Representations of Terrorism and Ethnicity in Spooks

Series 3, Episode 10

The scene when Ahmed holds Fiona and Danny hostage and phones Fiona’s husband, Adam, to force him to decide which of the two will be murdered. Danny provokes Ahmed into killing him.

Ahmed is represented in a negative way, Fiona and Danny positively. How are those binary opposites conveyed to audiences?
Binary opposites conveyed are between good and evil characters. Adam, Danny and Fiona are the good characters, where Danny is a hero for provoking Ahmed into killing him – Adam doesn’t have to choose. Ahmed the terrorist is the bad character.

Fiona: She is tied up and is very weak; crying, bleeding, sweating, pleading, face is covered in tears. Posture is slouched with her head looking down – shows her fear and sense of vulnerability. Begging with Danny to stop provoking Ahmed, but trying to stay strong by telling Adam that “you don’t have to say anything, don’t listen to this psychopath.” She tells Adam that she loves him – fear that she will die, she knows what's important in life, and she values other people – her husband and her son especially.

Danny: Danny is really brave and strong. His courage means that he stands up to this terrorist and challenges him but with disastrous consequences. It’s a fight between him and the terrorists – extreme good against extreme bad. He has high morals and this is shown in how he fights the terrorist verbally, fully aware of what the man is capable of. It is such a terrible situation to be in but he remains extremely controlled, seemingly fearless – trying to stay strong for Fiona – and plays the role of a hero. His comments and brave rebellion against the terrorist causes the audience to admire him as a character and this admiration heightens the impact and sympathy that we feel for him when he is killed.

Ahmed: Shown to be a heartless character with no feelings for others and punishing innocent people. Shows no emotion, face is expressionless, he is not moved by Fiona’s despair.
Cocks the gun – ruthless – isn’t scared to shoot – has no feelings.
He believes asking someone to choose between their wife or colleague to be killed is a simple decision - his expression remains cold and compassionless when he simply says “choose”.
Contrast to Fiona and Danny – Ahmed is standing up straight with his head held high and his arm is out straight, pointing the gun at Fiona’s head – he shows no fear because he is in control.
Hand is shaking whilst holding gun, shows a glimmer of hope, audience for a second don’t believe he will shoot Danny, he is being made weaker by Danny’s comments, expression after Danny says “it might be you sitting where I am…”etc. he shows weakness in his expression. Removes the gun from Fiona’s head – seems weakened momentarily, for a moment the audience feel’s like Ahmed will give in and is moved by what Danny says, but in fact he does the complete opposite and shoots Danny, killing him – this is how he releases his anger. This heightens the negative view that we already have on him as despite Danny’s talk on morals and humanity, Danny – “you have lost your humanity and now have no kindness or pity left in you,” he shows he doesn’t care and never intended to let them go. He says “and you know what my answer would be,” so plainly before killing Danny – shows no pity.
He makes Fiona turn and look at her dead colleague – shows no remorse.

What roles do camerawork and editing play in underlining those representations?

The use of many extreme close-ups of Fiona and close-ups of Danny make the audience feel sorry for them and expresses their vulnerability and defencelessness. The use of these distances allows us to feel closer to them and therefore the shots such as the ECU’s of Fiona crying and breaking down has a huge impact on the audience, we can clearly see that she is in despair and this heightens the trauma of the experience. This causes the audience to feel sympathetic for her and therefore we see her as the good character. The CU’s of Danny allows us understand his bravery and we can see this through his expressions of defiance. The audience admire him for standing up to Ahmed despite it being a frightening situation and we are constantly reminded of this through the use of framing which allows us to see the gun against Fiona’s head behind Danny. The use of slightly low angles of Ahmed makes him appear to be in more control as he stands over Danny and Fiona. The shot types make us feel distanced from Ahmed, but he is still shown to be very dominant and threatening. The camera is continuously moving; therefore it adds to the realism and makes the audience feel part of the scene, either as themselves or through the eyes of someone else who is present.

The use of slow paced editing builds the suspense and tension. It enables the audience to concentrate on what is happening and doesn’t deter their attention from the scene. Also, it means we can focus on the expressions of the characters and their reactions, to get a clearer understanding of how they feel.

What techniques are used to engage the audience emotionally?
The use of a lot of close-ups really allows the audience to have sympathy for the two hostages, Fiona and Danny. We are drawn into the action and feel closer to them, making the scene more intense. The camera movement also makes us more emotionally involved as we feel as though we are there, experiencing this with them.

