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A schema for the construction and assessment of messages of emp owerment
Ranney, Arthur Lytle, Ph.D.
The Ohio State University, 1994
UMI 300 N. Zeeb Rd. Ann Arbor, MI 48106 A SCHEMA FOR THE CONSTRUCTION
AND ASSESSMENT
OF MESSAGES OF EMPOWERMENT
Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for
the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate
School of The Ohio State University
By
Arthur Lytle Ranney, B*A., M.A.
*****
The Ohio State University
1994
Dissertation Committee: Approved by
Sonja K. Foss
Eric S. Fredin ivi ser Jessica Prinz Department of Communication To My Parents
i i ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Many people made the completion of this project possible. Dr. Sonja K. Foss provided unflagging support and guidance. Thanks also to Dr. Eric S. Fredin and Dr. Jessica
Prinz, the other members of my dissertation committee, as well as to Dr. Thom McCain, who offered key insights.
Others provided moral support and other help: Mary Rose
Williams provided intellectual and emotional encouragement;
Terry Monnett kept me in coffee and technical advice; and the members of Akademic Distortion grounded me.
Special thanks are due to Debra Jasper, whose support and personal sacrifices were vital. Thanks also to Blue,
Chloe, and Mouse; you know who you are.
iii VITA
June 8, 1950 ...... Born - Cincinnati, Ohio
1987 ...... B.A., University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio
1988 ...... M.A., The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
1988 ...... Journalism Instructor, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
1989 ...... Journalism Instructor, Ohio Wesleyan University, Delaware, Ohio
1990-Present ...... Graduate Teaching Associate, Department of Communication, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
PUBLICATIONS
Acker, S. R.; & Ranney, A. L. (1991). The house of mirrors: An instructional group support system. Media and Technology for Human Resource Development, 4(1).
FIELDS OF STUDY
Major Field: Communication
iv TABLE OF CONTENTS
DEDICATION...... ii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...... iii
VITA ...... iv
CHAPTER
I. INTRODUCTION ...... 1
Statement of the Problem ...... 3 Definition of Empowerment ...... 5 Method ...... 8 Significance of the S t u d y ...... 16 Limitations of the S t u d y ...... 17 Organization of the S t u d y ...... 18
II. DIMENSIONS OF EMPOWERMENT ...... 20
Six Dimensions of Empowerment ...... 23
III. ANALYSIS OF A CONVERSATION WITH ROSS PEROT . 40
S u m m a r y ...... 62
IV. ANALYSIS OF SHAME ...... 64
S u m m a r y ...... 103
V. ANALYSIS OF FIGHT THE POWER L I V E ...... 107
S u m m a r y ...... 144
VI. CONCLUSION ...... 148
Rhetorical Construction ofEmpowerment . 156 Evaluation of Artifacts ...... 164 Utility of the S c h e m a ...... 174 Suggestions for Future Research .... 178
APPENDICES
A. DATA RELATIVE TO CHAPTER I I I ...... 181
v B. DATA RELATIVE TO CHAPTER I V ...... 193
C. DATA RELATIVE TO CHAPTER V ...... 209
LIST OF....REFERENCES ...... 224
vi CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
The term empowerment is widely used in American public discourse. It appears in scholarly literature in disciplines ranging from education to feminist theory to religious studies to organizational communication. Use of the term, however, no longer is confined to the academy; the word has filtered out of the academic backwaters and entered mainstream discourse. Examples abound of the term's popular usage.
The term often is used in connection with gender or feminism. Writer Joan Kennedy Taylor, for example, used it in a newspaper interview as an antidote to a so-called victim mentality: "If you're thinking of women as empowered and empowerable, rather than as victims, you can go a lot farther" (Jacobs, 1993). The Dayton Visual Arts Center, in a news release describing a dialogue session as part of an art exhibition, described a "womyn's circle" featuring two artists who will "lead open dialogue on issues of humanist/feminist/empowering solutions to divisions and separitist [sic) ideas" (Dayton Visual Arts Center, 1993).
The National NOW Times, newspaper of the National
1 2
Organization for Women, declared in a headline that rights for those who are discriminated against because of sex or sexual orientation are empowering— as is marching in a rally under the eyes of a friendly Clinton administration (Corbin,
1993). Less political gender-related usages appear as well.
Time (1993) offered images of female friendship--sisters posing for clothing advertisements— as an empowering trend in the fashion world. Nationally syndicated newspaper columnist Joan Beck, recently widowed, wrote that the love of her husband "empowered me to achieve" (Beck, 1993).
Empowerment is not exclusively the domain of topics concerning gender, however. Political news from Mother
Jones magazine, a publication that purports to give an uncensored, inside view that differs from mainstream media, is said to be "empowering" (Klein, 1993). Mainstream media, however, also are using the term. Conservative columnist
George Will, for example, displeased with the curriculum in public schools, described a plan to give public schools competition and make education systems "accountable to empowered parents" (Will, 1993). The residents of subsidized housing in Dayton, Ohio, trying to take their neighborhood back from drug dealers, believe that their
"residents council has gained momentum in its effort to empower tenants" (Ali, 1993). By one standard, at least, empowerment has arrived in American culture by virtue of its appearance in a Jules Feiffer cartoon. In the cartoon, Uncle Sam runs through a list of "ideals that are most
spoken of in our national dialogue" and comes to the
conclusion that empowerment is the dominant ideal.
"Depressing, huh?" he concludes (Feiffer, 1993). The term
empowerment. then, is gaining currency in the popular,
written media. Empowerment is assuming importance at an
everyday, practical level, and the concept is becoming a part of popular culture.
Statement of the Problem
In both the scholarly and popular literature, empowerment as a term crosses many boundaries, but it is used largely as if all readers will understand its meaning.
Empowerment as it relates to abused spouses, however, might mean something very different from the empowerment of students who would benefit from a choice in the learning mode they use. Not only is the definition of empowerment not clear, but no means of operationalizing it in a text exists. This study is designed to address both of these issues.
There are two primary purposes for this study: (1) To develop a schema that operationalizes empowerment in a text; and (2) to apply the schema to texts to discover the kinds of insights it provides into the rhetorical construction of empowerment.
I am interested in the process by which a text empowers because of my commitment to the democratization of public 4
discourse. Despite the emergence of new technologies with
the potential for such democratization, it often is not
realized. A hierarchy most likely will continue to exist in public access to media, and those who currently are shut out
of the dominant discourse--those who belong to ethnic minorities or those who lack economic clout--will continue
to be excluded. Despite the emergence of the Internet, public-access channels, proliferation of the camcorder, and fiber optics that can carry more than 500 channels of information to a single household, access to this extravagance of media will remain tightly controlled; market forces, not altruistic notions of democracy, will decree who gains access. The cost of electronic equipment to gain access to these channels also will continue to provide an economic disincentive to democratization. The difficulties in creating and disseminating empowering texts, then, are not likely to improve, and I envision this study as providing initial insights into how such texts can be constructed.
I also am interested in the analysis and construction of texts that empower becuase I have seen numerous instances in which efforts to create such texts fail to achieve the empowerment envisioned by their creators. Appropriation, commodification, and further marginalization are some of the fates that might befall a new voice in the public discourse.
The question of appropriation, in particular, has 5
significance for me as a result of my participation in video projects that attempted to document how some groups in the
Columbus, Ohio, area were systematically excluded from representation in the mainstream media. The story was told, but instead of empowering anyone, our projects well might have appropriated others' voices or objectified the persons we attempted to help. This project could be characterized as a theoretical extension of those video projects, then, in which I hope to be able to discover how texts of empowerment might be created that are more successful.
Definition of Empowerment
An analysis of the communicative construction of empowerment in a text must be rooted in some definition of empowerment. To empower, according to the Oxford English
Dictionary, is "To invest legally or formally with power or authority; to authorize, license" or to "impart or bestow power . . . Empowerment is either ”[t]he action of empowering" or "the state of being empowered" (1989, p.
192). Although empowerment and its variants seem to have come to prominence only recently, the first usage cited in the Oxford English Dictionary occurred in 1654 (published in
1655) in a description of a letter from the Pope
CL'Estrange, 1655); Thomas Jefferson's usage of empower also has been documented in his Writings, penned in 1786 and published over seven decades later (Jefferson, 1859). 6
These definitions are unsatisfactory for the purposes of this project, primarily because of the implicit assumptions in them that empowerment can be bestowed from one person to another, an assumption that is not shared here. For my purposes in this study, where I define empowerment as a state of confidence in one's ability to affect positively one’s environment, a state initiated by a text that presents options for action of which the audience was previously unaware, I see power as the "[ajbility to do or effect something or anything, or to act upon a person or thing" (p. 259). The definition of power, as I am conceptualizing it, means to gain power over or to influence a condition, another, or oneself.
Certainly empowerment and power are linked. To be empowered under my definition is not necessarily to gain power over another, but such a situation could occur; in such a situation, there must be no assumption made that power over another is necessarily negative. If power is not conceptualized as a zero-sum game, then a gain in power by one person does not inevitably result in a loss of power by another. A gain in power also could include power over conditions, rather than others, or power over oneself.
The definition also contains assumptions relating to the use of unaware. environment, positively, and text.
Unaware, in this case, does not necessarily mean the audience member has never thought about or come into contact 7 with the options the text is presenting. Audience members quite likely are aware of the options presented/ but have not thought of those options in connection with themselves; for practical purposes, then, such audience members are being exposed to options of which they previously were unaware.
Environment, as used here, does not privilege the world outside one’s own body. An audience member's environment certainly could include a household, a government, or some other setting, but the environment that is being addressed here also includes one's mental environment. A change in attitude would be construed, then, as an impact on one's environment.
A oositive impact is one that is viewed as such by the audience member. The audience member's perspective is adopted in order to come to some judgment as to the positive or negative value of the impact being described. A positive impact is one that includes perceived advantages or benefits as seen from the point of view of the audience member.
A text, in the specific instances used here, assumes the intentional use of symbols by a rhetor to inform or persuade, but that limitation is not necessary; it is a function of the artifacts selected for analysis. Rhetoric on the one hand uses symbols with the intention to persuade, but a second purpose of these symbols is to create our reality or to generate knowledge (Foss, 1989). A text, 8 then, need not be discursive nor intentionally persuasive; it can be either an act or an artifact. The artifacts selected for analysis are representations of prior acts but the analysis easily could involve the acts themselves. A concert, for example, would be characterized as an act, while a videotape of a concert is deemed a rhetorical artifact; either could be a text.
These assumptions about empowerment and power also have implications for the concept of disempowerment. I interpret this term to mean a condition in which the persons affected are alienated--or perceive that they are alienated— from a set of conditions that would allow them to become empowered.
