examination of critical theories

The idea of teaching students how to think critically, and more specifically, how to view the media critically, is important to me. This also applies to teaching literature, as almost always think, discuss, and write about literature from the perspective of different critical lenses. But actually understanding the different critical theories and lenses and be difficult and somewhat confusing. Thinking “critically” is such a broad concept—we have to learn how to think more specifically from a feminist perspective, or Marxist, or postmodern. And all of these theories both have things in common and conflict. In my K-12 education I was never taught the different theories, never given the histories or context or vocabulary. It wasn’t until college when I embarked on an independent study in critical theory that I was able to finally get at what all this meant, and then I realized how much I had missed out on.

It’s important that we as teachers give our students access to these different theories, from Rhetorical/Audience to Postcolonial, because they all affect how we understand text (by which I include both books and media). One point from Beach that I thought was really important, yet seems almost absent in school, is a move from theory to practice: “It is important to go beyond critique to engage students in some proactive challenging status-quo practices. If they discover biased reporting in their local television news, they could then write a letter to the television news director…” (p. 33).

I think that audience analysis is a theory that will seem pretty intuitive or obvious to most students. It isn’t too much of a jump for us to think, Who is this person writing for? What is the intended audience? Who are they trying to reach with this message? This is a very good theory to begin with when talking about critical theories and discourse, as it applies to almost all literature and other media.

Semiotic analysis brings in the cultural perspective, examining the meaning of different codes and signs within texts. I think the most important thing for students to understand here is that these meanings are indeed culturally and socially derived.

Narrative analysis takes a closer look at the texts themselves and examines them in terms of how they function as stories. The structure itself is important, and students can think about how different genres affect text as well. I think this critical approach lends itself well to television and movies, as these often fall into archetypical patterns that are easy for students to examine and analyze.

Poststructuralist theory looks at language through binary classification, and asks the question, How do language categories affect perception? When we say that something is male or female, what does that mean? Black or White? Right or Wrong? I think this particular theory is perfect for adolescents, who are trying to discover their unique identities in a binary world. They are wondering who they are in the middle of categorical language, and can discuss the implications of being neither Good nor Evil, but somewhere in between.

The umbrella of critical discourse analysis includes discourses of class, race, and gender, although that most often is studied under the banner of Feminist theory. This theory takes a very realist approach to looking at social order, taking into account questions of power and identity. In my experience, this is one of the most fundamental of all the critical theories, and is important to introduce to students as they begin to think about worlds outside of their own lived experiences.

Psycholanalytic theory is relatively new to me, but is the idea that meaning is shaped by our own desires. I can see this theory as being relevant when working with adolescents, who have strong desires concerning what they want and who they want to be. How do these desires affect the meaning they derive from texts? How to advertisers, movie-makers, writers, etc., use these desires to provide adolescents with the characters, images, stories, that they know will be consumed?

Feminist analysis has moved beyond the binary idea of females vs. males to consider the broader question of society’s treatment of gender. Judith Butler, as explained by Beach, suggests that “we should think of gender as free-floating and fluid rather than fixed, but also constrained and limited by discourses of desire that position people to adopt different versions of the self” (p. 41). In this way she draws on psychoanalytic theory.

Postmodernism is probably the most confusing of all the critical theories. In fact, ask someone to define postmodernism, and most of time they won’t be able to tell you what exactly it is. Even the experts that study the theory disagree on its exact definition. What it is, for sure, is a reaction to modernism, the idea that master narratives are associated with progress, truth, human improvement, high art, science, and technology—the assumption that these narratives will all lead to happiness and fulfillment (Beach, p. 41). Postmodernism challenges all of that, undermining modernist notions of reality and truth, creating new ideas for what is meaningful.

The chart below, from Postmodernism and its Critics, is a good way of contrasting the two schools of thoughts, as well as the chart on the Po-Mo Page.

Contrast of Modern and Postmodern Thinking


I took a postmodern literature class in college, and we read books with disjointed narratives or alternative story styles, like Dave Eggers’ A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, Art Spiegelman’s graphic novels Maus and Maus II, and William Gibson’s Pattern Recognition.