What view of terrorism emerges from these scenes?
Terrorists are shown to be hard-hearted and unsympathetic in these scenes, targeting innocent people. This extremely negative view implies to the audience that terrorists are a threat to anyone and everyone is at risk. Danny’s speech highlights the view that they “will never win” and the fact that it is down to chance of where you are born shows that it is the person’s fault themselves for making that decision to become a terrorist, and therefore have lost their humanity and don’t have compassion, kindness or pity left in them.

What do you understand by Arab, Islamic, Muslim and Middle-Eastern?

An Arab or a person from a Middle-Eastern background generally tends to be a Muslim. A Muslim and Islamic refer to the religion of Islam, as it is these people who follow it.

What are the same categories for describing British people?

British people are often described as English, Scottish or Welsh, depending on what part of Britain they are from. Since Britain is very ethnically diverse, it isn’t really possible to categorise people by their religion.

What do you know about Al Qaeda?

Al Qaeda is a multinational alliance of Islamist terrorist groups engaged in a universal relentless campaign against Western countries and their influence. They are responsible for many cases of suicide bombings, including the 9/11 in the United States and the London 7/7 bombings.

Look at the representation of Ahmed and Khatera. How far does the drama position audiences to equate ‘Muslim’ with terrorism?
This episode of Spooks does not mention religion. It also makes clear that Ahmed and Khatera are getting revenge for the deaths of their relatives in Iraq. This topic of Muslim terrorists is very controversial and Spooks must not be seen as promoting Islamic extremism, or being racist by labelling all Muslims as terrorists.

Think of the other characters from British ethnic minorities in the drama. What is their significance?

Other characters from British ethnic minorities in Spooks include the Asian MI5 agent; Zafar Younis. This character is significant as it shows that Spooks are not suggesting that people from the Middle East are all terrorists, which would portray a very negative, racist and incorrect idea to the audience. He is represented in a good way, ensuring that he is shown to hold completely different ideologies to the terrorists. Also one of the most prominent characters in this episode of Spooks; Danny is black. This means that they are representing multi cultural Britain and do not show all the ‘good’ characters to be white.

Representation in 90210 – Annie/the Wilsons

This new series of 90210 focuses on the ups and downs of the Wilson family, who relocate from small-town USA (Kansas) and head to the glitz and glamour of Beverly Hills. This further complicates the lives of the kids, the theatrical, innocent Annie and her adopted brother Dixon. They both struggle with their new lives in California. This emphasises the differences between lives of people in California compared to where they moved from, and soon all the Wilson's are struggling to adapt to life in 90210. The Wilson's must cope with the pressures of life in a new town; the beautiful people, the social backstabbing, the relationships and jealousies of 90210.

The main theme is Kansas vs. Hollywood, especially in the first episode.
The series focuses quite a lot on Annie’s journey through this transition and trying to fit in, but at the same time she’s got a strong sense of self that she came with, and she won’t let go of that.

Episode 1 – Summary:
We’re Not in Kansas Anymore
Harry Wilson, new principal of West Beverly Hills High School, returns from Kansas to his childhood home of Beverly Hills with his wife Debbie, their daughter Annie and adopted son Dixon, to care for Harry's mother, former television star Tabitha Wilson. On their first day at West Bev, Annie and Dixon encounter Ethan, the star lacrosse player she met a few summers ago; Naomi, the spoiled rich girl whose sole focus is her Sweet Sixteen party; Silver, the free-spirited girl who later gossips about Annie on her blog, and Navid, editor of Blaze News. When Naomi fails to complete an assignment, English teacher Ryan Matthews and guidance counselor Kelly Taylor, bring the problem to Harry, who quickly realises that keeping secrets about his past is going to be impossible.

In the first episode we are immediately shown the strong differences between the Wilson family and people in Beverley Hills. It’s a huge culture shock for them. From the first scene we are instantly shown that they are different. The first episode starts with short shots of different aspects of Beverley Hills including a main feature which is expensive cars. The music is lively; Coldplay – Viva La Vida, and reflects the exciting atmosphere and the new prospect of joining this city for the family. It then cuts to a shot over the Hollywood sign and hills, an area always associated with money and glamour and we then see a shot of a car driving. This red car is placed in centre of frame so the audience knows to concentrate on it, but we can also see that it is so different compared to the cars that we have just seen. This car, containing the Wilsons, is a faded red, old, dirty family car, immediately contrasting with the cars surrounding it.

