardashian



over 100 top looks

style tips from Cheryl Cole


Fresh winter looks for you

Lifestyle front covers

Lifestyle front covers
The layout of this magazine gives the audience a very clear idea in what the magazine has inside. The cover has some large and bold text to show the audience its important for example it says Fun,Style and sex and underneath the titles it has small stories such as 'Do your own thing and look amazing' The magazine also has a lot of purple and yellow colours. The language on the cover of the magazine is very direct and commanding. The celebrity(Anne Hathaway)on the cover of the magazine may convince some women that they should look glamorous like her on the front and convince them the magazine will help them do so.


The Layout of this magazine is quite similar to The glamour magazine however the colours are very different as they are red and some yellow colours of text. These colours are not bright or glamorous maybe representing that it is a mens magazine. The celebrity on the front cover has a six pack and huge muscles suggesting that maybe if you get this magazine you could turn out like this. The subtitles on the front of this magazine also suggest this, for example one of the subtitles talks about building a beach body.

This magazine is aimed for a women audience as it has light feminine colours such as turquoise and vibrant pinks. The cover lines on the magazine cover also have directive speech for example 'feel good you' this suggest further the magazine is drawing in its audience. Furthermore the celebrity on the front cover in this case Kylie minough is very glamorous and presented as perfect suggesting to its audience that they can look like her.

Balance in design and layout

Balance in design and layout

This magazine shows good symmetrical balance in the design it shows this because the celebrity cheryl cole is in the centre of the magazine cover and the text is symmetrical.









This magazine shows good colour balance in colour because the white on the celebrity and the black background balance each other. Also the pink hair is on each side of the cover balances each other.

This magazine shows good texture balance as it has the details of the cross hatching merging into the character on the front. The background also shows the texture more clearly and makes it look a lot more detailed.

This magazine shows good balance in eye direction. The star on the front cover is still in the middle of the cover however it is very unusual that he isnt looking directly at the camera. Furthermore it looks as if he is looking at the title of the magazine.








This magazine shows good asymmetrical balance is shape because the celebrity on the cover e.g. Oprah Has her hair also spread out. This balances the plain backround of the magazine.

AMBER

This is a good start and you have the basics here. However, this does not have a huge amount of detail and you will need to explain your answer more. It also needs to be finished...

Introduction to lifestyle magazines 
The contents in the magazine are talking about typical gossip, Health, sex, Fashion and life. For example one of the stories on the cover is about what you will be wearing next summer. The content on the magazine deals with peoples health for example It speaks about immaculate complexion. It also talks about life for example it talks about a women and her daughter growing up together. It talks about fashion also for example there is a story about what you will be wearing next summer. This could tell us that the magazine is directed at middle aged women as they are interested in fashion and there is a picture of a women above the story possibly presenting the clothes.

     This magazine is for middle aged women and possibly women who are interested in celebrities lives and general gossip. Also the magazine could be aimed at people looking for advice on how they want to look for example in the magazine it talks about how to have the perfect complexion. The magazine also May interest some elderly people however they may only look a specific sections such as the celebrity gossip or maybe even health.

     The people who buy this magazine may benefit from entertaining themselves for example they could find a interest in reading about celebrity gossip and their lives. Furthermore some people may be looking for advice in how to loose weight or what fashion to wear. However some people may just want to look at life advice for example one of the stories in the magazine is talking about 10 ways to get happy

Unapologetic-Rihanna

On this album cover the artist Rihanna is standing naked and looking towards the camera in a seductive way. Furthermore she has tattoos along he chest with one that looks like angel wings possibly meaning she wants to be classed as an angel or is religious.

The Beginning-Black eyed peas

On this album cover there is pixelated versions of the artists. This may suggest that the album is very game like or almost electronic.
Furthermore as the album is called the beginning this may tell us that this is there first album that will set of their careers.

Born this way- Lady Gaga 

This album cover suggests that lady gaga is like a motor bike as her head is attached to the handle bars. However as the album is called born this way above the picture of her head on a bike this may suggest no matter what your born like you can still be a pop star.

Jessie J- Jessie J

On this album cover the artist Jessie J has her face against the camera maybe suggesting she is important and wanted to be seen. Furthermore her name is on the front of the cover in gold coloured writing suggesting she is rich and again important.

Britney Spears-Britney Spears

On this album cover the artist Britney Spears is seductively looking at the camera and also very close to it maybe suggesting her importance. Furthermore her name is written on the cover in neon writing and has a neon heart behind it suggesting she is loved by everyone.

Iron Maiden- The trooper
On this album cover their is a soldier in battle walking with his country's flag this could suggest this album is very loyal and respected. Furthermore the cover is very gory this could suggest the album is aggressive or maybe rock themed.








