Coronation Street Scene Analysis

Gay Coronation Street

At the start of the scene we see Gail looking out of the upstairs window, dressed in a pink, dressing gown. This is a typical image that is associated with women in the media, portraying her to be a regular house wife and quite feminine because of the colour pink. This actually clashes later in the scene, as we see her aggressive behaviour challenge the feminine stereotype. Whereas Todd, is seen looking out of the curtains through the downstairs window is not given a stereotypical image, as he is shown to be scared, as he hides in side. The low angle on Gail makes her look intimidating, whilst the low angle on Todd shows him to be vulnerable and inferior to Gail in this situation.

This scene explores the gender images shown in the media. It displays the regular stereotypes, but also challenges them. We see a short section between Fred and his girlfriend, a tracking shot, so we are able to follow the conversation as they walk. Her voice is very soft, quiet and high pitched, this is a contrast to his, which is loud, deep and bold, reflecting his masculinity. Her is dressed in a suit, while she is dressed in a very feminine way with her hair and make-up done. These two characters display the major difference in gender, and both reinforce the usual expectations from each gender. In another section, we see a conversation between sally and Kevin. In this scene, like Gail, sally is conveyed as a regular mum and house wife, as she is nagging Kevin about their daughters schooling. This still, two-shot shows Sally looking up at Kevin, whilst he is barely paying attention and keeps looking out the window. Here we can see Sally is quite submissive to Kevin, and he is clearly in control of the relationship. This is the normal view on relationships.

The lighting throughout the scene is usually natural, to make it seem more realistic, whereas, when we see shots of Todd and Sarah in the house it is quite dark as the lighting is low, to show their embarrassment and fear. This a usual expectation labelled with women, however it isn’t something usually associated with men. The sound used is generally ambience, with the sounds of passing by cars and people, to reinforce the realism of the scene. As soap operas need to seem, because that’s what attracts their audience.

When Gail, Eileen and Todd are outside, Todd speaks a lot quieter and softer than the two women, who are louder and more aggressive in their speech. They have very strong body positions, and the short distance between them reflects how they are challenging each other. This challenges the stereotypes generalised with women, as they wouldn’t be expected to fight in the street. The shots used in this section are tightly framed, so that in two-shots it is either of the women who fill the shot, leaving Todd with little space. Another shot is an over the shoulder shot from behind Eileen, focussing on Gail, and in the background you can see Sarah stood looking very timid and a lot more feminine than her mum. Even though the women are behaving aggressively, they are discussing their children, this reinforces the ‘mother image’ linked with women.

As two more men arrive, Todd’s brother Jason is dressed as a builder, making him seem a lot more masculine than Todd. Even though Todd is gay, he doesn't confirm the homosexual stereotypes, however he does challenge the stereotypes labelled towards men. His facial expressions portray him to be innocent and feared, not something generally out with males. When the three men are stood on the curb, they are looking down on Gail, which reflects how she has lost power in the situation, so she goes back to been the more vulnerable of the group, something expected to be seen in women.

Representation through Images

This image is representing social class. The clothing worn is very typical for the stereotypes of working class people; the puffy coats, tracksuit bottoms and hats. The slumped postures and stern, cold facial expressions portray them to be a common, hard fronted family, maybe dysfunctional as nothing matches and possibly struggling through life, which is an idea generally associated with working class people. The characters themselves consist of different skin and hair colour, showing they are not an ideal (mum, dad and children) family and that she could have been a promiscuous woman due to the difference in her children, which is then reinforced by the absence of a male figure, showing inconsistency in their lives. Furthermore, they are stood very closely together, forming the look of a ‘pack’, to portray they are a united family. The image is a long shot, which is effective because it shows a bigger picture of the characters in their normal setting. The location is that of a street and the lighting is made to appear natural, which makes the background quite colourless and bland so the characters stand out. The fact that they are pictured on a street conveys that they are attached with their local area, the type of people who are always around and well known, possibly for the wrong reasons. Again this is another stereotype of working class families. Also, the inclusion of bins in the background connotes their area and lifestyle to be quite rough.

This photo is used to represent disability. A mid-shot has being used so characters expressions and relationship can be seen closely, whilst also including their costume and props etc. The image is tightly framed, so the dependence and emotion in this photo is emphasised. Jean takes up more of the photo than Stacey, so her dependence dominates the photo. The lighting takes on a more natural appearance, in order for the shot to look more realistic. The setting isn’t very obvious in the image, because of its tight frame but we can tell it is inside, and most probably in a house. Jeans body posture makes her appear to be scared and vulnerable, and the position she has taken of wrapping her arms around her knees is a common position related to insanity and grief. Her facial expression adds to this, as her face looks to be tired, whilst she is staring at most probably nothing, another feature related to insanity and depression. The blanket wrapped around her could be a symbol to represent that she needs looking after, as the blanket is being used to keep her warm and comfortable, whilst also suggests that she is more than likely at home. Her appearance of insanity, through her facial expression and body position makes her character seem to be closed off. Stacey’s posture makes her look like she is eager to care for her mum, by the way she is leaning slightly towards her. As well, she has a concerned look about her face which suggests she wants to help her mum and maybe that she knows she is incapable of looking after herself.

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This image is used to represent ethnicity. This is evident through the clothing the characters wear, as the females are wearing Asian orientated clothing. One of them wears a head scarf, whilst the other is wearing a Hijab. This portrays them as a strongly religious and cultural family. Again, we can see a reinforcement of this as they are sat very closely together and the family includes both a male and female parent figure which is something ideal in their particular culture. Also, the father is higher up, which reflects his status in the family, again this links to culture.