A teaching idea for postmodernism would be to have students compare and contrast modern and postmodern works, to make their own charts, similar to the ones above. They might read a modern novel, by Henry James or Virginia Wolf, and compare it to a postmodern text. Another activity might be examining the narrative structures of a postmodern book and a postmodern film, such as Memento. If time allows, students can even create their own postmodern narrative, through storyboard or film, based on the themes they've charted.

Postcolonial theory takes a look at the broader world and examines how colonialism affects media texts and understanding. A good definition of this theory is found on the website Political Discourse:

Historians, literary critics, and social scientists use the idea of postcolonialism to examine the ways, both subtle and obvious, in which colonization affects the colonized society. Notwithstanding different time periods, different events and different effects that they consider, all postcolonial theorists and theory admit that colonialism continues to affect the former colonies after political independence. By exposing a culture's colonial history, postcolonial theory empowers a society with the ability to value itself.

This theory would be especially important when studying multicultural literature, or American literature of a certain time period or subject. It is similar in a sense to the critical discourses of race and class, which ask readers to examine how a certain perspective or worldview affects perception.

Students in a multicultural literature course might use the postcolonial theory to examine different texts and uncover hidden meanings. Any class reading a work from the canon, most often written by white males, can analyze the text for its postcolonial meanings. Exercises like these allow students to expand their worldview. In a media class, students can analyze popular TV shows or movies for themes and assumptions about colonized cultures. Even a show like Lost provides tons of food for thought and discussion.

In conclusions, while all of these cultural theories may seem daunting, each is a useful tool for inquiry into texts, both literature and broader media texts.

film analysis

I am going to being this week’s assignment on Film Analysis by looking at a clip of the popular TV series “The Office.” This show is filmed almost like a documentary and is known for its unique camera styles, film angles, and for the ways in which the characters interact with the camera, alternately ignoring its presence and then looking directly at it or speaking to it like in an interview or confession. Throughout the show the camera functions almost as a character unto itself.

In this scene Jim and Pam are talking at Pam’s reception desk about the possibility of her moving in with him. The cameral angle alternates from a medium shot of the front of the desk, allowing the viewer to see Pam’s head and Jim’s back (in focus) with a wall obscuring part of the view (out of focus), and a longer shot from the other side of the desk, giving a closer view of Jim’s face and the back of Pam’s head (with file folders out of focus obscuring the view). All of this leads viewers to believe that the cameras are eavesdropping on the conversation from two different locations.

Throughout the scene the cameras (at both locations) move quickly from medium shots to close ups, and viewers can “see” the panning of the motion, again making us very aware of the presence of the cameras. The cameras are not steady but rather move as if held—all of this contributes to the aforementioned feel of the show as documentary. There is no music or soundtrack, which leaves the drama of the scene completely up to the actors’ dialogue and facial expressions. The Office is also known for using silent moments to comment on both characters and situations.

When Jim walks away from Pam’s desk, the camera doesn’t pan out to capture his face and whole body—instead we have a shot of his torso walking towards the camera (as if the person holding the camera couldn’t move out of the way in time.) The scene ends with a typical “break room confession” shot of Jim talking directly to the camera, saying “I am not kidding, (as if in answer to a question posed by the cameraman). “I got it a week after we started dating.” End scene.

As I mentioned, the techniques of camera, sound, and lighting of “The Office” are all intentional to create the feeling that this is a simple documentary of a real office situation. The lights aren’t fancy, there is no music, and viewers can “see” the movement of the cameras. It is typical for more “intimate” scenes like this one between Jim and Pam to be shot as if the cameraman is eavesdropping, from behind a corner or with file folders in the way. It all contributes to the feel of the show.

When teaching Film/Editing Techniques in my classroom, I would begin by having students look at still frames and then move onto clips and full-length films to compare and contrast different techniques and styles. I think it would important to expose them to different techniques, to develop vocabulary, and to talk about the different ways of analysis. I like the idea of having different groups focus on different elements—camera, audience, sound, lighting, sequencing, etc.—to see what each has to say about the film.

