Introducing key terms

  Representation – Page 1

WJEC

Read the words and discuss what you think they might mean before revealing the definition.

The way in which the text is put together to communicate meanings. For example, on a magazine cover the choice of central image, colours and cover lines to create glamour.

The choices made by the producer of the text about what to include and what to leave out. For example, the scenes selected to construct a film trailer in order to attract an audience but not give too much away.

The process by which messages and meanings are added to the text, for example the role of the expert in a news story who explains a point or the news anchor who gives background information to put the story into context.

The words that go with an image and explain its meaning. For example, the headline accompanying a picture on a news website.

The big messages that the text is trying to convey to its audience. For example, some newspapers try to persuade us that being a part of Europe is a bad idea.

This is where the media, across different texts, presents a group of people by exaggerating certain characteristics. For example, a situation comedy may represent a teenager as moody, messy and reluctant to take advice from parents.

The representation changes according to the text in which it appears (context) and its effect on the audience (purpose). For example, a television advert may use stereotypical representations of gender to communicate messages about the product quickly to an audience.

This is often confused with race but is more social than biological. Ethnicity is related to culture and customs, for example: dress, food, religious practices etc. Ethnicity may also relate to an ancestral place (in the case of Jews), ideology or religion. These elements may set you apart from those of a different ethnicity.

This is more biological than social and is a way of grouping people according to characteristics that are passed on from generation to generation. These characteristics may be related to the colour of your skin, hair or facial features.