How is the Representation of Gender Constructed in this Extract?
The extract begins with an overhead tilted camera angle of a dark corridor in a hospital. This unusual camera shot immediately sets the tone for the next scene because the tilt suggests that something is wrong in the scene or things aren't running smoothly. The dark lighting in the scene also adds to this tone and gives the audience the impression that the characters in the opening scene are not very happy. The first camera shot of the extract features a sign in the corridor saying "way out". This sign subconsciously informs the audience about what the next scene is about and the scene turns out to about a doctor trying to break up with his girlfriend and trying to find a way out of their relationship.
In the opening scene with the two doctors, the representation of gender is challenged by the mise en scene. The male character is wearing a pink scrub which is considered to be a feminine colour and suggest that this character has feminine characteristics. The character goes on to say "Your dumped, you were a huge mistake. I never wanna see you again." which is a very common phrase used in TV drama when a woman breaks up with her boyfriend. The man also does most of the speaking in the scene, which is unusual considering that women are stereotyped as speaking the most in a relationship. Despite this representation of gender in this scene, they also include some stereotypical attributes for the female character. Women are often considered to be dependent on men and this is represented in this scene when the nurse says "...I'll make a little call to daddy, you how men get protective over their little girls". This stereotype is emphasised in the next scene where she is crying on the phone asking for her "daddy" which is a phrase associated with little girls. In this scene of the woman crying, an aerial shot is used to show her vulnerability and insignificance.
In the next scene, male gender is represented in a typical fashion by the camera shots used and the mise en scene. The man greets the doctor with a firm handshake and at the end of the scene ends up throwing a punch at him which follows stereo types that all men are aggressive and solve a solution by having a confrontation or fight. The camera shots used in this scene are low angles looking up at each of the character to show the power they both have.
In the next scene with the two men/doctors discussing a patient, they originally shown as stereo typical men by the mise en scene because they begin talking about sports and boasting about how many bones they had broken, each one trying to prove they are manlier than the other which is something are often associated with. However the camera shots used give the audience a different representation of the male gender. A two shot of the men is often used which is unusual camera shot to use for two people having a conversation. They also use numerous close ups of the two characters and sharply cut between each other, which builds up sexual tension between the two men.
Throughout the extract, the sound is all diegetic as they only have the sound is from footsteps and machinery in the hospital and no music is used, which makes the extract more realistic and makes the audience concentrate more on the conversations talking place rather than being distracted by a song in the background.
The editing is fairly quick paced and the sound of the next scene is running before the scene actually begins which makes the hospital appear hectic and gives the audience the impression that there are many things happening in the hospital. Overall the extract represents genders in a stereo typical way, however it also challenges the stereo types using the camera work, mise en scene, editing and sound.
In the opening scene with the two doctors, the representation of gender is challenged by the mise en scene. The male character is wearing a pink scrub which is considered to be a feminine colour and suggest that this character has feminine characteristics. The character goes on to say "Your dumped, you were a huge mistake. I never wanna see you again." which is a very common phrase used in TV drama when a woman breaks up with her boyfriend. The man also does most of the speaking in the scene, which is unusual considering that women are stereotyped as speaking the most in a relationship. Despite this representation of gender in this scene, they also include some stereotypical attributes for the female character. Women are often considered to be dependent on men and this is represented in this scene when the nurse says "...I'll make a little call to daddy, you how men get protective over their little girls". This stereotype is emphasised in the next scene where she is crying on the phone asking for her "daddy" which is a phrase associated with little girls. In this scene of the woman crying, an aerial shot is used to show her vulnerability and insignificance.
In the next scene, male gender is represented in a typical fashion by the camera shots used and the mise en scene. The man greets the doctor with a firm handshake and at the end of the scene ends up throwing a punch at him which follows stereo types that all men are aggressive and solve a solution by having a confrontation or fight. The camera shots used in this scene are low angles looking up at each of the character to show the power they both have.
In the next scene with the two men/doctors discussing a patient, they originally shown as stereo typical men by the mise en scene because they begin talking about sports and boasting about how many bones they had broken, each one trying to prove they are manlier than the other which is something are often associated with. However the camera shots used give the audience a different representation of the male gender. A two shot of the men is often used which is unusual camera shot to use for two people having a conversation. They also use numerous close ups of the two characters and sharply cut between each other, which builds up sexual tension between the two men.
Throughout the extract, the sound is all diegetic as they only have the sound is from footsteps and machinery in the hospital and no music is used, which makes the extract more realistic and makes the audience concentrate more on the conversations talking place rather than being distracted by a song in the background.
The editing is fairly quick paced and the sound of the next scene is running before the scene actually begins which makes the hospital appear hectic and gives the audience the impression that there are many things happening in the hospital. Overall the extract represents genders in a stereo typical way, however it also challenges the stereo types using the camera work, mise en scene, editing and sound.
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