collective identity youth

Collective Identity: Collective Identity: Youth CultureYouth Culture

G325G325 Critical PerspectivesCritical Perspectives

Collective Identity: Youth Collective Identity: Youth CultureCulture

The concept of a collective identity refers to a set of individuals' sense of belonging to the group or collective. For the individual, the identity derived from the collective shapes a part of his or her personal identity.

Collective Identity is the idea that through participating in social activities, individuals can gain a sense of belonging and in essence an "identity" that transcends the individual.

KEY WORDS:

Stryker: this theorist suggested we interact with others to create an identity, this is called identity negotiation. This develops a consistent set of behaviours that reinforce the identity of the person or group. These behaviours then become social expectations.

KEY WORDS:

Foucault: This theorist believed people do not have a 'real' identity within themselves; that's just a way of talking about the self -- a discourse. An 'identity' is communicated to others in your interactions with them, but this is not a fixed thing within a person. It is a shifting, temporary construction


Identity is a vacillating idea as it does not determine a person for their whole life, but merely adapts depending on their social circumstances. We, as human beings tend to have a number of different identities – however we will adopt certain characteristics that make us recognisable to other people.

KEY WORDS:

Hegemony: A leadership or dominance, especially by one state or social group over others.

Gramsci: used the term hegemony to show how the dominant class can project its own ideologies so that those who are subordinated accept it as 'common

sense' and 'natural'.


• Studied subcultures in 1970s.

• Subcultures allow youth to express opposition to society and challenge hegemony.

• Style is key aspect of subculture – attempt to resist hegemony.

• Representations tend to be limited: Youth as fun or youth as trouble.

Hebdige (1979)

KEY WORDS:

Jacques Lacan: Mirror stage – child begins to develop their identity – recognise themselves in a mirror at around 6 months, helps to develop sense of self.

Just like the recognition of the mirror, images on screen offer:• Identification• Aspiration


Subculture

• Fashion:• Clothing, hairstyle

• Opposition/ resistance to dominant culture

• Lifestyle/• practices

• Music, art

• Counterculture

• Dialect/ slang

• Place, gender, class, race

KEY WORDS:

Jacques Lacan: Mirror stage – child begins to develop their identity – recognise themselves in a mirror at around 6 months, helps to develop sense of self.

Just like the recognition of the mirror, images on screen offer:• Identification• Aspiration


Subculture

• Fashion:• Clothing, hairstyle

• Opposition/ resistance to dominant culture

• Lifestyle/• practices

• Music, art

• Counterculture

• Dialect/ slang

• Place, gender, class, race

Think about this different subcultures of the youth today.

Create a montage of their identities – what are their interests? How do they dress? What are their ideologies?

L.O: To explore the L.O: To explore the medias influence on medias influence on

the youth. the youth. G325G325 Critical PerspectivesCritical Perspectives

Youth SubculturesYouth Subcultures• Key Quote: “Subcultures try to compensate for

the failure of the larger culture to provide adequate status, acceptance and identity. In the youth subculture, youth find their age-related needs met.” (Tittley, p.2).

• Youth are no longer children but they are also not yet adults, i.e. they are too old to sit in with Mum and Dad on a Saturday night watching Casualty, but they are not old enough to get into bars, pubs and clubs etc. They do not have a fixed identity at this point so they form these subcultures to forge their own as a collective.

Youth SubculturesYouth Subcultures

Youth SubculturesYouth SubculturesKelman (1958) wrote about social influence and identified three areas of conformity:

•1.Compliance – public but not private conformity

•2.Identification – influenced by someone who is liked and respected

•3.Internalisation – completely accept the beliefs and behaviour of a group and conform publicly and privately

Youth SubculturesYouth SubculturesThrasher (1927) studied gangs in the jails and on the streets of Chicago. He found various reasons for young people joining gangs, including:

•A sense of family – mostly from broken homes so desired a group of people to feel part of.

