‘Long form television dramas produced in different countries always incorporate the dominant conventions, viewpoints and ideologies of those countries.’ How far do you agree with this statement? (45 mins = 900 – 1300)
Both D83 and Stranger Things are set in 1983, begging
my first question: which is more influential on content, commitment to the
historical time period or incorporating the dominant conventions, viewpoints and ideologies of
their respective nations? They are also
both genre pieces, leading me to question whether the dominant conventions found in each text are
influenced more by the generic paradigms or national ideologies. Finally, we can examine the
economic context, asking whether economic forces outweigh concerns around national values in shaping
content.
My introduction should imply that my essay will cover three sections/questions.
1: Which is more influential on the content of the programmes, the attempt to be true to the time period or incorporating present day viewpoints and ideologies of their country of origin?
2: Which is more influential on the content of the programmes, the attempt to incorporate the dominant conventions of the genre or the viewpoints and ideologies of their country of origin?
3: Which is more influential on the content of the programmes, the economic context of the production, marketing and consumption or the need to incorporate the dominant viewpoints and ideologies of their country of origin?
NB: It may not be necessary to cover ALL of these elements separately.
SECTION 1: HISTORICAL VERISIMILITUDE vs NATIONAL IDENTITY
Look carefully at the three sections below. Each proposes a theorist to apply to the question of history vs national identity. I have given you a possible opening and a possible closing of the paragraph. Choose one of them (or choose one of your own) and turn it into a paragraph of essay. You should re-write it in your own words and choose your own examples to support your assertions. It is fine for you to reach a different conclusion to the one I have proposed. Really let your ideas be guided by the evidence.
Once you have finished your paragraph, post it in the comments section.
NB: Try to keep it under 200 words.
Baudrillard
Baudrillard asserts that the saturation of signs has lead to a state of hyperreality. If we apply this to Stranger Things, we can argue that it makes no attempt to accurately portray its historical time period, but instead copies simulations of that time
period. This contributes to the state of hyperreality that pervades modern western culture,
and shapes the viewpoints and ideologies of US audiences.
EXAMPLES
So, if we apply Baudrillard it seems fair to say that
Stranger Things is almost entirely ahistorical and instead is shaped by the hyperreal viewpoints of its country of origin. We could even go further and conclude that it shapes the hyperreal worldwide perceptions of the USA.
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EDITED PARAGRAPH
Baudrillard argues that the saturation of signs has led to a
state of hyperreality. Stranger Things, simulates 1980s Small Town America
rather than accurately portraying the country at that time, creating the hyperreality
that shapes the viewpoints and ideologies of US audiences. Stranger Things
constructs nostalgia for the simulacrum of 80s film and TV; it is a copy of a
feeling, of family, of adventure, of camaraderie, of the American dream. It
actively uses intertextuality, foregoing any attempt at realism; its vision of
1980s America is built upon simulations from horror films like A Nightmare on
Elm Street, Spielberg Classics (Stand by Me, Goonies) etc. Stranger Things is
almost entirely ahistorical and instead is shaped by the hyperreal viewpoints
of its country of origin. We could even conclude that it shapes the hyperreal
worldwide perceptions of the USA.
Levi-Strauss
Levi Strauss asserts that narratives are built around binary opposition. It is very easy to take a structuralist approach to D83, identifying the conflict between East and West Germany as the central plot device. We know that this conflict is historically true, but the way it is presented and the economic success of the programme draws attention to the tension between historical truth and national viewpoints.
EXAMPLES
The dominant convention of spy thrillers is to construct a clear binary opposition, but D83 is deliberately ambiguous. This is likely to be a more realistic representation of the time period because it incorporates the viewpoints and ideologies of its modern German audience, specifically its uneasy relationship with its fractured past. However, D83 did fairly badly with domestic audiences and was far more popular with UK and US audiences. It is impossible to be sure why this is the case, but we might argue that German audiences did not want to be confronted by their modern viewpoints and ideologies in an otherwise nostalgic spy thriller.
Hall
Hall contends that power asserts its control over representation to construct hegemony. However, he also implicates the audience in constructing meaning. Both texts take a postfeminist approach to the
representation of gender in relation to their historical context. TV and Film producers in modern Germany and USA are
both strongly influenced by modern contexts around the representation of gendered
power dynamics as are the audiences that consume them.
