Media Studies A-level Lesson 9

Component 1 Cultural Codes and Riptide

Section A
Music Video

Key Terms:

cultural or referential codes/intertextuality: This code refers to anything that the audience
can relate to through their pre-existing knowledge. Barthes’ theory of intertextuality says
that a text offers a plurality of meanings and is also woven out of numerous existing texts,
meaning that texts are open to many interpretations.

irony: the expression of one’s meaning by using language that normally signifies the
opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect.

Activity 1:
In preparation for the extended response to this video, answer the following questions:
 What are Barthes’ referential codes?
 What does Barthes mean by “the death of the Author”? What does this tell us about
media texts?
 Explain the following uses of referential codes in Riptide:
o surrealist cinema and how the video borrows structure and aesthetic from
the movement
o cinema and in particular Wes Anderson references
 How is meaning created using these references. You might think about:
o how it creates ideas around representation of gender
o how it represents violence and sexual desire, also linking to gender.
o how is creates ideas around the artist’s image
 Who is the audience for this video and how does the video attempt to appeal to the
audience?
 To what extent is the pleasure of watching Riptide determined by the possession of
cultural capital?

Activity 2:
 Find five examples in the video might be used to support the view that the video
supports the patriarchal oppression of women.
 Explain how each example supports the view that women in the video are objectified
for the pleasure of the male audience.
 Provide one example in the video that might be used to support the view that the
video challenges the patriarchal oppression or objectification of women.
 Explain how the example supports the view that the video challenges stereotypical
representations of women.
 What might be a Liesbet Van Zoonen reading of this video? To what extent does the
video support the patriarchal oppression of women?

Name:
Date:
Media Studies A-level Lesson 9
Component 1 Cultural Codes and Riptide
Section A
Music Video

Name:
Date: