Super-Curricular: Judith Butler - Gender Performativity Notes

‘Assault on gender = assault on democracy’

Open-ended question about what a gender means/the distinction between genders.

Sex=category assigned to infants that has importance in medical and legal worlds.

Gender=mix of cultural norms, historical formations, family influences, desires and wishes.

1960s social movements largely affected theses definitions at the time and being in the Jewish community.

Many people (including those of the LGBT community) have been subject to genocidal politics - different forms of oppression.

Queer conversations were arising - in a complicated discourse with feminism. Butler was part of a movement at the time that was reconsidering the meaning and definition of gender during the 1960s.

Trans issues hadn’t surfaced in contemporary society.

Feminism definition approach = ‘Women are fundamentally mothers and that maternity is the essence of feminine’.

Feminism definition approach = Sexual difference (this meaning presumptuously heterosexual).

‘The sex you are assigned with at birth and the gender that you are taught to be should not determine how you live your life’. - Judith Butler

Simone de Beauvoir (philosopher) - wrote a novel called ‘Second Sex’, detailing that someone is not ‘born’ a woman, but ‘becomes’ one. The body is not a fact, showing the potential for a difference between being assigned a gender and being born as one.

Gayle Rubin: Anthropology and Psychoanalysis - ‘Family is a structure whose task it was to reproduce gender’.

-Invited the idea that gender could be reproduced and cultivated.

Psychoanalysis - ‘There is repression going into becoming a man and becoming a woman. We feel we have to conform of being, doing and loving.

People did not perceive gender as something that you can make and re-make, people treated gender as a social reality.

We no longer speak about sex, desire and wants in the same way as we used to before people were coming out as gay and queer.

Gender - The changing of reality.

Concerned about finding effective ways to countering the attack on gender.

People who struggle to understand what trans-gender people define themselves have their own self-definition destabilised.

The fact that we can change reality and make it appear unjust means that there is an instability to people who want to solely understand that gender is a fixed term.

There is a lot in the world that is telling us not to be free with our bodies - we struggle to claim this freedom.

In a democracy, we’re assume that we acclaim to the democratic principles we are provided with (quality, freedom, justice). 

But what do these terms actually mean.

Sexuality and racial movements mean that we actually have to challenge people’s already existing, preconceived ideas about these topics - the democratic struggle consists of occupying the difficulties in trying to achieve the societal, common goal of justice.

Goodwin and Dyer - Music Video Theories

Andrew Goodwin's theory is incorporated into Olivia Rodrigo’s ‘Drivers License’ music video, encompassing his idea of the singer representing a commodity and showing the contrast between the female being present and absent in the video at the same time. For example, the coming-of-age video uses a following shot in the tracking, to show how she is intangible, yet visible at the same time. The extreme wide angle and establishing shot refers to how she is in far proximity yet when the camera cuts to a close up, the performer almost seems reachable and accessible to her teenage audience. Furthermore, the video also makes Olivia seem ordinary and extraordinary simultaneously, representing values of expressionism through her dramatic body language and low-key lighting. She also embodies an ordinary appearance throughout the wide angles above her car frequently throughout the video and driving past her lover's house each day, highlighting the realistic longing desire to reunite with her soulmate. This is shown through the ellipsis, with multiple cuts and shots featured to show the agonising pain of time (an ellipsis), yet her devoted, loving attitude still remains with her as this time progresses.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmDBbnmKpqQ

Richard Dyer's theorised four key concepts which allow music videos to work effectively, including:

-Stars as Texts - This is where stars are constructed to represent certain symbols or images across media texts, in order to amplify the meaning of the song and to reflect the ideologies of the artist through their performance in the music video. This is shown through Kate Bush's music video of Running Up that Hill, where she represents a dance with her partner through an otherworldly atmosphere.

-Stars as Commodities - Furthermore, Dyer identifies these music videos as a performance, meticulously designed to make money for the artist. Ultimately, music videos are a product within the music industry, with each purchase made for the performer results in an increased sales revenue and generated publicity. Within Running Up that Hill, particularly in 2022 when the iconic song was featured in a scene from the Netflix original TV show, Stranger Things. Bush received almost £2 million in royalty payments from her song rights being used in the show, whilst also hitting number 1 in the UK for the most streamed song, and  reaching the top 5 in America, demonstrating the significant impact music videos can have on other media products.