In a few minutes into the first episode, it is a shot of Annie and Dixon Wilson by/in their pool. They are discussing their own worries about moving to a new place and having to start over. Dixon talks about his adoption story and Annie reveals her worries about having to make new friends “aren’t you a little freaked out starting over?” This conversation shows just how close this brother and sister are and we gradually begin to see more of this throughout the series. The actors were pleased about this as they said it was good that they weren’t stereotypical brother and sister, fighting all the time, and this showed the good side to close family life. It also emphasised just how different family life was back in Kansas compared to families here in Beverley Hills.

The next scene is where Annie and Dixon first arrive at school:
Costume:
Annie - ordinary girl from small town USA, can see this through her costume.
Plain pink and white stripy tank top – doesn’t look particularly expensive.
Denim skirt – again doesn’t look very expensive but does show that she does have confidence and is trying to make an effort. We find out that she was in fact the “pretty, cool, and popular” one back in Kansas where she was a big fish in a small pond. Here everyone’s like that and she tries her hardest to fit in.
Doesn’t stand out here, blends into the background.
Later Naomi says to Annie - “But you’re gonna need new clothes so we’ll go shopping after school.” Annie looks down at her clothes and seems quite puzzled about what’s wrong with them. This shows how she really doesn’t know how different life is here in Beverley Hills for teenage girls.
“She’s def cute, but – I mean her clothes...”
“She’s probably poor, her dads the principal.” - Annie becomes more fashionable and puts more effort in to what she wears as she becomes more accustomed to life in Beverly Hills.
Dixon – normal, plain red polo t-shirt, cargo trousers – emphasizes their ordinariness, came from a small town to Hollywood.
White, middle/upper class area, Dixon stands out.

Location:
Outside the school – we know this because camera zooms into the school name – West Beverley Hills High.
Busy – everyone gathering before school starts.
Rich area - not run down.
Modern building.
Clean, well looked after.
Greenery – trees and bushes all well groomed.
Bright, sunny – not dark and gloomy – reflects the atmosphere; everyone’s excited to see each other.
Middle/Upper class area

Props:
Expensive cars - show offs, rich, spoilt
Everyone is carrying bags – this shows that they are definitely at school as they are school bags.
The girls are typically carrying handbags – emphasizes they’re girlyness and shows they all have money as they buy expensive bags. The boys are all carrying rucksacks – a typical sign of attending school and more practical than the girls.

Music:
Upbeat music reflects mood and atmosphere in this area.
MGMT - Time to Pretend – first line of the song - I'm feeling rough, I'm feeling raw, I'm in the prime of my life. This represents the age that they are at now; the teenagers believe they are at the best part of their life, despite the fact that they haven't had much experience - more physically than mentally.
The music then changes when its between Ethan and Annie to a more embarrassed and shocked tone to reflect their feelings.

Dialogue:
Dixon and Annie both have completely different reactions to everyone at Beverley Hills High.
Annie: “Oh my God, will you look at this place? It's like the Oscars and everyone is Scarlet Johansson.”
Dixon [checking out the girls]: “You say that like it's a bad thing.”
Annie is shocked and Dixon likes the idea of getting to know these girls.

Sound:
Background sound of girls greeting each other and talking excitedly.
Engines of cars revving.
Sounds of car doors opening and closing.
People saying hi.

Action:
Girls in the background greeting each other with a kiss on the cheek but in a really exaggerated way.
Annie then recognises her summer fling from two years prior; however she catches him in his car with another girl, cheating on his girlfriend Naomi. – Annie is shocked, this would have never happened back in Kansas.

Camerawork:
Camera pans the surroundings to give a clear idea to the audience of just how different it is. It then reaches a two shot of Annie and Dixon walking to school – both are shocked.
The camera tracks backwards so that it can follow them both.
The camera is at an angle slightly to the left so that the audience can still see everything around them, whilst also concentrating on Annie and Dixon.
There is then a medium close-up of Dixon as he reacts to everything. It then cuts back to the two shot.
When they stop walking (Annie notices Ethan), there is a medium shot of Ethan to establish who he is.
The camera then goes back to the two shot of Annie and Dixon, but Dixon decides to go into school. Annie waits so that she can go and talk to Ethan. The camera pans to follow Dixon and shows how he reacts to the girls around him. The audience concentrates on him, whilst also looking at the people around him.
It then cuts back to Annie and moves into a close-up so that the audience can see her expression clearly, especially when she realises Ethan is with a girl in his car.

