In the Van Zoonen book I found the chapter on dramatization in politics to be very fascinating. Of most interest were the plots presented.Van Zoonen presents us with the quest, bureaucracy, conspiracy and soap. I find it fascinating to examine the intermingling of thses plots to paint a political picture.
This chapter begs the question of whether art imitates life or if life imitates art.
Starting with the quest as defined by Zoonen as a candidate fighting odds and overcoming in a race to the finish. This seems to be a linear plot focusing on over coming odds and working.
This clip speaks to Obama on the campain trail, and how he’s there for the people. It also speaks to him working on a grass roots level on the campaign, and trying to achieve his goals. The quest is “built on this populist tradition, with ‘the people’ figuring prominently to authenticate the quest of the hero, who is portrayed as ‘the outsider, the man of the people, renewing American ideals and metaphorically brining Washington practice in line with the classical form…’” (p. 111). Clealy this video shows Obama as the man of the people promoting the ideology of Americans coming together.
Far less idealistic in nature is the plot of bureaucracy. Bureaucracy as stated by Van Zoonen is “politics to be a strange disconnected field at best, or a quagmire of calculation, manipulation, and dishonesty at worst” (112). Futurama from Fox makes light of yet shows our overall discontent with bureaucracy.
This clip from “Futurama” sums up some of the angers of bureaucracy. It shows the bureaucracy as a nameless faceless organization against which its hard to fight. This clip represents some of the anxieties of Americans against bureaucracy. Additionally, this episode ends with Hermes, the bureaucrat of our little protagonist bunch helping to win and fight for the good and just cause. Fox not only addresses bureaucracy, they address conspiracy.
One doesn’t have to watch too many episodes of King of the Hill to know that Hank Hill’s neighbor is all about conspiracy theories. He is oober paranoid. In this clip Bobby (Hank’s son) becomes caught up in believing one of Dale’s conspiracy theories and gets paranoid.
Dale often speaks of large bureaucratic agencies in secret working on strange plots. Clearly, this is reflective of conspiracy presented in Van Zoonen.
Lastly we can see politics presented as soap, or highly dramatized. I think a fantastic example of this is what we talked about with Sarah Palin, and her political journey constantly being compared to a soap opera. Matt Damon weighs in on Palin, and compares her journey to stereotypical Hollywood plots.
Also, in this clip we can see her life being compared to drama.
We can see Palin fighting back, but this is presented in a soap-like manner.
Clearly from real life examples and from entertainment we can see the validity of of Van Zoonen’s concepts of dramatization in politics. i feel that there is also a great deal of validity to what we spoke about regarding women in politics.
Had Palin not been a woman, I don't feel her home life situation would have been a widely broadcast. In addition, we can see from the Matt Damon clip him focusing in on her as a woman. He speaks to the fact that her campaign is playing out like a "Disney movie" and continues to speak to the fact that she's a small town mom. His statement is loaded with anti-feminist language.
Van Zoonen makes several good points regarding politics, and the plots we can see present in politics. I have given examples of quest, bureaucracy, conspiracy and soap. I hope we all follow Bobby Hill's advice of being vigilant when we consume media. Moreover I hope we can all use these themes to be critical thinkers when evaluating news and other media sources.
Friday, May 8, 2009
Feminism on Television
During the semester we’ve talked about feminism and its presence in movies. I think feminism is fascinating to explore especially in terms of the feminist movement of the 1970s and 1980s. We talked about feminism largely in terms of film, but I would like to take a deeper in-depth look at feminist themes found in television. I will be using themes of feminism found in “America on Film” as a framework for my discussion, and illustrate how the themes aren’t limited to film, but can also be applied to television.
Many shows in the 1970s were to a large degree classified by theme. I feel that the largest start of women’s television was with Maude, starring one of my favorite actresses, Bea Arthur. According to imdb.com, Maude debuted in September of 1972, and was a spin off of “All in the Family”. The show revolves around Maude Findlay and her outspokenness. She is always at odds with her husband, Walter who is politically conservative.
The show even starts with a showcase of great women and their impact on the world. Here is the opening theme:
This ideal is hyperbolized by "Family Guy" as they take the theme song and extend it to include other famous women.
I find this to be somewhat of a masculinist rebuttal to Maude, and the show's popularity. More than the in the opening theme of the show, the actual content and some of the episodes were highly controversial and arguably very pro-feminist.
A key episode in the show was where Maude is considering getting an abortion.
Through this little clip we can see strong feminist values. In statements like "we are free" we can see ideals presented. The episode also speaks to women’s liberation, and some of the issues feminists were facing. Maude was supportive of abortion, but it’s different because she wasn’t pregnant at the time.
We can also see some of the advent of the sensitive man when we examine the following clip. The sensitive man is in touch with his feelings (Benshoff & Griffin, 2009). Walter has just lost his wife, and is highly emotional. Often times according to Benshoff & Griffin (2009) this emotional man is highlighted or explored by the “demonizing the new woman” (p. 283). In this clip we can see a demonization of Maude, and Vivian by their lack of respect for the dead, and accomplishing their end goal regardless of morals.
