Representation Visual Essay

Representation is about.....

Laura Mulvey

The music video I decided to study is “Worth it” which is the 4^th song released off of Fifth Harmony’s album Reflection also with-in the song Kid Ink is featuring in it. It’s an urban pop song about hooking up with a man at the club while maintaining control. In this essay I will be analyzing how Laura Mulvey’s theory is put towards the music video.

One of theory’s studied is ‘The Male Gaze’ which is a theory by Laura Mulvey this theory focuses on ‘visual pleasure and narrative cinema’ her studies are based on how women are viewed as sexual objects initially in Hollywood films. The male gaze occurs when the audience is put into the perspective of a heterosexual man. A scene may focus on the curves of a women’s body putting you as the viewer in the eyes of a male. The concept of gaze is one that deals with how an audience views the people presented. Also Mulvey’s research focuses on women as sexual objects and how they are placed in media texts to be enjoyed by men and objectified (seen not heard).

At the beginning of the music video we see the females walking in heels before showing their identity.  With-in the first 30 seconds of the video as we introduced to the group members they are all close up shots and features them winking, looking up slowly, Biting the ends of glasses or giggling. A female winking suggests that she like you. Also if she’s slowly looking up indicates that she’s ‘checking you out’. A female giggling implies that she’s impressed. A female biting the end of her glasses meaning she’s feeling ‘spontaneous’ or even ‘playful’. All these actions link to Laura Mulvey’s theory as the women come across as flirty and defiantly confident. Also at the beginning of the song the lyrics are “Give it to me I’m worth it, baby I’m worth it, uh huh I’m worth t, gimme gimme I’m worth it” I believe these words are implying that she’s worth starting a relationship- or at least a one night stand with. In any case, she’s the one inviting the “it” from her pursuer. She might call the shots, but the end results will be worth the effort. This sets the song’s assertive position.

The next part of the music video is when Kid ink is performing, the lyrics are “I tell her bring it back like she left some, bring it back” also saying “bringing it back like you left something” is like going back to a bar if you left something like your phone there. It also like booty shaking. While’s these lyrics are playing Kid Ink is sat on a sofa with a female who’s dressed in black jacket and underneath she wearing a strapped buckled/harnessed like top. This item of clothing links to Mulvey's theory as the buckles are often used in the bedroom department "to strap down the female" therefore the female here is seen as a sexual object towards the men.

Also the women that comes to join Kid ink and the female on the sofa doesn't stop staring at him and also flutters her eyelashes constantly towards him, by her doing this she is flirting with the him. The next part of the lyrics are "in the club with lights off. What you acting shy for? Come and show me that you, Wid it" Implying that she's acting shy instead of showing that she's "wid it", or enjoying the entire moment. She might genuinely be shy, or she's playing hard to get. In any case, she doesn't give in, which make her all the more attractive. He wants her to let loose and start dancing, because that could led to another place with the lights off- the bedroom. Again the women as seen as a sexual object as he's imply sex in the bedroom. In between Kid Ink rapping we see Fifth Harmony dancing (shaking hips) which makes them come across sexy also they are flicking their hairs this demonstrates that they are interested in the male item, making the male crave them even more. 

After the rapping scene we have Dinah-Jane Hansen (member of Fifth Harmony) in a sequence on her own with just one male. She is laying across on a high raised bar top while the male is standing and polishing her shoes this is established through a extreme longshot. She is wearing a tube skirt and a black top by her wearing these clothes she is emphasising her body and curves making her be seen as a sexual desire by heterosexual men which supports Mulvey's theory. In Dinah's sequence there are many close up shots of her face which shows her stroking her face and using her nails towards her lips. Most of these close up's shot we have Dinah looking straight into the camera which therefor making it look like she is aiming towards the men watching. This then agree's with Mulvey's theory as the video is been targeted to the men. As well as having close up shots we also have extreme long shots which again shows us her stroking her body/face making her come across  'appealing' to the men. Dinah's lyrics do not conform Mulvey's theory as Dinah is being powerful through her words "just gimme you, that's all I wanna do" meaning Dinah only has her eye out for HIM, and she plans to get him. All he has to do is submit to her wishes. He is her one and only goal, at least for the night. She won't be down for anyone besides him and, boy is she determined. Basically its her way or the high way! "And if what they say is true, I might give me to you" these lyrics import if what they (people) are saying is the truth, probably something good (like he loves her), then she might give herself to him, again Dinah has more power as she decides whether the man can have her or not. "Guarantee I can back it up" this verse was given to Dinah because she can back it up for sure! (https://vine.co/v/OO7TOB7XqKB) The male that is in the sequence with Dinah doesn't ever take his eyes off her, making her look desirable, by him making this action conforms Mulvey's theory as he looks at her and admires what she's doing.

