Work through the following tasks to complete your close-textual analysis of the Oh Comely CSP pages:
Front cover
1) What do the typefaces used on the front cover suggest to an audience?
It's a small, closely-owned magazine
Niche topic
2) The words under the title introduce the content and topics addressed. What do these suggest about the potential audience of Oh Comely?
They're very inquisitive and they are young adults interested in media.
3) How do the cover lines use narrative to create enigma? What do the cover lines suggest about the magazine's content and audience?
It focuses on female empowerment and it creates a supportive feel among the feminist community
4) Write an analysis of the central image.
The colours used are mainly drab. Her black jacket is some sort of embroidered jacket which has come into fashion recently. The fact that her hair is short is also progressive as it's a stereotype that women should have long hair. Her earrings are quite noticeable which puts an emphasis on fashion as well?
5) What representation of gender can be found on this front cover?
A metro view of gender. The latest trends of fourth-wave feminism as well as political correctness are expressed greatly here.
Feature: Speaking Out
1) What does the headline and standfirst suggest about Oh Comely's feminist perspective?
It encourages its readers to stand up against male oppression. It makes the readers feel closer together as they unite in the cause of speaking out
2) What do the interviewees in this feature suggest about the values and ideologies that underpin this magazine?
They value the integrity in women to share their stories and they believe in the female gaze,which promotes women power.
3) How conventional is the page design in this feature? Why?
It's very simplistic and it diesn;t really have too much extra. Its readability is also made better by the simple layput of the text. The text is somewhat easy to read but it's managable.
4) Pick out specific aspects of this feature that subvert the stereotypical representation of women in the media. Are they different to what we may find in conventional women's lifestyle magazines such as Glamour or Cosmopolitan? Why is the absence of men a key feature of Oh Comely?
Women are often represented as complacent and subervient which is subverted by the fact that they're speaking out. They're different to things like Vogue or Cosmopoiltan because they focus on a postive feminist outlook as opposed to stereotypes. The abscence of men shows that this is not influenced whatsoever by them.
5) How does the photography offer a fresh or unusual perspective on women?
Something that would make them uncomfortable but is actually tackling a issue that strikes close to home for some feminists.
Feature: More than gender
1) How does this feature offer a fresh perspective on gender and identity?
Gender is subjective and that you are now able to indentify as anything you want because we live in a accepting society.
2) What is the significance of the writer and photographer? How does this fit with the Oh Comely brand?
The writer is there to give meaning and substance to the cause of the magazine and the photographer makes the cause come to life by visualising it.
3) What style of photography is used in this feature?
I would say it;s very artsy and simplistic with not a lot in there.
4) What representations of the transgender lifestyle can be found in this feature?
We can see here that they feel like it took a long time fir people to get used to their gender.
They talk about empowerement and how they find pride in living their lives even with a bit of abuse.
5) Why is the biographical information at the end of the article significant? (Clue: the writer is also an editor of a niche, creative magazine called Entitle).
It networks a lot of the niche magazine writers who will then have a better chance raising awareness about their interests. It also creates a personal relationship with the brand.
Representation and identity
Work through the following questions on representation and Oh Comely:
1) How do representations in Oh Comely challenge stereotypes?
They present feminism in a positive and influential light. Usually it;s shown as radical and never makes change but in this magazine it;s shown as a force than can influnce anyone.
2) What representations of race, ethnicity and nationality can be found in the 'Speaking Out' feature?
It also promotesthe idea that no religion disvalues femininity. The first lady to be interviewed was of Somali background and then presents her ethnicity as a different view to what would normally be said when talking abut female rights.
We can see an overall diverse line-up of writers and people who feature in OC.
3) What representation of women and femininity can be found in Oh Comely?
The dominant representation of women is that they are powerful and able to stand up against the patriarchy.
4) Why might Oh Comely deliberately under-represent men? (The absence of men in the magazine appears to be a largely deliberate move by the editors).
There are many magazines that value men as the winners of the world whereas there are very little that soley focus on women. They might under-represent men because they feel like they have been left out of a topic that focuses on fighting against male-dominated outlets.
5) Does Oh Comely fit into the possible fourth wave of feminism? Or is it evidence of post-feminism - that feminism is no longer needed?
It fits into 4th wave because it tackles issues surrounding the feminist community, they wouldn't do well if feminism didn't exist.
The feminist movement is multi-faceted and doesn't just rely on raising awareness.
7) Judith Butler argues gender is a performance. How does Oh Comely challenge traditional gender roles? You should refer to both the cover and the selected CSP features.
Gender is something these women, both writers and readers, have embraced. They build their idea of femininity around them while discovering the fundemental issues surrounding feminism. The cover page suggests that women make their beliefs and gender a part of their lifestyle. The features also oppose Butler's ideas as these women have embraced gender and not conformed to societal beliefs.
8) Liesbet van Zoonen has suggested women's bodies are objectified and artificially constructed to present women as passive and restricted to secondary roles. How does Oh Comely challenge this stereotypical representation of women in the media?
OC empowers women to feel proud about who they are. They have no bikini features or any get-fit-quick tips. It encourages women to speak up about issues regarding the feminist community so sexualising women wouldn't really be the right thing to do.
9) David Gauntlett argues that identity is becoming more fluid, media representations change over time and that there are generational differences. Does Oh Comely support this viewpoint?
Yes because if OC was released in the 60s, they would get tons of hate as there was just two genders, men and women. OC supports new and emerging movements which have all stemmed from the idea of gender fluidity. They cover progressive topics which definitely agree with Gauntlett's view.
10) It has been argued that Oh Comely is a far more open text (Stuart Hall - encoding and decoding/reception theory) with more room for negotiation in interpretation. Do you agree with this view? Why?
I agree with this view as because this is about feminism, we can bring in all the previous waves. It has a lot of information and context to give and this a more open topic with a variety of opinions such as Butler and Gauntlett.
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