Question 2: How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Our coursework opening sequence, Dark Summer has characters representing two different social groups:

• Females: girls and women
• Age: children and young adults/ teens

We did this through the script, costume and mise-en-scene. Below I have expanded on the representations of these two social groups.

AGE: CHILDREN

How are young children conventionally seen in society?

How does the character of Summer follow this representation of young children?

• We do not see her in the opening sequence. This shows the audience that she has always been vulnerable to attack.
• Summer has Zoe to babysit her. She needs someone older to look after her as she is not old enough to look after and protect herself.
• Summer was kidnapped, conforming to the convention that children need protection.
• Her room is full of childish things; fluffy cushions, pictures of animals, music box.
• Summer being kidnapped shows how innocent and helpless she is.

AGE: TEENAGERS

How are teenagers conventionally seen in society?

Does the character, Zoe follow this representation of teenagers?

• Being trusted to babysit Summer shows her level of responsibility. Zoe is not wholly irresponsible and lacking in maturity, like child.
• Her Blackberry and costume conform to the fact that teenagers are interested in style and the latest technologies.
• Zoe being polite on the phone to Mrs Matthews shows that she is respectful of her elders, and not rude and stroppy as some people might expect her to be.
• She is obviously not involved with gang culture or crime as many teens in Britain are nowadays.
• She is responsible for Summer's safety. Zoe has failed in her responsibility to look after Summer though the kidnap is not something she could have easily prevented. She is not mature like an adult.

GENDER: FEMALES

How are females conventionally seen in society?

How do the characters in Dark Summer follow or defy the stereotype of females and women?

• Summer being kidnapped shows her vulnerability as a female child.
• Zoe defies the stereotype of passive and sensitive females as she appears strong and forceful in the scene where she receives the anonymous phone call.
• Zoe follows the stereotype of childcare being a woman's job because she is babysitting Summer.