 The next sequence is dominated by Normani Hamilton (member of Fifth Harmony). In Normani sequence the setting is in an 'office' and she is wearing glasses I believe that she is only wearing these to look 'intelligent' meaning she feels that intelligence will impress the men. Normani is wearing a leopard print shirt which is only fastened up to her bra level, making her boobs be revealed this is done purely to grabs the males attention and she almost teases the men as they think they are going to see more of her as the first time we already see her bra. I believe they decided to use a leopard print shirt to make her come across sexy yet also feisty and perhaps it interprets that she's like an animal in the bedroom. Throughout Normani specified sequence there is close up of her face and its shows that she’s singing to the audience but what Normani does is she slowly looks up and also rises her eyebrow implying that she’s had a good look at the audience and she likes what she sees. Just this part helps us to agree with Mulvey’s theory as this is what the male audience want ‘the women’ to like him. After the close up shot we have a long shot which we see Normani throwing her jacket to the desk this implies that she’s ready to see ‘what he’s got’ in the sexual form. Throughout Normani’s sequence the lyrics are “you see me in the spot, like “oooh I love your style”… show me what you got now come and make it worth my while. Which means he’s impressed by not only her choice of clothing (and fifth harmony is fashionable), nut also her “style” in the dating game. She’s an unusual combination of submissive and dominance. She ends the interplay by putting the burden on him. She’s proven herself, now its time for him to show his sexiness and maybe turn a one-night stand into a memorable romance. So just from the lyrics and understanding of them it shows that its basically about sex which conforms to Mulvey’s theory as the female is seen as a sexual object. Lastly in Normani's sequence we see a male with-in the scene and he doesn't take his eyes of her but the way he does it like "I want a bit of that" again she is seen as the sexual object towards men even though Normani is provoking herself towards him.

The next sequence is dominated by Camila Cabello (member of Fifth Harmony). In Camila’s sequence the setting is almost a “golf range”' and she is wearing a feminised suit so it’s all almost skin tight showing off her asset’s and also she is wearing a shirt that is cut out near her bust area almost exploiting the area. Camila often is shown through a long shot which when a male looks up at her we see her bum straightaway and with-in these shots she bends slightly just to enhance it even more and also she moves it seductively like ‘hey look at my but’. Males look for this in women a women who will ‘flaunt what she’s got’ linking to Mulvey’s theory the men ‘check out the women’. The lyrics in this part of the video are “it’s all on you, so what you wanna do? And if you don’t have a clue, I’ll tell you what to do” sensing that she will let him decide what is going to go down. Traditionally, the man takes the lead in the romance, but she’s up for that. However if he is unsure how it should go down, she is Not afraid to take charge. She will take the reigns and be the dominant one and that doesn’t bother her one bit. Either way, she gives consent, whatever she’s the top or the power bottom. She can submit in the bedroom without losing control of the relationship. Again the lyrics are implying about sex however this section of the song disguises Mulvey’s theory as the female is implying she enjoys being ‘ looked at as a sexual object; she feels liberated and dominant. Also the lyrics continue in the sexual context “come harder just because, I don’t like it too soft, I like it a little rough” again these lyrics relate to Mulvey’s theory as guy get to know how the women likes sex.

