FiNaL...WoOoO leavin in a week :D

“How are women represented in Sugar Rush and in what ways might the audience interpret the text?”- “This is my mother, only, I call her Stella, her idea, she doesn’t like to be reminded of her parental responsibilities”

‘Sugar Rush’ is a contemporary teen drama series broadcast weekly on Channel Four at 10pm. Adapted into a television series after the successful release of the novel ‘Sugar Rush’, written by Julie Burchill, “Sugar Rush explores the world of Kim and her earth-shattering lust for the gorgeous and sassy Maria Sweet, aka Sugar”.[1] Many of the storylines are based around female characters and explore dilemmas faced by women and teenage girls every day. The series differs from many others in exploring issues such as sexuality and differs from more typical representations in contemporary television drama. As many of the characters are female, their representation stands out and gives us a chance to question how the representation of women in the media has changed. The target audience for ‘Sugar Rush’ is females aged fifteen to twenty-one as the series is based around the lives of teenage girls, allowing this audience to relate to the characters and what is going on in their lives. The secondary audience is males of a similar age group. However, as these two audiences are of different sexes, they may interpret the text in different ways; but how? Both of these questions can be explored by drawing on theorists such as Laura Mulvey and considering historical texts which give us an opportunity to review what has changed and what remains the same; concerning the representations of women in society.
Although the representation of women has progressed; despite many typical negative female stereotypes having been eliminated, women are still being objectified and many appear to live their lives for men. This therefore, subordinates them to live in a patriarchal society.

Audiences interpretations may vary: women may watch in order to relate to similar personal situations, whereas men may watch purely to satisfy voyeuristic pleasures. This is suggested by female’s comments in Channel 4’s forum; they talk about the characters, dialogue and story line. Whereas, a lot of male audience comments, concentrate on the women in the programme or unrelated issues. A male leaves a comment including this quote, “Women should be Women, you know, all curvy and soft and good enough to eat"[2]. This suggests it is the female’s appearance that matters.

Over the last few decades however, representations of women in the media have changed drastically and so has women’s’ on-screen time. Gunter (1995) stated that “from the 1950’s to 1970’s only 20 to 30% of characters were female yet, by the mid 80’s there were more female characters with leading roles”.[3] ‘Sugar Rush’ typifies this trend, as the majority of the characters are female, including the lead roles. However, the question of how these women are represented still remains. Previously, women in the media were shown to revolve their everyday lives around marriage, parenthood and often domestic activities; such as housework and cooking. This may have been because during earlier decades; post war, women were expected to look after the house and children whilst their husbands were out earning a living. Women were most often portrayed as inferior to men and it was atypical to see an independent, working woman. The few women who did appear on television and in films, represented a specific appearance; they were expected to look youthful and elegant, designed to satisfy a man’s desires. These representations were publicised throughout the media during this period of time. Take adverts for example; women were often shown selling household cleaning products, food or advertised with young children. ‘Shake and Vac’ (1979) was a prominent cleaning advert during the late 1970’s, “the advert featured Jenny Logan, dancing around a typical British living room in high heels, shaking the powder onto the carpet and hoovering it up”[4]. This is how women were expected to present themselves to their husbands at home and was therefore reflected in the media. “The representation of women in film, during the fifties, was a time of change. Films began addressing more realistic desires and needs of the female populous. But it also seems that the old ways are still powerful.”[5]

In more contemporary media, the representations of women have changed drastically in comparison to texts such as the ‘Shake and Vac’ advert. ‘Sugar Rush’ challenges many of the stereotypes which were once linked with women and the way in which they were represented. For example in ‘Sugar Rush’, Stella, the mother of Kim, switches roles with a typical male representation; appearing confident, dominant and strong minded. Rather than taking on a housewife role, she instead, leaves this to her husband, whilst she commits adultery. Stella illustrates one the most challenging representations of women in the programme; rather than portraying herself to be dominated by men, she appears superior. However, she and many other women come across as objects “to-be-looked-at”[6], a statement often used by Laura Mulvey. Laura Mulvey is a theorist who discusses the ‘male gaze’, it suggests that we live in a patriarchal society, whereby women are objectified; their purpose is to be looked at by men, in order to satisfy a man’s voyeuristic pleasures. This can be seen in ‘Sugar Rush’, as they are often seen wearing revealing clothing and a lot of make-up, in order to satisfy the male audience or even satisfy the female audiences’ perception of how women would be viewed by men. ‘Sugar Rush’, ‘Skins’ and other similar contemporary teen series, are now, clearly challenging older representations of women and although some of the women conform to ‘The male gaze’, overall they appear as stronger and more dominant characters.