•Guidance – again, because of lack of family guidance they seek someone to teach them and to help structure their belief system.

•Solidarity – giving them the self-esteem and security that they longed for.

•Gangs were forming in Chicago as a result of urban neglect. These young people represented the “inner cracks of identity that occur in the turbulent years of adolescence”.

Youth SubculturesYouth Subcultures• Willis (1977) studied British youths and

found that they were struggling to deal with the changes sweeping post-war Britain. They therefore developed these ‘deviant’ subcultures and employed a variety of strategies including “outright aggression” to deal with these changes.

L.O: To explore the L.O: To explore the history of history of

subcultures. subcultures. G325G325 Critical PerspectivesCritical Perspectives

Representation of Youth:Representation of Youth: ‘We live in a decaying age. Young people no longer

respect their parents. They are rude and impatient. They frequently inhabit taverns and have no self-

control.’ Inscribed on Egyptian tomb, 4000 BC

‘I see no hope for the future of our people if they are dependent on frivolous youth of today, for certainly all youth are reckless beyond words... When I was young, we were taught to be discreet and respectful of elders,

but the present youth are exceedingly wise [disrespectful] and impatient of restraint’

Hesiod, 8th Century BC

‘What is happening to our young people? They disrespect their elders, they disobey their parents. They

ignore the law. They riot in the streets, inflamed with wild notions. Their morals are decaying. What is to

become of them?’ Plato, 4th Century BC

‘‘Youth Culture’ emerges:Youth Culture’ emerges: 19th century ‘Bowery Boys’ or

‘Soaplocks’ Recognisable youth culture: own

slang, dress code, musical taste etc.

First time entertainment and fashion industries targeted a youth group

L.O: To explore media L.O: To explore media influences. influences.


KEY WORDS:

Gramsci: used the term hegemony to show how the dominant class can project its own ideologies so that those who are subordinated accept it as 'common sense' and 'natural'.

Cultivation Theory: George Gerbner believed that the more time people spend ‘living’ in the television, the more they are to believe social reality portrayed on television. The Cultivation Theory leaves people with a misconstrued perception of what is true in our world.

Media Influence: Youth CultureMedia Influence: Youth CultureThe media used its influence by portraying their hegemonic view of what the youth should be like.

Cultivation Theory

The hope was that they young would see this and believe this is how they SHOULD behave.

KEY WORDS:

Dichotomous: Divided or dividing intotwo parts or Classifications.


1945-60s:1945-60s:

Economic potential is obvious – market of the future, but also the first negative stereotypes.

Youth simultaneously represented “a prosperous and liberated future” and “a culture of moral decline”

First sign of adult culture’s dichotomous image of teenagers

Film example: ‘The Wild One’

KEY WORDS:

Hegemony: A leadership or dominance, especially by one state or social group over others.

Ideology: The opinions, beliefs and ways of thinking characteristics of a particular person, group or nation.

Polysemic: Different individuals can interpret different meanings from the text.

Giroux: believed that the youth are placed into an ‘Empty Category’ as adults don’t know how to define them.

Media Influence: Youth CultureMedia Influence: Youth Culture• Adults have always voiced their views of

teenagers in a predominately negative way.

• Adult mainstream exploited the image of the ‘rebel teen’

• Sold to teenagers as aspiration

• Sold to adults as a fear

KEY WORDS:

Moral Panic: an intense feeling expressed in a population about an issue that appears to threaten the social order.

Media Influence: Youth CultureMedia Influence: Youth CultureMarcuse suggests that the mass media carry with them prescribed attitudes and habits, certain intellectual and emotional reactions which bind the consumer and reduce them to a mindless mass. – leading to a passive audience.

This could/and would lead to Cohen’s idea of Moral Panic. The feel of the youth imitating what they see.

