It is nearly the end of the semester and my final blog post will highlight the things I learned through my blogging. To be completely honest I was never a big blogger. I tried starting one up with a friend, which did not work, and I enjoyed reading some blogs that belonged to people close to me. But, I never understood the fun and intriguing aspect to blogging until I did for this course. In my blogs I have focused a lot on television shows, because I do like watching a lot of sitcoms. Most of them even have been highlighted in documentaries we watched, or have been written about in our textbook, so it was easy for me to make connections and translate that knowledge to the show.
Examples of this can be seen in my blog about sexual orientation, and race. Both are of these blogs were connected to shows that I am fans of because they peak my interest and I was able to connect them to course content. This benefited me because I was able to learn the concepts from class in a way that is comprehensible to me. The connections I made, got me excited to blog because then I was able to share this with other people who may know the shows or interest them in watching the televised program.
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
"The Gay That's Not So Gay"
The title of my blog is a quote from Adam Pally an actor that plays a gay character on the new ABC hit comedy show, "Happy Endings". It is a show about six weirdos (as the actors describe their characters) a.k.a best friends in their late 20's in Chicago. They all have different quirks and a ton of inside jobs that you laugh at, though you are not completely sure if you got it or not. It is a fresh comedy that has been somewhat underground and almost canceled. But due to the creator of the show, David Caspe, asking ABC for another shot and to move the time slot, the show is now a success.
The character Max (played by Adam Pally) is a laid back bum who mooches off of his friends, who also likes to be sarcastic and make fun of everyone. He loves watching sport teams and participating in the them as well. He also very distance and lies about a lot of things to get his way in the situation. Some people may consider him a jerk, but the flip side to his character is that he is a homosexual. He dates other men and talks about relationships and intimacy like any other sarcastic male characters on sitcoms. David Caspe put this spin on his character to flip the typical stereotype of homosexual men on TV.
In the documentary we watched in class titled, "Further off the Straight & Narrow" (2006), they discuss the typically characteristics of a male homosexual on TV. They brought up the sissy male, the submissive male, the over the top theatrical male (like Jack on "Will & Grace"). These stereotypes are embedded as the standard to any homosexual male's personality. Some people assume that this is how all gay men behave. Unfortunately for them, that is not the truth. This show is a clear example that stereotypes are not true, due to Max's behavior on the show.
To complete Adam Pally's quote on his character Max he stated, "I played him like a dude," shrugs Pally. "I gave him no affectation at all. I can be arch, like 'The Gay That's Not Gay.' So you've got to find another dimension to it." (Entertainment Weekly, December 9,2011) In my opinion, the actor is pulling the audience in to under his character on a different level that is not based on sexuality.
This video is just an example of how the show plays with the stereotypes of the characters in it. This also shows how Adam Pally plays with his character Max.
The character Max (played by Adam Pally) is a laid back bum who mooches off of his friends, who also likes to be sarcastic and make fun of everyone. He loves watching sport teams and participating in the them as well. He also very distance and lies about a lot of things to get his way in the situation. Some people may consider him a jerk, but the flip side to his character is that he is a homosexual. He dates other men and talks about relationships and intimacy like any other sarcastic male characters on sitcoms. David Caspe put this spin on his character to flip the typical stereotype of homosexual men on TV.
In the documentary we watched in class titled, "Further off the Straight & Narrow" (2006), they discuss the typically characteristics of a male homosexual on TV. They brought up the sissy male, the submissive male, the over the top theatrical male (like Jack on "Will & Grace"). These stereotypes are embedded as the standard to any homosexual male's personality. Some people assume that this is how all gay men behave. Unfortunately for them, that is not the truth. This show is a clear example that stereotypes are not true, due to Max's behavior on the show.
To complete Adam Pally's quote on his character Max he stated, "I played him like a dude," shrugs Pally. "I gave him no affectation at all. I can be arch, like 'The Gay That's Not Gay.' So you've got to find another dimension to it." (Entertainment Weekly, December 9,2011) In my opinion, the actor is pulling the audience in to under his character on a different level that is not based on sexuality.
This video is just an example of how the show plays with the stereotypes of the characters in it. This also shows how Adam Pally plays with his character Max.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Some things are never final...