Following Camila sequence it moves on to Ally Brooke (member of fifth harmony) sequence with-in the music video. Throughout the video she is wearing shorts and a red/black top the red part of the top just covers her boobs and the other half of the top and arms is netting. The setting within her scene is hard to identify as all it includes is red chairs, desk and a male typing on a typewriter. However with the use of the colour red which connotates danger this may link that Ally is the most dangerous one out of the group. Ally often sings directly into the camera and is shown through a close up this shows she is aiming towards the audience (male) while singing she flips her hair which is an automatic attempt to make herself appear as attractive as possible. She also ‘slut drops’ throughout her sequence which is a modern dance move that most women simply do just to get the attention of a male. Ally also rolls her body against the desk towards the male but she almost teases him as she seen moves away and she also twists her hair but then looks at the camera imply she wants the male audience not the guy who’s in the scene with her, so her doing this makes her come across almost like a player but females would relate to this as a ‘slag’ therefor many women won’t take her actions and they don’t want to be seen or portrayed in that way. Ally also grabs her hair which demonstrates she likes her ‘hair been pulled’ this may well be specifically in the bedroom area. Ally doing all these actions shows she is dedicating it towards her male audience, this links to Mulvey’s theory as Ally is doing this to make herself look like a sex object and that she wants the man.

We then go back to the scene of Kid Ink and where the two females join him. Straightaway into the scene the females slap their thighs seductively and also open and close them which can show strong sexual invitation and they continue to do this through his scene. Also before we couldn’t see the full outfits of both girls joined with Kid ink so now we see that one of the girls is wearing a corset type top which is enhancing her boobs.

Then toward the end of the song we have a montage which included clips from the individual members and also all of the together dancing. When the girls are dancing together we see them all slowly getting up from the ground while doing so their hands are on their thighs which makes their bottoms stand out more. The girls often like to shake their hips/butts which allow them to show off their assets. Another dance move they do is they pull their arms towards them while moving there pelvis forward which is visualising ‘sex’ and a male audience wants this and therefore this shows that the women are looked as a sex object conveying to Mulvey’s theory. When the members are shown alone they’re either winking, twisting their hair, raising eyebrow, slowing looking up, giggles, strokes face/body these are all signals of flirtation and this mixed with the song lyrics “give it to me, I’m worth it” implies that she wants sex.

 

All of these women are aged between 18-22 and the way they present them self and get attention off men makes girls the same age be inspired by them or believe that they have to be like this as women look at other women to shape their own identities. They will take elements of what they like from women they see to try and construct an identity they deem fit and desirable for society. Also women look at other women and compare themselves to them to create and ideal version of themselves.

Richard Dyer

In this essay I will be relating the Richard Dyer star theory towards the popular girl band Fifth Harmony. Richard Dyer star theory is the idea that icons and celebrities are manufactured by institutions for financial gain. He believes that stars are constructed to represent 'real people' experiencing real emotions. Stars are manufactured by the music industry to serve a purpose; to make money out of audience, who respond to various elements of a star's personality by buying records and becoming fans. Richard Dyer theory is split into 4 sections:

Stars as constructs:

The X Factor creator and judge Simon Cowell said before Fifth Harmony performed their version of Kelly Clarkson’s “Stronger” on the show last year. He decided then and there that individual contestants Dinah Jane Hansen, Lauren Jauregui, Ally Brooke, Normani Hamilton, and Camila Cabello were too special to let go, so at the end of the show’s Boot Camp week, the five young women became Fifth Harmony. This then conforms to Dyers theory as they have been constructed together to form a girl group by the institution (Simon Cowell) for financial gain. There is evidence that financial gain has come out of Fifth Harmony as they have a website which allows you to buy tickets to their concerts, merchandise and also the audience can buy their album on this website.

yer says in order for artist to become a star they need to be unique. Fifth harmony are a unique girl band as each of the girls have natural talent, they all have different body shapes, skin colour and styles.

