- "To what extent is orange the new black?"
- "Is OITNB truly subservient to encouraging positive representations of marginalised groups in society?"
- "Does OITNB fulfil the role of liberalising marginalised groups in society?"
- "To what extent does OITNB encourage a liberalised representation of women and sexuality in society?"
- "To what extent does OITNB encourage a liberalised representation of women in society?"
- "Is OITNB representative of a social system which empowers women?"
- "Does OITNB truly demonstrate the empowerment of women in society?"
- "To what extent does OITNB promote a liberated representation of women in society?"
Angle
Is OITNB a show which establishes support for feminism? Does the show serve as a step of revolution for the LGBT movement? Are patriarchal standards subverted and disapproved by OITNB? Or are women still ultimately demeaned by the show and thus failing to live up to its political intent?
Hypothesis
OITNB establishes itself as a WIP show which succeeds in encouraging support for feminism and the liberalisation of the LGBT population.
Alternative hypothesis - OITNB ultimately reinforces patriarchal standards as it depicts a system in which the empowerment of women results in social failure.
OITNB establishes itself as a WIP show which succeeds in encouraging support for feminism and the liberalisation of the LGBT population.
Alternative hypothesis - OITNB ultimately reinforces patriarchal standards as it depicts a system in which the empowerment of women results in social failure.
Linked production piece
- Film trailer for a crime-drama in which the protagonist is a man affected by a society/institution which is under female dominance
- Short depicting the life of a teenage lesbian who suffers the same hardship of other prejudiced backgrounds
MIGRAIN+SHEP
REPRESENTATION
Gender and sexuality in OITNB is attractive as a topic for speculation as the WIP show employs a predominantly female cast. Shows such as Girlfriends, ‘Sex and the City’, ‘Charlie’s Angels’, ‘Naked News’ and ‘The ‘L’ word’ also fulfil this classification, however the common denominator of these shows is that women are consistently exploited for the voyeuristic gratification of audiences. This is what fuels the basis of my investigation as Jenji Kohan has claimed to craft a narrative which offers the dimensioning of women by granting them complex traits linked to narratives of their conviction which convince an audience to identify with them beyond the mere gaze of sexual gratification.
Gender and sexuality in OITNB is attractive as a topic for speculation as the WIP show employs a predominantly female cast. Shows such as Girlfriends, ‘Sex and the City’, ‘Charlie’s Angels’, ‘Naked News’ and ‘The ‘L’ word’ also fulfil this classification, however the common denominator of these shows is that women are consistently exploited for the voyeuristic gratification of audiences. This is what fuels the basis of my investigation as Jenji Kohan has claimed to craft a narrative which offers the dimensioning of women by granting them complex traits linked to narratives of their conviction which convince an audience to identify with them beyond the mere gaze of sexual gratification.
The practise of this notion has raised accusations of reverse-sexism as the actions of men in the series are represented in a higher magnitude of negligence than even those of the female felons. {examples: females engaging in drugs, sex, violence etc. - compared to the men’s stories which are not as severe from a sexually impartial perspective} Audiences are encouraged indubitably to be sympathetic for the women in the show, by the manipulation of representations which I’d say are fair and accurate to the extent of the characters reflecting valid social realism. This however ends at the point when no male characters are constructed to be deemed in a favourable manner by the audience. {Even the protagonist’s brother, who is in fact dominated by his female counterpart in the marriage}
Arguably, OITNB absolutely vilifies men in the entirety of the show, to the extent that it becomes an unrealistic representation of the social system in nations such as the UK and America. Because of this, the show arguably loses credibility in the sense of it striving to encourage a social movement to raise awareness of prejudice faced by minority groups - and as a consequence, the arguments for the liberation of women and other oppressed groups lose validity.
AUDIENCES
It can be stately claimed that OITNB is addressed to no particular gender or race, however it could be narrowed to the age range of above 14 years of a B,C1,C2,DE class, primarily of the reformer and explorer psychographic profile. Assumingly, the producer had curated the programme for viewing to a modernised audience, (which also corresponds to its exclusivity on the Netflix online platform) due to its liberal presentation of sex and other sensitive topics - the show’s first 30 seconds features an intimate scene between the protagonist and another woman in the shower. The dominantly preferred reading of the overall text is in support of prisoners to be understood with more empathy to their past. The alternative reading however could suggest that the situations presented in the show highlight the dawn of a social threshold in first-world society, anticipating the uprise of minority groups and the downfall of those in power, more conservative groups which may object to the liberation of those oppressed.
