Abdollah Givian; Zohreh Tavakoli
Abstract
Regarding representational function of media, the current dissertation intends to examine the changes in the representation of the image of the Iraqis in the Sacred Defense Cinema. Iraqies have been pictured as the "Others" during last three decades. Due to the importance and role of sacred defense and ...
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Regarding representational function of media, the current dissertation intends to examine the changes in the representation of the image of the Iraqis in the Sacred Defense Cinema. Iraqies have been pictured as the "Others" during last three decades. Due to the importance and role of sacred defense and its cinematic representations of "Self" and "Other" and thereby its contribution in the process of reconstruction of Iranian national identity this research is aimed at studying represented images of Iraqies and its changes during last three decades. To reach this objective I first examined the concept and theories of representation as stated by Richard Dyer and Stuart Hall. Then to complement Hall’s theories I referred to other thinkers in the field of identity theory, ‘self’ and ‘the other’ as stated. In the chapter on methodology I’ve benefited from a combination of the patterns presented by Kate Selbi, Ran Kallory and Rolan Bart to analyze the texts.The findings of this thesis demonstrates that in order to depict the Iraqis in the sixties verbal codes were primarily used whereas in the seventies and the eighties social and technical codes were most used respectively.In the first decade Iraqis were portrayed as those people who are imagined to be cruel, inhuman, in which the emphasis was laid on the impact of the Iraqi’s invasion. In the second decade we see Iraqi’s depicted as dumb and fat people having thick moustaches and rough voices and in the third we see this portrayal to be transformed where Iraqi’s are shown to be our Muslim brothers who have been forced to fight in the war. Having observed, examined and analyzed the films, we found out that when facing ‘the other’, i.e. the Iraqis, the metaphor of the boundary or border was used. This border is seen between ‘self’ and ‘the other’, i.e. the Iranians and the Iraqis in all the chosen movies on the Sacred Defense. In the first decade there was an objective and real boundary whereas in the second we saw a transformation stage, where boundaries between ‘self’ and ‘the other’ were loose and shaking and finally over the third decade borders got utterly symbolic.
Abdollah Giuvian; Shahram Ahmadi
Abstract
TV commercials as multifarious media texts use various contrivances of which narrative and fundamental elements of short stories can be mentioned. These texts also make use of cultural codes in order to alter audiences\' opinion and to function as influential apparatus of persuasion. So, in order to ...
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TV commercials as multifarious media texts use various contrivances of which narrative and fundamental elements of short stories can be mentioned. These texts also make use of cultural codes in order to alter audiences\' opinion and to function as influential apparatus of persuasion. So, in order to read and interpret such texts one would need to call theories and insights from diverse disciplines such as Narratology, advertising, TV and Communication studies. Based on theoretical dissimilarities, this research started with differentiating two sorts of TV commercials: those based on narrative structures and others without being developed on a narrative base. In doing so I conducted a survey among aired TV commercials during a season (Winter 2008) and due to the results I selected TV commercials developed on a narrative base to study. In terms of narrative structure there can be distinguished four main categories. Also, I divided these ads into four categories based on the ways in which these ads represented their main actors. The basic criterion in this classification was the relationship the ads established between main actors, goods, and type of preferred consumption. Using semiotics and critical discourse analysis methodology, I studied the chosen samples in dept. As the findings of my research show and you can see in this article polarization in story persons/ personalities is based on their \"consumption\" or \"their knowledge about the advertised good or service\". The ads due to their textual nature are open to different interpretations.
Abdollah Givian; Mohammad Sarvi Zargar
Abstract
Dissimilarities among the reality and what is represented in media caused to efforts to explain how-ness and why-ness of what is called media representation of the world. Therefore, media representation has been on board in Cultural and Media Studies. Cultural Study presupposes that what should one focus ...
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Dissimilarities among the reality and what is represented in media caused to efforts to explain how-ness and why-ness of what is called media representation of the world. Therefore, media representation has been on board in Cultural and Media Studies. Cultural Study presupposes that what should one focus on in exploring media texts are the underneath ideological and social elements, and their influence on the audience’s views. Hollywood, among other media productions, enjoys a distinguished, unique status in representing the world. The present study reviews “a discourse-within-a-discourse”. In the other words, Iran’s representation would be explored as a part of representing Orient (or Islam) in the western media. Here, Hollywood –as a media-within-mass-media- represents American Media in general. Reviewing movies produced in Hollywood within which Iran is represented, she is represented as the “subaltern other”. Thus, it could be said that Hollywood generally works in the “neo-racist” theoretical framework. In this study, 3 theoretical traditions; namely the Cultural Studies, Post-Colonial Studies, and Film Theory have been applied. The central “representation” concept in the present study is a combined derivation of Michel Foucault and Stewart Hall’s theories. Then, Edward Said’s ideas in Post-Colonial Studies would be explored. And finally, Film Theory would help to apply the concept of representation besides the Post-Colonial Studies in Film Studies.
