Mtv And The Madonna Phenomenon Essay -- essays research papers

MTV and The Madonna Phenomenon"Madonnas intuitive grasp on the televisual world in which we live- ofthe mediums possibilities for engaging spectators in divers(a) ways- that in partaccounts for her success. She is the supreme television heroine." (E. Ann Kaplan271)"What are the main theories which we have studied so far and how havethey affected how you view television?"-This is the heading which this paperis supposed to answer. Obviously there is not enough time or space in which todiscuss every theory which we have touched(p) on. As a compromise I decided towrite about a topic to which almost every theory that we have discussed washstand beapplied MTV and the Madonna Phenomenon.     As E. Ann Kaplan stated in her article on feminist criticism, Madonna istruly the ultimate television heroine. A discussion on contemporary popularculture and especially on media culture could never be complete without bringingup Madonna. She can be discussed in harm of feminism, ideology, hegemony andcommercialism as seen in both Kaplans as well as in John Fiskes article onBritish Cultural Studies.     In recite to properly explain how the Madonna Phenomenon has flexsuch an important concept in media studies, one must look first at howinfluential MTV (music television) has suit in the last decade. MTV addressesthe desires, fantasies, and anxieties of young people(Kaplan 270) who have,like myself, grown up in a decade when all the traditional institutions andtheories that were always respected, are being questioned. It has become thecenter of discussions of many young people who have grown up idolizing thefigures shown on the network. MTV is a culture in itself. With its own news,fashion and music programs it can easily be the considered the basis for theformation of thought of an entire generation.     The images depicted in music videos, of androgynous stars and situationshave aided in renderin g the drop line between the genders rather blurry. Thismakes MTV an important aspect in the study of post-modern theories. Videos areoften quite abstract and it is hard to figure out their authentic meanings. Unlikeother television programming, videos are usually not made up of clear parts orscenes which produce an easily identifiable and light image... ...nd in particular those in music videos) quite differently. I would see them,,as I had in the past as victims of the dominant ideology and the hoarysociety which we live in. Madonna proves that women can fight against theregulations which are forced onto women that if they are sexual beings thanthey are nothing more than sex symbols, and that society determines how womenare portrayed on television.      If I could go as far as to describe Madonna in one word it would be strong. I not only enjoy her work but admire her ability to do what she feelslike doing, even if she completely disregards societys definit ions of decency.She is one of the few women in bill who has never asked others to accept orlike what she does. To conclude I would like to quote Madonna herself in orderto demonstrate her atypical way of persuasion which has brought her suchundeniable success     Poor is the man whose pleasures depend on the permission of another                         -Madonna Justify my Love