Gender and sexuality in OITNB is attractive as a topic for speculation as the WIP show employs a predominantly female cast. Shows such as Girlfriends, ‘Sex and the City’, ‘Charlie’s Angels’, ‘Naked News’ and ‘The ‘L’ word’ also fulfil this classification, however the common denominator of these shows is that women are consistently exploited for the voyeuristic gratification of audiences. This is what fuels the basis of my investigation as Jenji Kohan has claimed to craft a narrative which offers the dimensioning of women by granting them complex traits linked to narratives of their conviction which convince an audience to identify with them beyond the mere gaze of sexual gratification.
LANGUAGES AND FORM
Piper Chapman (the protagonist) faces an ironic alteration in her living as she is to transition from her life as an attractive, white, affluent New Yorker to the polar opposite of fashionable, as a prisoner in a New York federal penitentiary where she is forced to embrace the realities imposed upon her - survive in prison.
Piper Chapman (the protagonist) faces an ironic alteration in her living as she is to transition from her life as an attractive, white, affluent New Yorker to the polar opposite of fashionable, as a prisoner in a New York federal penitentiary where she is forced to embrace the realities imposed upon her - survive in prison.
An interesting manipulation of the cinematography and mise-en-scene throughout the show is demonstrated as the audience perceives everything in Litchfield prison through the lens of Piper. As Piper initially enters the federal institute, close-up panning shots depict the ruthlessness of the prisoners around her upon their introduction - complemented with scornful facial expressions and obscene language. However this begins to subside correspondingly to Piper’s increasing courage and resistance to the harshness surrounding her in prison, after which the audience should witness a change in the patterns of cinematography and mise-en-scene to be in favour of the prisoners in order to evoke sympathy rather than fear.
NARRATIVE
Within the expository 4 hours of the show, the audience is familiarised with the conviction stories of characters including of course - Piper, but also Red, the cafeteria mogul of the prison, for whom the audience is placed on the brink of a multitude of opinions instead of simply disliking her due to her unfavourable representation towards the protagonist. The reason for this is because of the narrative’s craftation into exhibiting retrospective scenes of the characters’ pasts preceding their conviction. These flashbacks are applaudable also for their diligent integration into the script as the dialogue featured in the scenes are synchronised to the current stage of experiences of the character in question - leaving the audience gasping in awe and questionability regarding the seamlessness of the narrative. The delineation of characters is also demonstrated witful as the audience is constantly barged into the disposition of accepting fallacies about characters who are temporarily vilified, but may even be righteous and likeable. Warranting this, it is important to acknowledge the producer’s representation of moral conflicts such as rape, drug abuse and most interestingly: prejudice against minority groups of race, gender, body types and sexuality.
GENRE
The comedy drama is consistent in its form as it creates opportunity for comic relief in all cases, even driving towards satirising sensitive issues such as religion - an act potentially placing the show in its susceptibility of controversial criticism. Demonstration of generic themes are provided in wholesome as we are presented with a clever script packed with puns and well-timed references, as well as slapstick humour and dark comedy. The show does not at all fail in the drama department either as the audience is placed consistently in a position of feeling empathetic for the characters in question of the multi-strand narrative - thus provoking a wide array of emotions to be felt. Notably, the actors and producers of the show are closely related to the genre of OITNB.
The comedy drama is consistent in its form as it creates opportunity for comic relief in all cases, even driving towards satirising sensitive issues such as religion - an act potentially placing the show in its susceptibility of controversial criticism. Demonstration of generic themes are provided in wholesome as we are presented with a clever script packed with puns and well-timed references, as well as slapstick humour and dark comedy. The show does not at all fail in the drama department either as the audience is placed consistently in a position of feeling empathetic for the characters in question of the multi-strand narrative - thus provoking a wide array of emotions to be felt. Notably, the actors and producers of the show are closely related to the genre of OITNB.
