Midterm Studying.docx

Midterm Studying Recognize different types of signs, symbols and codes. Arbitrary: words Iconic: pictures Indexical: smoke from fire Symbolic: flags, crosses Associate each of the major literary theorists with their ideas. Barthes: Enigma Code Propp: 8 Characters, 31 Functions Freud: Structuralism Levi-Strauss: Binary Opposites Todorove: Structure for all Narratives Marx: Structuralism and Marxism. Differentiate between story, narrative, and plot. A narrative is the telling of a story. Plot is everything visibly and audibly present. Story is all the events. Distinguish between archetypes and myths. Archetypes are recurring patterns. Myths are fictions. Give examples of common subtexts. Fairy Tales, Myths, Archetypes, Music, and Intellectual Ideas. Recognized closed and open narratives and explain how they alter character development and plot. Closed narratives come to a resolution, they have a few characters with distinctive hierarchy and roles and one single plot. Open narratives don?t come to a conclusion, they have many characters who switch hierarchy and roles, with many plots. List and explain of the principal qualities associated with postmodernism. Homage, Hybridity, Hyperreality, Intertextuality, Irony, Metanarrative, Parody, Pastiche, Reflexivity, and Simulation. Describe postmodern qualities associated with music videos. Advertisement for soundtrack, compressed storytelling, rapid editing, extreme camera angles, slow-motion, freeze-frame, repetition and emphasis on images in a video style. Explain the major concepts of Marxist theory. Hegemony: rule is political, social, and culture and contains ideology. False Consciousness: ideas are given to us by the ruling class and are spread by mass media. Bourgeoisie: own factories and corporations and form the ruling class. Proletariate: huge mass of workers who are exploited by this ruling class. Meaning Makers: ruling class sets connotations of signs. List Repertoires of Elements, Codes, and Conventions associated with Documentaries, Musicals, Westerns, Crime Films. Westerns: protagonist, American, truth, honor, and sacrifice; protagonist comes into town and restores order or gets revenge against the bad guy. Lawless. Documentaries: a sense of realism, even if it?s constructed. Musicals: lavish sets, escapist, music. Crime Movies: protagonist who does things people want to do but would never and usually has success from it, dark bars, lavish cars, luxury suits, etc. Note ways in which documentaries are constructed. Initial selection of what is being filmed, conditions of consent, how the event is framed or staged, and editing decisions. List and describe documentary modes. Expository: voice of authority and a general attempt to present reality. Observational: no interference, a ?fly on the wall?. Interactive: documentarist is in the film. Reflexive: shows film-making. Relate westerns and crime films to American culture. Americans want to be ultimately free, to do whatever they want like the protagonists do, but cannot because it comes at too high a cost. Note major shifts in specific genres as they relate to American history, ideologies, and popular culture. Musicals became more popular during the Great Depression due to their escapist qualities. Describe cinematography commonly associated with different types of a genre. Gangster films are commonly set in dark bars, sleek cars, etc. Differentiate between art and popular films. Art films are independent and aimed toward a niche crowd. Popular films aim towards the mainstream audience. Note genre differences regarding artistic status and critical esteem. Comedies lack the scenery and cinematography that other genres posses and therefore get less critical esteem. List the economic advantages, viewer benefits, and artistic limitations of genre. Economic Advantages are that you can possibly use the same sets, and viewers know what they?re paying for. Viewer Benefits are that the viewers can know what to expect and whether they will generally like the movie or not. Artistic Limitations of Genre are that you can?t go too far outside of a genre. List the traits of a Western hero and a gangster protagonist. Western hero is usually rustic and defending his honor lawlessly. Gangster is luxurious and rich while climbing the totem pole. Be able to describe the visual looks of Western and gangster films. Western: desert, ghost town, cowboy garb, horses, etc. Gangster: black, pinstripes, sleek cars, luxury, dark bars, etc. Be able to list codes used in Westerns and gangster films. Westerns: black hat is the bad guy, white hat is the good guy. Gangster: luxurious, embodies what every American wants to be. Briefly discuss the symbolic use of guns and death scenes in Westerns and Gangster films. Westerns: guns represent personality and death scenes are the triumph over evil. Gangster: guns represent neurosis or sexuality and death scenes often show either elegance or the fall from power.