Representation theories essay

The clip i have chosen is from Brooklyn nine nine

 http://josephlmest1.blogspot.co.uk/2015/11/representation.html

I believe the US comedy Brooklyn nine nine
In this TV show we see a lot of diversity in this Brooklyn police precinct. Although the protagonist in this show is a white American male we also get to see a lot more people of different ethnicities portrayed higher up. There are two female characters who are of Latin decent, this is quite irregular to see as typical stereotypes about women not being able to be offered promotions into higher service jobs which are usually male dominated, it is also more significant as the two women are not white Americans.
Another stereotype this show has subverts the usual one and is more of an alternative portrayal. In the show there is a homosexual black American Captain for the Brooklyn precinct. This is significant because in real life there has never been anyone like this character and its also subverts the stereotypes that some black males especially in the area of Brooklyn are against the police force and they they are sometimes on the receiving end of unlawful police brutality.

In Brooklyn nine nine there are many different people from various ethnic backgrounds, genders and race. This includes females, males, Latinos, blacks, whites, gays and straights. In this show it subverts the stereotype of white people being the higher people in a hierarchy. Instead the most senior person is a gay black male. This subverts the stereotype of white people being more powerful so therefore links to Levi Strauss's theory about dominant and preferred/alternative representations. The way people spread the media makes out as though a lot of middle class white people are more superior but in this TV we see the stereotype subverted.
Another stereotype that is subverted is Women working in a predominantly male job at the same pay grade, the two females in the show are also portrayed to do their job better then the males which could then also reinforce the stereotypes that women are more hardworking and organised which ins't a bad thing. This then links to Perkins theory that some stereotypes can by positive and partly true. This is done so that the audience can see the two women to be role models as they are reinforcing the positives about being women.

Another reason for the women being in the TV show could be linked to Mulvey's theory about the Male Gaze.Laura Mulvey suggests that the dominant view in the media is masculine and created for the benefit of men. Women are presented for men to look at, hence the ‘male gaze’. This links to the idea of ‘sex sells’ and women being represented as sex objects. However more recently the Female gaze has been theorised,  the idea of the ‘female gaze’ has been suggested. Rosalind Gill suggests the objectified male is an example of post-feminist media culture in modern Britain. Task: write down an example for each. As both these theories can be applied in this we could suggest that this show could cater for both sexes and that it try's to balance out its audience and try's to avoid sexism and create an ideal workspace.