Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
Turntables - Coggle Diagram
Turntables
THEORISTS
Levi-Strauss... (which binary is favoured/promoted?)
- freedom Vs repression
- belonging Vs isolation
- acceptance Vs rejection
- prejudice Vs prejudice
Todorov...black empowerment, breaking free from repressions from the past
- new equilibrium = equality
Barthes...
fists of Smith + Carlos at 1968 Olympics --> black power
US flag --> american values (flipped as flag turns) + oppression
ocean --> time
Nefatari statue/necklace --> feminine/black strength and beauty
Hall...
this video avoids constructing stereotypical representations or presenting subordinate groups as 'other' INSTEAD representing them as powerful and active
Van Zoonen...
JM is afab so they can connect and understand certain experiences and construct them successfully, as their agenda is centred around their own concerns and experiences stemming from their background of black people (+ women) in the past and present
aim is to raise awareness
MOTIFS
VR headset…
- shows it's a virtually constructed world
- 1st person of the young girl in front of the tv
- represents clouded vision
- technological advances yet little ideological
Flags...
- US flag represents the ideals ('freedom', 'democracy', 'equality' etc.)
- flag movement shows the wavering morals
- anger expressed through tone and movement when w/ flag, certain of change
- Pride flag (+umbrella) is seen from birds eye view - looked down on by others
- celebration of identity
- act of protection as identity is legitimised
Nefatari...
- a highly educated Egyptian queen
- jewellery worn by the mother --> represents feminine + black strength, power and beauty
- statue of her washed up on the beach being dragged out
- final shot of Janelle stood alongside statue
REPRESENTATIONS
- video constructs version of reality using real locations and real protestors, sports people, leaders and politicians
- despite the fact that the clips used highlight negative representations of ethnicity, there is positivity and hope with the inclusion of cultural iconography (groups dancing and singing together, and shots of young black women)
- audience is informed about injustices of the past and present and encouraged to be active in seeking change
representations are constructed by JM to instigate discourse around a social issue
JM is politically active therefore understanding how dominant groups control what's produced, constructed and then reinforced
(they are co-chair of 'When we all Vote' which aims to increase voting participation for all americans)
explores issues related to living in modern america as a member of an under-represented social group
TITLE
- subvert stereotypes
- change hierarchies of power
- mixing/blending
- revolution = 1 turn of turntable --> music is major part of CHANGE
LYRICS
- "I've been flipping through my timeline" --> looking back on black heritage (repression + prejudice), ref. to social media's perception of identity
- "With a new dream" --> intertextual ref. to MLK 'I have a dream' speech - outdated, needs new dream for modern society ("kicking out the old regime")
- "Liberation, Elevation, Education" - ref. to American values/ideals that need to be adapted to new dream
- "America, you a lie" --> hand on heart in this gap, as a moment of reflection/remembrance
- "You laid an egg, now it's about to hatch" --> connotes new beginnings and renewal
- "You fuck up the kitchen, then you should do the dishes" --> taken responsibility for your mistakes and educate yourself, shouldn't rely on others to educate you
- lyrics change from 'I' to 'we' --> reinforcing the collective responsibility
CODES
technical...
establishing shots - beach @ beginning and end constructs freedom as key theme --> @ end w/ sea audio and stood next to Nefatari statue instills audience with certainty for change
close-up shots - alongside determined expressions create engagement with audience (direct address)
long shots - JM w/ back turned + gesticulating towards US flag connotes flag is symbol of oppression AND THEN the smiling girl who picked up the doll, is positive + uplifting in its simplicity
canted angles - combined w/ fast editing @ end and music building creates sense of disorientation reflecting the need to disrupt status quo
bird's eye view shots - of BLM protests + pride march/flag signify strength of feeling of inequality
editing cuts - between B+W footage w/ modern news clips and JM establishes a cohesive message reinforcing the ideology of the music video through visual signifiers
CONTEXT
issues of...
- voter suppression
- BLM movement
- growing awareness of global social inequality
newspaper with US flag on the front that is being read by the black mother - reflects the qualities that everyone sees but no one looks beyond it so as she opens the paper with purpose it shows that she knows the truth that isn't visible to everyone else
intertextual ref. to 'checking out me history' - the statue that washed up on the beach is reminiscent of the final line of poem "carving out me identity"
examples of reversing expectations - reversed syrup, man cooking, woman reading paper, house + lifestyle is typically white BUT still cooking fried chicken
non-linear narrative - features of past, present and future
JM acts as a storyteller as she interrupts the mixture of clips engaging with the address, forcing them to engage w/ the issues
- there is a clear focus on the voter suppression in Georgia as seen by the images of black people casting votes and Stacey Abrams speaking
the voice of black american writer James Baldwin opens the video with one of his speeches called 'I am not your negro' to remind the audience of the length of the suppression of minority groups
narrative offers social commentary and challenges audience perceptions of particular social groups, positioning them to view them differently
The Doll Test
one white doll and one black doll was presented to children on a table, they were asked 'which doll is nice?', 'which doll is bad?' and 'which doll is most like you?'.
the results showed that the majority of black children preferred the white dolls to black dolls, that the black dolls were bad and the white dolls looked most like them.
this proved that young black children grow up feeling a sense of inferiority, lasting the rest of their lives.
the feature of this trial in the video and particularly the fact that the black child chose the black doll symbolises acceptance and her pride to be black - her identity is to be nurtured and cherished.