IDEOLOGY: Final task
1) Read the article and summarise it in one sentence.
The article is about analysing the dystopian representation of capitalist society in the latest Hunger Games
film and the series as whole, drawing attention to elements where media theory can be most usefully applied.
2) What view of capitalist ideology is presented in the Hunger Games films?
The view that was taken of capitalist ideology that is presented in the Hunger games films was that the society was a capitalist society so there were a lot of people who were poor. In the dystopian society of Panem, a
post-apocalyptic America, thirteen districts exist purely to serve the capital city of the country, named ‘The Capitol’. Every district is poor; people struggle to survive on small amounts of food and minimum wages, while they work to provide coal, technology, food, power and other services to the Capitol. Each year two children between the ages of 11-18 are sent from each district to partake in The Hunger Games, an annual event that involves forcing each child to kill one another until only one is remaining. The Games serve to keep the districts under control, as punishment for previous rebellions, and to warn them to stay in line.
3) What do the Hunger Games films suggest about the power of the media to shape and influence ideological beliefs?
Using Marxist theory to assess this representation, we can see that the ruling class keep the poor under control through civic means; armies of ‘Peacekeepers’ are sent to control each district and to punish anyone who tries to defy the authority, whilst providing them with so little money that many are forced to break the strict laws to find means of keeping their families alive. Punishment stations are set up in the squares for anyone who disobeys a rule, and electric fences surround the woods in one of the districts to cut off any means of gathering or hunting for food. This physical withdrawal of the means to survive, combined with the public abuse of those that step out of line, are ‘civic state apparatuses’.
1) Read the article and summarise it in one sentence.
This article is about a way to attempt to unpick one of the most complex and difficult aspects of the Media Studies curriculum: the concept of ideology. It explores the meaning of the term, and its related concept of hegemony, and it looks at the work of three key theorists. Finally It explores the term further through a powerful 1988 film acknowledged to be one of the hidden masterpieces of Hollywood: John Carpenter’s They Live.
2) What are the four accepted ideological beliefs in western societies highlighted by the article?
• Money = Happiness
• Consumer goods = Fulfilment
• Marriage/Family/Children = Happiness
• Obedience/Work= Fulfilment
3) What does Gramsci's theory of hegemony suggest about power and ideology in society?
Italian Marxist philosopher Antonio Gramsci introduced the concept of hegemony, and its role in social control.
Gransci defined hegemony as an important way in which those in power maintain their control through consent,
rather than the use of force. He argued that the power of ideology derives primarily from ideas and structures
which support, and thus serve the purpose of, an elite social group which is able to dominate through ideas,
rather than militaristic strength or fear.
4) What does French theorist Louis Althusser suggest about ideology and consumerism?
The French Marxist theorist Louis Althusser offers a way of understanding how we are controlled through ideology. His view was that ideology is the greatest material power and dominates our day to day lives through two key forms of control:
1: Repressive State Control, also known as ‘Repressive State Apparatuses’ (RSAs) through the major institutions
of society – the Government, Army, Police, Courts, etc. – which are dominated by the ruling elite. These state agencies regulate social behaviour and repress the masses through violence, punitive law, and fear.
2: ‘Ideological State Apparatuses’ (ISAs), such as the Church, the media, educational institutions, the family unit etc. These looser institutions control and dominate implicitly through ‘common sense’ acceptance and social norms, rather than through fear. This echoes Gransci’s concept of hegemony, by which ideology’s power derives primarily from consent as opposed to the use of force. To illustrate, consider these familiar ideas: ‘Realise your true potential,’ ‘Be yourself,’ ‘Lead a satisfying life.’ These values, suggesting the importance of the individual, and self-fulfilment, are dominant in the West, and closely linked with the ideology of consumerism, which arguably dominates and drives society.
5) Do YOU agree with the idea behind They Live - that we are unthinkingly controlled by the media which is run in the interests of the economic elite? These are the big questions of A Level Media!
I would agree with the idea behind They live- that we are unthinkingly controlled by the media which is run in the interests of the economic elite because I think that the media draws us in by the way they report on news and what point of view they would take. Such as when certain newspapers report things they will take a left wing or right wing point of view and the public who will read the report or newspaper will be the people who agree with it. Some people may want to read a different paper, so they may have read a left wing newspaper but now they read a right newspaper and their views and beliefs change due to the way that the media has written the article in the paper.
Also, when an election is taking place and politicians are talking about their respective views and the media report it in a way that change peoples views and people will have and also the political leaders have a bit of influence involved in it as well.
