Buffy The Vampire Slayer Analysis Essay

Buffy The Vampire Slayer Analysis Essay With reference to one or two episodes of Buffy The Vampire Slayer studied in class, explain how the series encourages the viewer to question assumptions about high and low culture and/or television as a form of popular culture. You may wish to consider issues of genre, authorship and gender. Vampires are widely known for their slick back black hair, fanged teeth and black and red capes; however, in the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer these traditions have made different way for female fighters and ghoulish monsters. We each have our own different thoughts about what and who vampires are, but the media use their power on public to create a strong image of what are vampires should look like and have endorsed traditions believed for many years. In order to maximise viewing figure, the producers of Buffy the Vampire Slayer have made a good mix of the horror genre and the typical, classical American high school show. This mixture of different genres is suitable for many different class or age groups and tastes. The first episode is titled Welcome to Hellmouth this name is an oxymoron as it uses words that express good and bad. The build up to the episode shows a young couple breaking into the school through a window in the science lab. This action not only ads tension but also shows a link between science and the supernatural, something that has been talked about for hundreds of years. The woman turns into a green hideous monster and kills that boy. This is very rare for a vampire tale as traditionally vampires did not look like monsters and also they only attacked defenseless females. The episode starts properly when Buffy Summers, a 16 years old girl moves to Sunnydale, from LA with her mother. This is not the setting that the audience would expect for a vampire story as the word Sunnydale hardly paints a picture of a dark, horror place full of vampires. Therefore, this name subverts the traditional signifiers. On the first day of school, the popular girl named Cordelia inducts Buffy into the cool crowd, Buffy attempts to be friends with three other students,Willow, Xander and Jesse. This gesture shows us that Buffy is a good judge of character, strong minded and that she is a leader not a follower. Buffy goes to the school library to get some text books. The library, although a more unusual setting was much more like something from a vampire story, it was dark and empty. To add tension the producers used scary disjointed music to try and set the scene and the camera moves in onto a newspaper article, to which you can read the headline which refers to a missing teenage boy. This article casts a question mark over the normal nice Sunnydale. Then a figure appears behind Buffy, it is Buffys new watcher and the new school librarian,Giles. He brings a book with Vampyr on the cover and scares Buffy off. This endorses the old traditions as the book was old, and full of cobwebs, possibly to add more mystery to this section. The spelling Vampyr again highlights the books age and tries to make it look even more strange, this also brings more history and tradition into the episode, two elements that are important to any gothic style story. The show seems to take a different twist when a dead body is found in the school changing rooms. It is unusual that the body was discovered in the school and another good point to note is that the victim was a man, which is unusual for a vampire story, as traditionally the victims were all defenseless females. Buffy to investigate and found the body was killed by vampires. At home, Buffy prepares for her night out to the Bronze, Sunnydales only night club. Her mum thinks that everything is going to work out in Sunnydale and that they will be able to have a happy life there. It is very ironic as Buffy knows that bad things are just around the corner and also this shows that her mother is unaware that she is a vampire slayer. On her way to the Bronze, Buffy senses she is being followed and heads into an alleyway. A tall young man comes out of the shadows searching for her. She swings down from a bar above him and knocks him to the ground. He claims not to bite and that he just wants to help her. This section endorses up to the point where Buffy swings down and attacks the man. He warns her of the Harvest and tells her about the Hellmouth. This name paints a bad picture in the audiences minds and it is the total opposite to Sunnydale. Later at the Bronze, Buffy chats with Willow about boys. She tries to inspire Willow to stop waiting and to seize the day. Buffy spots Giles upstairs and goes up to talk to him. He continues to tell her she is the Slayer and has no choice in the matter. At first the setting for this scene may seem to be totally radical in a vampire style story, however after thought the venue is dark and full of young potential victims so is a modern adaptation of the settings for the older tales. For example, the more traditional tales were set in a graveyard or spooky house, which was dark and the time was always in the dead of night. These characteristics can also be linked to the nightclub used in Buffy, as it too is dark and people only go to th ese clubs during the hours of darkness.The show seems to take a different twist when a dead body is found in the school changing rooms. It is unusual that the body was discovered in the school and another good point to note is that the victim was a man, which is unusual for a vampire story, as traditionally the victims were all defenseless females. Buffy to investigate and found the body was killed by vampires. At home, Buffy prepares for the night out to the Bronze, the only night club in Sunnydale. Her mum thinks that everything is going to be fine in Sunnydale and they can have a happy life there. It is very ironic as Buffy knows that bad things are just around the corner and also this shows that her mother is unaware that she is a vampire slayer. On her way to the club, Buffy senses she is being followed and heads into an alleyway. A tall young man comes out of the shadows searching for her. She swings down from a bar above him and knocks him to the ground. He claims not to bite and that he just wants to help her. This section endorses up to the point where Buffy swings down and attacks the man. He warns her of the Harvest and tells her about the Hellmouth. This name paints a bad picture in the audiences minds and it is the total opposite to Sunnydale. Later at the Bronze, Buffy chats with Willow about boys. She tries to inspire Willow to stop waiting and to seize the day. Buffy spots Giles upstairs and goes up to talk to him. He continues to tell her she is the Slayer and has no choice in the matter. At first the setting for this scene may seem to be totally