Feminism played a huge part in the development of women’s representations in the media. This women’s movement arose, partly due to women having to take on men’s jobs when they went to war and then, wanting to continue working and making money; even after the men had returned. “Cameras moved in tight to stringy haired, Bra-less women in t-shirts, with angry signs”[7]. “The first wave of feminism arose in the 19th century and followed through till the early 20th century, political rights such as giving women the right to vote, was important during the period of this movement.”[8] The second wave of feminism, however, focused more on gaining social equality and eliminating oppression of women, from the 1960’s to 1980’s.[9] Lastly, the Third wave of feminism, which aimed to challenge common stereotypes of women and also sexualities, often clashed with second-wave feminism as they believed that the Second wave hadn’t achieved what they had claimed. All three waves of feminism play a big part in the representation of women in the media, particularly the second and third wave of feminism.

After civil rights laws were made, women were expected to be treated equally to men; they began working, being paid equal wages, and also began showing society that women could also be independent. It also lead to women having more control over the media (on and off-screen), which gave women greater control over their representation. As these rights became more open to society, not only feminists but also parts of the media wanted to challenge the pre-dated stereotypes. This gradually became apparent in the media; on the news, television shows and in film, slowly becoming more extreme over the years. Although many may say, that there are women in the media who are still being represented in a stereotypical way, overall feminism led to female characters subverting these stereotypes. Even in, a historical text such as ‘Grease’ (1978), it began showing signs of some female characters challenging these stereotypes. However, when being compared to more contemporary texts such as ‘Sex and the City’ ‘Charlie’s Angels’ and of course ‘Sugar Rush’, it is clear to see how much stereotypes are being subverted in today’s media, as women are now shown as strong and independent.

The ‘Madonna’, “pure, maternal, chaste, modest” and the ‘Whore’; loose, sexual, amoral, sinful and usually punished” are two of the most basic representations of women in the media[10]. When comparing a contemporary text with historical texts, it is obvious what has changed and what remains the same. As like ‘Sugar Rush’ (2006), ‘Grease’ (1978) focuses on the lives of teenagers and also includes a close female friendship. The two main characters in the girls’ group (Pink Ladies), Sandy and Rizzo, both have completely diverse images and personalities. Rizzo portrays herself as the ‘Whore’; Rizzo fall pregnant, this can be perceived as her punishment. Sandy however, is shown as the ‘Madonna’; a female character appearing naïve and innocent.

However, in more contemporary media texts this simple representation is seen less, e.g., in ‘Sugar Rush’ none of the female characters are portrayed as the ‘Madonna’ as they all appear as strong and independent women. It could be argued that they are still being represented as the ‘Whores’ however, as there are no female characters who play the role of the ‘Madonna’, it eliminates these conventions. In ‘Grease’, Sandy is portrayed as what was at the time a typical stereotype of women in society. She appeared naive, talking about love and romance whilst at the same time, the man she was in love with was only thinking of sex. On the other hand ‘Sugar Rush’, a contemporary television series portrays Kim and Sugar as more aware and although at times they think about romance, they too think about men and sex. They are all sexually active and feel free talking about their sex lives; Stella and her husband join a swingers club, Kim begins to explore sex with a new girlfriend and sugar casually talks about her sex life; “All that stuff I said about losing ‘it’, I’ve always been too pissed to remember”[11]. This amount of freedom, to have and talk about sex, was not commonly seen in historical texts.

