Marxism & hegemony: blog tasks

1) Re-read the Mail Online review of Capital. Why does it suggest that Capital features a left-wing ideology?
The Daily Mail suggests that Capital features a left-wing ideology in many ways, one of which being the way characters are represented, e.g. the Middle-upper class family as they are presented to be quite ignorant greedy, only caring about their income whereas the working class family are humble, caring and hard working even though they aren't in the best of positions. These representations are evident of left wing ideologies as they show cultural diversity.


2) Choose three quotes from the review that are particularly critical of Capital and paste them into your blogpost. Do you agree with the criticisms? Why?

"Capital started off with an intriguing idea...but that concept went nowhere".
I agree with this as the characters aren't fleshed out as they should be and after the postcard mystery did interest me at first but quite stale to me after a while and even after the identity of the mystery man was revealed I still didn't feel intrigued or want to carry on watching. It felt like they had started to run out of ideas.

"The last 20 minutes contained no plot. Whatever story there had ever been was over". 
I agree with this as in the final moments of the show I became very bored and found it really dragging, just wanted it to end as the plot already had become a mess and I didn't feel any proper connections to the characters even though I spent hours watching them. The producers could've definitely tried much harder with the plot instead of giving it a half made attempt as it resulted in a dissatisfying end. 

"With a fizzle like a firework on a wet night, Capital (BBC1) dribbled to a soggy ending. It started with such a brilliant display, but by the finish we were left staring at the proverbial damp squib".
I agree with this criticism as the ending had so much potential to be something much better and jaw dropping for the audience but just ended up being disappointing 

3) What scenes or characters from Capital could be read as promoting left-wing ideology?
Episode one features a young African woman who is an immigrant working illegally in London going to receive her £300 cheque explaining how she has even been working overtime. This creates left wing ideology as it presents immigrants as hard-working and willing to pave their own way instead of relying on others. Another scene from episode one that promotes left-wing ideology is when the Muslim shopkeeper goes out of his way to help the White woman get what she needed from the shop, going so far as to calling for his daughter to look in the back showing how kind-hearted they are even though they are not in the best of positions and are often discriminated against. Another scene regarding the Muslim family is when the son was released from Jail after being wrongly charged of offences relating to terrorism, promoting left wing ideologies as rather than trying to show Muslims as being terrorists they are being shown as innocent and just trying to make a living.

4) What about the other side of the argument - are there any aspects of Capital that reinforce the status quo in capitalist London?
The hard-working characters throughout the show making good income and working hard reinforce the status quo in Capitalist London.
Media Magazine feature on BBC drama The Casual Vacancy and ideology

Now go to our Media Magazine archive and read the feature 'The Beeb, The Mail and JKR' in MM53 (page 20). This focuses on the politics of The Casual Vacancy, another BBC three-part drama based on a book by JK Rowling.

 


Answer the questions below:

1) Why did the Daily Mail suggest The Casual Vacancy promoted a left-wing ideology?
The Daily Mail suggests the characters are cut from plywood, the plot is nonsense and the left-wing breast beating is infantile and that the Casual Vacancy promotes a ;eft wing ideology through its characters and values.

2) How does the article suggest characters, narrative and setting are used to promote a left-wing ideology?
The article suggests characters, setting and narrative all promote a left-wing ideology, according to the article the wealthier characters are ridiculed and shamed for their plot to sell off the local food bank and rehab centre Sweetlove House.
3) What research is quoted regarding BBC bias and what did it find? Do you think the BBC is biased?

 Research from Dr. Mike Berry shows that the BBC are more positioned to the right, having more conservative views. Christopher Stevens was quoted when regarding BBC's bias as in his interview he explains how BBC programme challenge Tory views. You also have to take into account that broadcasters must undergo very strict regulations of what they can show to audiences. Because of this I am leaning more towards the BBC not being biased as they show programmes that display left and right wing views not just one which is what some people may believe.

4) Gramsci's theory of hegemony suggests people are kept under control through active consent - the control of 'common sense'. How could you apply the Daily Mail or the BBC to the idea of hegemony and dominant ideologies in the UK media?
When ideologies are continuously shown and done audiences become to believe that they are normal and just part of common sense as the elites begin to repeat them over and over again. Because the BBC are such large platforms with power in their hands they are able to reinforce or challenge different ideologies and going back to them being such large platforms in the media they are able to easily influence audiences, encouraging them to support a view they maybe usually wouldn't. For example they may be able to influence people to support one political party over the other or just their general views on that specific political party.