Reception theory

‘Reception Theory Advanced 1960s-1980s’  is a literary theory examining the individual viewer’s response to a text, in this instance meaning any books, movies or other creative media. It gives credit to an active audience, meaning it believes viewers of media can play an active role in interpreting messages in based on their own social contexts and personal circumstances. It disempowers those creating the text and the texts intended message, theorising that based on age, religious beliefs, culture, gender, life experience and even the mood of the viewer at time of viewing can interpret the text but not necessarily in the way the creators intended.

This theory is taken further by one Stuart Hall, a Jamaican-born cultural theorist, who argues that there are three positions of viewers interpretation and response as outlined and explained below:

• Dominant position– this is when the viewer receives the text and interprets the meaning exactly as the creator had intended, responding to it with acceptance.
• Oppositional position– this is when the viewer can understand the meanings of a message as the creator intended but they interpret it in a completely contrary way and end up rejecting it.
• Negotiated position– this is when the viewer is essentially half way between dominant and oppositional. The viewer is acknowledging the intended message, but are not willing to completely accept the message the way the creator intended, applying personal preference based on interpretations.

An example of the dominant position from a personal perspective is my understanding and acceptance of Netflix’s ‘A-Typical’. I can accept the intended messages within the show as I have experience with autism and I can relate to the storyline and characters.

Semiotics

Semiotics is a theory based on how a viewer interprets and takes meaning from signs and symbols within a text. Basic semiotics is an analysis of signifier and signified which make up the signs within texts. Advanced semiotics is an analysis of how our understanding of the meanings of signs in a literal sense and the extra ideologies associated that are known as connotations. Roland Barthes,  a French literary theorist and renowned theorists of semiotics referred to the social phenomenon of bringing together of signs and their connotations to shape a particular message, the making of the myth.

This cross is synonymous with christianity

The Star of David is synonymous Judaism, but also has the added negative connotation of the Nazis use of the symbol during WW2

 

Structuralism

Structuralism examines the way in which audiences gain meaning from the structure of texts. Its reliant on the idea that no one sign or symbol can be fully understood without taking into consideration the structure and context of the text.

Roland Barthes was a French literary theorist and semiotician whose theories explored a diverse range of fields,  influencing the development of many schools of theory, including structuralism, semiotics and post-structuralism among others. Barthes theorised there were 3 Narrative codes as outlined and explained below:

• Action Codes– This is when the creator produces a series of action or events to hold the viewer’s interest in the overall narrative.
• Enigmatic Codes- This is when the creator structures the plot around questions and mysteries to maintain the viewer’s interest in the overall narrative.
• Symbolic Codes-  This is when the creator uses a major theme of binary opposites throughout the text, an example  (good vs evil, male vs female ect.)

 

Content analysis

Content Analysis is a combination of qualitative and quantitative research method of systematically examining media texts to research meaningful patterns of communication. It is a process designed to extract information from data within texts and can be applied across a wide variety of mediums. To conduct a content analysis you will follow a systematic process-

• Identify your research question.
  • Eg. Do marvel movies oversexualise female characters?

• Select sample of media material.
  • Eg. pre release trailers, posters, adverts, movies.

• Review samples of relevant material.
  • Watch Marvel cinematic universe, phase one.
  • Review posters for appropriate movies.
  • Watch pre release trailers.

• Categorise what you are analysing the material for, this will be your coding system.
  • Female characters costume design showing cleavage on screen.
  • Female characters shown on screen in full length shot.
  • Female characters flirting on screen.

• Make a tally of everytime a theme in your coding system is observed in the material.