Meanings and Representations – The Witches
Text A exhibits an online article published by the BBC, regarding the inappropriate
connotations embedded throughout modern film – ‘The Witches’; a by-product of an
acclaimed Roald Dahl novel. Critically, the article’s written purpose was to prompt the
normalisation of deformities within society, after renowned actress Anne Hathaway was
portrayed as a supernatural fictional character and her abnormal presence was reinforced due
to her abnormal deformities – overall amplifying the stigma around deformities within
society. The article is most certainly targeting an audience that can relate to the
discrimination towards deformities in the media, but also towards those who may be
inquisitive to educate themselves on this topic. The writer uses many linguistic devices such
as; emotive language, hypophora and anthropomorphism of fictional characters. In order to
convey the judgement and dehumanising undertones established by the film and the dangers
this may have for society and how the population comprehends individuals with deformities.
Through the analysis of lexis, graphology and grammar, the meanings and representations of
Text A will be fully discussed.
Lexically, the text describes thematic issues regarding the fictional production with the use of
euphemism and ‘politically correct language’ to explain the opinions of how viewers
perceived the portrayal of deformities and disabilities in the film. The use of euphemism
within the article is utilized in order to avoid adding to the stigma created by through the
film; ‘limb difference’, this can be seen to represent the writer as morally correct, perhaps
due to the intended target audience. Through the lexical field of melancholy, the writer
utilises simple adjectives; ‘sad’, ‘upset’ and ‘disappointed’, to portray their discontent with
the film. This reinforces the fact that the writer is beyond anger, but represents emotions of
defeat or frustration. The deformity alluded to in the movie refers to limb differences and are
seen to almost dehumanize those who lack limbs – establishing a sense of anthropomorphism,
as the characters in the production are compared with the simile, ‘cat-like-claws’, to establish
their abnormality and alienated position in society. Ultimately, representing those with
disabilities as unfit for society as they are being compared to animals.
It is essential for news outlets such as the BBC to support their arguments and opinions with
valid factual evidence, as credibility is imperative for a trusted source. To do this, the article
uses images of mentioned individuals or quoted scenes in the film, to support their argument.
Though also to divide their opinions to establish a formal structure to the article.
Conventionally, these images are subsequently followed by a caption; ‘Actress Grace
Mandeville said the film would make some young viewers scared of people with limb
impairments.’ Furthermore, the frequent use of bold typography used on a rhetorical question
actively engages the reader, ‘What sort of message does this give?’. This statement is later
established to be a hypophora, as after the writer proposes the question, the audience are later
supplied with an answer. Moreover, the use of the symbolic hashtag ‘#NotAWitch’ describes
the severity of this scandal as a community online collectively created a movement as a
stance to normalize deformities in the media. While also representing how the public
responded to The Witches, demonstrating how impactful the film industry can be when
generating harmful stereotypes – influencing impressionable people, such as the younger
generation.
Grammatically, the format of the article represents the ways in which the public have shifted
the blame towards different departments of production for demeaning deformities for the
purpose of entertainment. A sense of pathos is created throughout the text as the writer
Text A exhibits an online article published by the BBC, regarding the inappropriate
connotations embedded throughout modern film – ‘The Witches’; a by-product of an
acclaimed Roald Dahl novel. Critically, the article’s written purpose was to prompt the
normalisation of deformities within society, after renowned actress Anne Hathaway was
portrayed as a supernatural fictional character and her abnormal presence was reinforced due
to her abnormal deformities – overall amplifying the stigma around deformities within
society. The article is most certainly targeting an audience that can relate to the
discrimination towards deformities in the media, but also towards those who may be
inquisitive to educate themselves on this topic. The writer uses many linguistic devices such
as; emotive language, hypophora and anthropomorphism of fictional characters. In order to
convey the judgement and dehumanising undertones established by the film and the dangers
this may have for society and how the population comprehends individuals with deformities.
Through the analysis of lexis, graphology and grammar, the meanings and representations of
Text A will be fully discussed.
Lexically, the text describes thematic issues regarding the fictional production with the use of
euphemism and ‘politically correct language’ to explain the opinions of how viewers
perceived the portrayal of deformities and disabilities in the film. The use of euphemism
within the article is utilized in order to avoid adding to the stigma created by through the
film; ‘limb difference’, this can be seen to represent the writer as morally correct, perhaps
due to the intended target audience. Through the lexical field of melancholy, the writer
utilises simple adjectives; ‘sad’, ‘upset’ and ‘disappointed’, to portray their discontent with
the film. This reinforces the fact that the writer is beyond anger, but represents emotions of
defeat or frustration. The deformity alluded to in the movie refers to limb differences and are
seen to almost dehumanize those who lack limbs – establishing a sense of anthropomorphism,
as the characters in the production are compared with the simile, ‘cat-like-claws’, to establish
their abnormality and alienated position in society. Ultimately, representing those with
disabilities as unfit for society as they are being compared to animals.
It is essential for news outlets such as the BBC to support their arguments and opinions with
valid factual evidence, as credibility is imperative for a trusted source. To do this, the article
uses images of mentioned individuals or quoted scenes in the film, to support their argument.
Though also to divide their opinions to establish a formal structure to the article.
Conventionally, these images are subsequently followed by a caption; ‘Actress Grace
Mandeville said the film would make some young viewers scared of people with limb
impairments.’ Furthermore, the frequent use of bold typography used on a rhetorical question
actively engages the reader, ‘What sort of message does this give?’. This statement is later
established to be a hypophora, as after the writer proposes the question, the audience are later
supplied with an answer. Moreover, the use of the symbolic hashtag ‘#NotAWitch’ describes
the severity of this scandal as a community online collectively created a movement as a
stance to normalize deformities in the media. While also representing how the public
responded to The Witches, demonstrating how impactful the film industry can be when
generating harmful stereotypes – influencing impressionable people, such as the younger
generation.
Grammatically, the format of the article represents the ways in which the public have shifted
the blame towards different departments of production for demeaning deformities for the
purpose of entertainment. A sense of pathos is created throughout the text as the writer