Acland argues that media representations of delinquent youths actually reinforce hegemony. They do this by constructing an idea of ‘normal’ adult and youth behaviour, and contrasting it with deviant youth behaviour which is shown to be unacceptable.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCENBce_dls



L.O: To analyse the L.O: To analyse the media’s influence on media’s influence on


Media Influence: Youth CultureMedia Influence: Youth CultureCultural theorist Henry A. Giroux argues that in media representations of young people ‘youth becomes an empty category’ (1997) which reflects the anxieties and interests of adult society.

From this perspective media representations of the collective identities of young people are constructed by adults, and serve the needs of adult society.

This approach to youth identity and the media raises several questions about the relationship between media and identity.

The Wild One

Adult’s fears and anxieties

Re-enforcing hegemony

Youth’s response

How are the youth How are the youth represented within the represented within the

media. media. IntroductionHenry A Giroux argues in media representations ‘youth becomes an empty category’ reflecting the concerns of adults.•media representations of youth serve the purpose of the middle class adults who produce them•media representation of youth reinforce hegemony •Explain how you are going to be exploring this in ‘The Wild One’

Historical RepresentationsMedia representations of young people have always tended to be negative, look back at the ancient quotes describing youth.

Main focus‘The Wild One’ (1953) shows a motorcycle gang terrorising a small town. It focused on a delinquent, anti-social youth.This representation reflected anxieties of middle class adult society, in relation to the threat to hegemony posed by young people. – use specific examples.

KEY WORDS:

• Foucault • Hegemony• Gramsci•Giroux• Jacques Lacan• Cultivation theory• Ideology• Polysemic• Moral Panic• Marcuse• Acland

Rebel Without A Cause

Adult’s fears and anxieties

Re-enforcing hegemony

Youth’s response


1. How does the opening of Rebel Without A Cause help to demonstrate Giroux’s idea of the youth being an ‘empty category’?

2. What is the main character’s identity?

3. What do you think the ‘adult’ fear might be?

4. How might this have created a moral panic amongst the older audiences during the time?

5. What do you think the hegemonic values are in the opening?

6. How might a younger audience respond to this opening?


media. media. IntroductionHenry A Giroux argues in media representations ‘youth becomes an empty category’ reflecting the concerns of adults.•media representations of youth serve the purpose of the middle class adults who produce them•media representation of youth reinforce hegemony •Explain how you are going to be exploring this in ‘The Wild One’ and ‘Rebel without a Cause’.

Historical RepresentationsExplain what ‘Identity’ is. How is it defined? Think about the process children go through. How has this impacted stereotypical views of the youth (look back at the ancient quotes describing youth). How has the media historically represented them? Why? Main focusMedia representations of young people have always tended to be negative, e.g. ‘The Wild One’ (1953) shows a motorcycle gang terrorising a small town (banned for 14years), ‘Rebel Without A Cause’ (1955) focused on a delinquent, anti-social youth.•Both representations reflect anxieties of middle class adult society, in relation to the threat to hegemony posed by young people.•However one does try to challenge the stereotypes created by adults and shows the flaws in the hegemonic values.

KEY WORDS:

• Foucault

• Hegemony

• Gramsci

• Jacques Lacan

• Cultivation theory

• Ideology

• Polysemic

• Moral Panic

• Marcuse

• Acland

Case Study – Anuva Case Study – Anuva Hood: Hood: • Whose representation is this this?

• Why has this representation been constructed in this way?

• How can this representation be decoded? (Audience Reception)

• What points or arguments can you make as a result of this analysis?

• Which theories and theorists can you reference in support of your comments and arguments?

• What is the overall conclusion you come to for this this case study?


media. media. IntroductionHenry A Giroux argues in media representations ‘youth becomes an empty category’ • reflecting the concerns of adults.•media representations of youth tend to serve the purpose of the middle class adults who produce them and therefore tries to reinforce hegemony •However – identity is negotiable (is it fair to categorise all youths together?)

