Postmodern Theorists

Strinati Breakdown of distinction between culture and

society (mediaization) – art’s purpose used to be to reflect reality; now we refer to media texts to portray reality, emotions, truth

Confusion of time and space – instantaneity of travel, communication and media; content can become incoherent due to speed and ease

Decline of meta-narratives – universal ideas and ‘answers’ abandoned in favour of personal and individual ideas and opinion

Style at the expense of substance and content – culture places value on appearances over function; cult of celebrity; advertising wins over product quality

Breakdown of distinction between high art and pop culture – high art is no longer just for the elite but is being combined with pop culture to appeal to the masses; bricolage

Baudrillard Hyper-reality

The copy (or media representation of the original) is more real than the original and this fake is more readily accepted by society

Simulacrum (sg), simulacra (pl) These media representations are simulacra of

reality – a copy of an idea or concept that is more successful than the original

Within culture meaning is lost and all that is left is the surface representation.

Rejection of Truth universal ideas and ‘answers’ are not to be trusted.

Jameson

Historical deafness As mediaization increases so culture finds

itself losing a sense of historical context – we live in the ‘now’; instantaneity, there is nothing new just copies of copies of copies…..

Cultural depthlessness Meaning is lost and all that is left is surface

representation Everything is meaningless and just for

entertainment

Lyotard

Decline of grand-narratives There is no single truth, there are

multiple truths Interpretation of meaning lies with the

audience; not inherent in text or dictated by the author

This makes a postmodern society less stable than a modern society because grand-narratives are challenged and there is no single unifying truth; fragmented society.

Barthes (Semiotics)

The study of signs and symbols (denotative and connotative) Denotation (what it actually is) and

connotation (the associated meaning the audience attaches to the object)

Interpretation of meaning lies with the audience and depends on the experiences, interests, beliefs and culture they bring with them; multiple meanings

Goodwin Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics (may be

hybridised or subvert conventions) Relationship between lyrics and visuals (interpretation

may rely on audience knowledge, experience and culture) Relationship between music and visuals Demands of the record label will include the need for lots

of close-ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which occur across their work (cult of celebrity; self-reflexivity)

Frequent reference to the notion of looking, particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body (reflection of a postmodern society; style over substance, appearance over functionality, exterior valued over interior)

Intertextual references

Hall

Audience interpretation of media texts: Dominant reading ‘hegemonic’

Reader accepts and reproduces the preferred meaning of the texts

Negotiated reading Reader broadly accepts the preferred reading

but resists or modifies elements based on own experiences, interests or beliefs.

Oppositional reading (‘counter-hegemonic’) Reader understands the preferred reading but

rejects it

Parody vs Pastiche

Parody - A literary or artistic work that imitates the characteristic style of an author or a work for comic effect or ridicule.

Pastiche -A text that is made up of element borrowed from other texts.

Pastiche differs from parody in using imitation as a form of flattery rather than mockery, and from plagiarism in its lack of deceptive intent.

Foucault Panopitcalisation – gaining power

through watching We live in a society where we are

always being watched and want to be watched

We like watching other people

Self Reflective

To reflect and comment on society, attitudes, social practices, ways of doing things

Acknowledging the social/culture background in which the text is produced

Often making ‘fun’ of that context Can make serious comment on the issues

in society Talks about current issues Often negative

Self Aware

Drawing attention to the fact that it is a constructed text

Direct Address to camera Seeing the means of construction

(cameras, obtuse editing, jump cuts,) Characters drawing attention to plot

holes Referencing the media itself

Media Concepts Language - Attention is drawn to the

construction of the text Genre - Genre conventions are challenged,

subvert, adapted, Hybridity Representation - Audience expectations are

subverted/ challenged, New ‘stereotypes’ New Representations

Narrative - Break all the rules, Fragmentation, Non Linear, Open Ended, Multiple Lines of Action

Audience – Diverse, Fragmented, Active, like texts that challenge and don’t comfort.