For my video game paper I wrote about the content of the game Final Fantasy VII. It was the highest profitable game due to the players being able to escape in the worlds that is created for entertainment. The player can be different characters and go on these epic adventures that deal with conquering evil. The narrative for this particular game dealt with corporate corruption and the characters have to rebel in order to regain peace for the planet. These characters all have different strengths and weaknesses that help each other out through out the game. The main character is named Cloud Strife though and he is the main focus through out the whole story. His narrative is what drives the player to go from one stage of the game to another. His overall victory comes through in the end when he gets help from his friends in order to defeat his enemy. Though his enemy does not die, he still defeats him and assist the corporation to regain control of its company. The narrative did not correlate well with the themes within the class, though I could expand on the characters itself. I could compare the male characters to the female characters and discuss even the death of one of the female characters. It was a huge deal within the story of Final Fantasy VII and fans were definitely heartbroken by this twist of events within the plot.
So this is why, I thought it would be interesting to further the research of the narrative by comparing the elements of the game to the concepts within our course. I could expand on the gender roles in the game. I also found an article that compared Final Fantasy VII to Greek Mythology which I also was intrigued with. I could have looked at the weapons and compared the over-sized swords as a method of overcompensation for something that the game may have been lacking. I also thought it would be interesting to compare the video game with the film that came out. The art in the film is more visually appeasing then the video game and has a more complex story line, plus it would be interesting to see how the character development changed.
So this is why, I thought it would be interesting to further the research of the narrative by comparing the elements of the game to the concepts within our course. I could expand on the gender roles in the game. I also found an article that compared Final Fantasy VII to Greek Mythology which I also was intrigued with. I could have looked at the weapons and compared the over-sized swords as a method of overcompensation for something that the game may have been lacking. I also thought it would be interesting to compare the video game with the film that came out. The art in the film is more visually appeasing then the video game and has a more complex story line, plus it would be interesting to see how the character development changed.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
I Live Another Life on the Web
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THM16t5Cm_4
MTV's documentary show series titled, "True Life..." goes over different aspects of peoples lives. They discuss addiction, mental disorders, birth defects, relationships, careers, and so on. This documentary series is one of my personal favorite shows because it portrays people in a realistic way. Normally, MTV loves to script their reality shows to make ratings go up and keep there young audience entertained. They also use only attractive and young actors to attract audiences of all ages and genders. This television series does not always use attractive people to gain ratings, they just tell these individuals stories and hope to reach out to others that have similar life experiences.
One of there episodes highlighted on participants that lead a different life online. This particular episode had three young women who were all insecure about themselves and escaped that insecurity by being online. Two out of the three girls have insecurities with men so they use their sex appeal to attract attention from them via internet. The other young woman is an aspiring singer who is scared to perform on stage,so she only feels like she can be a star on Second Life.
In the Dines text there is a chapter on Second Life. It looks the sexual release people may get from using Second Life but they also address the massive appeal to this online community. "Second Life is about personal expression and your avatar is the most personal expression of all. After all, an avatar is your persona in the virtual world...Despite offering almost infinite possibilities, the tool to personalize your avatar is very simple to use and allows you to change anything you like, from the tip of your nose to the tint of your skin." (Linden Research, 2006) This quote explains the main drive to these young woman's need to be a different person online. They want to create a persona that is not themselves. Though the Dines chapter indulges more on the sexual component to Second Life, I was more intrigued by persona of being someone else.
To relate back to the "True Life..." episode the young woman that suffered from stage fright used Second Life as a way to express herself. She never used to expose her sexuality or hurt other members within this online community. She just wanted to be the singer/songwriter she has always dreamed of. Second Life acted as a crutch for her she still was able to gain the confidence she needed to perform on a real stage. I think her story give a positive light on the what Second Life community can be like. In the Dines text, the authors discussed more so the negative effects of self expression with the harsh emphasis on sex and violence.
I guess online communities like Second Life can be used in many ways and people may use it to socialize and built on relationships, or make it a negative experience by taking advantage of the members within the community.
Reference:
Dines, G. (2011). Gender, Race, and Class in Media (3rd ed., p. 574). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE publication.