-Stars as ideological figures - Dyer states that music videos aim to reflect veteran ideologies and values that the artist associates themself with, whilst highlighting that the person and the performer are two separate concepts. The music video may be associated year ideologies such as liberalism, expressionism, focusing in themes of desire and passion which are re-informed through the lyrics of the song. This helps to amplify the meaning of the performance, using an A-listing celebrity as a methods of value transference to encourage her intended audience to accept her preferred meaning and remain resilient in overcoming life’s difficulties.

-Audience and Stars - Dyer explains in his Star theory that audiences can relate to and identify themselves with stars, appearing relatable and similar to create a sense of belonging with their audience. In Running Up that Hill, the importanc right the lyrics ‘I’d make a deal with God, and I’d get him to swap our places’ shows that many members of the audience will feel a certain point of solitude and low self-esteem in their lives. This displays verisimilitude with the audience as this realistic want to be removed from the earth is a trouble that some viewers will relate to in their lifetime, emphasising social issues that need addressing by society in order to help those in times of depression and extinguish their feeling of helplessness. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wp43OdtAAkM

Music Videos Infogram/Uploads

 

 

Music Videos Infogram/Poster - Canva - January 2026

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbD_kBJc_gI

‘Let’s Dance’ by David Bowie aims to reflect the zeitgeist and preferred ideology that Bowie is trying to convey to his audience, challenging social injustice and exploiting marginalised, misrepresented demographics. This video highlights the challenges posed by society for ethnic minorities, using a variety of close up, wide angle and low angle shots in the opening minute of the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7Bc3pLyij0

‘Happier’ by Marshmello is a narrative heavy music video, focusing on the importance of pets to bring us through times of strength and sadness in life. The video is a cyclical structure with fast cuts and jump shots to emphasise the inevitable short amount of time we have with our animals, showing how abruptly life can change when you are least expecting it. The use of the jump cuts further exaggerate the limited capacity of time we have with our pets, encompassing the polysemic meaning of the video: To appreciate the importance of loving figures in your life, to recognise that there will be brighter opportunities even in the heavy times of solitude as well as reluctantly having to let go of the things we cherish the most - its agonising journey of self-doubt and internalised pain reserved within only yourself, feeling unable to talk to anyone about the most heart-breaking of experiences.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSDgHBxUbVQ

‘Photograph’ by Ed Sheeran particularly resonates with me, due to the emotional nature portrayed in the fast cuts of childhood memories, showing how much easier life appeared during our childhood development stages. Furthermore, the video makes parallelisms between Sheeran’s primary stages, which then contrasts to himself when he is a renowned, successful singer. Its realism portrays our struggle to let go of our childhood, encompassing a nostalgic, reminiscent feeling when we wish we could remain a child forever.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmDBbnmKpqQ

‘Drivers License’ by Olivia Rodrigo manages to represent the final acceptance of dealing with the tribulations of adolescence: the difficulties of break-ups, social awkwardness and releasing your innocent, childhood self. The video starts with a wide shot, but then zooms in to capture a close-up shot of Olivia herself performing the lyrical aspect of her music, highlighting her isolation of driving alone, even with the celebratory milestone of passing her driving test last week. 

The Big Issue Front Cover - Stranger Things x Christmas 2025

 I have chosen the theme of Stranger Things intertwined with a symbolic code of Christmas, specifically those used in the iconic scene within a Season 1 episode of the sci-fi Netflix show. The purpose of these lights being polysemic allows those of a teenage and millennial background to identify these lights as representing Christmas festivities (reflecting the zeitgeist) and those eagerly anticipating the release of the final season of the show, the show’s finale culminating into three sectioned release times over the winter period. Furthermore,I have taken a slightly unconventional approach of blurring the ‘Big Isssue’ typeface in order to further convey the mysterious, unfamiliar environment and peculiarity of the show which the front cover aims to reflect, also generating a USP for my magazine. I have also used a sans-serif font to place the capitalised layer of ‘ALIVE!’ over the masthead of the cover, appearing striking and appealing to both younger and older audiences (the Duffer brothers target older teens as well as their parents who may decide to watch the show. I have adhered to the conventional approach of placing Big Issue’s aim on the front cover, accompanied by a barcode and cover lines/skylines within the copy. I have used a paronomasia (play-on word) of ‘Saving Sink’ with Sadie Sink being an altruistic, reverent A-listing celebrity who is featured on the cover of the magazine (who encompasses the ideologies of feminism and veganism) displaying paralanguage that induces panic in the fast run-up to Christmas. Another example of a visual pun used within my front cover is through the headline of ‘Running up to Christmas. Additionally, I have used a cultural code of portraying the issue number as 11, which avid fans and readers of the Big Issue may recognise as being a prominent character in the show.  

