Timed Essay Question 4

Timed Essay Question 4 ‘Long form television dramas lack originality; no matter which country they are made in, they all use intertextuality in the same way.’ How far do you agree with this statement? In this essay I will be discussing to the extent to which post-modernism has influenced long form television dramas, and whether I believe they lack originality. Post-modernism is the idea that nothing is original within this generation, and that every product is a reinvention of previous products. Products are reinvented using intertextuality, which is when a media product uses something from another product and applying it to their own. Stranger things is a long form television drama which represents the sci-fi and horror genre. Throughout the first episode there are many codes/conventions which the audience recognise as being part of this genre. For example; the setting is based in the evening and is very misty and dark, which is reinforced by the low-key lighting used, there is also dramatic music in the build-up of Will going missing. These examples are stereotypical codes/conventions for the genre of stranger things, and it can be argued that they lack originality, due to them easily being recognised by the audience. Therefore, regarding the media language used within Stranger things, the LFTD does lack originality, however this is not necessarily a bad thing because these codes/conventions used allow the audience to understand what genre the LFTD is. Although stranger things is a post-modern text, it also follows codes/conventions which were accepted in the 1980s (to target their secondary audience), so it is impossible for stranger things to original. Homage is used from the 1970/80s to attract the secondary audience, this audience consists of middle-aged adults, who will recognise the codes/conventions from the 1970/80s. This appeals to them because of the nostalgia they feel towards the LFTD. Intertextuality is used throughout the LFTD, but it can be argued that the use of intertextuality is original. An example of intertextuality used is the shot where the boys are on the way back from playing dungeons of dragons, it represents Elliot and his alien from Spielberg’s ET. It can be argued that the use of this intertextuality is original, due to it being used in a way it never has before, although they are still copying the overall concept, the use of this intertextuality will appeal to the secondary audience, and they will recognise the similarity from this scene and the one in ET. Some other examples of intertextuality within stranger things are the jaws reference and the goonies reference. Again, this will appeal to the secondary audience and it can be argued that the way they have been used within stranger things is original, and that it has been done differently than past texts. Deutschland offers a historical representation; it shows the socialist ideology (which many people from the UK and the west won’t resonate with). This is done through the positioning of the audience. The audience are positioned on the side of the east, due to the protagonist being from the east. The audience who grew up in the west, and who believe in the western ideology due to their identity, have never been positioned on the side of the east, therefore this aspect of Deutschland is original. The producers wanted to make the audience from the west, realise that they were in the wrong and used representations to make the east look good and innocent, however those from the west will take an oppositional reading to this text (reception theory). Deutschland does not rely on intertextuality as much as stranger things, this is because the LFTD uses real events, and the past to tell a story which has took place. The story shows what life was like during the cold war in the 1980s, regarding the east and the west. Although there is a lack of intertextuality, there are references to 1980s culture, for example the clothes worn, and the brands of the coffee are those which would have been used in the 1980s. As a result, Deutschland do not rely on intertextuality to the degree that stranger things do, and there are a lot of original elements within Deutschland. In conclusion, it can be argued that nothing within the post-modern era is original, due to everything being a reinvention of a past product, such as the intertextuality and homage used in stranger things. However, it can be argued that some LFTD’s are original, for example; Deutschland positions viewers from the west on the side of the east, this gives those from the west a new experience as they have never understood the viewpoints and socialist ideologies of the east. Overall, how original a viewer perceives a text can depend on their identity, for example someone who was raised in the west, with the western ideology will see Deutschland as original, whereas someone from the east, who believe in the socialist ideology may not believe the text is very original.