radical in a vampire style story, however after thought the venue is dark and full of young potential victims so is a modern adaptation of the settings for the older tales. For example, the more traditional tales were set in a graveyard or spooky house, which was dark and the time was always in the dead of night. These characteristics can also be linked to the nightclub used in Buffy, as it too is dar k and people only go to these clubs during the hours of darkness. Buffy spots a vampire in the crowd below them and then realizes hes talking to Willow. The guy leaves with Willow as Buffy goes searching for him. She mistakenly attacks Cordelia and then pretty much ruins her chances for popularity. As Buffy leaves, she runs into Xander and asks him where Willow may have gone or else there will be one more dead body tomorrow. The vampire manages to lead Willow into the cemetery where he throws her into a tomb stone. As he tries to escape, Darla arrives with Jesse. Buffy and Xander turn up and Buffy kills one of the vampires and then fights with Darla as Xander gets Willow and Jesse out to safety. A vampire shows up and fights with Buffy. While they are fighting, Darla escapes to get Jesse, Xander and Willow. The vampire throws Buffy into a coffin where he jumps in and leans in to bite. Apart from Buffy, a female fighter, who manages to attack all the vampires single handed. This endi ng endorses the signifiers we think off when we talk about vampires. As the setting, a graveyard is the usual place for an attack in a gothic or vampire story. It is also interesting to note that the episode concludes with a cliffhanger, an unusual ending for many gothic style stories and films. As traditionally, the story finished with either the death of a victim or of the attacker. In any television programme or feature film, camera angles and effects are important as they portray certain feelings that the producers want to show to the audience, these may be something like making the audience think a character is small and weak by using a high angle shot, which looks down on the character. Or you could use the opposite effect by making a character look strong and powerful from using a low angle shot (looking up). In Buffy The Vampire Slayer they producers use one effect which is featured on several occasions. This is where a quick series of flashing images is presented to the vie wers; this technique is called a montage of images. In episode 1 this feature is used twice, in the first case, the montage is used as a title sequence and shows images that both subvert and endorse the conventions, including images of signifiers including black cats, stakes and green monsters along with modern things like female fighters. This sequence promises viewers fast pace, all action entertainment and shows clips of future episodes in order to encourage continual viewing throughout the series. The second montage is shown where Buffy is in bed dreaming at the beginning of the actual programme, after the introduction and the title sequence. This series of images is showing the audience that she is restless as there is some kind of distortion in the images, and some are not fully visible. This makes the viewers to try and understand the sequence and the majority suggest that Buffy is involved in someway with vampires or as a protector of some description. The images shown inclu de an old book which suggests the cultural history of vampires, a cross which represents Christianity and the way to kill vampires. Because of this legend, the cross points out that Buffy is a protector. Moreover, Buffy creator Joss Whedon described Buffy the Vampire Slayer as an all over the place transcending-genre kind of thing. (Stein, 2002) Well the text is mainly considered to be of the teen genre it does contain elements of the horror genre to. The fight against monsters and the idea of a patriarchal society is all central to the horror genre. The way that Buffys world is invaded by monsters, horror invades home is another shared convention between horror and BVS. However one aspect of the show that goes against the horror genre is the role of women. In previous horror texts women were weak and frightened; however BVS changes traditional genre and ideological views. Buffys embodied strength, power, and assertiveness destabilize the traditional masculinity power of the vampire character in the horror genre, in effect policing those who prey upon the feminized (Owen, 1999). Through the text femininity is conveyed as a forceful strong identity. Buffy is stronger then all the men she meets both physically and mentally. However Buffy is not empowered by past feminist movements in the text. She is empowered by herself. Indeed Karras writes that Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Buffys relationship with her mother can be understood as a metaphor for the tenuous relationship between second and third wave feminists(Karras, 2002) Buffys mother feels angry at the fact that Buffy doesnt take full use of the rights she now has to the feminist movement of the 60s. In conclusion,Buffy the Vampire Slayer as a popular culture because it provides a good blend of many aspects of both low and high cultures. It contains scenes that are scary, action packed and also offers addictive viewing like a soap opera. Buffy can be viewed by many different age groups as it seems that there is almost something for all, just the opening episode included many different styles of programming, from comedy to gothic style features. ‘Yet Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ also manages to defy convention by establishing its protagonist as an all strong, powerful willed women. Buffy as an open-image hero expose stereotypes and coded symbols that shore up a rigid war-influenced gender system in an attempt to chart new meanings for womanliness and manliness (Early, 2001) Reference list Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 1 Episode 1 â€Å"Welcome to the Hellmouth† Owen, A. Susan. 1999. Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Vampires, postmodernity, and postfeminism. Journal Of Popular Film Television 27(2): 24-31 Irene Karras, 2002. â€Å"The Third Waves Final Girl:  Buffy the Vampire Slayer.† [http://journals.sfu.ca/thirdspace/index.php/journal/article/viewArticle/karras/50] Francis H. Early, 2001. â€Å"Staking Her Claim: Buffy the Vampire Slayeras Transgressive Woman Warrior† [http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.0022-3840.2001.3503_11.x/abstract] â€Å"Chose an episode of any teen TV programme of your choice and identify the generiv conventions of this TV text.† [http://www.markedbyteachers.com/as-and-a-level/media-studies/chose-an-episode-of-any-teen-tv-programme-of-your-choice-buffy-the-vampire-slayer-and-identify-the-generic-conventions-of-this-tv-text.html]