There is no assumption that a person who is disempowered was at one time empowered; rather, my use of the term suggests that the potential for action on behalf of oneself has not been realized.
Method
Data
To develop a schema for the operationalization of empowerment and to apply the schema, two sets of data were collected for this project. The first phase involved collecting data for development of the analytical schema.
Those data were gleaned from scholarly literature in which empowerment plays a prominent role; they then were organized into the six dimensions and related continua that comprise a proposed analytical schema. Three videos constitute the source of the second set of
data used in the application portion of the study: A
Conversation with Ross Perot, Shame. and Fight the Power
Live. I chose to focus on artifacts in video form for a
number of reasons. First, 1 wanted to analyze mass-media
artifacts, thinking they might provide a point of entry for
analysis that corresponds to the term's level of saturation
in the public consciousness. Analyzing mass-media artifacts
instead of more exclusionary examples mirrors the movement
of empowerment out of the academy and into the streets.
Video constitutes probably the only medium that can be
described accurately as a mass medium. In contrast to the
first half of the 20th century, for example, there are few
cities where there is more than one daily newspaper. The
newspaper industry is searching for ways to expand, but the
focus of these efforts is outside the traditional format;
video newspapers, in fact, are considered to be a potential
market for expansion. Books, while popular, are targeted at
very specific audiences, and few reach a broad spectrum of
readers. The magazine industry has adapted well to a
fragmented market but, in doing so, has ceded its rights to
the label of mass medium. The videocassette recorder, nearly as prevalent as the television, has helped make video
a primary choice among consumers of mass media.
Second, video appears to have had an impact on perceptions of spheres of influence, and analysis of video 10
artifacts provided access to this phenomenon. What is
included in personal spheres of concern has expanded in the
50-odd years that television— first as live video and later
on tape--has been integrated into American life, an
expansion that has occurred concomitantly with a shrinkage
of community. At least a portion of this increased sphere
of concern and shrinkage of traditional community can be
attributed to electronic media: Individuals are concerned
with events, policy decisions, and the lives of people from across the country and the globe, yet they do not know the names of the people across the street. Those who watch
Cable News Network and consider the plight of war victims in the former Yugoslavia to be part of their spheres of concern feel helpless to have any kind of impact on events that occur in their world. As the world gets smaller and smaller via electronics, then, it gets larger and larger in terms of our ability to change it. Video offers a unique perspective on the nature of empowerment in this simultaneously expanding and contracting world.
Third, more than other media, video seems to contain within it the ability to invert the usual hierarchy of public discourse, in which the agenda is set at the top and the message is received at the bottom. As viewers are beginning to shoot back with their own video cameras and cable companies routinely provide a public-access channel, the transmission model of mass media seems to be turned on 11
its head. Due to its proliferation and low demands for
expertise, video technology seems almost inherently
empowering.
Fourth, video offers two sensory dimensions--sight and
sound--that provide rich texts for the study of the
construction of empowerment through communication. Its
capability for study over extended periods of time through
replay also was a factor in my selection of video as the data for the study.
A number of these concerns result from my program of
study and subsequent exposure to a number of scholars who have influenced my thinking. Of primary importance is
Freire (1989), whose strategies for empowerment through dialogue contribute to my notions of oppression and pedagogy. Also important are a number of essays by members of the Frankfurt School, particularly those that address
issues raised by the existence of the culture industry
(Bronner & Kellner, 1989), and later explorations of similar areas by Goodwin (1992). Also exerting influence is Goodall
(1992), with his notions of audience, performer, and ethnography; Nietzsche’s (1967) aphoristic depictions of power offered insights as well.
For the reasons noted, video artifacts were selected for an investigation of the nature and function of empowerment. The rationale for selecting the three specific artifacts--A Conversation with Ross Perot. Fight the Power 12
Live, and Shame— follows. Although each of the artifacts
(or their creators) has been the subject of numerous
articles and reviews in the popular press, no scholarly work
on the aspects of empowerment of the artifacts was found
during the search of the literature.
A Conversation with Ross Perot. Billionaire
entrepreneur Ross Perot saw a floundering incumbent
President, George Bush, pitted against an often-besieged
challenger, Bill Clinton, and thought that he had a chance
to reach a disaffected constituency. Perot saw a way to gain legitimacy in the Presidential campaign without competing in primary elections or jumping through the usual political hoops; he bought half-hour blocks of time on each of the three major broadcast networks. In part as a result of his efforts, nearly one voter in five cast a vote for
Perot.
A typical Perot video artifact has been selected for analysis, a 1992 production, A Conversation with Ross Perot.
In the video, Perot discusses the economy, education, Japan, small business, workers, and what viewers can do to effect change. The video selected was an early effort by Perot but has the look and feel of everything that was to follow.
Analysis of it for its empowerment potential provides clues as to why Perot ultimately was so successful.
Fight the Power Live. Public Enemy's best-known effort is "Fight the Power," a hit single from the late 1980s that 13 urged listeners to "Fight the powers that be,” a song featured in director Spike Lee's (1989) movie, Do the Right
Thing. The artifact itself is a 1989 video release, Fight the Power Live. The 60-minute video features Public Enemy in various concert venues as well as in offstage footage.
Fight the Power Live is an appropriate artifact to analyze because its primary themes concern power. The members of Public Enemy comment on the authority wielded by government, for example, how Blacks can cope with life in a society dominated by Whites, and other issues that revolve around power. In addition, Fight the Power Live helped make
Public Enemy famous, creating a large audience for the group's social commentary and lending another reason to embark on an analysis of empowerment in the video.
Shame. Shame is a 1988 Australian feature film shot in a small town in the Perth area. The 96-minute film loosely could be described as an updated, feminist version of the
Western classic Shane and features a female lawyer on a motorcycle instead of a male loner on a horse. The film depicts a small, self-enclosed society in which males dominate and women submit without question. Shame makes a strong statement about the relations between men and women and offers hope, however bleakly, that women can empower themselves. 14
Procedures
The initial step in the analysis consisted of a search of various literature bases not only to gain familiarity with the concept of empowerment across disciplines but to develop a schema for the operationalization and analysis of empowerment in texts. Despite disciplinary disparities, certain commonalities were suggested by the literature. The points of congruence suggested that empowerment might be described through six dimensions, each spanning a continuum.
The six dimensions were proposed as a schema to be used as a tool for operationalizing empowerment in a text.
In order to explore the communicative construction of empowerment, three artifacts were analyzed* The six dimensions of empowerment that comprise the proposed schema of empowerment— authority assumed, end result, specificity of options, arena for options, nature of spectator, and duration— were applied to each artifact in an effort to discover its placement along the empowerment continua that were developed. Each artifact was examined using as a guide the question implicit in each of the continua: For example, one viewing of each artifact was focused on answering the question, "What is the authority assumed to be in this text?" Each artifact was viewed a minimum of six times, once for each of the six dimensions, using the implied question of each dimension to guide and inform the viewing.
To answer the question, four elements of the text 15 received attention— dialogue, audio, image, and visual tone.
Dialogue refers to the words spoken by persons who appear on screen; audio refers to everything else in terms of sound, such as sound effects, ambient sound, voiceovers, and song lyrics. Image refers to the representational images seen on the screen. Visual tone covers formal dimensions of the video, including camera angles, lighting technique, camera technique, editing pace, juxtaposition, composition, film or tape quality, and the like.
The dimensions of empowerment as supported by the four elements were identified for each unit of analysis in each artifact. Because of the disparate nature of the artifacts, a different unit of analysis was selected for each. The unit of analysis adopted for A Conversation with Ross Perot was the question asked by the interviewer or, in three cases, the subject matter as written on a title screen.
Every question or title screen marked the beginning of a new unit. The unit of analysis selected for Shame was the scene: Change in major characters, change in setting, or time compression— when screen time deviated from "real" time--marked a change in scene. For Fight the Power Live, a generic unit was adopted. Because the video shifts genre by virtue of its multiple sources of footage, a change in genre--from news footage to concert footage, for example--was considered to be a change from one unit to another. 16
The elements that supported particular positions on the
continua of dimensions were noted on a data grid constructed
for each artifact. The grid reflected the six dimensions, units of analysis, four elements, and elapsed time, which allowed notations to be placed in their temporal relationships (see appendices for examples).
I acknowledge that my interpretations of the artifacts and my particular locations of them in terms of the six dimensions of empowerment may not be the same as those that other rhetorical critics would develop. In accordance with the standards for criterial adequacy in rhetorical criticism, I make every effort to justify my claims or interpretations by grounding them in the data of the artifact and explaining thoroughly what led to the conclusions offered. The assumption is that data cannot be verified objectively; the rhetorical critic's goal is not to prove one interpretation of a text to be correct but to justify adequately one particular interpretation. After reading this study, I hope the reader is able to understand the argument for the interpretations offered and how I arrived at them.
Significance of the Study
Although the notion of empowerment has been a topic of interest and study in academe for several years, its shift into popular usage reflects an expansion, presumably of its definition and certainly of its impact on public life. This 17
study contributes to an understanding of the term by sorting
out existing definitions to arrive at a more coherent,
comprehensive definition than those that currently exist.
In addition, the schema developed allows an initial way
to conceptualize empowerment as rhetorically constructed in
texts. Such a conceptualization contains the potential for
others to construct empowering texts more easily; this
project, then, is an extension of my commitment to the
process of allowing those who are disempowered to gain voice
in the public discourse.
This project also offers a glimpse into three major trends in American life: Citizen outrage at an unresponsive government; a form of feminism that has been ingratiated
into mainstream entertainment; and a revival of militant civil rights activism in a commodified form that pays homage to the struggle of the 1960s and suggests both continuing and altering the direction of that struggle. An examination of the artifacts and what they seem to offer suggests commonalities within the dynamic of the movements themselves and reasons for the important position empowerment has achieved in the national dialogue.
Limitations of the Study
This study constitutes only an initial step toward understanding the nature and function of empowerment as a rhetorical phenomenon. It is limited in a number of ways.
Despite subject matter ranging from politics to feminism to 18
race relations, there is no claim here to generalizability.
The artifacts were selected in an attempt to cover a broad
spectrum of society, but they represent simply three
specific examples of empowerment; analysis of other artifacts very well might suggest quite different processes of empowerment.
The format of the artifacts also constitutes a
limitation of the study. Although video is pervasive in our society, it is by no means the only medium through which empowerment might be studied. Other media (including print), personal experience, and ethnographic studies, to name just a few, offer opportunities to study empowerment not included in this study--opportunities that might generate a very different picture of strategies of empowerment.
Organization of the Study
The study is organized as follows: Chapter I, the introduction, offers a rationale for the study, a statement of the problem, and a definition of empowerment, followed by a description of the method used. The method section first describes the data and then the procedures used to analyze those data. The significance of the study and the limitations of the study also are discussed. Chapter II concerns the six dimensions of empowerment and presents the analytical schema that was developed. The assumptions underlying the six dimensions are noted first, then the 19 dimensions and literature relevant to each are described and discussed separately. Chapters III, IV, and V constitute analyses of A Conversation with Ross Perot. Shame, and Fight the Power Live, respectively. Chapter VI, the conclusion, suggests criteria to use in the contruction of empowering texts, evaluates the artifacts in terms of the criteria, and provides an evaluation of the proposed analytical schema. CHAPTER II
DIMENSIONS OF EMPOWERMENT
In this chapter, I develop a schema to be used for the analysis of empowerment in texts. The schema was devised following a review of the literature on empowerment from numerous fields in which it is a concept of discussion. The schema that is proposed consists of six dimensions, each spanning a continuum; following a discussion of the assumptions that inform the development of the schema, each dimension of empowerment will be described and relevant literature cited.
The schema is composed of six dimensions of empowerment, each representing a continuum of options for describing an act of empowerment: Authority assumed, end result, specificity of options, arena for options, the nature of the spectator, and duration of empowerment. Each act of empowerment, I suggest, can be positioned somewhere along the continuum that each dimension represents.
Although this schema may appear to fix empowerment as a static phenomenon, that is not my intention. I view empowerment as a process that involves a mix of rich and complex variables that cannot easily be captured in one
20 21
point on a continuum. I see the continua as attempts to
limit in space and time a complex phenomenon, which
inevitably results in shortcomings. Although every effort
was made to describe accurately the artifacts in terms of
position on each dimension's continuum, some artifacts'
positions defied easy description. Often, artifacts could
not be described by one area on a continuum; where that is
the case, a more complex description is offered.
Although the structure of the descriptions of the six
dimensions might appear hierarchical, any inference of
hierarchy within the dimensions is erroneous. Although the
continuum of arena for options spans an area from private to public, for example, no inference should be made that
empowerment necessarily begins in the private arena and progresses upward to the public arena; nor should an assumption be made that empowerment that occurs in the public arena is somehow better than empowerment that occurs
in the private arena. Some artifacts will span a continuum or be positioned in more than one area of a continuum, but that should not necessarily be construed as progression through a hierarchy.
Yet another assumption that undergirds the proposed
schema is a particular conception of the relationship it embodies among cognition, attitude, and behavior. Implicit
in the schema is the notion that the starting place for the process of empowerment is belief, a perception of how two 22 more more things are related. A potentially empowering text, I suggest, begins with a cognitive process in which a message is presented that helps an audience form positive or negative beliefs about a particular subject or phenomenon.
If beliefs are created that are positive, the atttitude of the audience--how favorably it evaluates the subject— will be positive; if the beliefs are negative, the attitude will be negative. The adoption of a particular attitude on the part of an audience provides justification for audience members to choose to behave in a particular manner. The proposed schema, then, places empowerment within the framework of Belief Change -* Attitude Change -* Behavior
Change (Infante, Rancer, & Womack 1990).
The six dimensions that constitute the schema are supported by references to literature relevant to each dimension. The studies are used as examples to illustrate the dimensions, but this is not to suggest there is universal agreement in the literature on the definition of empowerment and each of the dimensions; the definition offered here is my synthesis of the literature. As a result, many of the studies cited will contradict my definition of empowerment even as they illustrate the concepts represented by the dimensions. 23
Six Dimensions of Empowerment
End Result
Actual physical action is not a required result of the process of empowerment; the action required may be psychological and occur and be contained withinthe performance or presentation of empowerment. As long as the performance continues and the audience or viewer is engaged, the potential for the process of empowerment also continues.
My contention, however, that empowerment is a process that does not necessarily continue beyond the confines of the performance or presentation does not mean there is no result. The end result might fall anywhere along a continuum from an individual's feeling differently to an individual's taking action that has an external impact on others. Although action does not have to be taken for empowerment to occur, the audience should be persuaded that action could be taken and, if it were taken, it would have the potential to be successful. The feeling that a potentially successful action could be undertaken might be recalled later as a motivating device, but action as a direct result of engagement with the text is not necessary for an empowering experience.
Hooks (1990) provides an example of a view of empowerment as requiring no external activity on the part of the empowered. She uses Spike Lee's film, Do the Right
Thing, to illustrate the notion of empowerment as an 24
individual process of reclaiming one's self by
"decolonizing" one's mind. The empowered person might embark on a path of cultural resistance, but hooks does not make such resistance a prerequisite for the process of empowerment. She also places emphasis on regaining and maintaining a sense of self when writing about the difficulty of maintaining solidarity across class lines.
She notes that persons from underprivileged backgrounds are disempowered when they try to fit in at a level where they are perceived as not belonging. Hooks’ notion of empowerment is highly individualistic and depends largely on internal processes. Despite an insistence that some form of social action is necessary for empowerment, Staples (1990) also sees self-action and a transformation in self definition at its core (p. 31); he also notes that there is no final state of empowerment (pp. 31-32).
Others, while acknowledging the individual roots of empowerment, see the process as a more social one, with groups of individuals coming to certain realizations about their position in society or individuals learning how to have some impact on their environment. Moser (1989), for example, notes that empowerment for women in the Third World depends on the development of self-reliance and internal strength rather than power over others. Empowerment arrives via a long-term, grassroots approach that depends on the writings and experiences of Third World women themselves 25 rather than on research by First World women.
Similarly, Pinderhughes (1983) defines empowerment as a sort of constructive coping with outside forces, allowing social work clients to have some measure of control over their destinies. Writing from the education perspective,
White (1992) sees empowerment as collective influence by individuals on some larger social unit. In this case, the individuals are teachers who have gained influence over the decision-making process in their school system. Cochran and
Dean (1991) operate on a more concrete level from the perspective of parents and elementary school students but nonetheless prescribe a similar sphere and level of influence. Empowerment, they suggest, is a process that is centered in the local community and allows people more control over valued resources. In this case, the valued resource is again some sort of impact on the school system.
Others prescribe a larger unit of influence as the end product of empowerment. Nemiroff (1989) acknowledges the individual origins of empowerment in the college classroom where the subject of women's studies is the focus. Moving beyond "traditional" pedagogy, Nemiroff says, requires a change from viewing the instructor as the source of knowledge and students as consumers of knowledge to a cooperative model of individuals' creation of knowledge.
That knowledge should become the foundation for praxis as women take their knowledge into the social arena and lobby 26
for change in some manner.
This process is similar to the one described by
Gutidrrez and Ortega in their description of the empowerment of Latinos (1991). Empowerment is a process that begins with some sort of change at the individual level but occurs also at the interpersonal and social--i.e ., political— level. At the heart of the process is the ability to make changes. Delgado-Gaitan's (1991) conception of empowerment involves an ongoing, intentional process for Spanish speaking parents that begins with individual behavior modifications and results in self-determination and control of resources in a school system where Hispanics are at a disadvantage.
Similar is Torre's (1985) conceptualization of empowerment as a developmental process that begins with individual growth and may culminate in social change.
To a similar end, but embracing quite different means, is
Hirayama and Cetingok's (1988) view of empowerment for their social work clients, Asian immigrants. They view empowerment as a process of exerting power to achieve social connectedness and assimilation by embracing social norms.
Some social change is inevitable as their clients gain power and exert it, they suggest. Power-over is the end result of empowerment suggested by Grubaugh (1989); he advises high school teachers on how to use body language and proxemics to maintain strict discipline in the classroom. 27
At the extreme end of the continuum is a rejection of
the psychological prerequisite for empowerment. In an essay
lambasting twelve-step recovery programs, Blessing (1990) notes that her efforts to "recover" from being a lesbian with a supposed chemical dependency were hindering her efforts to cope with and perhaps change society. "I find the immersion of the lesbian community in 12-Step programs frightening and incredibly disempowering," she writes. "I had put aside the revolution for recovery" (p. 19).
Blessing's rejection of self-help programs as disempowering and her renewed commitment to social action describe a form of empowerment where social reform is the end result and individual feelings of empowerment are discounted.
These examples serve to illustrate the continuum of end results that might be achieved through acts of empowerment.
As a result of the empowering experience, the audience feels more in control of a situation. This control simply might be the ability to control one's self, or it could extend into a broader sphere of influence, where the viewer gains a sense that some sort of external impact is possible. The potential impact or control the viewer feels could be the result of new confidence gained from engaging the text, or perhaps the viewer did not previously recognize a particular action or attitude as a form of impact or control. Engaging a video that espouses racial or ethnic pride, for example, could lead the audience to perceive such an attitude as 28
empowering. The performer's presentation would allow the
audience to perceive this attitude of pride as a means of
gaining control or exerting influence where before it was
not perceived to be so.
A new-found perception of control or influence is
related to the audience's conception of a personal sphere of
influence. One end result would be to find that the text prompts the audience to feel more able to cope with what the world has to offer; another result might prompt the audience
to feel empowered when taking small steps to change those offerings; a third could involve taking larger, more
influential steps to effect change externally. All are potential end results of the process of empowerment.
Authority Assumed
Another dimension that must be considered in a definition of empowerment is the role played by the creator of the artifact or the artifact's main character and the kind of authority that person and/or text is seen to have.
The authority attributed to the creator can be categorized along a continuum that runs from great textual authority at one end to text-audience equity at the other. This is not to say that, at either end of the continuum, the authority is able to bestow empowerment as a type of commodity or gift; rather, the authority assumed is more like the authority generally ascribed to the social worker--the social worker (creator) generates a text that the client 29
(audience) can put to use.
At one end of the authority continuum is high
authority, presumed to be superior to the audience in
experience and knowledge and whose superiority is accepted
by the audience. The audience might be inclined to accept
advice or heed a call to action based on a perception that
the text's creator or main character, through experience,
knows the best thing to do, whether concerning a personal
change, action on a mass level, or something in between.
Parsons, for example, cites empowerment as the purpose for
social work (1991) and asserts that the social worker
facilitates clients' transactions with their environment so
they are able to engage in problem-solving behavior. The
social worker, then, is the facilitator of the process--the
person with high ethos proffers an authoritative text.
Keenan and Pinkerton (1991) have a similar view, noting that
they use their own power to provide opportunities for others. In their case study, disadvantaged youth in Belfast were given the opportunity for input into the hiring of a new worker at the agency, a process that entailed
"repositioning of social actors in their power
relationships" (p. 117). While this repositioning does
suggest that those in power relinquished a portion of it, the authoritative persons wrote the scenario and made the
final hiring decision, ultimately returning authority to its original source. A 1991 case study by Mullender and Ward 30
offered much the same scenario, with a similar level of
authority assumed on the part of the social worker.