The article is about analysing the dystopian representation of capitalist society in the latest Hunger Games
film and the series as whole, drawing attention to elements where media theory can be most usefully applied.
2) What view of capitalist ideology is presented in the Hunger Games films?
The view that was taken of capitalist ideology that is presented in the Hunger games films was that the society was a capitalist society so there were a lot of people who were poor. In the dystopian society of Panem, a
post-apocalyptic America, thirteen districts exist purely to serve the capital city of the country, named ‘The Capitol’. Every district is poor; people struggle to survive on small amounts of food and minimum wages, while they work to provide coal, technology, food, power and other services to the Capitol. Each year two children between the ages of 11-18 are sent from each district to partake in The Hunger Games, an annual event that involves forcing each child to kill one another until only one is remaining. The Games serve to keep the districts under control, as punishment for previous rebellions, and to warn them to stay in line.
3) What do the Hunger Games films suggest about the power of the media to shape and influence ideological beliefs?
Using Marxist theory to assess this representation, we can see that the ruling class keep the poor under control through civic means; armies of ‘Peacekeepers’ are sent to control each district and to punish anyone who tries to defy the authority, whilst providing them with so little money that many are forced to break the strict laws to find means of keeping their families alive. Punishment stations are set up in the squares for anyone who disobeys a rule, and electric fences surround the woods in one of the districts to cut off any means of gathering or hunting for food. This physical withdrawal of the means to survive, combined with the public abuse of those that step out of line, are ‘civic state apparatuses’.
1) Read the article and summarise it in one sentence.
This article is about a way to attempt to unpick one of the most complex and difficult aspects of the Media Studies curriculum: the concept of ideology. It explores the meaning of the term, and its related concept of hegemony, and it looks at the work of three key theorists. Finally It explores the term further through a powerful 1988 film acknowledged to be one of the hidden masterpieces of Hollywood: John Carpenter’s They Live.
2) What are the four accepted ideological beliefs in western societies highlighted by the article?
• Money = Happiness
• Consumer goods = Fulfilment
• Marriage/Family/Children = Happiness
• Obedience/Work= Fulfilment
3) What does Gramsci's theory of hegemony suggest about power and ideology in society?
Italian Marxist philosopher Antonio Gramsci introduced the concept of hegemony, and its role in social control.
Gransci defined hegemony as an important way in which those in power maintain their control through consent,
rather than the use of force. He argued that the power of ideology derives primarily from ideas and structures
which support, and thus serve the purpose of, an elite social group which is able to dominate through ideas,
rather than militaristic strength or fear.
4) What does French theorist Louis Althusser suggest about ideology and consumerism?
The French Marxist theorist Louis Althusser offers a way of understanding how we are controlled through ideology. His view was that ideology is the greatest material power and dominates our day to day lives through two key forms of control:
1: Repressive State Control, also known as ‘Repressive State Apparatuses’ (RSAs) through the major institutions
of society – the Government, Army, Police, Courts, etc. – which are dominated by the ruling elite. These state agencies regulate social behaviour and repress the masses through violence, punitive law, and fear.
2: ‘Ideological State Apparatuses’ (ISAs), such as the Church, the media, educational institutions, the family unit etc. These looser institutions control and dominate implicitly through ‘common sense’ acceptance and social norms, rather than through fear. This echoes Gransci’s concept of hegemony, by which ideology’s power derives primarily from consent as opposed to the use of force. To illustrate, consider these familiar ideas: ‘Realise your true potential,’ ‘Be yourself,’ ‘Lead a satisfying life.’ These values, suggesting the importance of the individual, and self-fulfilment, are dominant in the West, and closely linked with the ideology of consumerism, which arguably dominates and drives society.
5) Do YOU agree with the idea behind They Live - that we are unthinkingly controlled by the media which is run in the interests of the economic elite? These are the big questions of A Level Media!
I would agree with the idea behind They live- that we are unthinkingly controlled by the media which is run in the interests of the economic elite because I think that the media draws us in by the way they report on news and what point of view they would take. Such as when certain newspapers report things they will take a left wing or right wing point of view and the public who will read the report or newspaper will be the people who agree with it. Some people may want to read a different paper, so they may have read a left wing newspaper but now they read a right newspaper and their views and beliefs change due to the way that the media has written the article in the paper.
Also, when an election is taking place and politicians are talking about their respective views and the media report it in a way that change peoples views and people will have and also the political leaders have a bit of influence involved in it as well.
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