I agree with Beach (2007) when he says that: “students are most likely to learn to understand and critique use of film techniques through engaging in their own digital video productions” (p. 21). Of course different schools have different resources, but even if students are only able to map out stories using storyboards, I think doing is the most useful way to learn this area of media literacy. I also like the idea of creating comics using Comic Life or other software—the way that each frame allows the viewer to see the action and how the creator has to really think about each scene, the action, lighting, angles, and characters. Overall, even though this is not my area of expertise, I think film has a lot of potential for student creativity and ingenuity.

Shot-by-Shot Analysis of Martin Scorsese AmEx Commercial



Shot 1: Establishing/Extreme Long Shot, shows One-Hour photo and Martin (from the back) standing at counter, talking to employee. “What was I thinking? What was I thinking?”

Shot 2: Close-up, Martin’s face, presumably looking at employee.

Shot 3: Medium shot, from the side, showing both Martin and employee. Martin’s still talking rapidly.

Shot 4: Close-up, employee. Looks bewildered and turns to look at another drug store employee who is standing in the distance behind him.

Shot 5: Close-up of photographs in Martin’s hands.

Shot 6: Medium shot, over Martin’s shoulder, focusing on employee silent but looking stunned at Martin’s incessant ranting.

Shot 7: Close-up of photographs and Martin’s hands, going through photos one by one and talking about their faults.

Shot 9: Medium shot, Martin (right of frame with store behind him).

Shot 10: Medium shot, employee (left of frame with counter and stock area behind him). Employee blinks rapidly.

Shot 11: Medium shot, Martin holds up photograph to camera (presumably to employee). “What do you think?”

Shot 12: Medium shot, employee. Martin’s hand and photograph partially obscure employee’s face. “It’s pretty,” he replies, hesitantly and a bit unsure.

Shot 13: Medium shot, Martin. Nods as if disappointed.

(a skip, I think the YouTube commercial was edited)

Shot 14: Medium shot from the side, Martin with his back to the employee saying: “I’ve lost the narrative thread.”
Shot 15: Medium shot, Martin at counter again. “Unavoidable, I’ve gotta re-shoot.”

Shot 16: Close-up, Martin’s hand putting an American Express on the counter and employee sliding over four new film cartons.

Shot 17: Close-up of employee sliding American Express through register with the words across the screen: “The Official Card of Perfectionists.”

Shot 18: Extreme Long Shot, same view as beginning of commercial but with Martin leaving the store on his cell phone, asking his 5-year old nephew if he’d like to turn 5 again. Words across the screen: “The Official Card of the Tribeca Film Festival.”

The whole commercial is very fast, with shots lasting only seconds, mimicking Martin’s rapid speech. The employee speaks only a few words but his emotions are registered on his face and by his actions.

why teach media studies? a rationale.

Here's my rationale for teaching Media Studies in a district that has changed curriculum with a new focus on "back to basics" academics:

The district’s focus on improving test scores and achieving adequate yearly progress, emphasized and enforced by national and state standards, has forced teachers and administrators to reconsider current curriculum and budget allocation, especially in the subjects of language arts, math, and science. While reflection and change is often positive and prevents districts and schools from becoming too comfortable or mired in the past, in this case I believe that the district’s decisions concerning curriculum change have been made for all the wrong reasons and will negatively affect student learning. The No Child Left Behind act has moved the focus of education from acquiring knowledge to passing test. The harried emphasis on “back to basics” learning—meant to help students pass high-risk standardized tests—leaves no room for extra-curricular learning that is just as essential to adolescent development as is formal reading and writing, math and science. Specifically, the new Language Arts curriculum as devised by the district, which all high schools are required to follow, provides no time or resources for Media Studies. Teachers are “encouraged to utilize technology within instruction,” but this is by no means equal to a course of study that educates students about not just technology but other media including but not limited to film, advertising, music, news, and the Internet. No one—especially no educator—can argue that we live in a digital world, and it is a disservice to our students to send them out into that world without providing them with the tools, resources, and knowledge for them to thrive and succeed.