EXAMPLES
If Stranger Things were made in 1983, we might see its
representation of strong female characters fighting against patriarchal tyranny as a deliberate attempt to construct countertypes. We might suggest that these female countertypes fix the preferred meaning because they differ from dominant representations. However, it seems more likely that they are in fact shaped by the post-feminist
ideology that pervades modern American audiences. It is more difficult to be sure that this is the
case with D83. The supposed egalitarian East may have been more historically
likely to employ a female leader, and this may shape the characterisation of
Lenora more than an attempt to reflect the feminist ideology that pervades
modern German culture.
Baudrillard’s theory of simulacra can be applied to both Stranger Things and Deutschland ’83 to present their respective worlds to their respective audiences. Contextually, Stranger Things is historically accurate, not to the 1980s themselves, but to simulations of the 1980s made by other media texts such as E.T. and Stand By Me. This essentially makes Stranger Things into a simulation of a simulation, contributing to the hyperreal viewpoints of its American producers. Not only that, but it could be argued that Stranger Things contributes to these hyperrealities, subsequently reinforcing the worldwide conception that the hyperreal representations of 1980s America are truthful.
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ReplyDeleteBaudrillard argues that the use of signs in a postmodern society creates a hyperreal view of reality. Many will notice that Stranger Things weakly represents its historical time period accurately, however it strongly reflects simulations of that time period. This adds to the hyperreality in modern western culture and shapes the viewpoints and ideologies of US audiences. An example of this is showing the main characters Will, Mike, Dustin and Lucas cycling around alone at night dressed in typical 80’s fashion. This creates a simulacrum of children in the 80’s always loving to cycle when however, this is a reflection of 80’s Spielbergian movies, such as ET, adding to the 80’s hyperreality and effecting the audience’s viewpoints. Another example of this is the 80s hyperreality includes an untrustworthy and evil government which is seen in Stranger Things through the secrets held and mistakes made. This is a dominant convention in Spielbergian movies and affects the American audiences’ ideologies. Therefore, by applying Baudrillard, we can see that the 80’s America that Stranger Things is set in is a hyperreality, created by hyperreal simulations of the viewpoints and ideologies of the country of origin as well as adding to them.
The dominant conventions, viewpoints and ideologies of Germany are broken in the LFTVD D'83, when looking at the series from the position of Levi-Stauss's structuralism. This is the idea of hidden rules that govern a structure, we can see this with the representation of East and West Germany as binary opposites. The underlying 'myth' or ideologies in Germany (for modern audiences) is that communism was/is bad (the East) and capitalism is good (the West). In a spy thriller made in the 1980's this would always be conveyed through a communist character playing the villain or enemy. However, D'83 takes a more modern and realistic approach to the time period and does not favour either the East or the West, and more importantly has the main protagonist, the hero, as Martin, a character from the communist East. This may explain why the series was not popular in Germany as it brings to surface Germanys fractured past and uses a countertype protagonist within this. We can also see here that D'83 is not true to its narrative world and does not play into the verisimilitude expected for a 1980's spy thriller.
ReplyDeleteWhen looking at the historical verisimilitude of Stranger Things we can argue that it does not provide a directly accurate reflection of the true dominant ideologies, conventions and viewpoints of the time that it is set in. It is here that we can apply Baudrillard’s theory of simulation. Stranger Things displays hyperreal ideologies of 1980’s America through simulacra. Similarly, Stranger Things is a piece that is intended to be an homage to Spielbergian classics from the 1980’s. Being designed and created in a world inspired by these classics, we are provided with a simulation of a simulation. The dominant ideologies, conventions and viewpoints of Stranger Things are based on the ideologies, conventions and viewpoints created by Spielberg’s simulations of 1980’s USA, therefore ST does not truly reflect the true historical accuracy of 1980’s American society but hyperreal identities.
