bleak house class and social status
DESCRIPTION
TRANSCRIPT
Scene 1
Terminology
Hyperbolic sound- Exaggerated diegetic sound for dramatic emphasis
Scene 2
Scene 3 Terminology
Depth of Field-Refers to what is in focus in a shot-Large DoF = majority of the frame is in focus-Shallow DoF = Foreground only is in focus, background is out of focus
Scene 4Terminology
Bridge Here we have a ‘Sound Bridge’ of the
Judge’s voice-A device that ‘bridges’ the transition between two scenes-Can be used to suggest some correlation/link between the two scenes
Scene 5
Terminology
Direct mode of address
Contrasting term: Indirect mode of
address
Terminology
Whip Pan- A extremely rapid pan that is sometimes used to merge one shot into another. Often accompanied by a ‘whoosh’ SFX
Flashback
Terminology
Shot Reverse Shot
Scene 6
Nemo
Scene 7
How is Bleak House a TV Drama?
A serial, multi-layered narrative – modern soap operas follow a similar pattern
A story concerning true identities, tragic deaths, murder and a missing will – such details are the staple fare of modern crime drama
Romances involving central characters – a common thread in contemporary dramas
Rich gallery of characters – some tragic Lady Dedlock/Nemo, some evil Mr Tulkinghorn, some good Esther, Ada, Rick, some comic Guppy – soap operas are abound in such characters
An exposure and critique of social ills – poverty, debt, class prejudice, lack of healthcare, injustice and inequality, corruption and abuse of power – all of these issues remain at the core of contemporary drama
An evocation of the atmosphere of life in London for both rich and poor using powerful descriptions of realistic settings and locations – much drama relies on a high level of realism
Bleak House as a Soap Opera?
When it was aired, it consisted of 30 minute episodes, twice a week in the early evening – Like a soap. This went against the conventional approach of traditional costume dramas which are associated with tea-time Sunday scheduling
The editing of the programmes display separate scenes building up on one another helping to develop the narrative complexity: • Esther on the coach is followed by the Court scene• The two plot strands don’t immediately seem
connected • Once we hear about a companion on her way to
Court to join the wards of Jarndyce, and then cut back to Esther in the coach, matters make more sense
Bleak House – Episode 2
Group 1 – Features of a Costume Drama
Group 2 – Count the number of scenes and come up with a summary of the different narrative strands
Group 3 – Innovative use of camera/editing
Group 4 – Representations of Class and Social Status and Gender – through performance (movement and speech), costume, hair and make-up, plotlines and camerawork (e.g. high/low angles...’more screen time’ than others in a scene = more important)
Features of a Conventional Costume Drama
Period Costume and hairstyles
Appropriate settings and locations – based on a specific community, such as a town or village (large country houses, London slums, country estates, rural scenes, market towns and villages)
Period interiors (furniture, fittings, domestic equipment, paintings)
Depictions of different levels of society (upper classes, lower classes, landed aristocracy, self-made men, the poor and destitute, the criminal class, the professional class – lawyers, doctors...)
The arrival of a newcomer
External threats to the community from events of developments which will change lives forever (railways, medical progress, political upheavals, modernisations of all kind)
Relationships which defy class and age barriers (older, upper class male and the younger, lower class female)
Thwarted romantic relationships
Tragic deaths of all ages, classes and genders, by accident, illness or crime
Half Term Essay Question – 1000 words minimum,
typedHow does Bleak House conform to as well as
break away from a conventional costume drama?
• Conventions of the genre
• Narrative/Plot/Characters
• Mise-en-Scéne
• Camerawork and Editing
• Representations of Class and Social Status and Gender
Half Term Essay Question – 1000 words minimum,
typedHow does Bleak House conform to as well as
break away from a conventional costume drama?
• Conventions of the genre
• Narrative/Plot/Characters
• Mise-en-Scéne
• Camerawork and Editing
• Representations of Class and Social Status and Gender
Technical Indicators of C and SS
Mise-En-ScéneCamerawork
Class and Social Status
Sound Editing
Class and Social Status – Rome Series 1, Ep. 1
Caesar, one of the rulers of Rome
Octavian, his nephew
Vorenus – Officer in Roman Army
Pullo – A soldier in the army