Editing:
Frequent cuts at start of different shots around the area of Beverley Hills High School. Creates a montage effect. This emphasizes the exciting atmosphere and exaggerated action of everyone.
Then cuts to the two main characters Annie and Dixon so the audience concentrates on them. This emphasizes how ordinary they are, they look different, act differently and are walking to school, a complete contrast to the people around them. This prepares us for the problems that they will face trying to fit in. it cuts to a few different shots of the two characters so that we can see them clearly, and this is a use of invisible editing so that the scene flows and we concentrate on them. There are uses of shot-reverse-shots between Annie and Ethan when she notices him, and this mainly helps the audience see what Annie is reacting too (no dialogue is exchanged.)

The school is one big culture shock for Annie. She is 16 and desires to be popular and on top of things. This strong desire to be accepted tends to override her own internal desires because she's trying to impress and be accepted by others. Sje tries to gain her own place in the in-crowd, but will have to start from scratch in the social pressure cooker that is West Beverly Hills High. As an audience, we can see through Annie’s eyes into this world and can therefore empathise with her. Annie and the Wilsons represent the majority of us that don’t live this lifestyle and we can therefore relate with them. This representation of people outside of Hollywood emphasises the stark differences between lifestyles, however the show highlights that they do still share many of the same problems.

Representation in Hovis Advert

This Hovis Bread advert demonstrates good representations of different time periods and important events that have taken place in the past. These are displayed through key signifiers and clues in the advertisement.

1. It starts in the Bread Shop which is in the Victorian times; 1800s.
Costume: The baker is in an old fashioned white puffy hat and coat.
The young boy is wearing a Victorian flat cap, neck tie and breeches.
The old man in the background in the bakery is wearing a waistcoat, long tail coat and has a top hat in his hand which are all strong connotations of Victorian times.
Location: The bread shop is very old fashioned. The bread is placed on wooden shelves behind the baker which are less likely to be used nowadays. It appears old and is clearly not modern from the day.
Props: loaves of bread shelved which are generally not stored like that anymore.
Music: It’s a really upbeat piano piece that sounds cheerful, with quite a fast pace. This creates a light hearted and relaxed mood.
Dialogue and other sound: The baker has a northern accent when he says “here ya go lad” and therefore shows he’s from the north of England.

2. As he leaves the bakery the time period doesn’t change much and this is reinforced by:
Costume: Boy is still in the same clothes but his hat comes off as time moves slightly more forward. People in the street dressed in old fashioned and old-looking clothes.
Location: In a crowded and busy street. Pathway is very narrow. Tall buildings either side.
Props: There is a horse and cart which is old fashioned – no cars.
The boy also runs passed a Titanic poster, therefore we know it’s in the early 1900s (1910)
Music: It has not changed; still light-hearted piano music. Mood stays the same.
Dialogue and other sound: Hear the sound of horse neighing which uses a sound bridge and is diegetic which makes it realistic. There are also the crowds of people murmuring in the background with general street noise.

3. Women’s movement – suffragettes late 1910s:
Costume: All clothes look old fashioned. Women in long dresses and hats. Men in suits and bowler hats.
Location: Wide cobbled streets – shows its in old times. A lot of space for the women protesting for their rights.
Props: Banners, posters and placard being held by the women, mostly saying ‘Votes Women.’ This informs us that it’s the suffragette’s movement.
Music: The same.
Dialogue and other sound: Sound of a lot of people protesting and shouting. This is emphasised when we see a man trying to restrain a woman.

4. Soldiers – World War 1 1914-1918:
Costume: Young male soldiers from WW1 wearing old fashioned army clothes and hats. Holding guns and carrying bags that also look old. This evokes sympathy in the viewer and realisation of the horrors of WW1.Girl running down the street with a straw hat and bow and white dress – old fashioned.
Location: Soldiers marching down a British looking street, people watching, are offering support.
Props: Rifles of the soldiers and their bags and hats.
Music: The music is still repetitive but violins do come in when the boy sits on the wall and salutes to the soldier, gives sad undertones.
Dialogue and other sound: Slight sound of marching feet. Little girls laughing – unaware of situation, complete contrast to the mood of what is happening.

5. 1920s - street with car:
Costume: Boy wearing grey shorts and long grey socks.
Costume of three people is a bit more modern, men in suits, woman in a dress and hat – late 20s, early 30s.
Location: Runs past a street.
Props: Car - moving into modern times, cars just recently introduced.
Music: Music is still the same and quite light-hearted even after we saw the soldiers.
Dialogue and other sound: Hear the general voices of people talking and the dog barking.