ReplyDeleteI would question whether Stranger Things abide by their respective national viewpoints and ideologies, or whether they simply incorporate the dominant conventions of genre and various simulacra in order to market themselves effectively to a wider audience. It is clear that Stranger Things doesn’t attempt to replicate its historical time period, but instead draws on simulations of the 80s to fit into the hyperreality of the 80s that modern western culture has created- and therefore cannot simply be abiding purely by American viewpoints and ideologies as such, ‘American culture’ has been formulated as a hyperreal conception of reality, as suggested by Baudrillard, and cannot truly reflect the true dominant viewpoints and ideologies of America since our perception of such- and it’s representation- has been skewed by repeated simulacra. Perhaps we should argue that Stranger Things presents us what we think are dominant conventions, viewpoints and ideologies of America; particularly within its intertextual Spielbergian references, and the depiction of a nuclear family within the opening scenes of the Wheeler’s household. The influence of genre is also clearly highlighted within the trailer for Stranger Things, which clearly markets the show as a horror, thriller and even sci-fi; rather than attempting to appeal to its American audience and accuracy as an American 1980s depiction- perhaps due to the nature of Netflix as a popular worldwide distributer, rather than a purely national one, and therefore it should aim to appeal to an international audience.
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ReplyDeleteWe can understand the importance of national relevance through the application of structuralism since both shows incorporate binary oppositions, Stranger Things, for example, use the template for good/bad and natural/supernatural etc, which in the 80s was a huge part of American culture with the likes of films such as Gremlins or The Labyrinth. Levi-Strauss suggests that these binary oppositions are hidden rules/myths that govern the way media is structured, we see this in D83 with the contrast between East and West being the main drive of the show and the basis for the plot. However, spy thrillers of the time would more likely take a more one-sided, propogandist approach to presenting each side, which is not what D83 does. This is given to a modern German audience with a fair and truthful representation of each side and therefore using the more modern viewpoints and ideologies to present it to the audience in an unbiased way. Despite this, figures show that Germany did not receive this as well as the US and UK, which it is unclear as to why.
Baudrillard :)
ReplyDeleteApplying Baudrillard to ST allows us to argue history vs national identity and its influence on viewpoints expressed. Baudrillard can be directly applied when considering whether the views expressed in ST are simply modern viewpoints or historical identity. Elements in stranger things take aim for its historical past, with set design and props used that deconstruct the idea ST is a hyperreal version of 80’s America. This is backed by the inclusion of references to 80’s popular films such as ET which completes an idea that this is not a copy or simulacrum and is more historical based. However, this loses power when considering the missed history that doesn’t appear in stranger things. With it being around the 80’s it makes more of an attempt to construct a shady government and mid-town America than any sort of historical context of the cold war or any other goings on, there is no time related news that can portray the viewpoints of the era, and instead shapes a hyperreality by created a new copy within a historical context.
Baudrillard asserts that the saturation of signs has led to a state of hyperreality. If we apply this to Stranger Things, we can argue that it makes no attempt to accurately portray its historical time period, but instead copies simulations of that time period. This contributes to the state of hyperreality that pervades modern western culture and shapes the viewpoints and ideologies of US audiences. Stranger Things, unlike D83, which attempts to seem realistic as a historical drama, actively celebrates intertextuality, foregoing any attempt for realism. The creators wanted the show to be homage to 20th century Spielberg films. (E.T, Goonies). Their depiction of 1980’s suburban America is built upon simulations, from horror films like “A nightmare on elm street” and Spielberg classics. The pleasure of watching Stranger Things is for nostalgia rather than a realistic depiction of 1980’s Indiana. Arguably, the repeated representation of the 1980’s leads to verisimilitude. And therefore, this “nostalgia” is for a simulacrum provided by cinema and TV, not 1980’s America. We can only question if the viewpoints and ideologies underlined in Stranger Things are simulacrums of the hegemonic beliefs presented in Spielberg films and are not of “true” America. So, if we apply Baudrillard it seems fair to say that Stranger Things is almost entirely ahistorical and instead is shaped by the hyperreal viewpoints of its country of origin. We could even go further and conclude that it shapes the hyperreal worldwide perceptions of the USA.
ReplyDeleteBaudrillard's theory states that in modern society signs are used to create a hyper realistic simulation of reality. Stranger things 1980s setting is not displayed as perfectly accurate to the time, nor is it intended to, instead building of dominant conventions of the 19080s creating a simulation of 1980’s small town America. The world of stranger things is 80’s America from the perspective of a modern production imbuing this representation with current ideologies and beliefs to appeal to a modern audience. Stranger things is a show that takes great inspiration from other media texts such as the books of Stephen kings, showing us the origins of how this hyper real simulation of 80’s America has been formed from existing simulacra. With the mass appeal of stranger things, it is possible to argue that it has become a sign itself and will likely influence future media, creating further distortions of reality.
