AS Media, WJEC, regional and national identity, Higson,

1. Regional and National Identity

2. What is Britishness?

3. Explain how characters from these areas wouConsider:CostumesMake uo/HairPropsDialogue/languageClass/status
Explain how characters from these areas wouConsider:CostumesMake uo/HairPropsDialogue/languageClass/status
Understanding regional identity
• In pairs, select 5 of the following regions
and stereotype their regional identity:
– Northerners
– Southerners
– Essex
– Scottish
– Welsh
– Scousers
– Geordies
– Yorkshire
– Mancs
– Brummies
– Londoners

4. Northerners
• Stereotype= ‘Northern
Monkeys’, Loud rude,
drink a lot and of a
lower status
• Costume= Track suit or
cheap/casual clothes
• Dialogue/dialect=
Vowel sounds over-
pronounced
• Make up= Over the top
or minimal
• Class/Status= Low

5. Southerners
• Stereotype= ‘Poncy Southerners’
arrogant and posh
• - Dialogue/dialect= Well spoken ‘
the rain in Spain falls mainly on
the plain’
• -Costume= Suit and tie, tailored
clothing and dresses
• -Props= Brief case
• -Make up= Classy and to a
minimum
• -Class/Status= Middle/Upper

6. Essex
• Stereotype= Image conscious,
unintelligent, love to shop and
party
• Stereotype coined by TOWIE (The
Only Way is Essex)
• Dialogue/dialect= 'Shut up' 'Oh
my God' = common phrases
• Costume: Girls= Revealing/OTT
Boys: Fashionable
• Location= Clubs and boutiques
• Props: G Expensive, flashy, tacky
handbags, up to date mobile
phone
• Make up= Fake tan, fake
eyelashes and hair extensions
• Class/Status= Lower Middle
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=_vTzuZk1OHA

7. Scottish
• Stereotype= Humourless, hate
other nations, alcoholic and violent
• Dialogue/dialect= Strong accent
'och' 'wee'
• Costume= Kilt, tartan, Tam o'
Shanter
• Location= Highlands, cold and vast
open spaces
• Props= Bagpipes, haggis, whisky
• Make up= Ginger hair and freckles
• Class/Status= Lower class (farmers)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=fp-jVwBGUsI

8. Welsh
• Stereotype= Small ,dark
haired people who play all
rugby, sing in choirs, herd
sheep or mine coal
• Dialogue/dialect= Very ‘song-
like’ and melodic, slow and
exaggerated pronunciation
• Costume= Rugby shirts
• Location= Rugby pitch,
church, pub, fields with sheep
• Props= Sheep
• Make up= Minimal
• Class/Status= Middle/Lower

9. Scousers
• Stereotype= Dangerous ;
‘Why does the river Mersey
run through Liverpool? If it
walked it would get mugged’
• - Dialogue/dialect= Flemmy,
difficult to understand; 'like'
prominent k's
• -Costume= Tracksuits, very
casual cheap looking clothing
• -Location= Pub/home
• -Props= Cheap looking
jewellery
• -Make up= Minimal, or OTT
• -Class/Status= Low
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=STIvNjWobzA

10. Yorkshire
• - Dialogue/dialect= 'Ey up’,
‘An' Ah'll tell thi that fer
nowt’, don’t pronounce
‘t’s’
• Costume= Flat caps, tweed
jackets
• Location= Open fields,
country pubs, Local shops
• Props= Whippets/Yorksire
terrier and Yorkshire
puddings
• Make up= Minimal/pale
• Class/Status= Low
(farmers)
http://www.youtube.com/watc
h?v=jzAD2GLfaNU

11. Geordies
• Stereotype= Loud, swear a lot,
party animals and binge drinkers
(help coined by Geordie Shore)
• Dialogue/dialect= ‘way eye
man’, difficult to understand
• Costume= Revealing, tight
clothing
• Location= Busy town centres,
clubs, urban areas
• Make up= Over the top, fake
tan, dark hair
• Class/Status= Lower middle/
middle
http://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=6PVQbnvv79I

12. Mancs
• Stereotype= Loud, rude, funny and fond of
fighting (Helped coined by Oasis)
• Dialogue/dialect= ‘Oh, aye’ ‘Nowt’
• Costume= Manchester United
• Shirt
• Location= Busy town centres
• Class/Status= Low/lower
• middle

13. Brummies
• Stereotype= Unintelligent and
unfriendly
• Dialogue/dialect= 'Yow' heavily
pronunciation the 'ow' of 'You'
• Costume= Casual/ Cheao
• Location= Busy, industrialised
centres
• Make up= Greasy hair
• Class/Status= Low

14. Londoners (Northern/ more posh
boroughs)
• - Dialogue/dialect= Well spoken, range of
vocabulary
• -Costume= Cashmere jumpers/sweaters and
suits
• -Location= Skyscrapers, swanky bars, posh
homes
• -Props= Briefcase
• -Class/Status= Middle/upper

15. Londoners (Cockney/ South London)
• - Dialogue/dialect= ‘Gorblimey’, Rhyming
slang ‘apples and pairs = stairs’,dropping ‘t’s’
• -Costume= Flat caps
• -Location= Busy streets, market stalls
• -Make up= Minimal
• -Class/Status= Low

16. Key Theorists
• Theorist Andrew Higson (1998) writes; “Identity is
generally understood to be the shared identity of
naturalized inhabitants of a particular political-
geographic space – this can be a particular nation or
region.”
• Benedict Anderson (1983) “The unification of people
in the modern world is achieved not by military but by
cultural means, in particular the media system enables
people (of a nation or region) to feel part of a
coherent, meaningful and homogenous community.”

17. Constructing images of
regional/national identity:
• According to Higson (1989) there are two
ways in which the process of constructing
images of national/regional identity should be
understood; “The first involves an inward
looking process, defining the nation in terms
of its own cultural history. The second is a
more outward-looking process, defining the
nation in terms of its difference from others.”

18. HW: Select an example
Using any programme that displays a regional identity,
explore whether they represent stereotypes through mise-en-
scene (location, setting, actors, props, costumes etc), camera
work, sound (include dialect that could be colloquial) and
editing.
Examples could include:
•EastEnders
•Doc Martin
•Emmerdale
•TOWIE
•Geordie Shore
•Mrs Brown’s boys

19. Exam: Question 3
The question is nearly always the same:
Using your own detailed examples, explore the representation
of………… in the media today. (30
marks)
•The focus varies:
•Jan 09 – representations of young
people
•Jun 09 – women
•Jan 10 – ethnicity
•June 10 – men
•Jan 11- two events
•June 11 – age
• Jan 12 – gender
• June 12 – two issues
• Jan 13 – young people
• June 13 – Regional/National identity
• Jan 14- Women
• June 14 – Ethnicity
• June 2015 – AUDIENCE QUESTION (2C
= Age)
• June 2016 – Issues
• June 2017? Regional?/Men?/Events?