Feminist themes continued when Maude gets promoted. She becomes the manager of the office, and we can see feminist issues present here. The episode speaks to women’s pay, and how much more women make than men. Maude expressed anxiety over being “Just a woman in a man’s world”. Clearly, this illustrates the divide of womeon in the home, and women in the working world. Also, Arthur doesn’t understand why Maude is so nervous about the job because she has a husband. This statement reiterates the white patriarchal ideology that feminists were worried about.
Lastly, while I was watching these clips, and brushing up on my Maude, I found it interesting that these actors have worked so much together in the past, and in similar feminist veins.
Bea Arthur, Rue McLanahan, and Betty White were all feminist pioneers in one way or another. They have all worked together on sitcoms. Most famously in “The Golden Girls” but also in “Maude” and “Mama’s Family”. These shows and the fantastic ladies made great strides in the feminist movement.
All of these shows present feminist values in a way to make them somewhat more digestible for general audiences. I’d like to examine a few clips from “The Golden Girls” in closing.
Clearly from this clip we can see several stories of femininity being told. First, we can see the theme of women helping each other and causing each other to aspire to new levels though the story that Dorothy tells about her teacher helping her, and inspiring her to become a teacher.
We also can see the prevalence of women in the workforce, and the breaking of the glass ceiling by Blanche perusing her degree for a promotion at work.
Lastly, we can see the issue of sexual harassment as something that women are still fighting. In the end of the episode Blanche focuses her energies and gets an A on her exam. Clearly, the theme that women will prevail is prevalent. It also speaks to the fact that the woman who got cosmetic surgery ultimately gets promoted over Blanche. The statement Blanche makes about looks fading, but she will always have her education reinforces positive feminist values sought by young women in the 1980s.
Many shows in the 1970s were to a large degree classified by theme. I feel that the largest start of women’s television was with Maude, starring one of my favorite actresses, Bea Arthur. According to imdb.com, Maude debuted in September of 1972, and was a spin off of “All in the Family”. The show revolves around Maude Findlay and her outspokenness. She is always at odds with her husband, Walter who is politically conservative.
The show even starts with a showcase of great women and their impact on the world. Here is the opening theme:
This ideal is hyperbolized by "Family Guy" as they take the theme song and extend it to include other famous women.
I find this to be somewhat of a masculinist rebuttal to Maude, and the show's popularity. More than the in the opening theme of the show, the actual content and some of the episodes were highly controversial and arguably very pro-feminist.
A key episode in the show was where Maude is considering getting an abortion.
Through this little clip we can see strong feminist values. In statements like "we are free" we can see ideals presented. The episode also speaks to women’s liberation, and some of the issues feminists were facing. Maude was supportive of abortion, but it’s different because she wasn’t pregnant at the time.
We can also see some of the advent of the sensitive man when we examine the following clip. The sensitive man is in touch with his feelings (Benshoff & Griffin, 2009). Walter has just lost his wife, and is highly emotional. Often times according to Benshoff & Griffin (2009) this emotional man is highlighted or explored by the “demonizing the new woman” (p. 283). In this clip we can see a demonization of Maude, and Vivian by their lack of respect for the dead, and accomplishing their end goal regardless of morals.
Feminist themes continued when Maude gets promoted. She becomes the manager of the office, and we can see feminist issues present here. The episode speaks to women’s pay, and how much more women make than men. Maude expressed anxiety over being “Just a woman in a man’s world”. Clearly, this illustrates the divide of womeon in the home, and women in the working world. Also, Arthur doesn’t understand why Maude is so nervous about the job because she has a husband. This statement reiterates the white patriarchal ideology that feminists were worried about.
Lastly, while I was watching these clips, and brushing up on my Maude, I found it interesting that these actors have worked so much together in the past, and in similar feminist veins.
Bea Arthur, Rue McLanahan, and Betty White were all feminist pioneers in one way or another. They have all worked together on sitcoms. Most famously in “The Golden Girls” but also in “Maude” and “Mama’s Family”. These shows and the fantastic ladies made great strides in the feminist movement.
All of these shows present feminist values in a way to make them somewhat more digestible for general audiences. I’d like to examine a few clips from “The Golden Girls” in closing.
Clearly from this clip we can see several stories of femininity being told. First, we can see the theme of women helping each other and causing each other to aspire to new levels though the story that Dorothy tells about her teacher helping her, and inspiring her to become a teacher.
We also can see the prevalence of women in the workforce, and the breaking of the glass ceiling by Blanche perusing her degree for a promotion at work.
Lastly, we can see the issue of sexual harassment as something that women are still fighting. In the end of the episode Blanche focuses her energies and gets an A on her exam. Clearly, the theme that women will prevail is prevalent. It also speaks to the fact that the woman who got cosmetic surgery ultimately gets promoted over Blanche. The statement Blanche makes about looks fading, but she will always have her education reinforces positive feminist values sought by young women in the 1980s.
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