ReplyDeleteBaudrillard speaks of the theory of hyperreality in which over time there has been a saturation of signifiers. We can apply this theory to stranger things, for example the way in which a hyppereal perspective is constructed of the US worlwide due to the way in which it is represented in film and tv. We can see by the representations shown that the show does not attempt to correctly portray the era in a legitimate sense but more so in a simulation of the period, such texts one could refer to would include stand by me, the breakfast club and the outsiders. Furthermore one could argue the tropes portrayed in stranger things help to culminate the global perspective of the era it represents, further expressing the state of hyperreality.
ReplyDeleteWhen applying Baudrillard's theory of hyperreality to Stranger Things it's safe to say that the show is not a verisimilitude piece. The show itself may feature some historical accuracy to the period of that its set, but Stranger Things is almost entirely dominated by hyperreal viewpoints of the country where it is set (USA), as well as common stereotypes which are associated with the USA and people. With Stranger things it creates a simulation of the original time period and people, this alteration primarily shapes the audiences perception of what the USA is like, this is due to the repletion of these messages in the media. Thus this creates a state of hyperreality where the viewpoints and ideologies of the audience have changed, where the true accurately portrayed time period is now but a copy.
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ReplyDeleteLevi-Strauss conveys the importance of national ideologies and viewpoints through the application of structuralism. Since both shows incorporate binary oppositions; Stranger Things uses the template for good/bad and natural/supernatural etc, which in the 80s was a huge part of American culture seen in films such as Gremlins or The Labyrinth. Levi-Strauss suggests that these binary oppositions are hidden rules/myths that govern the way media is structured, we see this in D83 with the contrast between East and West being the main drive of the show and the basis for the plot. However, spy thrillers of the time would more likely take a more one-sided, propogandist approach to presenting each side, which is not what D83 does. This provides the modern German audience with a fair representation of each side, therefore using more modern German viewpoints and ideologies of equality to present it to the audience in an unbiased way. Despite this, figures show that Germany did not receive this as well as the US and UK, suggesting an uninterest in German history in Germany, perhaps showing a viewpoint of shame from Germany in their history.
Levi Strauss asserts that narratives are built around binary opposition; and can be applied to reveal the national viewpoints and ideologies of the country of production. Stranger Things (ST) uses binary oppositions; good/bad, natural/supernatural, to emulate American 80s movies such as Gremlins and The Labyrinth. Levi-Strauss suggests that this connotes American viewpoints and ideologies. D83 centres East and West Germany throughout the narrative; portraying both sides of binary opposition, yet interestingly favouring neither. Typically, spy thrillers like D83 in the 80s would not take such a neutral approach with their binary opposite political representations; therefore, representing the viewpoints and ideologies of a more modern German audience. Despite this, figures show that D83 did not perform well in Germany, despite the clear shift away from typical spy genre; implying that the unbiased reflection of East and West does not support national viewpoints and ideologies of Germany.
ReplyDeleteThe dominant conventions, viewpoints and ideologies of Germany are broken in D'83. Looking at it through Levi-Stauss's view of structuralism; the idea of hidden rules that govern a structure, we see this with the representation of East and West Germany as binary opposites. The underlying 'myth' or ideologies in Germany (for modern audiences) that communism was/is bad (East) and capitalism is good (West). Spy thrillers set in 1980's Germany would tend to support a capitalist view. D'83 takes a modern and realistic approach to the time period and favours neither the East nor the West, and more importantly has the main protagonist, as Martin, a character from the communist East. This may explain why the series was not popular in Germany as it brings to surface Germany’s past and uses a countertype protagonist within this. We can also see that D'83 is not true to its narrative world and does not play into the verisimilitude expected for a 1980's spy thriller.
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ReplyDeleteWe can understand the importance of national relevance through the application of Levi Strauss’ theory of binary oppositions. Stranger Things uses the template for good/bad and natural/supernatural etc, which in the 80s was a huge part of films such as E.T or A Nightmare on Elm Street. Levi-Strauss suggests that these binary oppositions are hidden rules/myths that govern the way media is structured; we see this in D83 with the contrast between East and West being the main drive of the show and the basis for the plot. However, D83 changes the spy-thriller conventions of the 1980s by providing a more neutral approach centred around the binary opposition the premise is based on. This unconventional approach did not attain high viewer counts in Germany, supporting the idea that it did not reflect the ideologies of Germany.