Audience and industry/institutions:

Fifth Harmony band members each individual member of the band having different personalities, other social groups are able to identify and relate themselves to that member. Due to technology we can now go on websites and take quiz’s (http://www.mtv.com/news/2175032/fifth-harmony-personality-quiz/) which labels us as one of the band members by asking questions like: What’s your favourite dance move? How would you like to be proposed? How would your friends describe you? Etc. After taking the quiz serval times I found out all of the member’s personalities. Lauren is sometimes reserved, sometimes boisterous, people might have a hard time figuring her out. Camila is sometimes a bit out there, but her friends love her anyways. And just because you like girly things doesn’t mean you can’t have a tomboy personality either. Dinah is sassy, funny and a bit juicy. She isn’t afraid to let loose and have fun. Her selfies are always on point. Normani knows what she likes and loves living it up, a bit glam, a bit sensitive and is a girl’s girl. Ally is positive, caring and genuinely sweet, even when she’s having a weird moment and she really, really likes Waffle House. As well as society matching their personality’s to fifth harmony members they will also deconstruct themselves to be like them by changing their clothes and styles etc. 

Ideology and culture:

Stars promote certain ideology about themselves that will attract an audience, dominant desirable ideologies allow the audience to see their star qualities. For example Fifth Harmony want people to think they are modest about their fame and they don’t flaunt it because they know they are well known/ famous in the media eye and they also have a huge fan base but they don’t act ‘big headed’ about it. They also want people to see them as a group therefor when they are out in the public eye their outfits will co-operate therefor people can recognise them as a group.

Character and personality:

Stars provide audiences with ideas of what people are supposed to be like, a star creates a character on themselves and what they want the audience to consume. Fifth Harmony want women to have the same ideas as them that it okay for women to be powerful and successful. They want their fans to be confident like them.

Dyer also suggests that there are paradoxes and that the star is both 'ordinary and extraordinary' the star need to be like us to be able to relate to the audience but special enough to be stars.



Tessa Perkins

For this essay I will be relating the Tessa Perkins theory towards the pop band Fifth harmony. I will be discussing how they’re seen as a positive role model or even in a negative way. Also I will discuss what stereotypes are held about other artist within the pop genre.

Tessa Perkins theory is she that she believes that stereotyping is not a simple process. She says that stereotypes are not always negative. (E.g. the French are good cooks).They are not always about minority groups or the less powerful (e.g. Upper class twits). They can be held about one’s own group. They are not rigid or unchanging. They are not always false (Supported by evidence). Stereotypes are usually created by the media, though not always as they are a concept which are part of everyday life. There must be some sort of truth in stereotypes because they have a large influence on our lives. Perkins argues that if stereotyping was simple then over time they would not work, nor would they work culturally.

Fifth Harmony are a pop band. Pop bands are stereotyped to be beautiful, divas, high standards, fit freaks and rich. However this band aren’t stereotypical pop stars as they look different to most other singers doing the rounds. One of the members (Lauren) mentioned in an interview “we like that when girls look at us, they don’t see perfect little blonde-haired, blue-eyed Barbie dolls. We all have different body types and skin... We’re all minorities doing a major things.” They are real girls with natural talent, never trying too hard, they stay true to who they are. 5^th harmony break the glossy girl band stereotype, they are youth style icons with real fashion credibility. Each girl has an evolving signature style that the audience can follow and identify with.

Fifth Harmony are seen as positive role models as the have natural talent, they’re youth style icons and they all have different body shapes and looks which informs the audience that you don’t all have to look the same, Ally (member of Fifth Harmony) tweeted “Don’t let anyone tell you who to be. Be yourself and be PROOOOOOOUD of who that is”. Also the song BO$$ is about the rewards of being an independent women is plentiful, this allows women to believe that being independent can be successful. On the other hand Fifth Harmony may be seen as a negative role model as they may be seen as rebels for not conforming to the stereotypical glossy girl band also their popular song “Worth it” is about having one night stands therefore the women will be seen to have no respect for themselves.

Here I have chosen the most popular female artists album covers and placed them next to Fifth Harmony's. Just by looking at them we can tell that the albums are going to have totally different meanings and content. As we can see the photos on the right are all pretty similar, proving that Fifth Harmony are one of a kind and even though they are in the same music category as the others, their message is different.