Spooks – Textual Analysis
The clip shown from the series Spooks is a representation of ethnicity, depicted through camera shots, editing, sound and mise en scene. This is most prominently illustrated through the establishing shot, where the two British victims are hand tied to their chairs while the antagonist, an Iraqi man, is shown standing, with a low angle shot, showcasing his control and power over the pair. Ethnic minorities are often shown as a threat, danger, as extremists and fundamentalists to the majority white people, which holds true in this clip. The presence of the masked man and him later holding a knife against the black detective’s throat adds to the sinister and unsafe feeling given off by extremist, uncivilized middle easterners.
Through the mise en scene, it is seen that the room is spacious, dark, gloomy, shadowy, with little light, and lowkey lighting conveying the oppression and terror that is usually associated with the middle east. The costume of the antagonist is also black which connotes death, evil, authority and fear which further highlights the danger that the British spies are in, making the audience feel sympathetic towards them. The lack of camera focus on the black detective’s face and barely any dialogues showcases how often ethnic minorities are displayed as invisible and unimportant.
Binary opposition of the starkly different ideologies of British and Middle Eastern communities can be seen through the dialogue. While talking to the woman, the Iraqi man mentions that, ‘your country decided that the war on terror meant invading my country’. Media tends to focus on a ‘coup-war-famine-starvation-syndrome’, implying that the causes of the problems faced by developing countries are self-inflicted i.e. result of unstable, extremist political regimes, corruption, tribal conflict etc. In reality, to pursue their imperialistic and pro colonial agenda, white people interfere in the matters of those countries and lay waste to them under a façade of aiding and helping those ‘uncivilized’ states. Invasion of Afghanistan by U.S to fight the Soviet Union is a prime example of such behavior.
Reaction shots of the woman’s face show very little emotion on her face. She appears to be so calm and collected while reading the paper given to her that the Iraqi man comments, ‘you read those words with no emotions’. This reinforces the stereotype that that British people are cold and emotionless. Her tries at initiating negotiations makes the British seem reasonable and reestablishes her position as the victim in this case and the Iraqi man as the oppressor.
The close up of the picture of the dead informant of the spies with the sound effect of lightning and bombs, reminds the audience that middle eastern people are ruthless, callous killers. The shaky stedicam movement could symbolize the unhinged mental state of the Iraqi man, fitting in with the representation of ethnic minorities as abnormal or deviant. This displays a demonized and distorted image of ethnic minorities.
The dialogue, ‘Will not humiliate you as you do your own captives’, spoken by the Iraqi man shows the lack of concern that white people/soldiers have for ethnic minorities whereas, middle easterners show compassion and behave honorably with their captives which also negates the misogynist stamp that people of color are marked with. He also mentions that, ‘hospital wards filled with children, your soldiers smashing into houses’, backfires the stereotype of ethnic minorities as a threat and as criminals onto white people, seeing how they too commit war crimes but sweep them under the rug to save face and are never held accountable for their actions.
Representation of minorities through editing, camera shots, sound and mise en scene, is mainly negative while showing the British as victims but the dialogue does conflict with the negative display of the middle eastern antagonist’s power.
Through the mise en scene, it is seen that the room is spacious, dark, gloomy, shadowy, with little light, and lowkey lighting conveying the oppression and terror that is usually associated with the middle east. The costume of the antagonist is also black which connotes death, evil, authority and fear which further highlights the danger that the British spies are in, making the audience feel sympathetic towards them. The lack of camera focus on the black detective’s face and barely any dialogues showcases how often ethnic minorities are displayed as invisible and unimportant.
Binary opposition of the starkly different ideologies of British and Middle Eastern communities can be seen through the dialogue. While talking to the woman, the Iraqi man mentions that, ‘your country decided that the war on terror meant invading my country’. Media tends to focus on a ‘coup-war-famine-starvation-syndrome’, implying that the causes of the problems faced by developing countries are self-inflicted i.e. result of unstable, extremist political regimes, corruption, tribal conflict etc. In reality, to pursue their imperialistic and pro colonial agenda, white people interfere in the matters of those countries and lay waste to them under a façade of aiding and helping those ‘uncivilized’ states. Invasion of Afghanistan by U.S to fight the Soviet Union is a prime example of such behavior.
Reaction shots of the woman’s face show very little emotion on her face. She appears to be so calm and collected while reading the paper given to her that the Iraqi man comments, ‘you read those words with no emotions’. This reinforces the stereotype that that British people are cold and emotionless. Her tries at initiating negotiations makes the British seem reasonable and reestablishes her position as the victim in this case and the Iraqi man as the oppressor.
The close up of the picture of the dead informant of the spies with the sound effect of lightning and bombs, reminds the audience that middle eastern people are ruthless, callous killers. The shaky stedicam movement could symbolize the unhinged mental state of the Iraqi man, fitting in with the representation of ethnic minorities as abnormal or deviant. This displays a demonized and distorted image of ethnic minorities.
The dialogue, ‘Will not humiliate you as you do your own captives’, spoken by the Iraqi man shows the lack of concern that white people/soldiers have for ethnic minorities whereas, middle easterners show compassion and behave honorably with their captives which also negates the misogynist stamp that people of color are marked with. He also mentions that, ‘hospital wards filled with children, your soldiers smashing into houses’, backfires the stereotype of ethnic minorities as a threat and as criminals onto white people, seeing how they too commit war crimes but sweep them under the rug to save face and are never held accountable for their actions.
Representation of minorities through editing, camera shots, sound and mise en scene, is mainly negative while showing the British as victims but the dialogue does conflict with the negative display of the middle eastern antagonist’s power.
Comments
Post a Comment