We can understand the importance of national relevance through the application of Levi-Strauss’ theory of binary opposition. Stranger Things, uses the template for good/bad and natural/supernatural etc, which in the 80s was a huge part of American culture with the likes of films such as ET and Goonies. Levi-Strauss suggests that these binary oppositions are hidden rules/myths that govern the way media is structured, we see this in D83 with the contrast between East and West being the main drive of the show and the basis for the plot. Typically, spy thrillers set in the 80’s do not take a neutral standpoint when it comes to their binary oppositions in ideologies. This is given to a modern German audience with a fair and truthful representation of each side and therefore using the more modern viewpoints and ideologies to present it to the audience in an unbiased way. Despite this, D83 did not achieve high popularity amongst the German audience but did with UK and US audiences which could show that Germans are not overwhelmingly keen to see examples of German History.
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ReplyDeleteUsing Levi-Strauss's theory of structuralism, it shows that the historical dominant conventions, viewpoints and ideologies of the 1980’s have been deconstructed. D83 has taken a modern approach, It is not true to historical accuracy nor modern ideologies which were the East was bad and that the West is good; but it does not favour either the East or West. The protagonist is a communist which acts as a countertype to modern viewpoints. If the show was made in the 1980’s the villain would be a communist character and the protagonist a western hero. With this modern representation Levi-Straus theory of binary opposites can’t be applied to D83 as the ideologies of the show shift between West and East Germany.
By applying Strauss, we can understand the importance of national relevance in both shows as they both incorporate binary oppositions. Stranger Things uses the binary opposites of good vs bad and natural vs supernatural; these were popular themes during the 80s in America with films such as Gremlins and The Labyrinth. In D83 the most prominent binary opposite is the contrast between East and West. However, unlike most spy thrillers, D83 has looked at both sides rather than just the typical one-sided protagonist approach. This has been done to present Germany in a more modern way with viewpoints and ideologies of the current time. D83 was far more popular in non-German speaking countries like the UK and US. This may be because they are less familiar with the realistic events of the time period and less likely to be offended by the way German was represented in the spy thriller.
ReplyDeleteAmerican viewpoints are portrayed through the application of structuralism and binary oppositions in Stranger Things, including good/bad and natural/supernatural etc; these are conventional oppositions seen in American 80s films, like Gremlins and The Labyrinth. Levi-Strauss suggests binary oppositions and the way they are used by producers in narratives demonstrate their ideological significance. The contrast between East and West in D83 is a key component in its narrative. However, spy thrillers of the time would have been bias, whereas D83’s ideological tendency is more ambiguous. This ambiguity constructs modern western viewpoints and ideologies. Arguably, the show was not successful in Germany because the show did not present the accurate historical viewpoints and ideologies of 80s Germany.
ReplyDeleteThe dominant conventions, viewpoints and ideologies of modern Germany can be deconstructed, when applying Levi-Stauss's structuralism to D83. Stauss asserts that media is structured around binary oppositions, which is visible in D83 and its representation of East and West Germany. The underlying 'myth' or ideology seen in German culture is anti-communist and pro-capitalist, with a typical cold war spy thriller encoding this ideology using communist antagonists portrayed in a binary opposition to the capitalist protagonists. However, D83 focuses instead on historical verisimilitude, favouring neither the East or West, and more importantly has a communist from the East as its protagonist. This may help explain the series lack of popularity in Germany as it explores their fractured past, suggesting historical verisimilitude to have had more influence on the show than the viewpoints of modern Germany.
ReplyDeleteWe can understand the importance of national relevance through the application of structuralism. Both shows incorporate binary oppositions, Stranger Things, for example, uses the template for natural/supernatural. Which in the 80s was a part of American culture with films like Gremlins or The Labyrinth. Levi-Strauss suggests that these binary oppositions are hidden rules that structure our media, we see this in D83, the contrast between East and West using good/bad as the basis for the plot. However, in contrast to D83, spy thrillers of the time often took a more one-sided, propogandist approach representing each side D83 is given to a modern German audience with D83 is given to a modern German audience with modern viewpoints and ideologies to present it to the audience in an unbiased way
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