Reflect and Perfect Winter Booklet

Reflect and perfect winter booklet

Task 2- 10 marks (7)

Until 1966, there was no law to legalise male heterosexual relations. Therefore, as ‘The Avengers’ was shown in 1960 men could not be publicly gay-if this was said they were either sent to prison or put in to a mental institution ‘The Avengers’, when it was shown, did not give people any question about Steed or Peels sexuality as the ‘norm’ of the time was everyone was homosexual as there would be severe consequences if they said otherwise. The characters conformed to the dominant representation because the audience would of expected them to be heterosexual due to the roles they play. 

When gay sex/heterosexual relations became legal in 1966. Society changed  completely, people became open about there sexuality and showed individuality. ‘Cuffs’, shown in 2010 conformed to this idea of openly gay people and used Jake Vicars as a gay character who creates a positive representation for the audience and challenges the stereotype of 'gay people' as they are usually seen as weak and feminine however Jake is the opposite and is shown as a strong and hard working character. Jake is shown in this series to portray the acceptability of gay people in society today.

Task 3 - 15 marks (11)

Feminism in the early 60s was pushed under the carpet. Women were treated significantly unequally to men by getting less pay (60%) and had to fight for reproduction  freedom. There were no contraceptives until 1965 therefore no safe births for women/couples. 

In 'The Avengers' the clothes of peel demonstrated modern liberated femininity in 1960. Emma Peel embodied the new international fashion in woman who like to dress and fight like men - this was slightly ahead of fashion at the time portraying how the contrast difference between men and women effect society in 1960. Emma was shown  as a physically and mentally strong character through her ability to fight and solve solutions. This shows that the new women of the 60s as strong and independent.Peel's skin tight leather cat suit added to the high fetishtic dimension by making females highly sexualised, this reflected the up rise in feminism in 1960s. The black colour of her outfit connotes dominance and importance. However the negative representation of females being a sex object could link to Peel's outfit. 

In the Tv show 'Cuffs', equal rights between men and women seemed more accepted. Not only was one of the MAIN characters, Jo(a boss), one of the police office was a women. The job of a police officer is usually and stereotypically done by men however this challenges the stereotype as there are many strong females within the police force in places of power. The is an equal balance of female police officers as there are men. DS Jo Moffat and P.C Donna Prager both are both represented as strong and intelligent. For example, Donna set up the spikes to catch a stolen vehicle and Jo identifies where the gang are hiding and leading a team. However there is a negative representation of the Polish character who tries to accuse PC Jake of sexually harassing her. 

Task 4- 10 marks (7) 

The assumption of common ' white ' culture in 1960s Britain gave society a very minor view of other ethnicities. 'The Avengers', set in 1960, portrays an oray of ONLY white characters. This gives a views of 'white' Britain. Peel & Steed, main characters, in the series 'The Avengers' are white and through out the show many new characters were shown who were also white. Both characters represented strong,intelligent characters who do there best to save the town. This alludes to the white culture that was fighting for the country. The stereotype of white people who have power over racial and ethical minorities is clearly shown as all the characters are white, there were no characters who were of an African decent as they were less expected at the time (1960). 

However, in 'Cuffs' the main character,Ryan has an ethnicity of an African descent. He is seen as a hero which challenges the stereotype of a typical criminal and instead is a hero who is keeping Brighton safe. The show celebrates a multi-cultural cast, which conforms to the BBC's PSB. The cast consists of many ethnic backgrounds (White British, Jake, African descent, Ryan, Asian ethnicity, Amit) who challenge the dominant representations. 

Task 5- 15 marks (7)

In 'The Avengers/ the gender equality is very different to 'Cuffs'. In 'The Avengers', both characters, Steed and Peel, showed society a stereotypical view of how male and females were presented in 1960. 

The main male character, Steed, was shown as a traditional gentleman hero as his chivalrous acts were presented. He was shown as a gentlemen , throughout the clip he showed respect towards Peel. Peel is shown as a dominant female who was seen as a herione and a sex symbol of the 60s who shows combined terminity and modernity by being, as well as Steed, a high class secret agent. Both Steed and Peel represent each others equals, however at times Steed does overpower Peel. Which refelcted society of women fighting for equality. We only see male characters actually kill another male character- when Steed killed the man with his hat. This represents men as stronger, but also violent which reflect society and culture of male soldiers.

However in 'Cuffs' male and female roles are equal as there are both male and female police officers which show that the society of women being allowed and accepted to maintain jobs with higher power and even lead men. The victims, Amit and Nathan are predominantly male and the male gang who orchestrate a hate crime (the gang in the shop) reflect the rise in hate crimes across Brighton especially conducted by men.