Lesson notes.
The downfall of Mulvey's theory:
- Mulvey's theory is based around women being objectified by men, however it does not take into consideration the feelings of the women involved. Especially within the music industry we see women being sexualised but does that mean they don't want to be?
- In many cases women in media such as film and the music industry are not necessarily being objectified as women often feel empowered being seen as desirable.
- Furthermore men are also sexualised in media such as adverts, film and music videos. Mulvey's theory only refers to women being objectified.
Richard Dyer's Star Theory:
- Richard Dyer's theory states that all stars, celebrities and individuals in the public eye are not the individual personalities that they appear but are instead the production of the institutions they represent. I.E. Lady Gaga seen as a very quirky and individual singer but is she really? If you traced her rise to fame did she start off as this weird pop icon, or was her existing quirky character emphasized to increase publicity and therefore profitability for the institution she represents.
"People are not real, they are a creation of an institution to make money. They, pop stars, are produced to fulfill the desires of their audience."
His theory is separated into three sections:
- Audience and institution
- Construction
- Hegemony (Cultural Beliefs)
"Stars are commodities produced by institutions"
"A Star is a constructed image, represented across a range of media and medium"
"Stars represent and embody certain ideologies and beliefs within the culture of which they are associated"
Audience and Institution:
Stars are made to make money done to be consumed by the popular audience. The institution modifies a Stars image to conform to popular belief. They build Stars for what they think the audience wants, they're looking for the full package.
Construction:
The Star is built for an audience and is not an actual person, a persona is created for the audience to identify with and an audience can differentiate between different Stars and why we like them. I short the Star is simply the face on the box, nothing more. I know it sounds dark but the easiest way to explain this is to assume all celebrities are nothing more than hollow constructs.
Hegemony:
Leadership and dominance over a social group, this can be in positive or negative ways e.g. we try to build social constructs to support this belief and Stars help us do this, they appear as the constantly adapting figure heads of ideology and style upon which we base our outward perception of our peers.
"People are not real, they are a creation of an institution to make money. They, pop stars, are produced to fulfill the desires of their audience."
His theory is separated into three sections:
- Audience and institution
- Construction
- Hegemony (Cultural Beliefs)
"Stars are commodities produced by institutions"
"A Star is a constructed image, represented across a range of media and medium"
"Stars represent and embody certain ideologies and beliefs within the culture of which they are associated"
Audience and Institution:
Stars are made to make money done to be consumed by the popular audience. The institution modifies a Stars image to conform to popular belief. They build Stars for what they think the audience wants, they're looking for the full package.
Construction:
The Star is built for an audience and is not an actual person, a persona is created for the audience to identify with and an audience can differentiate between different Stars and why we like them. I short the Star is simply the face on the box, nothing more. I know it sounds dark but the easiest way to explain this is to assume all celebrities are nothing more than hollow constructs.
Hegemony:
Leadership and dominance over a social group, this can be in positive or negative ways e.g. we try to build social constructs to support this belief and Stars help us do this, they appear as the constantly adapting figure heads of ideology and style upon which we base our outward perception of our peers.
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