The Gentlewoman: Language and Representation

The Gentlewoman: Language and Representation

Close-textual analysis

Work through the following tasks to complete your close-textual analysis of the Gentlewoman CSP pages:

Gentlewoman front cover 

1) What do the typefaces used on the front cover suggest to an audience?

The serif and sans serif fonts are used to be simple yet effective in terms of what the cover wants its full attention on, which is what the typefaces used on the front cover suggest to an audience. It created a very modern look and reflects the values of the magazine.

2) How does the cover subvert conventional magazine cover design?

A typical magazine cover would be a medium shot however this one is more of a close up. It also has no cover lines and magazines usually have those all along the sides. This cover also looks a lot like a novel cover.

3) Write an analysis of the central image.

Because the magazine's main image challenges traditional views regarding women, it was able to include strong representations of both celebrities and women in general. She has a strong red lip and a lot of eye makeup on.

4) What representations of gender and celebrity can be found on this front cover?

Typical representation of gender - woman wearing makeup
Typical representation of celebrities - celebrity appearing in a magazine
In order to compete with her ultra-modern makeup, Scarlett Johansson, the highest-paid actress in 2018–2019, has her celebrity name written in a serif font. The front cover's low angle photo makes a strong impression, especially when combined with the direct mode of address.

5) What gender and representation theories can we apply to this cover of the Gentlewoman? 

Judith Butler - gender as "performance" - makeup is a staple of "traditional femininity" - the magazine is reinforcing rituals and habits that are a part of "traditional femininity"

Stuart Hall - representation theory - stereotypes - a woman wearing makeup is very stereotypical

Feature: Modern Punches

1) How does the feature on Ramla Ali use narrative to engage the audience? Apply narrative theories here.

Equilibrium - she won her fight
Disequilibrium - she talks about how she struggled at boxing when she was younger
Equilibrium - she talks about how she continued boxing even thought it hurt

2) What representations can you find in this feature - both interview and image?

This feature provides an atypical representation of women. This is because women are usually stereotyped as being passive, whereas this feature represents a female fighter.

3) What representation theories can we apply to the Modern Punches feature? 
Stuart Hall - preferred reading - many readers may appreciate this representation of a female fighter.

Feature: Isabella Tree interview

1) Why is this feature unconventional for a women's lifestyle and fashion magazine? Comment on the use media language in these pages. 

It just shows an image of a tree and her full name but it does not show who she actually is.

2) How does the Isabella Tree feature reflect the social and cultural contexts of contemporary Britain? Think about AQA's discussion of lifestyle, environmental issues and ethical movements.

It reflects the social and cultural context of Britain by reflecting its environment especially by her book Wilding, where she talks about the 'Knepp experiment' a rewilding initiative in West Sussex that used grazing animals to develop new habitats for wildlife.

3) What representations of nature can be found in this feature?
It demonstrates Tree's love of the natural world, her enthusiasm for rewilding initiatives, and her appreciation of the natural world in general. It demonstrates her attempts to preserve and rebuild ecosystems.

Feature: Stella McCartney and vegan fashion

1) How does this feature reflect contemporary social and cultural contexts?

Many people nowadays are choosing to be vegan and this feature promotes vegan fashion

2) Comment on the typography and page design in this feature.

To emphasise the main subject of the page, the title is very large and bold which directs our attention to that. The rest of the typography is fairly basic maybe to highlight the significance of the detail. The serif font is fairly basic and gives it that modern feel to it.

3) What representations can be found in the image accompanying this feature? 
We can see representation of an upper-class look as well as a classy look. The authenticity is prioritised so that the 'gentlewomen' is seen to be real and not fake so that the audience is able to connect with her.

Representations

Read this Business of Fashion interview with The Gentlewoman editor Penny Martin. If you don't want to sign up to the website (free) then you can access the text of the article on Google Drive here (you'll need your Greenford Google login). Answer the following questions: 

1) What type of magazine did Penny Martin, Gert Jonkers and Jop van Bennekom want to create? 

There is no flippancy in the way Martin describes what she does at The Gentlewoman, launched in 2010 as a biannual sister publication to Gert Jonkers and Jop van Bennekom's Fantastic Man.

2) What representations of modern women did they try to construct for the magazine?

They wanted to make it a bit more outspoken, a bit livelier, even a bit sexier. They also wanted to construct modern women with ideas that are seductive yet pragmatic.

3) What examples of cover stars reflect the diversity in the magazine's content? 

Cover stars have ranged from 88-year-old actor Angela Lansbury, shot in a peach silk blouse and Terry Richardson's black frame glasses, to popstar Beyoncé, looking calm, strong and composed in Dior with a face free of make-up.

4) What is Penny Martin's view on feminism and whether the magazine is feminist?

"When people ask me about politics or feminism, I say that it isn't a magazine about those things, it's a magazine informed by those things — among others. Is it a feminist magazine? Well, it's made by feminist people, so what do you think?! But I don't want to make those values and principles fashionable, because I don't want to undermine them by turning them into an aesthetic and I don't want them to pass into the realm of the unfashionable. Let's just assume that we all agree there should be equal pay and childcare and get on with it, eh?"

5) Look at the end of the article. How does the Gentlewoman help readers construct or reflect their identity by engaging with events and spaces beyond the magazine? 

It talks about and includes the recently formed Gentlewoman Club which extends the magazine's brand into physical events where readers can interact and chat with editors.