However, it is obvious in both historical and contemporary texts that Laura Mulvey’s theory, ’The male gaze’; suggesting a women’s purpose is “to-be-looked at”, is still relevant. In ‘Grease’ many of the women are shown in tight clothing, low cut tops and wearing lots of make up. One of the scenes shows Sandy changing her image to tight sexy clothing, for a man, therefore conforming to ‘The gaze’ and representing a patriarchal society. This is also seen in Sugar Rush however it lacks similarity due to the fact it’s more extreme in the contemporary text, showing women as strong individuals. It may seem as though they still live their lives to satisfy a man’s visual desires, however in comparison to society during the time grease was released, trends and attitudes have changed. The third wave of feminism gives women choice and freedom to do what they want, which argues that the make-up and clothes they wear is for nobody but themselves.

This then leads on to discuss the ways in which ‘Sugar Rush’s’ audience interprets the text. The way in which women are represented in the programme does, in fact, cause an effect on these interpretations. ‘Sugar Rush’ targets both males and females from the age of fifteen to twenty-one, as it is shown after the water shed and discusses mature issues. Everybody has their own reasons as to why they choose to watch certain programmes. This is discussed in, Uses and gratifications theory which suggests “a more active role for the viewer”[12] meaning they are able to select what they wish to watch. Blulmer and Katz listed four reasons why an audience may watch a text; diversion, personal relationships, personal identity and surveillance. Different sexes will have differing reasons for watching a text, as will they interpret these texts in different ways. In relation to ‘Sugar Rush’, diversion and personal identity stand out, diversion being a form of escapism; a way for the audience to escape from reality and instead, focus on the lives of others. Women are also likely to watch ’Sugar Rush’ in order to relate to things that the characters are going through and also to become involved in the characters, a form of personal identity .

Men, on the other hand, are more likely to indulge in ‘Sugar Rush’ as they are presented with the chance too look at beautiful women, sex and lesbian relationships. As the women in ‘Sugar Rush’ are shown in revealing clothes on many occasions in the program, men are frequently encouraged to look at the female characters in a sexual way. Again, this supports Laura Mulvey’s theory as she discuses the way in which, women’s purpose in the media appears to be looked at by men. This could therefore suggest that women feel the need to portray themselves in a certain way, in order to satisfy men’s needs. “Men dream of women, they daydream of women, they fantasize about women”[13]. When looking at it from this perspective, it is obvious that women have become stronger, independent and now feel as though they have the right to show themselves as individuals in the media. However, it is still being constructed to satisfy men’s desires and can make society seem patriarchal. Men may also watch ‘Sugar rush’ as it contains various sex scenes throughout the series and as Kim is a lesbian, shows girl on girl action. Many men find this desirable and in a lot of cases, watch programs in a voyeuristic manner. Voyeurism is a term used to describe an audience watching something; usually sexual, even though they know it’s invading someone’s privacy and is something they should not be watching. Laura Mulvey argues that it “has associations with sadism: ‘pleasure lies in ascertaining guilt - asserting control and subjecting the guilty person through punishment or forgiveness’”[14] Men may watch a program for this reason and gain erotic pleasure, then leading them to watch it again, purely for sexual needs. However, it should also be considered that ‘Sugar Rush’ features homosexual women, therefore other homosexual women may also watch these women in a similar way to men. This again shows more freedom and choice and also begins to explore the ‘queer theory’. “Queer Theory assumes that sexual identities are a function of representations. It assumes that representations pre-exist and define, as well as complicate and disrupt, sexual identities.”[15]

These programmes are structured in a way whereby women and men are both satisfied, in order to gain a larger audience. As discussed, men often look at texts such as ‘sugar rush’ in an objectifying and voyeuristic way. It is believed that in today’s society “Sex sells” and it is all over the media, “Even the Women's Institute in England resorted to selling racy nude calendars!”[16] Sex is used in advertising, film and television, directors portray women the way they do as they know that this is what a large proportion of the audience want to see. Even texts directed by women, show women in this way, as they are just as aware that sex will sell. For Example, ‘The Sun’, containing page three, offering images of topless glamour models. “From the early 1970s, both feminists and many cultural conservatives objected to the Page 3 girls, which they saw as pornographic”[17]. Yet, even though the editor of ‘The Sun’ is female, it has been left as it is.
After looking at both: representations of women and the way in which an audience may interpret a text, then applying it to ‘Sugar rush’, it can be determined as to whether the hypothesis stated is correct. ‘Sugar Rush’ is an excellent text to have analysed as it challenges what was once the typical representations of women. Now, women have been given the chance to move away from oppression, they have gained more independence and are free from what used to be expected from women.

