Doctor Who: Language and Representation blog tasks

 Language and Representation: blog tasks

Language and contexts

1) Write a summary of the notes from our in-class analysis of the episode. You can use your own notes from the screening in class or this Google document of class notes (you'll need your GHS Google login). 

Camerawork and sound: They use different sound effects to emphasise the creepiness and make all the scenes sound spooky and gothic.

Mise-en-scene: They use costume and makeup to showcase the typical representation of men and women in the 1960s and they use the different settings to create a mysterious, eerie tone.

Narrative and genre: They use propp's character types theory to oppose the modern version of character types by making the main character a villain, while creating a theme sound and a genre of scary, sci-fi due to the talk about time and space along with the different dimensions and opposite worlds.

2) How can we apply narrative theories to this episode of  Doctor Who? 

Todorov's Equilibrium: There is equilibrium when Susan seems like a normal, happy student, which then becomes disequilibrium when her teachers get suspicious of her actions.

Propp's character theory: They use Propp's character types theory to showcase the main character (the doctor) as the villain which subverts modern stereotypes.

Barthes's enigma and action codes: There are action codes during the end when there a mysterious shadow in the form of a monster and enigma codes to question the new setting and planet they have landed in. 

Levi-Strauss's binary opposition: There is binary opposition to suggest the differences between humans and the creatures that Susan and her Grandfather are shown as.

3) In your opinion, what is the most important scene in the episode and why?

In my opinion, the most important scene is the car drive that Ian and Barbara take to look for their student, Susan, because it shows the gender representations of men and women in many ways, one of them being that the man drives the car and the women is always the passenger. Also, that the woman needs a chaperone as it is otherwise unsafe for them, which also shows the expectations made for men and women and reinforces stereotypes of the 1960s.

4) What genre is An Unearthly Child and how can you tell? Make specific reference to aspects of the episode.

I think it is a sci-fi genre as it shows man y different aspects of time and space, with different dimensions and technological machines, along with the theme song creating the illusion of darkness and mystery.

5) How does An Unearthly Child reflect the social and historical contexts of the 1960s?

It reflects the social and historical contexts of the 1960s by showing the expectations of men and the reputation they have to hold, being chaperones for women and being respected gentlemen.

Representations

1) What stereotypes of men are reinforced and subverted in Doctor Who: An Unearthly Child? How?

There are many gender stereotypes, for example, Ian suggested he should come with Barbara to follow Susan as she gets suspicious and he also drive the two of them there, which reinforces as men were expected to chaperone women to keep them safe and to keep up their reputation of being a gentleman.

2) What stereotypes of women/girls are reinforced and subverted in Doctor Who: An Unearthly Child? How?

Women were less powerful than men at this time and was shows when the doctor completely ignored Barbara during their conversation and responded to Ian at his every word. This reinforced stereotypes about women as they were shown as powerless and irrelevant when it came to these matters as they also had the higher power.

3) How do the representations of young people and old people in An Unearthly Child reflect the social and historical context of the 1960s? 

There is a clear generational divide shown as it seems that Susan doesn't realise what could happen to her and her grandfather so he makes all the important he thinks is right for them due to his knowledge and ignores her suggestions and choices as he emphasises his point that he knows better than her.

4) What representations of race/ethnicity can be found in Doctor Who: An Earthly Child? Is this surprising or not? Give reasons for your answer and consider historical / cultural context (the 1960s). Has this changed in more recent series of Doctor Who?

I think there was a lot of racism during this time and it wasn't a very diverse community so there was definitely an aspect of racism shown is the episode with the comment about the "red Indian" and I think as The aspect of diversity has changed throughout the years, it has also changed in the series for example, in the latest season the doctor is a Black man, which subverts stereotypes created in the 1960s.

5) How is social class represented in An Unearthly Child? Think about how education and knowledge is presented in the episode.

I think Ian and Barbara (the teachers) are presented as middle class members of society as of the way they judge the junkyard that they find Susan living in, and also  because they work as teachers, which wasn't the highest paying job but it was still a good amount for those days. However, I think Susan and the doctor aren't shown as belonging to any class because they are from another planet and also their impressive amount of knowledge, along with how technological and modern the TARDIS looks, they might seem of holding the greater power but we don't know for sure about their class status and wealth because they aren't natural human beings.