Wednesday 23 March 2022

'Advanced' theories of representation

bell hooks



  • Feminist theory, but significantly different to Van Zoonen
  • Feminism advocates equal rights between men and women
  • "Feminism is for everyone"
  • But how? 
  • Race, class, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, and a whole range of other factors are all tied together
  • bell hook's theory is a far more inclusive theory of feminism 
  • This concept is known as intersectionality
  • The representation of women can also affect the representation of men, and the way in which they are treated in society. 
  • For example, hooks argued that many huge responsibilities are placed on men by the stereotypical representation of women, 
  • Words such as 'pussy' and 'sissy' and other gendered or homophobic language against men who show emotion may stop them from doing so
  • Representations in media products are therefore all linked and extremely complicated!
  • KOTV reinforces assumptions about men being dominant and women being sexualised, which in turn reinforces patriarchal hegemony

Paul Gilroy



  • Postcolonial attitudes
  • The British Empire as we know it has collapsed
  • Postcolonial attitudes still exists
  • There are still racial hierarchies in out society, where some races are considered superior to others
  • Binary oppositions are used to 'other' ethnic minorities
  • Othering is where a group is represented as being different from 'us', and a group is represented as being 'abnormal'
  • KOTV only features white characters, which reinforces the notion of racial hierarchy 

Manuel Alvarado


There are only four representations of non white characters in media products

Humorous - this character is simply there to be funny. The comic relief. Buddy in Free Guy, detective Carter in Rush Hour, and Kevin Hart in everything. Also Jackie Chan.

Threatening - delinquent, aggressive, violent

Exotic - sexually attractive, sexualised, and sexually promiscuous 

Pathetic - pitied, vulnerable, requiring help