Gorgias, Socrates, and Justice :: Philosophy Philosophical Justice Morals Essays

Gorgias, Socrates, and Justice When a person’s back is against the wall and the stakes are the highest, how should they handle the pressure? When the lines between right and wrong become so blurred, how is one to know what is the ethical choice in the matter? Imagine being accused of first degree murder, a crime in which you did not commit. However, the evidence against you is stacked so high, it seems you do not have a chance. Your lawyer says he could have you acquitted, but in order to do so he must engage in some unethical courtroom tricks. So with your life on the line, what is the right thing to do? Do you keep the lawyer or should you stand by the truth? I believe the nice thing for everyone to say is that they would stand by the truth. That would be if we, as a society, could really believe that the truth always wins out. However, realistically we know that bad things happen to good people and not always does good triumph over evil. I know that for myself I honestly think that being trapped like that, I would stick with the lawyer. For me being in that situation, I would be too scared to take the chance that the lawyer with the good, honest tactics could get me off. I would be too scared to not go with what seems to be a good thing. My attitude would probably be that since I am being falsely accused in the first place, then it would be fine to use whatever means necessary to have me acquitted. In this situation, I believe that Gorgias would have the same opinion as I would. Gorgias would have rather stayed with the same lawyer, because he would have more belief in the power of oratory. He believed that through oratory anyone or anything could be convinced even though that person might not be a professional on the subject he was expounding on. Through oratory, Gorgias believed that a person gains his personal freedom. In a courtroom, oratory could be used to convince the jury system of anything. Oratory, Gorgias believed, had the total power to persuade. Gorgias thought that oratory had the ability â€Å"to persuade the jurors in the court, the members of the council, and the citizens attending the assembly - in short, to win over any and every form of public meeting of the citizen body.