The women in ‘Sugar Rush’ clearly show that the representation of women has progressed enormously. It shows independent women who are subverting the stereotypes of their roles, for example Kim’s mum. When comparing the characters in ‘Grease’ (1978) or the women in cleaning adverts, the way in which the women present themselves has a drastic difference to those in a contemporary text such as ‘Sugar Rush’. Whilst the majority of women in ‘Grease’ (1978) are represented as naïve bimbo’s who would sacrifice a part of them to satisfy a man’s needs, ‘Sugar Rush’ shows them take control and as like Kim (the teenage lesbian), appear strong and intellectual. However, as like the hypothesis discussed, although the representations of women in the media have obviously progressed, ‘The male gaze’ is still arguably relevant. Many of the women in ‘Sugar Rush’ wear tight, revealing clothing, or are shown to be doing things which the audience should not be watching. This because in the media sex sells, both male and female directors know that in order for the text to sell, there should be women represented in this way however it is also argued that they dress and act in this way as they have the choice and freedom to do so.

In terms of the way in which the audience interprets the text the hypothesis also appears accurate. ‘Sugar Rush’ is aimed at both males a females so there has to be something that gives this audience a reason to watch it. There are aspects within a text that different people relate to or enjoy watching. In ‘Sugar Rush’, teenage girls often have dilemmas and new experiences going on in their lives, teenagers and young women can therefore relate to similar situations and issues that characters are going through. They also take interest in the characters presented in the program and how their character progresses throughout a series. Men on the other hand, are more likely to watch ‘Sugar Rush’ in a voyeuristic manner, for example watching a sex scene with two women. Also when watching ‘Sugar Rush’ men are likely to convey to ‘Laura Mulvey’s theory’ as they are “visually stimulated creatures, they can become aroused from a glance at a static image of their preferred sexual fantasy.”[18] This is why many of the women are represented in this way, as it encourages men to look at their bodies, creating an interest for a male audience.

It is clear to see that the hypothesis stated is almost exact, being backed up throughout this discussion on the way in which women are represented in ‘Sugar Rush’ and how different audiences may have interpreted the text. “Overall we find that terms of gender roles, popular media is today relatively challenging of the traditional ideas: women are expected to be confident, sexually assertive, do what they want to do no matter what anybody says.” – David Gauntlet[19]

[1] http://www.channel4.com/life/microsites/S/sugar_rush/show.html
[2] http://community.channel4.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/3036019711/m/9580064326
[3] Gauntlet, David ;Media, gender and identity
[4] http://www.answers.com/topic/shake-n-vac
[5] http://www.unet.univie.ac.at/~a9003211/cheathouse/hollywomen.html
[6] Mulvey, Laura (1989): Visual and Other Pleasures (Theories of Representation and Difference)
[7] Kovacs, M. (1972): Women’s rights drive gets of the ground.
[8] http://www.answers.com/topic/second-wave-feminism
[9] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second-wave_feminism
[10] Sardar and Van Loon, Borin and Ziauddin (2000): Introducing Media Studies, USA
[11] Channel 4, ‘Sugar Rush’ (2006): Episode 1
[12] Sardar and van loon, Ziauddin and Borin (2000): Introducing media studies
[13] Moir, Anne and Bill (1998): Why Men Don’t Iron, The Real Science of Gender Studies
[14] http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Documents/gaze/gaze09.html
[15] http://www.sou.edu/English/Hedges/Sodashop/RCenter/Theory/Explaind/queer.htm
[16] http://www.fazed.com/lifestyle/sex.html
[17] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sun_(newspaper)
[18] http://www.fazed.com/lifestyle/sex.html
[19] http://theoryhead.com/gender/interview1.htm