To improve my Big Issue front cover, I could enlarge the image and potentially use a deeper shade of red such as wine or mahogany red to enhance my presentation of Stranger Things and create semantic codes connoting of the Upside Down: inverted, disorientated and gruesome. This would complement the Big Issue masthead colour, as this could be changed to a bold black again a white-coloured ‘ALIVE!’. I would also use a higher quality image of Sadie Sink (Max Mayfield in the show) to create an immersive and attractive front cover, hence incorporating Laura Mulvey’s male gaze theory.

 

Hall’s Reception Theory - Dixon Chapter 17

The reading of the Dixon Chapter 17 within Mark Dixon’s Media Theory for A Level - The Essential Revision Guide has enhanced my knowledge and reading skills of Stuart Hall’s Reception theory vastly. I have learnt that there are broader topics and factors which largely influence whether an audience member will adopt the dominant, oppositional or negotiated reading when encoding and encoding the producer’s intended message, learning how media products interweave various iconic signs into their works in order to appear polysemic. Furthermore, the contributor of audiences potentially making misreadings shapes which reading position the audience member will uptake, dependent on the complexity and illegibility of a text.

I have also learnt that multiple other theorists (including Albert Bandura and David Gauntlett) might challenge Stuart Hall, such as George Gerbner’s cultivation theory, where he believes that even the strongest of audience members may experience attitudinal change as a result of media exposure. Linking closely to Neale’s Genre theory, there is the concept of genre-driven mediation within the Reception theory, where producers will recycle themes and characters in order to drive the narrative and to appeal to the audiences. This audience collects information  and forms their own perspective if they constantly view the same charcsters perpetuated via the media, they may form a political bias, learning to potentially dominant, oppositional or negotiated readings. 

Hall also believes that an invisible set of rules help to govern and dictate our behaviours, based upon what we consume from media industries. He believes that political opinions and biases build the foundations of political ideologies of the public, leading to the re-inforcement of legitimacy through parliament and its systems by reporting. Additionally, the audience may create ‘situated logics’, actively and selectively filtering information portrayed to them through newspapers by selecting articles orientated around their knowledge and past experiences within society.

Here is my PowerPoint which I made at the beginning of Media Studies in Year 12, allowing you to identify where I have expanded and elaborated in my knowledge:

Stuart Hall Reception Theory

Set Advert: Shelter - ‘The Government in FULL of Landlords’

This advert uncovers the harrowing truths behind living in squalid conditions, under the harsh ruling of a ‘rogue landlords’, a proportion owners who rents out inadequate and substandard apartments and housing, flouting any legal obligations that must be adhered to. Members of Parliament are supposed to be forming a new law for landlords with one MP stating during a session: ‘I feel private landlords have a pretty thankless task.’ Another MP raise the idea that ‘We should be helping landlords and tenants equally’. This short video encompasses the almost failed promise made by Parliament, through the passing of the Renter’s Reform Bill. The debate has caused national controversy, with a split Parliament it has been a vastly difficult decision as to whether this bill should be passed into a law. ‘I cannot support this bill tonight’, one MP spoke defiantly against the proposed introduction of amending the housing conditions for tenants. Rather intriguingly, the informative video published by Shelter captures a victim of eviction within a protest, his poster reading: ‘172 families are served a Section 21 eviction notice every day’, re-enforcing the charities intended message and emphasising the unwavering uncertainty of potential eviction from your property. Four years after the initial drafting of the legislation, the bill is finally legalised, but yet again, uproar arose and protests proceeded outside Westminster. Despite the introduction of this reform act, it has taken one-hundred days to see progress on the law after its initial enrolment into society, predominantly due to one factor. The House of Commons chamber comprises of six-hundred and fifty MPs, with over eighty  of them being landlords themselves, it being essential to save their reputation and prevent being held accountable. Shelter’s aim is to demand Labour’s Cabinet to place pressure on the self-interested, entitled landlords, as well as to strengthen the awareness of the Renters Reform Bill for those who are in need of it most. 