At a middle point on the continuum, the creator of the
text assumes a presentational expertise (Foss & Foss, 1994).
The creator discards the mantle of superiority of experience
and sees the experiences of the creator as equal to those of
the viewer. The notion that the creator's experience is
somehow superior to the viewer is rejected, but the creator
is assumed to have presentational skills and other resources
the viewer does not. The text simply demonstrates the
ability of the creator to present the experiences of the
creator and audience in a manner the audience finds
accessible and in a way the audience is unable to do. This model fits closely with Kissling’s (1993) feminist research method. Kissling used a participatory design for her dissertation research, a qualitative study of how girls
learn about menstruation, in the hope that the research would prove empowering for the participants. Gayle's (1993) on-the-job survey was designed specifically for the empowerment of her respondents, whom she characterized as
"co-producers"; she hoped they would be able to use her research as a guide for changing their behavior and the climate within their organization. Both Kissling and Gayle claimed no special expertise but acknowledged that they did have resources beyond those of the participants in their research. At the other end of the continuum, the text and the
audience are peers; no special expertise is attributed to
the text, its creator, or the text's main character. The
creator of the text is not perceived to be superior either
in experiential or presentational aspects. Giroux's (1988)
view of empowerment is representative; he challenges the
notion of pedagogical hierarchy and questions "certain
hegemonic aspects of modernism and by implication how these
have affected the meaning and dynamics of present-day
schooling" within the context of postmodernism (p. 6).
Nemiroff (1989), in her challenge to traditional notions of pedagogy, characterizes a feminist pedagogy as one in which
teachers and students collaborate equally in the process of creating knowledge, rather than consuming it. Both Giroux and Nemiroff seem to be proffering the notion that the performer (i.e., the text or the teacher) has no skills or resources beyond those of the students, demonstrating text- audience equity that is found at one end of the continuum of authority assumed; no authority is assumed by the person in power.
Specificity of Options
The initiative to become engaged with a performance and any other actions that may or may not be taken is the choice of the audience alone, but the creator may offer options to the audience. The options may range across a continuum from the very specific to the very vague. The audience is not 32 necessarily told what to do, but the door is open, and various options are available for exploration at the audience's discretion. At one end of the continuum, the performer or text could urge a particular action, such as a vote for a candidate; in the middle of the continuum, the creator could urge action in a general direction or category, such as violence; at the other extreme, the performer might not urge the audience to take any particular action at all.
Although much of the literature offers options with varying degrees of specificity, the area of organizational communication seems particularly suited to the task of illustrating this continuum because of its pragmatic nature.
Suggestions for action in this literature cover the continuum. Miller and Monge (1986), for example, suggest that subordinate input into decision making is a specific option for empowerment, while Block (1987) and Conger and
Kanungo (1988) suggest that power over others is the specific option to be selected. Albrecht (1988), offering less specific options, suggests that influence, communicative competence, and the ability to make changes in the organization constitute empowerment. Pacanowsky (1988) offers only a general suggestion: Empowerment in the organization means that the initiative for action comes at the individual level, and the action involved is the "power to accomplish" (p. 372). 33
Arena for Options
The arena for options--whether a public or private
setting--like the other categories in the schema, also can
be described as positioned along a continuum. At the
continuum's most private, individual level, the performer or
text urges the audience to participate in a psychological
change, a strictly internal process. In the middle of the
continuum, the audience is asked to engage in behavioral
change, an individual process that affects those with whom
they come into contact in interpersonal and public spheres.
Change in a local or even in a national system constitutes
an arena for options that moves even farther along the
continuum from private to public.
An essay on teacher empowerment (Sprague, 1992) offers
an example of empowerment in the private arena that tends to
lead the individual to act in a more public one. The thrust
of Sprague's argument is to convince teachers to undergo
personal re-evaluation— to recognize themselves as
"transformative intellectuals" operating from a critical
perspective. This notion of self results in teachers who
believe themselves to be social and political activists, but
the crucial process of empowerment clearly is situated in
the private arena.
Torre's (1990) essay situates empowerment in a more public arena: She nearly equates empowerment with power.
Consciousness can be a precursor of empowerment, according 34
to Torre, who investigates the use of drama to raise
consciousness and therefore encourage action by working women to wield power. The arena here is relatively private;
however, Torre makes a distinction as to the areas in which
the women see themselves as being powerful. Because the women see themselves as having power professionally but not as women, the arena in this case— certainly not wholly private--falIs somewhere toward the private portion of the middle ground of the arena continuum, more concerned as it
is with domestic than career issues.
A certain segment of the literatures of social work and development shares roughly the same space on the continuum that describes the arena for options--an area more toward the public end than the previous examples but not yet fully public. The common trait of these studies' view of empowerment is the effort to empower groups rather than
individuals; in addition, some social work writers--and many of those writing about development— view empowerment as a
largely economic phenomenon. Cox (1991), for example, writing in the field of social work, offers case studies of groups that are oriented toward empowerment and whose goal is some type of social action. Boyd (1989) contends that empowerment, in the case of women in Uganda, is a process by which people "acquire real power and command real resources
. . (p. 109)— political power and material resources.
Faulkner and Lawson (1991) offer much the same view for 35 women in Ecuador, although they do concede that "employment per se does not generate equality . . ." (p. 40). Although empowerment for these writers is an individual phenomenon, it demands a social interaction that moves the process of empowerment out of the private arena into a hybrid area between private and public.
Slightly more public than the examples above,
Dhruvarajan's (1990) arena of options is public and political, although the impact of action in those arenas has implications for the private arena. The issue is rooted in
Indian homes and a religion that demands "husband worship," pativratva. from women. Dhruvarajan contends that Indian women must be activists and work in the public arena for acceptance of female equality--as prescribed in the country's constitution--to overcome the resistance to equality in their own homes. The result, according to
Dhruvarajan, will be equality in the workplace.
Empowerment at the most public end of the continuum of the arena for options involves social and political issues.
A speech by Davis (1988), for example, relies on the public and political arena for empowerment of Afro-American women with the empowerment of individuals at its core. Davis urges women of color to become activists for legislation to eliminate racism and anti-Semitism and calls for a fundamental transformation of the socio-economic conditions that generate and nourish oppression. 36
An example of empowerment in an arena at the most public level is empowerment of those already in power. In a case study by Cheung (1990), those who are in power remain in power by convincing those who are not in power that they will be empowered through dialogue with the powerful.
Cheung was called upon to foster dialogue in Hong Kong's
Shatin District, an area that was fighting the government's plan to locate psychiatric halfway houses there. The representatives of the status quo gained compliance by creating the appearance of empowerment for those who were unable to act for themselves--the mentally ill. In this case, the important aspect of empowerment appeared to be a reinforcement of governmental power over citizens while pursuing the laudable goal of providing pleasant surroundings for mental patients.
The arena for options thus can be seen as a continuum that ranges from the individual level to the societal level.
At one end, the options for empowerment that the performer or text presents urge individual action--self-change on the part of the audience, for example. At the other end, the performer or text advocates change outside of the self, in an institution, a social convention, or a government. In the middle of the continuum lies a gray area where the lines between public and private blur. 37
Nature of Spectator
The dimension of nature of the spectator describes the
position in which the text places the spectator regarding
agency- The text might place the spectator in a position
that suggests the spectator has control or is dominant, is
in a subordinate position, or is in an ambiguous position.
This is not to suggest that a text must be characterized
only in one of these three ways; the spectating position
might vary among these three areas throughout a text.
The nature of the spectator bears some resemblance to
Mulvey's (1989) notion of the male gaze; Mulvey argues that
the masculine position for the spectator is the preferred
and usual one for popular texts. Although the nature of the
spectator as it is conceptualized here does not privilege gender, it remains concerned with how the text positions the
spectator to optimize or attenuate the potential for
empowerment. Clues as to the spectator's position established in a text might be provided by the depiction of
activities and experiences of dominance or subordination.
Other inferences as to the dominance or subordination of the
spectator can be drawn from the visual tone of the artifact, which can alter visual perspective to influence the
spectator's perception of dominance or subordination.
Duration
The continuum for duration of empowerment ranges from
fleeting to permanent. There may be an empowering moment 38 that occurs during the course of a performance, the entire performance might be perceived as empowering, or the audience member might carry away a sense of empowerment that lasts long after the end of the viewing of a performance or text. Such a sense of empowerment could stay with the audience indefinitely, a sense that becomes part of the processes of everyday life. As such, that process of empowerment would become, in effect, a permanent process.
An artifact that emphasizes change in a social system, for example, could set in motion a process that continues indef in itely.
An artifact that seems likely to create a lasting impression— the audience most likely will remember or act upon the ideas presented--would be characterized as one that offers long-duration empowerment. An artifact that seems likely to be used for temporary entertainment would result simply in short-duration empowerment— a belief, while the artifact is being viewed or is in use, that successful action is possible. A duration of empowerment of even shorter duration might result during the course of the artifact, with an audience member likely to feel that there is potential for successful action only while certain segments are being viewed. The continuum for duration of empowerment, then, ranges from fleeting to permanent.
Empowerment, as it is defined in this study, is a state of confidence in one's ability to affect positively one’s 39
environment. This state is initiated by a text that presents options of which the audience was previously unaware. I propose that empowerment can be conceptualized
in a text in a schema that consists of six dimensions, each of which comprises a continuum: (1) End result: continuum from no actual physical action to taking action that has an
impact on others; (2) authority assumed: continuum from high textual authority to audience superiority; (3) specificity of options: continuum of options from specific to vague offered by the rhetor; (4) arena for options: continuum from a private, individual level of change to the political or public arena, where change in a system is possible; (5) nature of spectator: continuum from a dominant spectating position to a subordinate spectating position, with an acknowledgment that some spectating positions also may be ambiguous; and (6) duration of empowerment: continuum from fleeting to permanent.
The analysis of the three artifacts using these six dimensions suggested additional criteria that could be used in assessing and constructing messages of empowerment. The four criteria developed, used to guide the rhetor in selecting from among the array of options offered by the six dimensions, will be discussed in the conclusions offered in
Chapter VI. CHAPTER III
ANALYSIS OF A CONVERSATION WITH ROSS PEROT
The artifact that is the subject of analysis in Chapter
III is A Conversation with Ross Perot, a 70-minute video
that depicts an interview with Texas billionaire Ross Perot.
