Descriptive words for Social Classes
Middle class – average, normal, educated, happy
Working class - lazy, undereducated, dumb, loveable
Upper class - rich,
well educated, powerful, posh
Underclass – careless, uncontrollable, uneducated, violent
Class Stereotype Mock - By Grace Cuthbertson
After watching the Merlin clip, I identified Merlin as an underclass
stereotype. The mis-en-scene makes this most obvious to the audience. His
clothing are neutral colours, showing a clear class. The camera pans across and
follows him in the first shot; this shows the importance of him in the clip.
The pan is smooth and relaxed showing he isn’t out of control; this is against the
typical stereotype as the underclass are seen to cause trouble. The stereotype is
then made clearer when he enters the room. The sound is quite empty and airy,
this could be a sign of the characters personality and the fact that he is
going to be up to no good. The next character to be shown is the women, she is
wearing a elegant purple dress – this colour symbolises royalty, mystery and
magic. The fact that she speaks first shows her importance too. The contrast
between two characters makes it clear she is upper class. She almost looks down
on him. A shot reverse shot is used to show their conversation. Low angles are
used on her to show her power and dominance whilst high angles show Merlin as a
weaker character because of his class. Merlin has more prominence, this tells
the audience his character is important and the narrative is told from his
point of view. As the female enters the room, the non-digetic sound gets more intense
and the piano used builds up tension, this also shows that he might fear her.
When he leaves and enters the town centre, church bells are
ringing, this could show Merlin is from a religious environment. The other boy
verbally attacks him. This is a typical stereotype for upper class, he is shown
as quite full of himself and in control. The armour he wears could resemble the
fact that he is unbeatable and untouchable because of his class. The fact that
he is accompanied with two other people could also show that he is incapable of
individuality or independence where he has been given everything needed since
birth. The weapons he is holding can be seen as a falic object. Compared to
Merlin who isn’t carrying anything, Arthur is seen as the stronger masculine stereotype.
This shows that money can be a huge impact on masculinity along with class. Another
shot reverse shot is used to show conversation between two characters. The
proximity between them allows the audience to see their hatred for each other. When
they begin to fight, the music is quite adventurous and heroic, it builds up
tension and excitement. The use of high and low angles changes when Merlin uses
magic to gain power. Close ups are used to show emotion on the characters
faces. It also uses on to show that Merlin is using magic. At this point
another character is introduced, Merlin fears him as he looks disappointed in
him for using his magic. The camera is hand held for the fight, showing it as uncontrollable
and quick cuts are used to make it more dramatic. When he falls over, a high
angles is used to show his as being looked down upon by upper class. Foley
sounds are used during the fights, like the use of the rope pinging and the
whip sounds. After the fight, the camera goes back to being on a tripod showing
a more relaxed situation.
The last stereotypes visible were working class. This is all
the other characters in the clip, who watch them fight. Their costumes are also
mutual colors and are very poor and old. It shows working class as a group,
this could convey the stereotype without individuality and instead as all the
same. The sound of them talking about work shows them as very unhappy with
their lifestyles.
I think overall, the upper class stereotype is shows as most
dominant and powerful, whereas underclass is shown as the weaker class, who are
looked down on. I think the stereotype of upper class is reinforces because
they are seen as quite full of them self and important as well as powerful. I
thing the stereotype of underclass is challenged to the extent that Merlin doesn’t
fear King Arthur and is quite confident towards him. It is also reinforces the
extent that he wears old clothes and is seen as a weaker character.
