Postmodernism Theory

Below is a diagram which showcases the four different threads connected to Postmodernism theory;

Postmodernism deliberately rejects the idea that there is a high and low culture. They tend to avoid rigid genre distinctions. Rathet than conforming to genre distinctions, postmodernists took a preferenve of the following formats;

• Pastiche - a mixture of different forms
• Parody - a spoof vertsion of a genre
• Bricolage - use of the materials available depsite the intended purpose
• Irony - when there is tension between what is said and what is meant

Vladimir Propp Theory

• 8 character roles or spheres of action (character and action being inseparable)
• 31 functions always highly predictable such as the villian being punished at the end of the story

• The Villian
• The Hero
• The Donor
• The Helper
• The Princess
• The Father (the King who rewards hero)
• The Dispatcher (who sends hero on his way)
• The False Hero (usually good looking and a coward)

Claude Levi-Strauss Theory

Argued that meaning in narratives is based upon binary opposition (or conflict), he was less interested in the arrangement (syntagmatic) of the narrative (or order) and more in the deeper meaning (paradigmatic) of themes.

Binary opposition are things like;

• Men v Women
• Earth v Space
• Science v Nature
• Good v Evil

Queer Theory

Queer theory is the field of gender studies that emerged in the early 1990s out of the fields of gay and lesbian studies, and feminist studies. Although many people believe that queer theory is only about homosexual representations in literature, it also explores categories of gender, as well as sexual orientation. It is not only concerned with sexuality but also with identity. It sees gender as constructed socially, to some extent through our association with the media.

An example of this threory is in the children's television programme 'Scooby Doo'. Three of the five main characters have defined roles which have been set through queer theory. These include;

• Fred - Leader, Male
• Daphne - Female, follows Fred, and is a Girly Girl
• Velma - Brainy/Nerd, Intelligent, Lesbian

Queer theorists analyse texts to expose underlying meanings within and to challenge the notions of 'straight' ideology. They generally challenge the idea that what appears to be straight is in fact a subversion of homosexual desires.

Detailed Analysis of Two Film Posters

In this post, I am going to analyse two film posters from which advertise a film from two different distinct genres - one being from the set film 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part Two', and the other being a poster which has been as part of the marketing campaign for a film in the same genre as the film which my group have created our trailer for, for this I will be using the poster from the British science fiction/ horror film '28 Days Later'.

Both of the film posters which I analysed adhered to the codes and conventions which I have looked at in a previous post, as they both contained a main imge, a release date, a slogan and the most important feature - the film's name. Both of the film posters although from different genres stick to the same basic design of featuring a title with the billing block as well as the release date below, although the Harry Potter slightly wonders away from this by not placing a title whatsoever on its poster and instead just placing a quote from the text, which is used in synergy on the film trailer.

Richard Dyer's Star Theory

Richard Dyer has written extensively about the role of stars in film, television, and music. Irrespective of the medium, stars have some key features in common. A star is an image, not a real person, that is constructed (as any other aspect of fiction is) out of a range of materials (e.g. advertising, magazines, music etc.). Stars are commodities produced and consumed on the strength of their meanings.

Stars depend upon a range of subsidiary media - magazines, television, radio and the internet - in order to construct an image for themselves which can be marketed to their target audiences. The star image is made up of a range of meanings which are attractive to the target audiences.

Fundamentally, the star image is incoherent, that is incomplete and 'open'. Dyer says that this is because it is based upon two key paradoxes;

• Paradox 1 - The star must be simultaneously ordinary and extraordinary for the consumer. They have to be someone which other people can aspire to be like.

• Paradox 2 - The star must be simultaneously present and absent for the consumer. This means that the star are there, but have a private life which people can not see.    

The incoherence of the star image ensures that audiences continually strive to 'complete' or to 'make sense' of the image. This is achieved by continuous consumption of the star through his or her products. In the music industry, performance seems to promise the completion of the image, but it is always ultimately dissatisfying. This means their fans will get away determined to continue consuming the star in order to satisfy/ carry on attempting to complete their image.

Roland Barthes' Theory

Roland Bathes is famous in media studies for suggesting that narratives work with the codes.

• The Action or Proairectic
• The Enigma or Hermeneutic
• The Semic
• The Symbolic
• The Culturalor Referential

The Enigma Code is the most famous as we use this to make guesses to how the narrative will finish, therefore providing pleasure for the audience.

The Hermeneutic Code is the part of the story which is not fully explained. They exist as enigmas and questions that the audiences wishes to be resolved. A detective story for example, is a narrative that operates mainly by the hermeneutic code. A criminal act is shown and the remainder of the narrative is devoted to answering questions raised by the initial event.

In order to maintain interest, the final truth is not revealed until the end of the story and some devices are used to conceal it;

1. The Share - the deliberate avoidance of the truth - a tease or an implication which sends the audience down the wrong path
2. Partial Questions - revealing some of the final truth(s) that is used to increase suspense
3. Equivocation - a mixture of truth and snare, usually further muddying the water! 
4. Jamming - suggesting that the problem may be unsolvable

The Proairectic Code are actions that imply further action/ reaction. For example, a character has an argument and the reader wonders what the resolution or outcome of this argument will be. This creates suspense/ tension as the audience wonder what the outcome will be and begin to guess.