OCR GCSE Media Studies

Question 3: Stereotypes

20 marks | 18 minutes

 

What's a typical question 3 question?

Discuss the representation in the extract.

• Refer to stereotypes in your answer.

• Use examples from the extract.

• You might consider the representation of [here, OCR will point you in the direction of certain areas such as gender; race, nationality, criminals, superheroes...]

 

What should I revise?

• If you have already filled in your representation toolkit (see link above right), then revise that.

• If you have not yet filled in your represenation toolkit then do it now!

 

How to revise

• Watch clips from action adventure films and play 'spot the sterotype' looking out for sterotypes such as vulnerable weak women and counter-stereotypes such as strong, heroic women (Lara Croft)

  • It is

• Practise answering the above example question, considering how the clip challenges and supports stereotypes, and whether it includes any counter-stereotypes

 

Key tips:

• DO  consider the extent to which stereotypes (which the question asks for) are represented but also challenged

  • You must use the word stereotype or stereotypical to get better than Band 1

  • Stereotypes could be such things as:

    • ​​Stereotypical masculinity

    • Stereotypical vulnerability of women

    • Arabs represented as terrorists (The Hurt Locker)

    • Linking violence to masculinity (unless you are both old and male in which case you need protection)

  • ​Key areas of representation are:

    • ​Age

    • Gender

    • Sexuality

    • Ethnicity (nationality, race, religion)

    • Class/status

    • Regional identity

    • Ability/disability

• DO focus on the extract – pre-prepared general answers about the typical representation found in action/adventure films will not be usefu

• DO focus on representation (stereotypes) and not just cO  consider the extent to which stereotypes (which the question asks for) are represented but also challenged

• DO pay attention to the specific stereotypes mentioned in the question (OCR will list several for you to focus on) - you don't need to go beyond those suggested

• ​​​DO ​write about wider issues of media representation, ​​not generic conventions

• DON'T fall into the trap of stereotyping in your answer - e.g. don't write things like “the army are all male as women wouldn’t be able to fight”.

• DON'T write about stereotypes that aren't in the extract - e.g. don't write about how there is a lack of disabled people..

• ​YOU CAN ​go beyond the clip in order to make comparative points:

  • Having watched the Lara Croft extract, one student wrote that the Chinese villains was a stereotypical negative representation of Chinese people comparable to the Fu Manchu villain.​

  • If you saw a villain with a scar, you could say this is a frequently seen representation of disabled people as seen in the multiple Bond villains featuring a scar.