This 1992 production is a typical Perot video artifact and
offers exactly what the title implies. The video is shot
simply with two cameras; one provides a straight-on shot of
Perot, the other an over-the-shoulder shot of Perot that
allows the viewer to see the other on-camera person, the woman who interviews Perot. Perot, however, is the main
focus, and the interviewer, Sue Ann Taylor, offers leading questions to allow Perot to expound on his favorite subjects. Perot discusses the economy, education, Japan, small business, workers, and what viewers can do to effect change. The setting resembles an office and includes a desk, book shelves, and some small sculptures.
A Conversation with Ross Perot was produced as part of
Perot's efforts to gain legitimacy in the 1992 Presidential campaign without competing in primary elections or jumping through the usual political hoops. Perot bought large blocks of time on each of the three major broadcast networks
40 41
and repeated his message there. The result, after a
controversial, bifurcated, non-campaign, was that Perot
received 19 percent of the popular vote; nearly one voter in five cast a vote for Perot.
Perot repeatedly sounded a theme of empowerment throughout his campaign, and A Conversation with Ross Perot
is no exception. Over and over, this plain-talking billionaire exhorted his listeners to send a message to
Washington, to take the government back into their own hands. The nominal subject might be the economy, for example, but his theme was empowerment, although Perot did not use the word. The video selected is an early effort but has the look and feel of everything that was to follow.
Analysis
The analysis will follow the schema constructed around the six dimensions of empowerment. The dimensions are:
Authority assumed, end result, arena for options, specificity of options, nature of spectatorship, and duration. The unit of analysis is the question; in three cases, title screens— "On Education," "On the Economy," and
"On Small Business"— signal a new unit. In all other cases, the question is that asked by the interviewer. There are 17 units in A Conversation with Ross Perot.
Authority Assumed
The very existence of an hour-long video consisting of a virtual non-stop performance by a billionaire businessman 42 would seem to render moot the question of authority. Any assumption that A Conversation with Ross Perot presents
Perot as the ultimate authority, however, is contested here.
The authority attributed to the creator--in this case,
Perot--can be categorized along a continuum that runs from great textual authority at one end to audience superiority at the other. Falling somewhere in the middle is the area of presentational expertise, in which the rhetor makes no claim to superior knowledge but instead relies on presentational skills the audience does not have to demonstrate how the experiences of the audience and the creator are similar.
The level of authority varies in A Conversation with
Ross Perot from presentational to high authority. The presentational level of authority is supported throughout the video by the visual tone; the dialogue in three key units also supports the presentational level of authority.
A higher level of authority is exhibited by the dialogue in every other unit, however. The artifact, then, is not placed in one area on the continuum for authority assumed but is shown to vary. The video begins and ends at the level of presentational authority; the rest of the video demonstrates high authority, with the exception of one unit near the middle of the artifact.
The visual tone of A Conversation with Ross Perot suuports the argument that the artifact exhibits a presentational level of authority. A presentational screen space is created for the audience, for example, in the opening moments of the video (unit 1); Perot expounds on the state of education, while the audience watches a shot that is medium close and at eye level, replicating a conversation between equals who are relatively intimate. This is the shot from the primary camera, it is used throughout the video with only occasional changes, and it places the audience in a cozy conversational triangle with Perot and the interviewer. The lighting, which is warm, reinforces this notion. As Zettl notes, warm hues in sharp focus imply closeness (1990), and this closeness is maintained throughout the artifact.
The office setting has a prosperous appearance; the furnishings are substantial, many books line the walls, and art work is in evidence. Perot is dressed well but conservatively. Neither setting nor dress are particularly intimidating because they reflect choices that many people might make; people often dress well for public appearances and might choose to appear in their workplace when speaking on topics that have some relation to their work or when interviewing for a job. Perot is in his business uniform and environment, a setting that would be familiar to many audience members.
Camera work in unit 6 is used to reinforce the presentational tone, working in conjunction with the 44
dialogue: As Perot begins to speak of ownership of the
country, the camera moves to an angle that includes a
sculpture that represents a cowpoke on a horse, riding fast.
This synecdoche of the American West could not appear at a more appropriate time; in keeping with the myths of the
frontier and rugged individualism, Texan Perot offers a prescription for our ills that lays the burden squarely on the shoulders of the individual. In the context of the Old
West--and apparently in Perot's office--the cowpoke represents self-sufficiency and the triumph of the individual over a hostile environment. This symbol of
* individual toughness became the focal point of an American mythology that emphasizes the role of the individual and distrust of large forces, such as government, that would intrude upon a self-sufficient and self-directed world. The use of this icon suggests that Perot shares these ideals with the audience and that he believes Americans have the ability to work out their own solutions to their problems.
In other words, Perot claims to have no more expertise than the audience. This presentational visual tone, created through lighting, camera angle and proximity, setting, and costuming, is maintained throughout all 17 units of the artifact.
In addition to the visual tone, the dialogue in three key units of the artifact works to reinforce the notion of
Perot as a presentational authority, whose experiences are 45
similar to those of the audience but who has presentational
expertise that the audience does not. He consistently uses
the first-person plural pronoun when discussing the
educational system in his opening remarks: "We are the
least-literate work force .... We need to face
reality .... We will not be world-class ..." (unit 1).
The inclusive pronoun, a non-authoritarian demeanor, and the visual tone of the video combine to establish Perot as a presentational rhetor. Although he strays somewhat from
that level of authority relatively early (unit 2), he
returns to the presentational mode at least twice more during the video. Perot establishes himself again as a presentational authority during the second quarter of the video (unit 6) and again in the closing moments (unit 17).
In unit 6, Perot is asked by the interviewer, "What can the average person do?" At this point, Perot sounds his oft- recurring theme: "Each of us is a proud part-owner of this country," he notes, and he proceeds to tick off a list of
local remedies for the sad state of education in the United
States. Again, he uses the inclusive pronoun and couples that with examples of citizen action that are neither daunting nor impossible, such as voting for qualified school board members and working to see that schools emphasize learning.
Although he soon abandons again the presentational level of authority in favor of a more authoritative 46
approach, Perot returns to the presentational mode during
the last minute or so of the video. The interviewer asks
Perot: "What's your greatest message for the American
people?" He responds (again) with inclusive pronouns and
his favorite message: "This is our country." He puts
himself squarely in the audience's camp when he says, "Let's
fix this ..." and "Demand . . . our officials . . . get to
work" (unit 17).
Although Perot makes use of the presentational level of
authority, he by no means confines himself to that strategy.
During a majority of the video's running time, he is
operating in a high-authority mode, much as he might when
chairing a meeting at Electronic Data Systems, the company
he founded. This authority operates in the dialogue portion
of the artifact; as noted above, the presentational level of
authority continues throughout the artifact in terms of its
visual tone. The high authority Perot assumes in his
rhetoric operates as counterpoint to the presentational
visual tone that has been so carefully constructed, but the
strength of the visual tone reduces the likelihood that
Perot might be interpreted as being overly authoritarian.
Perot's level of authority does appear to rise very early in the video, however. In unit 2, for example, he talks about "disadvantaged neighborhoods" and cites authority: "Any psychiatrist will tell you . . . ." At one point, he imperiously raises a finger to halt the 47
interviewer, who begins to ask a question; the reference to
experts helps bolster an authoritative position Perot holds
as he explains to the American people what is best for them,
and the gesture signals that Perot is in charge of the
conversation. Later in the video, as Perot discusses the
economy, he talks about the role of the "ordinary citizen"
in revitalizing the manufacturing sector of the economy.
"The ordinary person has not figured out . . . he is the
key," Perot says. "This is his country." "He is all
powerful." The use of the third-person pronoun emphasizes
the difference between Perot and his audience; he is no
longer demonstrating that he and his audience have had
similar experiences but is speaking from a position of
authority that privileges his experiences. Perot has power,
and he is prescribing its acquisition to ordinary people.
Repeatedly throughout this segment, Perot refers to these
ordinary citizens as "my friends down here," presumably a
reference to their placement on the corporate flow chart, as
well as an indirect allusion to his authority over them
(unit 12).
After the initial segment of the video, Perot generally
drops the inclusive pronouns and begins to talk like a manager— a person with authority over other persons— as he
discusses jobs and the economy. In unit 13, for example, he
says: "It's very important that the average citizen get
involved in this because we're talking about their future 48
and their children's future." The average citizen remains a
third-person pronoun until the end of the video, a
grammatical distinction between Perot and the average
citizen that undermines his presentational stance and
emphasizes his authority.
Perot begins the video in a presentational manner,
reinforces it mid-way, and concludes on a presentational note. The presentational portions of the video represent a decided minority of the video's running time but occupy the highly desirable first and last positions in the piece. The audience is primed for a speaker who is operating at the presentational level of authority and receives confirmation at the end of the piece that this is what it has heard. The overall impression, therefore, might be that Perot is a presentational rhetor, but he actually relies quite heavily on his own authority to make his points. On the dimension
for authority assumed, then, the artifact is placed between the presentational and high authority area of the continuum but slightly toward the presentational point due to the structure of the artifact.
End Result
Actual physical action is not a required result of the process of empowerment; the audience should be persuaded that action could be taken and, if it were taken, would have the potential to be successful. Because physical action is not required, end result might fall anywhere along a 49
continuum from an individual's feeling differently to an
individual's taking action that has an external impact on
others.
If the Perot theme is ownership of the country, his
formula for gaining ownership has one ingredient: action.
Although Perot recognizes the psychological component of
empowerment— discussed in the dimension of arena for
options--the vision of empowerment he espouses clearly
privileges direct action. The artifact as a whole can be
placed at the action end of the continuum, but other
factors, such as interaction with other elements, must be
recognized as influential enough to preclude the artifact
from being described strictly as having an end result of
action.
Of the four elements analyzed here--audio, dialogue,
image, and visual tone--the dimension of end result appears
to be addressed only in dialogue. As noted, Perot's bias is
toward action as an end result. His concluding words advise
the American people to "cut out the PR and go for action"
(unit 17), and that message is consistent throughout the piece. He offers advice on how to improve the school
systems; Perot espouses action to make ours the "finest educational system in the world" (unit 1). He recommends more action that will allow students to develop their full potential, action such as "stretch[ing] the minds of 16- year-olds . . ." and "get[ing] rid of social 50 promotion . . ." (unit 3). He speaks about a plan of action that would allow pre-schoolers to develop greater self esteem and give them impetus to become productive members of society (unit 4). Perot discusses human capital, advocating more worker participation in corporate decision-making, for example (unit 16).
The end result Perot prescribes is action. He does fulfill, however, some of the requirements for less action- oriented end results by presenting his recommended actions as simple prescriptions for change. The audience is shown, in other words, that action can be taken and, if taken, that it most likely would be successful. In addition, the influence of another dimension must be taken into account when assessing where to place this artifact on the continuum of end result; the arena for options in the artifact, with its recognition of the psychological component of empowerment, argues for placing the end result of this artifact at something less than a strict action orientation.