6. War – 1940s WW2:
Costume: People dressed in dark, depressing clothes.
Location: Bombed area, destruction, houses destroyed, debris, smoke. Area looks deserted but a few people clearly broken and mournful carrying their belongings and recovering what’s left.
Props: The radio, WW2 fighting plane, portraits being carried by the people, destroyed furniture in the streets.
Music: The music changes and softens. It becomes much quieter and solemn. Creates a reflective mood and a time to display respect for those who lost their lives, reflective.
Dialogue and other sound: Hear Churchill’s speech on the radio “we shall fight on the beaches…we shall never surrender” – very patriotic, makes us proud of Britain, sense of Britishness. We also hear a plane flying above.

7. 1950s – Coronation/street party:
Costume: Kids dressed up (boy dressed as pirate), party hats. Show that this was a happy time and fun - huge contrast to the image created before of the war and how this affected people.
Location: Brightly lit street – happy atmosphere. Many people celebrating in a wide street.
Props: British flags, extras for celebration eg. hats, drink, food, flowers.
Also the crown signifies the coronation - Very happy image of people with a positive and lively atmosphere.
Music: Music much more upbeat again with a faster pace – improves atmosphere.
Dialogue and other sound: A lot of laughter and the general talking of the people around the boy.

8. 1960s - girls and celebrating football:
Costume: Mini skirts, shift dress, coloured tights, red boots. Also the hair styles of the girls are bobs – very fashionable at that time. The boys outfit changes, 60's sweater and coat – all represents the 60s.
Location: Typical streets and terraced British houses in background, some with flags on the windows.
Props: We see 3 cars in this clip – all typical of the 60s. The British flags in the car that passes – appeal to best of Britain, not best of England.
Music: Guitars enter – progression and change in music over time.
Dialogue and other sound: Boys shout “Champions” out of the car - England winning the World Cup in 1966. Car horn – excitement.

9. 1970s - street with Asians and TV shop:
Costume: Jumper of the boy changes with a shirt underneath – 70s collar.
We see 2 Asians to represent the 1973 Racial Discrimination Act.
Location: Outside a TV shop – progression of technology.
Props: The TVs in the shop window.
Music: No change in music.
Dialogue and other sound: Sound of cars passing – increase in the amount of people with cars.

10. 1980s – Miners Strike, Coal not Dole protest
Costume: Boy wearing a bright blue jumper and his brown jacket now has yellow stripes on it. Protestors wearing jeans and clothes that are more modern.
Location: Coal not dole strike/protest near an industrial site.
Props: Holding signs and posters.
Music: Music fades down and allows us to hear the rioting – “Coal not dole”
Dialogue and other sound: A man shouts - “Ay lad, isn’t it past your bed time” – shows its up north.

2000 - Millennium, Fireworks
Costume: Boy wearing the same clothes.
Location: London.
Props: Fireworks.
Music: More instruments – celebratory tone, fast paced, exciting.
Dialogue and other sound: Sound of fireworks exploding.

Modern Home – Now
The boy enters his house and puts the loaf of Hovis on the table and sits down at the table. It's clearly in modern times now as the boy is wearing clothes worn nowadays and enters a brightly lit kitchen. There is a lot of wood in the kitchen maybe to portray naturalistic elements and Hovis are trying to say that they only use natural ingredients. Music dies down to a slower pace just before the dialogue of his mum; “Is that you home, love?” and the boy replies ‘Yeah’ The music then stops to show it’s the end of his journey.

Sound throughout the sequence.

The sound and music fits well with the sequence. The music matches the mood and what is happening at the particular time. For example, during the war clip, the music slows and quietens, creating a sombre mood. It then becomes more upbeat and lively when associated with the football fans. This shows that when the music changes it signifies the time shift, gradually getting more modern as we move throughout the sequence. The diegetic sound creates a sense of realism and shows us the location (the use of northern accents to show it is set in Northern England.) The music often stops or quietens to help us hear the diegetic sound or dialogue, such as the speech of Churchill on the radio.

Narrative/Story development through whole advert.

Throughout the sequence, the use of costume, location, props and sound help us identify the time period and event. The sequence starts in the 1800s and follows the boy as he moves through time and key events. This anchors the line at the end, 'as good today as it's always been' - it's the same quality that it's always been. The advert gives a strong sense of britishness and patriotism - 'the bread is the best of british.'