Ireland a land divided

1
Ireland a land divided -

• Reviewing the techniques and preparing for the
  film analysis The Boxer

What are Your stereotypic Images Of Ireland?
2
The role of film

• Entertain
• Create an image of reality/truth
• Position audience to take a point of view
• Inform
• Promote
• Other .......What other roles for film can you
  see?

3
The role of the director

• Question what do you see as the role of the
  director in a film like Lord of the Rings as
  opposed to the role of the director in a film
  like The Boxer or Edward Scissorhands?
• How does the content/ intent of the film affect
  the role?

4
The Content

• It is important to make sure that you have an
  informed knowledge of the troubles so that you
  can draw conclusions for yourself.
• The following slides provide a starting point
  CRUSE is a bereavement organisation the slides
  are from their conference website.

5
Useful resources

• CAIN Web Service (Conflict Archive on the
  INternet)Conflict and Politics in Northern
  Ireland (1968 to the Present) This site contains
  information and source material on 'the Troubles'
  and politics in Northern Ireland from 1968 to the
  present. There is also information on Northern
  Ireland society. New material is added regularly
  and there are also frequent updates, so
  information on particular pages may change
  Access_Stats
• background information on the conflict and
  politics information and source material on
  significant events information and source
  material on significant issues searchable
  bibliographies and databases information on
  society in Northern Ireland
• theoretical explanations of the conflict
• http//cain.ulst.ac.uk/

6
Fear
7
Cruse slide 1
8
Rebellion
9
Cruse slide 2
10
Hunger strikes
11
Cruse slide 3
12
Destruction
13
Cruse slide 4
14
Men with guns
15
Ireland - A terrible beauty( Yeats)
16
The techniques available

• Camera
• Sound
• Lighting
• Special effects
• Use of symbol
• Intertextuality
• Use of audience bias
• other.

17
What do the techniques enhance?

• To respond to this, you need to look carefully at
• the messages of the film what is the film
  positioning the audience to believe, take a
  stance on, develop an attitude to?
• The critical scenes of the film which develop
  character or atmosphere- this is where the points
  are being privileged

18
How are viewers positioned?

• Action
• Dialogue
• Reaction to critical scenes
• Filmic codes
• Symbolic codes

19
What is your response?

• It is important to note your own response to the
  film.
• Sympathy for
• Empathy for
• Anger towards.
• Disgust at
• Confusion about

20
Putting it all together

• Look carefully at the topic given and start to
  gather material under the following headings-
• Discourses presented
• Positioning of audience to believe that..
• Techniques used to present discourses and
  examples from film
• Techniques used to position audience and examples
  from film

21
Suggestions - Putting it together

• Organise your material in a logical order, use
  headings to assist you, deal with each of the
  two discourses in turn and support your argument
  from the film itself.
• In your analysis ensure that you provide the
  following
• Information about the social and historical
  context of the film
• Discussion of at least two discourses
• Information relating to film techniques used to
  privilege the dominant reading of the discourses
• Discussion on viewer positioning
• Discussion on the overall intent of the director

22
The Discourses-which are you selecting?

• The Discourse of Terrorism
• The Discourse of a Divided Ireland
• The Archetypal Discourse of Forbidden Love
• The Discourse of Redemptive Love
• The Discourse of Mercy and Justice
• The Discourse on Power
• The Discourse of Hope and Redemption

23
The Analysis an Overview600 800
words/article for magazine- your audience is
students and teachers of Media

• Heading e.g. Life in a Divided Ireland
• Subheadings for each section
• Introduction
• Historical Context
• Storyline
• Discourse 1
• Discourse 2
• Dominant Reading/Audience Positioning
• Conclusion
• Please note techniques need to be included in
  these paragraphs- examples from the film

One of these needs to be The Discourse of a
Divided Ireland
24
Writing the analysis

• Useful sentence beginnings for a film analysis
• Introduction
• The Boxer, directed by Jim Sheridan, provides the
  viewer with an insight into..
• The Jim Sheridan film, The Boxer, is constructed
  so that the viewer .
• The Troubles in Northern Ireland form the focus
  for the Jim Sheridan film, The Boxer and .
• The film, The Boxer, directed by Jim Sheridan,
  portrays a divided Ireland in which..

25
Writing the analysis

• Historical Context
• Historically, the situation in Northern Ireland.
• There has been an ongoing struggle for peace in
  Northern Ireland for.
• The 20th and 21st centuries have seen an ongoing
  struggle in..
• There has been tension between.

26
Writing the Analysis

• Dominant discourses
• The division within Northern Ireland forms the
  dominant discourse in that the
• The discourse of the struggle for power forms a
  dominant discourse
• The characterization of Harry McCormack and Joe
  Hamill exemplifies the discourse of the.
• The archetypal discourse of forbidden love
  features very strongly..
• Viewers are positioned through the discourse of
  power, which
• The discourse of division is privileged in the
  film through the characterization of.

27
Writing the Analysis

• Storyline
• The storyline of the film concerns itself with
  the release from prison of
• Set in Belfast, the storyline provides the viewer
  with
• Audience positioning
• Viewers are positioned to feel that
• The director, Jim Sheridan, positions his
  audience to react to.
• The dominant discourse of, positions the viewer
  to..

28
Writing the analysis- techniques

• It is in the bar scene between Harry and Joe
  Hamill , that the director, Jim Sheridans use of
  close up..
• The scenes in the stadium, in the fight between
  Danny Flynn and Eddie Carroll, reveal the depth
  of the division between.. Jim Sheridan
  achieves this through the use of..
• The portrayal of the anguish of Liam at Ike
  Weirs death is privileged by the camera angles
  used to..
• Throughout the film, the director uses the sounds
  of . to
• The colours presented to us in the opening scenes
  foreground the.
• The constant use of binary opposition is enhanced
  by the directors use of.