The end result here privileges action but not to the degree that it excludes all other end results. This recognition of alternative end results places the artifact near the action end of the continuum for end result.
Specificity of Options
The options that the creator of an artifact offers to the audience may range across a continuum from the very specific to the very vague. The audience is not necessarily 51
told what to do, but various options are available for
exploration. The specificity of options could span a
continuum from a particular action to action in a general
direction or category (such as violence) to no particular
action at all.
At first glance, the options for empowerment that Perot
offers seem quite specific, but on closer inspection, some
of them seem designed for persons other than the audience.
As a result, the majority of the options offered directly to
the audience are not very specific, leaving Perot's
specificity of options roughly in the middle of the
continuum.
As with end results, the specificity of options is
addressed only in the element of dialogue. Perot offers,
for example, what is essentially a Head Start model for
children of pre-school age who live in the inner city. He would make available "this little building" in inner-city
neighborhoods where youngsters would feel loved and develop
special skills, such as playing the violin. The goal, as he phrases it elsewhere, is to "make the children of non productive people productive" (units 1, 2, & 4). What he
is not offering is a specific option for the parents of those children that would allow them to see how such a
little building actually could be constructed.
A more specific option, but one that suffers from some of the same shortcomings, is offered later, when the 52 audience is advised what to do to improve its own school systems. Perot tells his audience to make sure "educators are running the schools," as opposed to "special interests"; schools "are a place of learning, not of play"; and school boards are composed of people "with experience in managing large, complex systems" (unit 6). Again, these seem to be specific options when taken at face value, but how members of the audience are to effect such change is not made specific. The nature of our political system ensures that such changes will not occur spontaneously but require a determined effort on the part of those who would spark change. Perot's options for those who wish to create social movement are extremely vague. He suggests that the average citizen "get involved" but does not say how (unit 13). He is slightly more specific when discussing average citizens, whom he says determine who will be President or senator, but this is simply a suggestion to vote and not a specific blueprint for change (unit 8).
The most specific options that Perot offers are those at the organizational, rather than the political, level. As a business executive, he might be expected to be more astute in the organizational area, and he seems to fulfill that expectation. The options he offers reflect management techniques that were popular at the time the video was made--especia1ly, those used in Japanese corporations--and, as common practice, they are much less controversial than 53
issues such as school funding. He discusses, for example,
how he believes in treating "human capital" by offering a
series of specific suggestions for American managers (unit
16). Perot says corporations should "get rid of all these
things that separate people" (i.e., workers from
management), such as executive dining rooms. Corporations
should seek worker participation in the organization and
involve them in corporate decision-making. Worker potential
should be tapped, and workers should be made part of the
corporate team; managers should "listen to the people who do
the work," Perot says. "Let's make everyone part of the
team." What he is advocating generally is the quality-
circle form of corporate organization in which management is
a bottom-up process. These are fairly specific options that
will allow workers more input and offer more specific
strategies and applications than Perot's more political
prescriptions.
Specific actions are advocated in this artifact, but
strategies for accomplishing those actions are in short
supply. So, while Perot offers actions and results that will find few naysayers among the audience, he steers clear of implementation strategies--or specific options--that would engender controversy. Overall, the specificity of the options offered in the video is no more than moderately
specific. 54
Arena for Options
The continuum that describes the arena for options runs
the gamut from public to private settings. At the most
private level, the text or performer might urge
psychological change; behavioral change falls in the middle
of the continuum, and change in an external system
represents an arena for options at the most public end of
the continuum.
Perot's choice of arena for options might be termed
developmentallv specific. Although he largely refers to
options in the public arena and indeed prescribes various
remedies that require action in the public arena, he
occasionally prescribes public remedies that will be
operationalized in the private arena with an eye toward
future social impact. As with the majority of the
dimensions of empowerment discussed here, the arena for
options is addressed via the artifact's dialogue element;
overall, the arena for options in this artifact is public.
The least public arena for options that Perot discusses nonetheless has the public arena as its ultimate focal point. Perot chooses this type of hybrid arena when prescribing solutions for public education; education, he
says, is best served by putting a "very effective front end on public schools" (unit 1). This front end is a reference
to "tiny little schools" and to the need to "develop the
full potential of the child" and "stretch minds" (units 2 & 55
3). In these examples, Perot describes a personal process
that is stimulated by action in a public arena--the public
school system. The option occurs individually, but the
audience for the video is being presented with options that
are public in nature.
Other arenas for options that Perot offers are more
clearly public. When asked what people can do to effect
change in the public schools, Perot offers options that fall
in the public arena: "Make sure that educators run your
schools"; "Make sure your local school system is a place of
learning, and not a place of play"; and see to it that
school boards are composed of people who "have the
background and experience to administer a system this big,
this complex, that spends this much money" (unit 6). Or,
when talking about the economy, Perot reminds the audience
that ordinary people "determine who gets to be President," a
suggestion, perhaps, that people vote for the correct
candidate (unit 8), another option that clearly falls in the public arena, or that people "become involved" (unit 13).
Finally, when discussing workers (unit 16), Perot's comments are aimed at corporate culture rather than workers' attitudes; options such as worker involvement in decisions at the corporate level are options to be taken up in a public arena.
The arena for options as presented to the audience of this video clearly is public. The majority of the examples 56 of arenas for options decidedly are public, and those that operate in a more ambiguous arena appear aimed at fostering
social change after a gestation period in a less public arena. In addition, the privileged status of action in the dimension of end result lends support for the characterization of the arena for options as public. Perot advocates action with direct impact on others--public action.
Mature of Spectator
The continuum of the nature of the spectator describes the position in which the text places the spectator regarding empowerment. The text might place the spectator in a position that suggests the spectator has control or is dominant, is in a subordinate position, is in a position of parity, or is ambiguous. The spectating position for a text might vary among all of these areas as the text proceeds.
The spectating position in A Conversation with Ross
Perot changes as the video progresses. The changes in dialogue affect the spectating position in the artifact, and it varies from a position of parity to one of subordination.
When evaluated strictly on the basis of visual tone, the position of the spectator in A Conversation with Koss
Perot does not vary from the parity position. The visual tone is created through camera angle, camera proximity, and lighting. None of these vary to any great extent in the video, although the camera angle occasionally changes; a 57
second camera is employed when the interviewer asks a question. The consistent visual tone in the artifact is one of intimacy and equity; the angle is eye level; the apparent position of the audience member is at a normal,
conversational distance; and the warm lighting reinforces the sense of intimacy the angle and proximity lend to the proceedings.
When dialogue is considered, the position of the spectator does vary, much as Perot's authority varies during the video. Perot uses inclusive first-person pronouns, a rhetorical strategy that implies equality or at least a sense that he and the members of the audience are facing a problem together: "We need the finest educational system in the world" (unit 1); each "of us is a proud part-owner of this country" (unit 6) and ”[t]his is our country" (unit
17), he says. Each of these remarks places the spectator in a position of parity with the speaker, who has included the listener in the same framework by using the first-person pronoun.
This sort of parity is evident during three units of the video, but Perot distances himself from the audience members during the remainder of the video, with the net effect of moving the spectating position to one of subordination. The third-person construction is prevalent in the other 14 units of the artifact, as when Perot is talking about the "average citizen": "They are the tax 58 base . . "They determine who gets to be President" (unit
8). Perot's simile on the problems with education does nothing to elevate the spectating position: "This is like a pothole in the street," he says (unit 4).
The continuum of position of the spectator in A
Conversation with Ross Perot has a direct relationship with the continuum of authority assumed. As Perot's authority rises, the position of the spectator moves toward subordination; when Perot's authority drops, the spectating position moves toward parity. When Perot is in the presentational mode (units 1, 6, & 17), the position of the spectator is closest to parity. As his authority rises in all other units, the position of the spectator drops toward subordination* The position of the spectator, then, is described as varying from parity— at the beginning, ending, and in the middle of the artifact--to subordination in the rest of the artifact.
Duration
The continuum for duration of empowerment ranges from fleeting to permanent. There may be an empowering moment that occurs during the course of a performance, the entire performance may be perceived as empowering, or the audience member may carry away a sense of empowerment from the performance. That sense of empowerment could stay with the audience indefinitely, a sense that becomes part of the processes of everyday life. As such, that process of 59 empowerment would become, in effect, a permanent process*
The nominal topics for Perot's talk--education, the economy, and small business--are large systems that Perot wishes to overhaul; the long-duration empowerment that would be needed to address such problems is not always apparent within the artifact, however. There are empowering moments in the artifact when an audience member might have the feeling that successful action is possible, but Perot's rallying cry for action does not lend itself to a process that might continue beyond the confines of the artifact. In addition, there are some instances where Perot’s description of the societal problems that face his audience could be perceived as overwhelming, a negative depiction that could negate any empowering effect of the other portions of the message. Overall, the artifact is judged to be temporarily empowering.
Moments that could be perceived as empowering are sprinkled through the video. Within the context of Perot’s prescription for improving public schools, for example, the audience member well might believe that successful action is possible. "We need the finest educational system in the world," Perot says, and the audience member would be quite likely to perceive that as possible (unit 1). "We need action in education," he notes later, another example of a statement that could be perceived as the springboard to successful action (unit 4). Perot prefaces some specific 60 remedies for the woes of public education by stating that each "of us is a proud part-owner of this country," a statement that again could be perceived as one that might lead to successful action--especially because it is followed by remedies that can be achieved simply by voting, an activity that many audience members would see as a relatively simple action to take (unit 6). A similarly simple action is implied by Perot's statement concerning average citizens: "They determine who gets to be President"
(unit 8). His final statement in the video also is similar:
"Let's cut out the PR and go for action" (unit 17). All of these statements can be inferred to be depictions of ordinary people taking successful action, some of it as specific as voting, some of it not at all specific, but all of it successful. These all can be characterized as empowering moments in the video.
Although empowering moments seem possible in the video, other statements cast doubt on the successful outcome of any action. Perot notes early in the video, for example, that
"we are stuck with the breakdown of the family unit," a rather gloomy statement that seems defeatist in nature (unit
1). When speaking of the children of the last 15 years— those who have received a substandard public education--
Perot notes that "life is hard" and "historically, life is survival of the fittest," a statement of social Darwinism that acknowledges defeat across a large portion of an entire 61
generation before any remedial action is begun. In effect, he acknowledges that successful action is impossible in this
case (unit 3). His characterization of public education as a huge business controlled by special interests bodes ill
for action, as well: "Three hundred twenty-eight billion dollars a year? Somebody's gettin' it" (unit 4).