INSTITUTIONS
Produced by Jenji Kohan for Netflix in association with Titled Productions and Lionsgate Television. Kohan is at an utmost influential to the craftation of the show as she herself is liberally vocal on key themes represented throughout. As a commercial institution the primary intention is to entertain and receive good reviews and reception from a large audience of Netflix subscribers.
VALUES AND IDEOLOGIES
Being an 18-rated show, OITNB serves as a controversial series of explicitness and liberally exhibited material which would receive a reaction of more severity than ‘A Clockwork Orange’ did three decades ago for its risqué content. This does nonetheless reinforce the sincerity of the show in fearlessly presenting a reality of society in the media which subverts stereotypes of LGBT communities, women and ethnic minorities.
Being an 18-rated show, OITNB serves as a controversial series of explicitness and liberally exhibited material which would receive a reaction of more severity than ‘A Clockwork Orange’ did three decades ago for its risqué content. This does nonetheless reinforce the sincerity of the show in fearlessly presenting a reality of society in the media which subverts stereotypes of LGBT communities, women and ethnic minorities.
Audience pleasures derived from the show in overall are inclusive of voyeurism, the male-gaze, the female-gaze, as well as the provision of surveillance into prison-life in New York and most importantly - entertainment.
My personal reading is to be deemed by my background as a teenage ethnic minority in the suburbs of metropolitan London. Due to this my opinions and judgements differ from those who are elderly and conservative as I am a lot more accepting towards those who are marginalised.
ISSUES & DEBATES
- Representation and stereotyping
OITNB manifests a show which highlights the sensitivity of representation and stereotyping in the media because of its focus as a WIP show with a predominantly female cast.
Stereotypes are largely subverted due to the show's framework as a show reinforcing liberated representations.
- Reality TV
Keeping Up With The Kardashians offers a modernised representation of a group of women who are also ethnic minorities. This links in closely with the debates of empowerment as it is uncertain whether the Kardashians are ultimately reinforcing patriarchy or subverting its values.
- Moral Panics
Conservatives and those of a traditional religious background will argue that genders are not just arbitrary and that we are naturally supposed to reinforce a patriarchy for the greater good of social regulation.
- Regulation and censorship
The liberated view on women also raises concerns regarding nudity and censorship as many feminists propose the normalisation of women to stroll topless as men do.
- The effect of globalisation on the media
MEDCs happen to initially propose such social revolutions which are later translated to third-world countries. The widespread effect of the media will vary across regions across the world before women are finally granted a liberated representation.
RESEARCH PLAN
Media texts
Other media texts
TV documentaries
Academic texts/books
Internet links
Media texts
- Orange Is The New Black (NETFLIX)
Other media texts
- Keeping Up With The Kardashians
- House of Cards
- The Devil Wears Prada
- The Housewives of Atlanta
- The Colour Purple
TV documentaries
- Missrepresentation
- Live Nude Girls Unite
- Dark Girls
- The Invisible War
Academic texts/books
- Chick lit and post-feminism, Stephanie Harzewski
- Post-feminism and contemporary hollywood, Joel Gwynne, Nadine Muller
- Macbeth, William Shakespeare
- The Will To Knowledge (The history of sexuality vol.1), Michel Foucault
- Women & Film - Both sides of the camera, E.Ann Kaplan
- Feminism at the movies, Radner & Stringer
Internet links
How OITNB humanises inmates
-explaining producer's intentions, representations
OITNB: web TV's breakout moment
-sociopolitical focus
OITNB offers complex look at LGBT women
-acknowledgement for liberated representation
Uzo Aduba on OITNB, Charleston & The confederate flag
-racial context; current affairs
OITNB's irresponsible portrayal of men
-reverse sexism debate
Why Ruby Rose decided not to transition
-star lives/personalities linked to LGBT debate
Ruby Rose faces backlash after posing with boxer
-sociopolitics and social media; image/repuation, endorsements, public opinion/opinion leaders
OITNB and how we talk about race & identity
-ethnic divisions; social reactions & teachings; allegories
Everyone should watch OITNB
-liberalisation/revolutionary
Star weighs in on 'Black lives matter' vs 'All lives matter'
-social media & public opinion/opinion leaders
Twitter reacts to Kate Mulgrew Emmy loss
-social media & following; idolatry
