My Proposal

*To what extent is the female portrayed as the more dominant and responsible figure in comparison to her male counterpart, with regards to the film "Knocked Up", and how does this challenge traditional stereotypes promulgated by other moving image texts?

Hypothesis:

Throughout the years, the media has been heavily criticized for it’s depiction of women in films as the natural caregiver i.e. “the traditional housewife” who is predominantly perceived as inferior to her male spouse. This is most certainly true for films such as “The Stepford Wives” where the ideology of “the perfect woman” is conveyed to the audience, substantiating the idea that women in films are somewhat subliminally objectified either sexually or mentally, establishing them as the more subordinate sex. However, throughout my research I shall be investigating to what extent the theory that women are now being portrayed as “stronger” and more “independent” in films is true with regards to the film “Knocked Up” and counteracting the theory with the idea that the female protagonist is still yet sexually objectified due to her appearance and her ideological “traditional” attributes

MIGRAIN

M-

-fast paced cuts are used in order to epitomize how quickly events in the film are occurring, this can somewhat be recognised as an mtv aesthetic in order to appeal to its target audience of teenagers.

-the beginning of the trailer introduces tense music which reflects Alison’s career orientated environment and thus heavily contrasts the different lives of both protagonists.

-the natural lighting depicts the jovial atmosphere and the comedic tone of the film.

-both diegetic and non-diegetic sound is used throughout the trailer, the first pause from music to hear Alison speak allows the tension to be eased from the previous “tense” music thus again affiliating with the comedic genre.

I-

“Universal” Pictures is a well established institution, thus enticing the audience as they have high expectations regarding the film.

G-

The genre is predominantly comedy/romance; this is corroborated by the diegetic sound in the trailer where the music abruptly stops to reveal a characters witty joke, thus complying with the comedic conventions.

R-

The female protagonist (Allison) is primarily represented as the more responsible, career focused individual, whereas Ben completely juxtaposes her character as he is exhibited to be immature, irresponsible and lazy. This is corroborated by the sudden change of music which emphasises the difference in personalities of both characters. The beginning of the trailer also displays Allison wearing white thus connoting her innocence and sensibility, foreshadowing her character subsequently in the film. In turn it can be argued that this portrayal allows her to conform to the traditional stereotypes enforced upon women as being “pure” and “virtuous”, this is however contradicted by her acts in the film.

A-

The audience is predominantly older teenagers, young adults and couples due to its strong language and explicit sex scenes. It predominantly appeals to a more female audience who enjoy the comedy and chic flick genre as it appeals the typical "girly" stereotype.

I-

Matriarchy/patriarchy

Heterosexuality

Feminist

Familial

N-

The narrative is linear, illustrated by the captions. It also follows Todorov’s theory of equilibrium and Strauss’s idea of binary oppositions (mainly those of each characters personalities)

Theories/ Theorists

Main focuses shall include the ideas of several sociologists such as Ann Oakley and Laura Mulvey who draw light upon women’s roles in the household and in films, this will allow me to scrutinize the theories of decision making in homes, conjugal roles, and egalitarian status which applies to my investigation regarding the changing roles and representation of women. Narrative theorists will also be considered.

Wider Context

The impact of feminism will be crucial to my investigation, taking into account the women’s movement and the two fundamental stereotypes of women, that of “purity and innocence” and the idea that women are perceived to be “sexual objects” therefore establishing a binary opposition in itself as Alison is portrayed as a career focused and responsible individual, however is still viewed by Ben and her work colleagues as a “pretty face” as her ideological blonde hair and curvy figure enhances both her career and personal opportunities.

Where and what to research

I will be using a wide range of sources to guide my research:

Books

Articles

Internet

Etc.

My main focus will be how women have changed from being “traditional housewives” to strong and independent individuals. Nevertheless, I will contradict this theory by suggesting that they are still considered to be sexual objects and use other related moving image texts such as “The Stepford Wives” and “Catwoman” to corroborate my theories.