Step 1: Choose your figure or character from the list below:●An immigrant parent●An athlete of color●A sex worker●teenage girl “delinquent”
Step 2: Select two media texts of the same kind(e.g.two films, two television shows, two ads,two video games, two documentaries, etc.) and analyze how this figure is represented in each.
Step 3: The paper is to draw a conclusion about the dominant forms of representation for your chosen figure or character. What are the main narratives, signs, or settings associated with them? Why have these become attached to the figure?What are some general implications that these characteristics mayconnoteto audiences? To answer this you need to consider the formaland production elements.
1.Attend to the media’sformal elements(editing, framing,lighting…). Refer to the Amy Villarejo reading for how to address these elements.Consider also the signs used and themeanings they convey.
2.Describe the context of production. Who produced this media text: a corporation, agovernment agency, an NGO, a community of individuals,etc.? Explain what you see astheproducers’ aimsin depicting this figure or character.Are they furthering a cause,selling a product, trying to be entertaining? Evaluate whether or not these aims are met,and why.