I chose this article because I thought it would closely link to one of the prevalent reason as to why homelessness occurs, associating with ‘rogue landlords’ This article is orientated around government accountability, predominantly one of the main reasons as to why homelessness has become such a dilemma nationally. I believe that this article based around landlords conveys a serious narrative, evoking a sense of uncertainty yet defiance against landlord MPs. The video article is simplistic, supporting a liberal and social perspective. Additionally, this advert reflects the ideology of altruism, reflecting the genuine desire where the public should act selfless towards each other, voluntarily helping others to support their cause. The advert encourages the public to donate, actively participating in the charity’s cause by making the advert have a unique selling point, to ‘stand out’ and presenting people in an authentic, suffering manner. 

Super-Curricular Media Magazine Article

 Lionsgate is one if the largest filming companies in the world, rising to prominence after the release after 2013’s highest-grossing movie was shown in cinemas, produced by the major corporation. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is the second instalment in The Hinger Games saga, reaping almost half a billion dollars at the box office. This revolutionary production made by Lionsgate featured Hollywood stars such as Jennifer Lawrence, as well as Josh Hutchinson, who rose to fame in his childhood after starring in the heart-wrenching children's film, The Bridge to Teribitha back in 2007. However, despite the revolutionary release of the new film in the franchise, with fans adoring the sequel after the incredible successes of The Hunger Games, an issue has occurred regarding the credit given to the film. It cannot strictly be classed as a ‘Hollywood film, due to production rights and Lionsgate being deemed as a ‘mini-major’ company, opposed to bring categorised as a Hollywood-certified film, produced by one of the dominating movie giants. Lionsgate has fluctuated amongst the kings of the filming industry for many years, with three global contenders forming the most established, global studios, being 20th century Fox, one of the most iconic Hollywood studios, accompanied by Paramount Pictures and Lionsgate respectively. The Walt Disney Company is one of the largest media conglomerates worldwide, owning companies such as Pixar, Marvel and the media network ABC News. Despite Lionsgate not being a media conglomerate (owning several other companies under one dominant corporation), the media content Lionsgate publishes are known as ‘pick ups’, where they take films made by other sources and advert them under the brand of Lionsgate. Furthermore, it can be argued that Lionsgate is incomparable to Disney, based on the financial magnitude of the two companies; Disney’s market capitalisation as of August 2014 equated to approximately $155 billion, but Lionsgate accumulated to only $4.5 billion, significantly less than the likes of Hollywood-renowned Disney. Nevertheless, the low budget of Lionsgate has not hindered their success. Releases such as The Hunger Games series and multiple other franchises has been transformative for the company, with profitability levels soaring as a result of their low-cost runnings but extremely high profit margins. Conversely, Lionsgate initially struggled with making The Hunger Games, appearing in the film industry as a ‘low-key, hit or miss’ company. Once the books by Suzanne Collins had taken off and millions of copies had started to sell very quickly, the movie was not as victorious. After pressure increasing by fans and the first book reaching its climax, Lionsgate widened their budget up to $80 million, leading to the company falling into debt. As the yeas and fandom progressed, Lionsgate quickly converted their debt into profit, announcing themselves onto the global stage of producing the next generation of blockbuster films.

This article may apply to my studies, by noting how competitors may try to replicate their rivals when it comes to selling media products. Steve Neale’s genre theory shows us how newspapers, film and media content use similar materials or completely different concepts when creating a newspaper cover or film poster. Therefore, you could potentially link the emulations of similar designs in films, such as using red and weapons to present horror movies with companies trying to repeatedly use the ‘blockbuster strategy’, enabling producers to form closely linked ideas together into their films. The use of this method aims for media businesses to enhance their profitability, whilst reducing any costs made during manufacturing or production. This can be applied to our media studies, by identifying how genres have evolved over time, with Psycho being an initiator for horror movies. Over time, other companies have used the basis of Psycho to create their own film elements, incorporating changes into their designs (e.g. a cliffhanger or plot twist) to intrigue and captivate their audiences.