MTV's documentary show series titled, "True Life..." goes over different aspects of peoples lives. They discuss addiction, mental disorders, birth defects, relationships, careers, and so on. This documentary series is one of my personal favorite shows because it portrays people in a realistic way. Normally, MTV loves to script their reality shows to make ratings go up and keep there young audience entertained. They also use only attractive and young actors to attract audiences of all ages and genders. This television series does not always use attractive people to gain ratings, they just tell these individuals stories and hope to reach out to others that have similar life experiences.
One of there episodes highlighted on participants that lead a different life online. This particular episode had three young women who were all insecure about themselves and escaped that insecurity by being online. Two out of the three girls have insecurities with men so they use their sex appeal to attract attention from them via internet. The other young woman is an aspiring singer who is scared to perform on stage,so she only feels like she can be a star on Second Life.
In the Dines text there is a chapter on Second Life. It looks the sexual release people may get from using Second Life but they also address the massive appeal to this online community. "Second Life is about personal expression and your avatar is the most personal expression of all. After all, an avatar is your persona in the virtual world...Despite offering almost infinite possibilities, the tool to personalize your avatar is very simple to use and allows you to change anything you like, from the tip of your nose to the tint of your skin." (Linden Research, 2006) This quote explains the main drive to these young woman's need to be a different person online. They want to create a persona that is not themselves. Though the Dines chapter indulges more on the sexual component to Second Life, I was more intrigued by persona of being someone else.
To relate back to the "True Life..." episode the young woman that suffered from stage fright used Second Life as a way to express herself. She never used to expose her sexuality or hurt other members within this online community. She just wanted to be the singer/songwriter she has always dreamed of. Second Life acted as a crutch for her she still was able to gain the confidence she needed to perform on a real stage. I think her story give a positive light on the what Second Life community can be like. In the Dines text, the authors discussed more so the negative effects of self expression with the harsh emphasis on sex and violence.
I guess online communities like Second Life can be used in many ways and people may use it to socialize and built on relationships, or make it a negative experience by taking advantage of the members within the community.
Reference:
Dines, G. (2011). Gender, Race, and Class in Media (3rd ed., p. 574). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE publication.
Friday, November 4, 2011
"New Girl"?: Up to Old Tricks?
Fox's new sitcom titled,"New Girl" is about a young woman who got her heartbroken and decided to shack up with three young men. The show is a comedy about how a fairly eccentric woman can handle living with three men that are each different in their own way. The first two shows highlighted the differences between these three males by placing an individual focus on the quirks in their respective personalities. Nick is also a lonely man who lost his girlfriend months before, Schmidt is a wannabe stud who is simultaneously visually appealing and utterly clueless, and the third, Coach is an overly aggressive personal trainer. Coach is the only ethnic character on the show. This character's personality is meant be humorously distancing yet engaging. He longs to be more sensitive, and this is why he is not as initially opposed to the idea of a female roommate for guidance as his fellow cast mates.
After the two first episodes the show replaced Coach who is played by Damon Wayans Jr with Lemorne Morris's Winston. This individual is a retired basketball player who is trying to find his place in the absence of the only career he has ever known. The circumstances surrounding this new character are inevitably suspect as the writers/producers of "New Girl" choose not to explain what has happened to Coach. The opening of the second episode offers two lines stating that Coach is gone and that Winston will be moving "back" in. Which leaves us, as viewers with several unanswered questions. What, if any, is the relationship between Coach and Winston? Did the other two roommates then elect to duplicate the racial dynamic in the house in Winston's original depature from the apartment by choosing another African-American male? Unlikely. Outside the realm of the show, we know that Daman Wayans Jr. is a character on the ABC sitcom "Happy Endings" which got picked up for a full season thus impeding his sporadic exit from "New Girl". The most likely version of events is that the producers of the show choose to duplicate the racial dynamic of the show without much regard to racial sensitivity, the logic of the storyline, or the intelligence of the viewer. They assume that we will satisfied with the arrival of "another black guy". This is an old approach to a common problem in what should be a more evolved, equality-minded, contemporary society. While I appreciate the show's attempt at representing more than one ethnic group, they take a more vested interest fully developing all of their characters without prejudice. Even the title of "New Girl" implies a fresh approach to life and its complications, please use the remaining episodes of this season to do just that.