Historical RepresentationsWhat have the stereotypical views of the youth been in the past? (look back at the ancient quotes describing youth). How has the media historically represented them? Why? •Hebdigde “fun or trouble” – use examples from WO/RWAC/HB•Acland – reinforcing hegemony - use examples from WO/RWAC/HB•Marcuse/Cohen – Moral panic – explain adults concerns. •Do you think this is/was a fair representation? Think about the historical context.

Main focusModern films do still apply/fit in with these stereotypes – give examples from AH and FIOS. But we tend to see more of Hebdige’s “Fun” side to youth. But we can not completely categories all representations of youth as negative. Even in older movies there were hopes for the youth – perhaps because of the reinforcement of hegemony. – Use examples from RWOAC/FIOS/AH. Conclusion – How are the youth represented? Are we starting to break down the ‘empty category’?

KEY WORDS:

• Foucault

• Hegemony

• Gramsci

• Jacques Lacan


• Ideology

• Polysemic

• Moral Panic

• Marcuse

• Acland

IntroductionHenry A Giroux argues in media representations ‘youth becomes an empty category’ reflecting the concerns of adults.•media representations of youth serve the purpose of the middle class adults who produce them•media representation of youth reinforce hegemony •Explain how you are going to be exploring this in ‘The Wild One’

Historical RepresentationsMedia representations of young people have always tended to be negative, e.g. ‘The Wild One’ (1953) shows a motorcycle gang terrorising a small town. ‘Rebel Without A Cause’ (1955) focused on a delinquent, anti-social youth.

Both representations reflect anxieties of middle class adult society, in relation to the threat to hegemony posed by young people.

Hoodie Cinema article

Harry Brown/Kidaulthood – negative, extreme, middle class fear of working class youth.

Modern Film

Giroux – constructed by adults.Gramsci/Acland – negative representations reinforce hegemony, ideology of protection.Still negative representations but beginning to see a few positives such as.....

KEY WORDS:

• Foucault

• Hegemony

• Gramsci

• Jacques Lacan


• Ideology

• Polysemic

• Moral Panic

• Marcuse

• Acland

•Giroux


media. media.

L.O: To analyse print L.O: To analyse print media’s media’s

representation of the representation of the youth. youth. G325G325 Critical PerspectivesCritical Perspectives

Case Study: Hoodies and Alter Case Study: Hoodies and Alter BoysBoys

• Download a QR app on your phone.

• Around the school there are 15 QR codes.

• Scan then to read small news articles.

• Put the articles into the relevant boxes on your work sheet (just sum up the article on the sheet).

Case Study: Hoodies and Alter Case Study: Hoodies and Alter BoysBoysHow are young people represented?

What is the significance of the representation? You may want to consider the issue of social class.

Which theorists can you discuss in relation to the representations?

Can you link your discussion to any other articles we have looked at?

Contemporary ArticlesContemporary ArticlesFind some examples of recent news articles written about the youth.

Find about 10 examples.

Think about the same questions you looked at for ‘Hoodies and Alter Boys’. How are young people represented?

What is the significance of the representation? You may want to consider the issue of social class.

Which theorists can you discuss in relation to the representations?

Can you link your discussion to any other articles we have looked at?

L.O: To learn how to L.O: To learn how to successfully answer an successfully answer an

exam question. exam question. G325G325 Critical PerspectivesCritical Perspectives

• Refer to at least two types of media.• Answer must be relevant to the question.• Make connections.• Clear argument.• Balance of theory and texts.• Personal engagement.• Discussion of past, present, and future.• Terminology.

Essay Structure

IntroductionBegin with a quote. State focus (social group, texts) and argument.

Historical ‘The Wild One’ (1953)/ ‘Rebel Without A Cause’ (1955)

Media Area 1 - Newspapers

Media Area 2 - Film

ConclusionSum up your argument, give your opinions, make a prediction for the future.