Successful action by an average citizen against such a financial behemoth is not likely. Even though Perot notes that the average citizen is "all powerful," he follows that statement with another that undermines it: "You can’t have a winning team with two sets of rules— pretty simple" (unit
12). Implicit in the statement is the notion that persons other than average citizens are making those rules, leading to the conclusion that many forms of action by the ordinary citizens watching the video will be negated by those who do make the rules.
Even though there are empowering moments in A
Conversation with Ross Perot, these are interspersed with moments of pessimism or statements that depict problems that appear nearly impervious to change. While successful action appears to be possible, then, the notion of success is undermined throughout the video. Even though the final statement is a call for action, the action is not defined, leaving the audience with a vague sense that something must be done but with no clear direction to take. The artifact, then, is judged to be temporarily empowering. 62
Summary
The artifact of analysis for Chapter III, A
Conversation with Ross Perot, was analyzed using the six
dimensions of empowerment described in Chapter II; the
analysis for each dimension is summarized below. Perot
embodies the authority assumed in the artifact, and his
level of authority varies from presentational to high
authority. The presentational level of authority is
supported throughout the video by the visual tone; the
dialogue in three key units also supports the presentational
level of authority (units 1, 6, & 17). A higher level of
authority is exhibited by the dialogue in every other unit,
however. The artifact, then, is not placed in one area on
the continuum for authority assumed but is shown to vary.
The artifact as a whole can be placed at the action end
of the continuum for end result, but other factors, such as
interaction with another element, must be recognized as
influential enough to preclude the artifact from being described strictly as having an end result of action. The arena for options in the artifact, with its recognition of the psychological component of empowerment, argues for placing the end result of this artifact at something less than strictly action oriented.
The majority of the options offered directly to the audience are not as specific as the options offered for those other than audience members, such as children of pre- 63
school age; in terms of specificity of options, then, the
artifact is placed in an area near the middle of the
continuum.
Although he largely refers to options in the public
arena and indeed prescribes various remedies that require
action in the public arena, Perot occasionally prescribes
public remedies that will begin to be operationalized in the
private arena with an eye toward future social impact.
Despite the private phase of some options offered, the arena
for options in this artifact is public.
When evaluated strictly on the basis of visual tone,
the nature of the spectator in A Conversation with Ross
Perot does not vary from the parity position. When dialogue
is considered, however, the position of the spectator does
vary, much as Perot's authority varies during the video.
The spectating position varies from parity at the beginning,
ending, and the middle of the artifact to subordination in the remaining portions of the artifact.
There are empowering moments in the artifact when an audience member might have the feeling that successful action is possible, but Perot's description of the societal problems that face his audience could be perceived as overwhelming, truncating the duration of empowerment. Such negative depictions could negate any empowering effect from the other portions of the message. Overall, the artifact is judged to be temporarily empowering. Chapter IV
ANALYSIS OF SHAME
The second artifact to which the proposed schema is applied is Shame, a 1988 Australian feature film shot in a small town in the Perth area. Directed by Steve Jodrell and with an ensemble cast headed by Deborra-Lee Furness, the 96- minute film is an updated, feminist version of the Western classic Shane; it features a female lawyer on a motorcycle instead of a male loner on a horse.
The film depicts a small, self-enclosed society in which males dominate and women submit without question.
Males maintain their oppressive power through violence based on sexuality; the socialization process starts early in life and continues as women of all ages are verbally harassed, raped, and beaten. Neither they nor the men they marry as protection against cruising sexual predators see themselves as able to stop the reign of terror in their small town.
Shame makes a strong statement about the relations between men and women and offers hope, however bleakly, that women can empower themselves.
The protagonist of the movie is a female lawyer on holiday, Asta Cadell, who travels by motorcycle. While
64 65 riding at night, she crashes into a herd of sheep and damages her motorcycle. She limps into town the next day only to find that she will have to order replacement parts from Perth. She also finds a society that shocks her with its casual brutalization of women--but one she hopes to leave without becoming involved. Asta realizes, however, that Lizzie, the daughter of the repair-shop owner, has been gang raped; Asta is amazed to find that no one is willing to press charges. Asta herself is harassed and becomes the target of the "boys," but they find, to their chagrin, that the newcomer is well trained in self-defense, and she sends them off disheveled and bleeding as a result of her counterattack.
Soon Asta bonds with Lizzie and eventually becomes her friend and lawyer. Asta trains Lizzie and some of the other women how to defend themselves, and the members of this core group begin to realize that they are not helpless. Lizzie's confidence returns, and she decides to press charges against the men who raped her, a radical action that last was tried by a woman whose husband spends most of his time fending off physical and verbal blows as he unsuccessfully defends her honor. Lizzie's friend, Lorna, also intends to press charges for a similar incident but backs out at the last minute when her boyfriend intervenes. The legal steps
Lizzie takes precipitate a violent confrontation near the end of the film, and she is killed. Lorna steps forward. 66 however, and announces that she is going to press charges, and this time she is not going to run away.
Analysis
The analysis will follow the schema set forth in the six dimensions of empowerment. The dimensions are:
Authority assumed, end result, arena for options, specificity of options, nature of spectatorship, and duration. The unit of analysis is the scene: The scene changes when major characters change, the setting changes, or screen time is compressed or otherwise deviates from actual elapsed time. There are 58 units in Shame.
Authority Assumed
Authority attributed in a text can be categorized along a continuum that runs from great textual authority at one end to audience superiority at the other. Falling somewhere between great textual authority and audience superiority is the area of presentational expertise, in which the creator makes no claim to superior knowledge but instead relies on presentational skills the audience does not have. In the presentational mode, the creator of the text demonstrates how the experiences of the audience and the rhetor are similar but that the rhetor has access to skills and resources the audience does not. In Shame. authority is assumed by Asta, the main character; authority takes shape as a struggle between female and male authority, played out in scene after scene as Asta comes to grips with the male- 67
dominated society of the small town.
Asta demonstrates experiential authority— high
authority--in various ways: She has a visual association with power, she is a lawyer who challenges authorities, she
has expertise in traditionally male domains, she
successfully defends herself and others physically, and she
serves as a role model for other women. Asta demonstrates
low authority (where the audience is her equal or even her
superior) when she is depicted simply as a woman in the smal1-town milieu and as such has no status or authority.
That Asta is someone with high authority is established beyond doubt from the opening moments of the movie, when she exhibits power and mastery. She and her motorcycle burst
into the opening pastoral scene with a rush, pushing aside the sounds of nature in favor of the roar of an internal combustion engine and a high-energy musical soundtrack.
Asta is riding a 750 cc Suzuki Katana, a high-performance motorcycle named for a type of sword. A closeup during this opening sequence is taken from a low angle; the helmeted
Asta appears to be racing through the blue sky, adding to the feeling of authority and freedom generated by the speed and noise (unit 1). Her abrupt descent from these heights is foreshadowed when she crashes in the dark (unit 3).
Asta's constant challenges to the authority, both male and female, throughout her stay in the town also suggest she exhibits great authority. One of those challenges occurs 68
during the scene in the meat-packing plant when she slugs
Andrew Rodolph, the son of the owner and one of the gang
members. With this single blow, she challenges at once the
town's young male rowdies and their matriarchal co
conspirator, to the delight of the other women in the scene
(unit 14).
Asta lands another punch against the system when she
reveals that she is a barrister. She just has been attacked
by gang members and has run to the cafe to report the attack
to the sergeant. The visual space of the scene creates
clues to her continually rising authority; Asta is
photographed to appear the physical equal of the sergeant,
even though he is much taller and heavier than she. Like
the sergeant, Asta is photographed in medium closeup and at eye level; her image on the screen, therefore, appears just as large as his. Both dominate the screen space in which they appear, but she bests the sergeant in the dialogue:
SGT: I could charge you. ASTA: Charge me? And when will you start on the fun- loving boys? Driving under age, driving with blood alcohol above the prescribed limit, negligent driving, conspiracy, uh, attempted abduction, assault. SGT: Well, well. Bit of a bush lawyer, are we? ASTA: A barrister, as a matter of fact.
In addition, other women are included in the scene, and their reaction shot shows that her aggressive approach to the sergeant meets with their approval, largely conveyed through facial expressions that show a recognition of her plight and a delight in her refusal to back down in the face 69 of the sergeant's bland response (unit 18).
Not only does Asta demonstrate physical and legal authority throughout the movie, but she demonstrates expertise in other areas that also might be considered male dominions, leading to grudging respect or resentment among the males of the town. She repairs her own motorcycle, for example, spending a good deal of time in greasy jeans and a
T-shirt at the Curtis garage to do so. She also shows that she is a worldly woman and can be as aggressive as any man in the sexual arena by demonstrating her knowledge of motorcycles and the male sexual ego on the day she gets the bike up and running. While Asta and Lizzie are shopping in the store on that day, a group of young men gathers around the parked motorcycle; two of them get on it. One of them hops off the bike, but the other one remains in the saddle when Asta exits the store, twisting the throttle and fantasizing about speedy rides. "Want something big between your legs, do ya?" one of the punks inquires. "If it does
190K [120 miles per hour]," Asta coolly replies.
Asta's mechanical expertise and authority are demonstrated further when she turns her attention to the young man in the saddle. "Flooding my carbies, mate," Asta says, referring to the tendency of carburetors to load up with fuel when the throttle is operated while the engine is off. Faced with such mechanical expertise, the young man is unable to respond gracefully or effectively. He instead 70 remains unapologetically in the saddle. To disarm him, Asta offers him a ride, and he readily accepts. To his embarrassment and to the accompaniment of hoots from his friends, she dumps him off the back of the motorcycle by accelerating rapidly from the curb, lofting the front wheel in the process. She and Lizzie then ride off with the front wheel in the air, demonstrating once again her female expertise in a "male" activity (unit 24).
The origin of the motorcycle is a confounding factor, however, and suggests Asta lacks expertise in an area where she would be expected to have it. "How much that bike cost ya?" Tina inquires pugnaciously. "I don't know, it was a present," Asta replies (unit 15). Later in the movie, Asta discloses to Lizzie that she has a boyfriend; this is the only clue to Asta's personal life in the movie, leading to the inference that the man in Asta's life gave her the motorcycle. This initiates a complication within the context of the film where the motorcycle plays a large role in establishing Asta as an authority through her expertise in riding and repairs. This one detail, however, is not sufficient to undermine the authority Asta demonstrates throughout the movie.
