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Title “Visual Representation of Gender Identity: A Social Semiotic Analysis of Social Documentary Films”

Author(s) Maria Bint Shahid

Abstract ABSTRACT Thesis Title: Visual Representation of Gender Identity: A Social Semiotic Analysis of Social Documentary Films Words carry meanings. When words are used along with a visual medium to express an idea, the meaning is constructed through spoken and visual aspects. The present study is an investigation of two Pakistani and two western social documentary films made during the time frame of 2010- 2015 on Pakistani social issues. The study is an investigation of women in images and images of women to find out how Pakistani gender identity is presented in the visual media. The research uses insight from Mulvey’s female gaze and Foucault’s notions of gender and power theoretically. In order to carry out the analysis, utilizes Van Leeuwen (2008) Social Actor Theory for linguistic representational analysis Kress and Van Leeuwen's (1996, 2006, 2008) social semiotic multimodal framework of visual communication grammar. The study reveals that the processes of Pakistani gender identity representation and subsequent construction are at a crossroads of reshaping discriminatory stereotypes in the genre of social documentary films. On the other hand, western documentary films align the Pakistani ender identity against social, cultural and religious discourses to reveal women as a marginalized group.

Type Thesis/Dissertation PhD

Faculty Languages

Department English

Language English

Publication Date 2019-01-22

Subject English Linguistics

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