After the two first episodes the show replaced Coach who is played by Damon Wayans Jr with Lemorne Morris's Winston. This individual is a retired basketball player who is trying to find his place in the absence of the only career he has ever known. The circumstances surrounding this new character are inevitably suspect as the writers/producers of "New Girl" choose not to explain what has happened to Coach. The opening of the second episode offers two lines stating that Coach is gone and that Winston will be moving "back" in. Which leaves us, as viewers with several unanswered questions. What, if any, is the relationship between Coach and Winston? Did the other two roommates then elect to duplicate the racial dynamic in the house in Winston's original depature from the apartment by choosing another African-American male? Unlikely. Outside the realm of the show, we know that Daman Wayans Jr. is a character on the ABC sitcom "Happy Endings" which got picked up for a full season thus impeding his sporadic exit from "New Girl". The most likely version of events is that the producers of the show choose to duplicate the racial dynamic of the show without much regard to racial sensitivity, the logic of the storyline, or the intelligence of the viewer. They assume that we will satisfied with the arrival of "another black guy". This is an old approach to a common problem in what should be a more evolved, equality-minded, contemporary society. While I appreciate the show's attempt at representing more than one ethnic group, they take a more vested interest fully developing all of their characters without prejudice. Even the title of "New Girl" implies a fresh approach to life and its complications, please use the remaining episodes of this season to do just that.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Jenna Jameson
My pornography paper was about Jenna Jameson. Who is a famous porn star that made millions off of branching herself into a more marketable media. She accomplished this by publishing a book titled, "How to Make Love like a Porn Star", she also has several products, other films non-porn related, and magazines. I found a video clip from when Jenna was on the Oprah Winifred show. It was in 2009 and by this time she had her twins boy and quit the business. Though she still profits from the pornography and has the means to take care of her boys, she still finds it hard to someday tell them she was a porn star. In other interviews I have watched with her in them, she was never ashamed of her line in work. She just is not sure how to tell her children about how she made her millions.
http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Inside-Jenna-Jamesons-Home-Video
http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Inside-Jenna-Jamesons-Home-Video
Sunday, October 9, 2011
An Object of Beauty
Over the last couple of class periods we have been looking at images of women in the advertising world. We have talked about how women look weak, thin, and unnatural. Some ads have turned women into objects that are used by men or just use women as a source of power for men (we get it men are dominant, thank you advertisements for now giving men a superior complex...like they did not have that before). After looking through these advertisements, watching documentaries, and having discussion about this on going discrimination towards women in the printed media; I felt as though there was no way to change anything. The ads are featuring products that are owned by powerful business men that want to sell this product as much as they can. Women do not even seem to factor in world that our patriarchal system has created.
During one of our documentaries titled, "Killing Us Softly 4" the creator and speaker was a media scholar named Jean Kilbourne. In this film she discussed the advances of media literacy in foreign countries, and how that shaped the image of women in the advertising world. I wanted to know what America was doing to change these images that girls and women are consumed by. Then I found this commercial for Girls Inc. and all I could do is smile in hope that this is a step in the right direction...
This video made me happy to see that young women are getting the proper education they need so they do not feel like they have to compete with the ad world vision of what real beauty is. I also looked at the Campaign For Real Beauty by Dove, and found another interesting video that fulling shows what we women face when it comes to the reality of printed ads...
I love this video because it encompasses everything we talked about in class, and how it relates to women. I hope that one day when I have a daughter she won't have to look at images like these, but if she does I am happy to see that there are groups out there, that go against it. These organizations are supporting young women of America by teaching them how to be self reliant and be happy in there own skin.
During one of our documentaries titled, "Killing Us Softly 4" the creator and speaker was a media scholar named Jean Kilbourne. In this film she discussed the advances of media literacy in foreign countries, and how that shaped the image of women in the advertising world. I wanted to know what America was doing to change these images that girls and women are consumed by. Then I found this commercial for Girls Inc. and all I could do is smile in hope that this is a step in the right direction...
This video made me happy to see that young women are getting the proper education they need so they do not feel like they have to compete with the ad world vision of what real beauty is. I also looked at the Campaign For Real Beauty by Dove, and found another interesting video that fulling shows what we women face when it comes to the reality of printed ads...
I love this video because it encompasses everything we talked about in class, and how it relates to women. I hope that one day when I have a daughter she won't have to look at images like these, but if she does I am happy to see that there are groups out there, that go against it. These organizations are supporting young women of America by teaching them how to be self reliant and be happy in there own skin.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)