Second year TV mini-mock: Exploring theory and practising exam technique

While you definitely will not be able to include all nineteen theories across the two exams (and should not!), you still need to know all nineteen theoretical frameworks in detail. Each and every one could be important for a particular question. But even more pressingly, in component two, it is very likely that a theorist will be quotes and you will be asked to evaluate the theory.

Please follow the steps below to complete this task:

1: Pick one of the below questions. 

They're all tough,  but remember, the examiner is more interested in how you respond to the question than anything else.

Jean Baudrillard suggested that “We live in a world where there is more and more information, and less and less meaning.” Evaluate the extent to which this postmodernist statement applies Humans and Les Revenants

Compared with the past, David Gauntlett argues that in the media today ‘we no longer get singular, straightforward messages about ideal types of male and female identities.’ Evaluate the validity of this claim with reference to the set episode of Humans and Les Revenants

Liesbet Van-Zoonen argues that media language encodes how male and female characters act in media products. Explore how representations position the audience in Humans and Les Revenants

2 - Come up with a knee-jerk reaction to the question.

Really, this can be boiled down to 'is the theory useful or not?'

TOP TIP: it's probably useful!

3 - Pick three scenes from Humans and Les Revenants

Pick a scene, any scene. You may wish to pick a scene we have already studied, or you may decide to go rogue and pick something completely new.

4 - Use the scenes to bullet point plan a response to the question

Remember what you're actually getting marks for: detailed textual analysis built on reference to media language. Have the toolkit open in front of you. Why wouldn't you?

5 - Write the response using DAC and PEA

You can do it! Do your best! Never give up!