IntroductionHenry A Giroux argues in media representations ‘youth becomes an empty category’ reflecting the concerns of adults.•media representations of youth serve the purpose of the middle class adults who produce them•media representation of youth reinforce hegemony •Explain how you are going to be exploring this in ‘The Wild One’

Historical RepresentationsMedia representations of young people have always tended to be negative, e.g. ‘The Wild One’ (1953) shows a motorcycle gang terrorising a small town. ‘Rebel Without A Cause’ (1955) focused on a delinquent, anti-social youth. Hoodie Cinema articleHarry Brown/Kidaulthood – negative, extreme, middle class fear of working class youth.

Both representations reflect anxieties of middle class adult society, in relation to the threat to hegemony posed by young people.FilmGramsci/Acland – negative representations reinforce hegemony, ideology of protection. However we are moving away from these negative representations. Fault in our stars/Anuvahood.

Newspaper‘Hoodies or Altar Boys’ 2009 studyContemporary articles. Giroux – constructed by adults.Gramsci/Acland – negative representations reinforce hegemony, ideology of protection.Cohen – moral panic – ‘clarify moral boundaries’.Gerbner – cultivation theory.ConclusionSum up argument – As I have shown most media representations of young people are negative. This is because they reflect the concerns of their middle class producers, and as a result usually reinforce hegemony…More positive representations can be found on television channels aimed at younger people.The effect of media representations of young people is…In the future I believe…(social media, young people can construct their own representations – Student Fees protests, power of mass media).

KEY WORDS:

• Foucault

• Hegemony

• Gramsci

• Jacques Lacan


• Ideology

• Polysemic

• Moral Panic

• Marcuse

• Acland

•Giroux

L.O: To learn how to L.O: To learn how to successfully answer an successfully answer an

exam question. exam question. G325G325 Critical PerspectivesCritical Perspectives

1.Analyse the ways in which the media represent one group of people you have studied. (Jan 10/ 11)

2. “The media do not construct collective identity; they merely reflect it”. Discuss. (Jan 10)

3.Discuss how one or more groups are represented through the media? (Jun 11)

4.Explain the role play by the media in the construction of collective identity (Jun 11)

5.What is collective identity and how is it mediated? (Jan 11)

6.With reference to any one group of people that you have studied, discuss how their identity has been ‘mediated’ (Jun 10)

Past Exam Questions: Past Exam Questions:

L.O: To REVISE L.O: To REVISE successfully. successfully.


Revision Ladder:Revision Ladder:Write down everything you can remember about the topic from memory.

Reduce the key points down to under 200 words. Find/research a real life piece of evidence or news which illustrates the topic.

Explain a piece of evidence for (supporting) and against (challenging) a theory or perspective.

Write a short paragraph on how far you agree with the topic and why?

Transform a theory or perspective into a comic strip or storyboard.

L.O: EXAM practise. L.O: EXAM practise. G325G325 Critical PerspectivesCritical Perspectives

How do media representations influence collective identity?

You may refer to one group of people or more in your answer.

L.O: To be able to mark L.O: To be able to mark according to the MARK according to the MARK

SCHEME. SCHEME. G325G325 Critical PerspectivesCritical Perspectives

• Refer to at least two types of media.• Answer must be relevant to the question.• Make connections.• Clear argument.• Balance of theory and texts.• Personal engagement.• Discussion of past, present, and future.• Terminology.

How do media representations influence collective identity? You may refer to one group of people or more in your answer.

D.I.R.T:D.I.R.T:• WWW

• EBI

• D.I.R.T Task that needs to be completed to improve this essay.

L.O: To be able to L.O: To be able to IMPROVE our essays. IMPROVE our essays. G325G325 Critical PerspectivesCritical Perspectives

L.O: EXAM practise. L.O: EXAM practise. G325G325 Critical PerspectivesCritical Perspectives

Discuss the social implications of media in relation to collective identity. You may refer

to one group of people or more in your answer.

How far does the representation of a particular social group change over time?

With reference to any one group of people that you have studied, discuss how their

identity has been ‘mediated’.

collective identity youth

Education