Key phrases

• Narrative


  is the media term for story telling

  - linear

  - non-linear

  - multi-stranded

  - cliffhanger

  - episodic

  - contended
• contended


  a full story finished with a conclusion
• episodic


  containing separate parts in a series and events
• cliffhanger


  a dramatic ending
• multi-stranded


  serveral narratives running at the same time e.g. lost
• non-linear


  no sequential or straight forward
• linear


  progress from 1 stang to another in a single strand / series of steps
• Action Codes


  any action that moves the narrative forward e.g. phone ringing
• Enigma Codes


  any questions that are posed to the audience e.g. an unknown person
• Technical codes


  - establishing shot

  - long shot

  - full shot

  - mid shot

  - close up

  - extreme close up

  - shallow and deep focus

  - high and low angles

  - uses of CGI

  - transitions - panning etc
• Establishing shot


  action is taking place

  
• Long shot


  large distance - making character small

  
• Full shot


  character from head to toe
• Mid shot


  most emotionally neutral - converations

  
• Close up


  emotional shots, allows relation to actor
• Extreme close up


  intense - suspense (hardly used)

  
• Shallow focus


  highlights emotion, unfocused background

  
• Deep focus


  distance between actor and space - realistic
• High angle


  looks down, makes actor seem less important
• Low angle


  looks up, makes someone look more superior and strong
• Visual Codes


  what you can see

  - use of color

  - facial expressions

  - body language

  - clothing and physical appearance

  - signs (semiotics)

  - costumes

  - locations/settings (mise-en-scene)

  - genders/actors

  - performances
• Todorov


  he suggests there are 5 stages to how the narrative progresses

  1. theirs an equilibrium

  2. there is a disruption

  3. recognition of disruption

  4. tempt to repair damage

  5. new equilibrium achieved
• Propp

  he believed there are ways of grouping characters

  1. the villain (can be female)

  2. the hero (can be female)

  3. the princess - reward (can be male)

  4. the doner - provides an object with magical properties

  5. the father - rewards the hero

  6. the helper - aids the hero

  7. the dispatcher - sends hero on its way

  8. the false hero - lays claim to princess and causes complications
• Levi Strauss


  binary oppositions

  - good vs bad

  - male vs female

  - humanity vs technology

  - nature vs industry

  - dark vs light

  - dirt vs cleanliness

  - etc.
• Preferred readings


  - the audience accept the worldview of the text

  - they consume the text as the producer intended them to
• Negotiated readings


  - the audience understand the ideology that is contained within the text but mostly reject it

  - instead the audience chose elements of the text to enjoy
• Oppositional readings


  - the audience entirely rejects the ideology that is contained within the text

  - not because they dislike it, but because they oppose it
• Physical interactivity


  - a handshake/ a keyboard/ a controller
• Social interactivity


  - joining a group/ phoning in/ talking with other fans
• Intellectual interactivity


  - forming on opinion/ having a thoughtful response
• Emotional interactivity


  - crying at a sad scene/ laughing at a joke
• Content interactivity


  - creating a blog/ retweeting/ leaving a comment
• Passive Audience


  suggests that texts have an effect on the audience
• Active Audience


  suggests that audience interact with the text to create meaning
• Ideology


  - someones ideology refers to the way they thing the world should be

  - this refers to an established idea (conservative, liberal, feminist, catholic) or can mix ideas in order to try to be unique
• VALS


  Values, Attitudes and Lifestyles

  This chat dvides consumers into different categories based on their motivations.

  Thinkers - Believers

  Achievers - Strivers

  Experiencers - Makers
• Psychograpics


  the study and classification of people according to their attitudes, aspirations, and other psychological criteria, especially in market research.

  
  

  - Interests, Opinions, Politics
• Uses and Gratifications


  - information

  - personal identity

  - social integration (is the movement of minority groups such as ethnic minorities, refugees and underprivileged sections of a society into the mainstream of societies)

  - entertainment
• Demographics


  are status attributes that rarely change

  - age

  - gender

  - ethnicity

  - sexual orientation

  - regional identity
• Mode of Address


  is how the media shouts at the audience, for example how music magazines are presented to the audience

  Is how the text 'speaks' to its audience

  what language it is using? is it formal/informal? direct/indirect