Students need many skills beyond the two-dimensional, or “basic” skills, that are outlined in the new proposed curriculum and assessed in standardized tests. Although I do not argue that we are accountable for providing our students with the skills and knowledge for them to successfully pass such tests and achieve all standards, we do owe them more. A Media Studies component to the Language Arts curriculum would provide students with many of the multiple literacies necessary to be successful participants in contemporary society. Skills that students practice in Media Studies include: making connections as means of constructing knowledge, practicing inquiry-based learning, participating in cooperative and collaborative learning, developing problem-solving strategies, building social relationships in digital spaces, and engaging in critical inquiry. While none of these skills can be easily evaluated with a multiple-choice test, they undoubtedly help students make the connection between “academic” learning and real life, between school and home, between what they learn as students and who they will become when they graduate. Instead of teaching to the test, we should equip our students with the skills necessary to apply knowledge to any situation, including standardized testing—Media Studies does that.

The Media Studies component of the Language Arts department would teach students to be critical learners. The curriculum would include units on how to evaluate the media for authenticity and bias, students would participate in a simulated debate over a current event using blogs and wikis to write about issues and key figures, and students would be encouraged to be creative and imaginative with digital tools throughout the class. Students already use digital tools throughout most of their day, and if these resources can be harnessed to increase motivation in student learning, it is our job as teachers to make sure that they are. A re-allocation of time and moneys to provide for Media Studies curriculum will improve student learning in all areas—including standardized tests—as it is the kind of course that provides students with the knowledge they need to be successful in all walks of 21st century life.

media studies in schools

The first issue that’s brought up in the reading for this week (Beach, Chapter 1) is whether or not teachers should show movies in class. More specifically, the chapter gives the example of a schoolboard members arguing that viewing film is a “low-level skill,” and that schools should focus on teaching “high-level skills” such as reading, writing, grammar, etc., in standard forms. The schoolboard member thinks that teachers use movies to fill time, not to actively teach. Although I’ve had my fair share of substitute teachers who popped in a video for lack of a lesson plan, such use of media is not “media studies” in its truest form. Media studies means actually studying the movies, or podcast or website or blog, critically and analytically just as you would study any other text. I think it is narrow-minded to assume that movies are categorically “low-level.” If we only looked at romance novels to judge the quality of books, couldn’t we say the same thing?

I think the real issue is how media is presented to students, how teachers use it to address certain issues or teach themes, topics, ideas. Some of my favorite memories of high school are when my Language Arts and History teacher (we had an interdisciplinary block schedule) used song lyrics and movies from the Vietnam War era to help highlight different themes from books we were reading, both “classics” and contemporary novels. By no means were the songs and films “low-level.” We critically analyzed the lyrics, just as we would a poem or novel, and my teacher taught us how to view film as a “text” as well. Now, years later, the idea of text has opened to include so much more than just music and movies. The opportunities to incorporate the internet, podcasts, advertisements, blogs, vlogs, and other forms of communication into Language Arts curriculum are endless and very exciting.

One of the main reasons I want to become “media literate” and incorporate media studies into my teaching is because the students are already there. Kids walk around texting, listening to their iPods, they spend hours on MySpace and Facebook. To ignore this reality is to fail to acknowledge the present, and as Beach says, “the marginalization of media in the curriculum ignores the centrality of media in our lives” (p. 2). Acceptance of technology doesn’t have to lead to the demise of the book—I am sure that the printed word on paper will never disappear. But most kids love technology, and incorporating it into the classroom is a sure way to increase motivation, participation, and engagement.

Another idea I find fascinating is that the brains of kids raised in the digital age are actually neurologically different than those of older generations. According to Beach, “some neurologists and cognitive scientists posit that…multimediating in the bedroom culture has changed the neural networks in kids’ brains so that they prefer to learn in new and different ways” (p. 2). This research has direct implications for teachers, as we are the ones who must now teach in new and different ways. Furthermore, “it is also the case that this multimediating requires active, as opposed to passive, uses of media” (Beach, p. 2). No longer are kids meant to sit and watch a movie—they are actually wired to engage film, to analyze it, to dissect it and talk about it and apply it to their lives. What once might have been a “low-level skill” is no more. Media has become a legitimate part of our lives, and in school curriculum.