Doctor Who: Language and Representation blog tasks

 1) Write a summary of the notes from our in-class analysis of the episode. You can use your own notes from the screening in class and we'll also post a Google document of class notes too (you'll need your GHS Google login). 

Camerawork and sound:lots of zoomed in shots or close shots 

          Example:close up shot of Barbra when entering the Tardis   

Mise-en-scene:the inside of the tardis is very 

futuristic and bright white

Narrative and genre:Schoolteachers Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright are concerned about one of their pupils, Susan Foreman, who seems to have a very ‘alien’ outlook on England. They have come to her listed address to investigate. They arrive in a junkyard and find a police box, which proves to be no ordinary police box. When Ian and Barbara enter, they discover it to be much bigger on the inside than the outside. In the TARDIS is Susan and her grandfather, the Doctor. Fearing that Barbara and Ian will give away the secret of the TARDIS, he kidnaps them and takes the machine to the Stone Age, where they will have to fight for their lives.

The First Doctor was played as less mischievous and more cruel than later incarnations. He also seems less concerned about saving the human race. 

His companion was made his ‘granddaughter’ because it was thought inappropriate for an old man to be accompanied by a young girl if she were unrelated to him. 

  2) How can we apply narrative theories to this episode of  Doctor Who? 

Todorov's Equilibrium:They begin with equilibrium, where everything is balanced, progress as something comes along to disrupt that equilibrium, and finally reach a resolution, when a new equilibrium is restored

Propp's character theory:Vladimir Propp stated that there were seven basic character roles when he analysed classic fairy tales and that these were present in most narratives. Media products still use these recognisable character types today:

Hero, Villain, Heroine/Princess, Father, Donor, Helper/Sidekick, False Hero

Barthes's enigma and action codes:a narrative code that creates mystery and gives the audience questions to keep them watching e.g. who is the Doctor and where is he taking them? Will the teachers get home? What is the mysterious shadow in the final scene?

Levi-Strauss's binary opposition:

Binary opposition is a theory that all narratives are driven by conflict of a series of opposing forces. There are many examples that can be found in this Doctor Who episode e.g. good v evil; young v old; human v alien; dark v light etc.

3) In your opinion, what is the most important scene in the episode and why?

is my opinion the most important part is when the doctor risks teaches health and his own grand child health as well to satisfy his own curiosity 

4) What genre is An Unearthly Child and how can you tell? Make specific reference to aspects of the episode.

unearthly child is a sifi drama as the tardis is a time machine and the setting is set in the 1960s which is way to ahead in tech 

5) How does An Unearthly Child reflect the social and historical contexts of the 1960s?

in 1960 is was known as the space race because during then tech was advancing way faster than before which kind of links to how the show is more futuristic 

Representations

1) What stereotypes of men are reinforced and subverted in Doctor Who: An Unearthly Child? How?

the men are seen as still the more dominate gender and are the one who flirt with the girls a lot

2) What stereotypes of women/girls are reinforced and subverted in Doctor Who: An Unearthly Child? How?

the women are seen a

3) How do the representations of young people and old people in An Unearthly Child reflect the social and historical context of the 1960s? 

the young people are seen as for flirty as there young hormones are acting up compered to the more older people are seen as proper and mature\well mannered

4) What representations of race/ethnicity can be found in Doctor Who: An Earthly Child? Is this surprising or not? Give reasons for your answer and consider historical / cultural context (the 1960s). Has this changed in more recent series of Doctor Who 

at the time of the first episode the UK was still white predominate but now more ethnic groups appear in the show even on of the doctors partners were a different race.  

5) How is social class represented in An Unearthly Child? Think about how education and knowledge is presented in the episode.

the teaches average middle class citizens as seen in the show from there clothes and there job as well as there car