Multi agency teams work Essay

Multi-agency teams work together by bringing practitioners from all different sectors and professions within childcare to provide effective and in depth way of working to support children and young people. This includes support of that child or young person’s family. Multi-agency teams work together to ensure the children and young people that require additional support have exactly the right professionals around them to achieve their maximum potential. Assessment may include: ââ€" ªParents and family ââ€" ªPediatrician ââ€" ªEducational Psychologist ââ€" ªSpecialist Teachers for Learning Support, Hearing, Vision, Sensory Impairment, Autism/Complex Communication Difficulties ââ€" ªClinical Psychologist ââ€" ªSpeech and Language Therapist ââ€" ªPhysiotherapist ââ€" ªOccupational Therapist. In addition to parents, one or more of these people may be involved, helping to gain an understanding of children’s communication strengths and needs, and how speech and language can be developed. They can also provide information, advice, guidance and training. If a child needs support from a speech therapist, a social worker, teacher and health worker, then a team of those professionals will be set up, but with the consent of the child, young person and family. Support may include: ââ€" ªSpeech and language therapist ââ€" ªEducational psychologist ââ€" ªPhysiotherapist ââ€" ªOccupational therapist ââ€" ªHealth visitor ââ€" ªSpecialist teachers for Learning Support, Hearing, Vision, Sensory Impairment and Complex communication/Autism These people with specialist knowledge and skills support the people in daily contact with the child. They try to remove barriers to achievement, agree strategies, provide training and identify, and sometimes provide, resources By working together, the team will enable children to make maximum progress and improve the quality and ease of their lives. The members of these teams will share information and support each another so that the child / young person’s needs are met as efficiently and effectively as possible. There are some circumstances where multi-agency teams work together literally in one place. There are other examples where teams may operate virtually- via email/ web cam. The role of a practitioner requires them to meet regularly to discuss the needs of the child or young person in question. This is so they can plan and carry out coordinated, targeted interventions. Development may include: ââ€" ªParents and family ââ€" ªChild minder ââ€" ªEarly Years setting staff such as playgroup leaders, nursery nurses and play/nursery assistants ââ€" ªSchool staff such as teachers, teaching assistants and lunchtime supervisors ââ€" ªConnexions staff ââ€" ªBefore & after school care. These people listed above are the people who come into contact with the child in question every day. They apply their training and knowledge to the situation and know how to be good communication partners, and how to provide a good communication environment. They are the ones actively developing the child’s speech and language. They can share ideas about what does and what does not work for individual children. References Worcestershire County Council and Worcestershire. (2011). Effective multi-agency working and collaboration. Available: http://www.worcestershire.gov.uk/cms/speech-language-communication/targeted-s pecialist-provision/effective-multi-agency-working.aspx. Last accessed 18/9/14.

The Lifestyle Theory Free Essay Example, 1500 words

A person having a highly active lifestyle are prone to greater victimization since they tend to mix with greater number of people irrespective of whether they are good or bad, having no proper knowledge of their intentions. Hence victimization may be influenced. However the criminal victimization also depends on the individual’s incapability of not being able to predict the wrongdoers and the incorrect activities that might lead to crimes (Robinson, n.d. ). With the active lifestyles of individuals, particularly among the youth, there are greater risks of exposures to offenders in a society. This has been more associated with the assaults and criminal activities from strangers. For example, parental violence might also lead younger individuals to perform crimes. However such activities or crimes cannot be associated with the lifestyle theory. Lifestyle theory discusses about the cases where individuals spend large amounts of time out of their homes, with strangers, even at th e time of night and become prone to criminal victimization (Finkelhor & Asdigian, 1996, pp. 3-4). As studies of the FBI reveals, crime is an ever increasing problem in countries like America. The study of the policymakers are focused on the victims since only understanding the nature of the crimes and the criminals have not provided any solutions to the prevailing problems related to crimes. We will write a custom essay sample on The Lifestyle Theory or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now There are cases of crimes where an individual is victimized owing to his/her presence at the wrong place at a wrong time. However, in many other cases, individuals possessed and expressed activities that made them the active targets to criminal activities (Krejny, 1999, pp. 1-2). This is where the lifestyle theory may be associated with the victimization of individuals towards activities of crimes. When individuals are parts of a society or a community, there are certain roles and expectations that are expected to be fulfilled by them. These behaviors and roles however vary from individual to individual. Also, with gradual changes in the social structures and the roles and expectation, individuals tend to get hold of newer skills and outlooks enabling them to adapt to the constraints of the society. With such developments, individuals also develop their concepts and understanding of crime and the fear of criminal activities. Thus constraints and restrictions in behaviors are often incorporated in their lifestyles creating several limitations. This gives an understanding of how and why lifestyles vary among different people.