Professor Green- At your inconvenience
On this album cover the artist Professor Green is sitting on a chair amongst other chairs alone this may suggest he is lonely and he has no one. Also in the room there is a lot of empty glasses of alcohol this could suggest he maybe an alcoholic.















Tinie Tempah- Discovery
On this album cover the artist tinie tempeh is a giant and holding a city in his hand like god. This may suggest he is god like and has lots of respect and authority. Furthermore he is wearing lots of expensive jewellery suggesting he is rich and classy.









50 Cent- Before I self destruct
On this album cover the artist 50 Cent is sitting down and has lots of jewellery like a chain, watches and rings. This may suggest he is classy and has a lot of money. Furthermore he has a tattoo maybe suggesting he is classy and rich again.










Pink- Greatest hits
On this album cover the artist pink is in the background behind big bold writing suggesting maybe she is less important. Furthermore she is biting a chain meaning maybe she is strong a relentless.

Positives/negatives

Katy Perry's Firework (positive): 

I think Katy Perry's firework is posotive as she doesn't show much of her body in the video and is mainly wearing a dress. She also doesn't act seductive or sexual in the way that a stereo typical music video girl would normally e.g wearing seductive clothing.


Britney Spears' Toxic (Negative):

I think Britney Spears' video is negative because she is showing a lot of her body and acting very sexual to the men on the plane in the video. Furthermore she acts the same way as the stereotype of a music video girl,for example She is wearing very revealing clothes, she acts very seductive and sexual etc.



Katy Perry's California Gurls (Negative)

I think Katy Perry's California girls is negative because for the whole video there is nearly always a women in a bikini. Also Snoop Dogg is acting like a player of a game in control of the women's every move. This also may refer to the men being in control of the women and what they wear and how they act.

Grading

1/12

D2

What you have here is solid and it has potential, you have picked your examples well. 

T: What you must do now is develop your points and fully explain them using multiple specific examples. Pick out all of the technical aspects (Mise-en-scene, editing, lyrics etc)

Photoshop task 2

Slice tool

The slice tool allows you to divide an image into smaller sections which fit together like a jigsaw (but with straight edges). The slice tool is located in the top section of the Photoshop toolbar.There are two tools: Slice (which creates the slices) and Slice Select (which enables you to select and modify existing slices).

• Select the slice tool in the toolbox.
• Click and drag over the area you wish to make into a slice.
• Release the mouse button - Photoshop automatically creates the necessary number of slices, with the active slice highlighted.
• Using the slice select tool, you can move and resize slices by dragging inside a slice, or by dragging the handles.

Grading


1/12

AMBER

This isn't really finished and you don't really explain how you perform a task here.


T: Please finish this task fully explaining how you use the tool using step by step images.

Representations of women in rap videos

In rap videos women are presented as nobodies and just sexual playthings or eye candy. Women are presented in a way that they aren't people you would get to know but people you would use for sex. Due to this use of eye candy the video captures a lot more male viewers as they are looking to see the women dancing in bikinis or even half dressed. Women are also presented as being sexually attractive for example in candy shop (by 50 cent) one of the women are seducing 50 cent and wearing hardly any clothes while he is wearing big coats/jackets while leaning on his expensive car with his mansion in the background. These rap videos give young men the impression that it is ok to treat women like they are in the videos and use them for sex.

These images are shown in numerous other types of media like magazines, films, advertisements and television. However music videos are the only type were women are presented in a way that there only used as sexual objects.

A sample of sixty-two videos from 1984 showed, that 60% included "some portrayal of sexual feelings or impulses". The most sex-appealing videos of that year included "Legs" by ZZ Top and "Physical" by Olivia Newton-John. In 1990, suggestive sexual activity like pelvic thrusts, long lip licking or stroking, was present in 89% of MTV videos.

The 1996 research showed, that the hip-hop and R&B were greatest in the sexual variables. In further analysis, videos that mixed hip-hop and R&B displayed sexual content the most frequently, followed by hip-hop itself and R&B itself. The diverse content may occur within the one video, like in Faith Hill's "The Way You Love Me", where she portrayed a waitress, a dominatrix and a nurse.

A survey found that 72.2% of black, 68.0% of white, and 69.2% of Hispanic youths agree with the suggestion that rap music videos contain 'too many' references to sex.

Grading

1/12

B3

What you have here is very good and you have responded well to the question, even posing your own questions. You have used examples solidly. 

T: Try to use more examples and key terminology (see VCOP Blog). Pick out all of the technical aspects (Mise-en-scene, editing, lyrics etc) and how they help you come to your conclusions.