Asta also asserts her authority by coming to the rescue of a man whose wife has been victimized by the town's band of roving punks and who in turn suffers a beating by the punks. Asta is riding a bicycle along a country lane when 71 one of the tires blows out. Her problem appears solved when a truck, driven by a man named Ross, rolls up, and he offers her a lift. During the ride back to town, however, the usual gang of toughs--out for a joyride in the country-- overtakes the truck; the young men first taunt Asta and, when she does not respond, ask Ross: "How's Penny these days?" The audience has enough information by this point to infer that Penny is one of the gang's victims, a situation that Ross finds intolerably frustrating due to his inability to avenge the wrong. In response to the taunt, Ross blocks the road, jumps from his truck, and attacks the punks. He is no match for them, however, and is beaten to the ground; the punks stop beating him only after Asta shouts at them to quit. As he explains to Asta as she drives him back to town, "Well, Penny, she likes a bit of company, a few laughs, a few drinks. Why, she likes a good time. Why not?
I give her that, all right .... Then she tries to lay charges. Charges? Penny Ross? Everyone knows she. She.
What's a man supposed to do? Blokes look at me in the street, in the club, laugh." Asta's authority is reinforced in this segment by her ability to quell the punks' violent acts and to take over in a crisis for a helpless man (unit
13) .
Asta demonstrates physical authority in the movie when she fights off four punks who are determined to rape her.
They stalk her as she walks alone to the railroad station 72
late at night to pick up her motorcycle parts, which have
arrived on the late train. Cornered in an alley, she fights
off two attackers and smashes a car windshield with a brick,
splattering glass into the face of a third punk who is
driving the car that has her trapped in the alley. Asta
then climbs over the car and escapes (unit 17), having
established again that she is equal to--or better than— any
man. She has established her authority over the gang that
has terrorized the town.
Asta's high authority is demonstrated, as well, when
she serves as a role model for the women of the town. That
they emulate--or try to emulate--her suggests her position of authority. Throughout the movie, the women of the town have been observing Asta and expressing tacit approval of her actions, culminating in the formation of a largely
female "posse" to round up the punks and find Lizzie when
the sergeant fails miserably in his duty. One of these women, Tina (Lizzie's surrogate mother), speaks for Asta and
for the assembled crowd in response to the sergeant, who says, "Well, I hope you're bloody satisfied," following
Lizzie's death. Tina demonstrates that the women of the town never again will kowtow to male authority: "No, Walt, we're not bloody satisfied. Not by a long way, mate."
Lizzie's friend, Lorna, tells the sergeant she will be pressing charges against the punks for sexual assault, signaling an awareness in the younger generation that the 73 status quo must change (unit 57).
The authority Asta is accorded through emulation is mitigated in two ways. First, she does not have all the answers. This is illustrated when Asta attempts to teach
Lizzie the basics of self-defense shortly after Lizzie presses charges. Lizzie, the memory of the assault still fresh in her mind, is frightened by the implications of defending herself. "Asta. Asta. What if there are six?" she asks. "I don't know anything," Asta says, her voice nearly inaudible (unit 40). Second, Asta's authority is lessened by Lizzie's attempts to emulate Asta that result in her own death. Lizzie's first attempt at emulation is legal action against the gang. Members of the gang are arrested, but they post bond and are on the street again in an hour;
Lizzie is in more danger than she was before she sought refuge in the law. After the gang is freed, Asta gives
Lizzie the self-defense lesson just described. When Lizzie is abducted, she remembers the lesson she was taught, kicking Andrew Rodolph in the testicles as they struggle in the back seat of the car. Andrew kicks back, Lizzie strikes the door, it opens, and she falls out of the moving car to her death (unit 55). Her second attempt to emulate Asta is fatal, undercutting the authority Asta wielded previously in the film. The final scene is a simple closeup of Asta's face; she is watching as the truck hauls Lizzie's body away.
Asta has initiated a new life for the women in the town, but 74
another life has been lost in the process. The expression
on Asta's face, the dramatic lighting, and the makeup that
creates a drawn and haggard look all combine to undermine—
or at least draw into question--the previous 90 minutes of
the film, in which everything Asta did appeared to be right
and correct (unit 57).
Asta is made aware early in the film that women in this
town have no authority when she enters the cafe for a drink
and to inquire about places to stay. "You can stay at my place," volunteers one barfly; "I've got a spare bed,
sweetheart," leers another. The men in this town do not
respect women and have no fear of reprisal for their
insults. The male authority pointedly is displayed visually when the local sergeant drops a hand on Asta's shoulder. He advises her to see a local mechanic about her bike, then move along as quickly as possible from this town: "It's not a place for a . . . for a," he begins. "For a lady," Asta
finishes (unit 4). The tension between male and female authority is explicitly established here, with the balance of power decidedly tilted toward the male side. Although
Asta's wry comment subverts the sergeant's attempt to be patronizing, she offers no resistance to his authority other than dry wit. She accedes to him by taking her motorcycle immediately to the repair shop; she does exactly what he tells her to do. 75
The presentation of the meat-processing plant where
Ross's wife works also demonstrates the lack of authority
accorded women--and, by implication, Asta— in the town. The
sweatshop is inhabited almost exclusively by women. The
plant is the only employer in the town, and only women work
there. Taken as a visual metaphor, the scene seems to
suggest that sheep are not the only meat being processed
there; women daily are ground down in the milieu. The
employees look tired and haggard, and they move mindlessly
through their chores, such as loading a meat grinder with
animal parts (unit 14).
Asta demonstrates a great deal of authority in several
ways in Shame. She is depicted in the opening as visually
powerful, challenges authorities of various kinds, is a
lawyer, is an expert in traditional masculine domains, is
able to defend herself and others successfully from physical
attack, and serves as a role model for other women. Her low
authority is suggested by her lack of knowledge of a basic
fact about her motorcycle, by the outcome of the women's
efforts to emulate her--Lizzie1s death--and by the fact that
she is a woman in a town where women are accorded low
status.
Despite the balance of the evidence in support of
Asta's high authority, I suggest that her authority best is
characterized by an area near the middle of the continuum;
her authority is largely presentational. Asta almost never 76
makes a direct plea or statement to the women in the movie
that relies upon superior skills or experience; her
challenges to male authority serve instead as examples to or
models for the other women. She is shown to have high
authority in four ways— through her visual association with
power, her legal challenge to authorities, her expertise in
male domains, and her success in defending herself and
others. The thread that runs through these instances of
high authority is Asta's use of this authority not to
dominate but to provide a role model for other women. Even
in these instances of high authority, she is demonstrating
presentational expertise rather than exerting experiential
authority.
Asta's visual association with power--the opening
sequence on the motorcycle--is a moment of high authority but does not privilege her experience at the expense of others. The motorcycle is used often in the movie as a device that reinforces Asta's authority, but the experience of riding a motorcycle or the ability to ride it well is not
portrayed as superior to the other women's experiences.
Instead, the motorcycle is used as an example that the other women might follow conceptually--to demonstrate for
themselves some kind of expertise in a traditionally male domain, whether it is motorcycling or another domain. The motorcycle is used to teach a lesson to a gang member, for example, when Asta uses her riding ability to toss him off 77
the back while other women watch and laugh (unit 24). In
another example, Lizzie experiences joy from the physical
freedom a motorcycle ride can bring, a joy that Asta shares
freely. Asta’s experiential authority is not privileged at
all; Lizzie, who cannot operate a motorcycle, enjoys the
experience just as much as Asta does (unit 23).
Asta achieves high authority as a lawyer who challenges
the town's authorities; this moment is not one of
experiential authority, however, but presentational. Asta
has just escaped from the gang and arrives at the cafe to
report the incident to the sergeant. The sergeant does not
view the incident as one that is particularly serious and
dismisses it as "four boys. Boys, having a bit of fun."
His cavalier attitude riles Asta, who begins ticking off the
list of offenses the boys have committed. Still, she is not
the one who notes her legal expertise--the sergeant realizes
that he is dealing with an informed woman. Asta does not
privilege her experiences--indeed, she declines to press
charges--but the incident is not lost on two local women, who are impressed that Asta is not afraid to challenge the male symbol of official authority in the town. Asta acts in an unofficial capacity, declining to use her authority as a barrister to impose sanctions against the gang, but her superior presentational skills have provided an example for
the women of the town to follow (unit 18). 78
Other moments of high authority occur when Asta
demonstrates her expertise in areas that traditionally have
been reserved for males. Like the other occasions of high
authority, Asta uses them not to demonstrate her
experiential superiority but as a model for the women of the
town. Asta's comment about the mechanical intricacies of
her motorcycle--"flooding my carbies, mate"--is offhanded
and not followed by a lecture on the dynamics of motorcycle
fuel systems, but Asta's expertise is not lost on the women
who witness the exchange. The verbal exchange is followed
by the demonstration of riding expertise, which Asta uses to
embarrass a gang member--and to provide an example for the
female bystanders (unit 24). Asta also allows Lizzie to observe while she is working on the motorcycle but does not
attempt to instruct Lizzie in the art of repair; the
authority here is presentational, rather than experiential, delivered as a general concept--expertise in a male domain--
rather than as a specific experience that is superior to the experiences of the other, younger woman.
Asta's use of violence also can be conceptualized as presentational rather than as a mark of experiential expertise or high authority. She does not engage in physical violence or demonstrate her physical capabilities to establish dominion over others. She simply uses her physical abilities as a tool that she can use to claim her rights as a citizen; she uses violence only under duress and 79 to assert her rightful place in society. She beats up the punks, for example, when they chase her from the railway station. She wants to be free to walk the streets safely, a desire she shares with other women; she is not trying to establish herself as an authority (unit 17). As she tells the sergeant later, "I'm a citizen" (unit 18) and citizens are allowed to go out at night. She is willing to share her expertise in this area with the other women, again demonstrating her presentational expertise. In another case, Asta strikes Andrew Rodolph in defense of Ross while the women who work in the abattoir watch and secretly applaud (unit 14). Asta does attempt to teach Lizzie some self-defense (unit 40), a moment that depends on Asta's superior expertise, but that use of high authority is subverted throughout the movie. Lizzie has difficulty learning self-defense and discovers in the end that the application of knowledge gained by following high authority can be fatal. She tries to defend herself after her abduction by Denny and Andrew, but when she defends herself against Andrew, he kicks her out of the car and she is ki1led (unit 55).
The instances in the movie when Asta is portrayed as a person of low authority might seem to alter her position on the authority-assumed continuum toward the low-authority end of the continuum, but such is not the case. Two instances will serve to illustrate. In one scene early in the movie, 80
Asta is directed by the sergeant to take her bike to Curry’s repair shop and urged to make her stay in town brief. She complies with no protest beyond a flippant remark (unit 4).
In another scene at the end of the movie, she is berated by the sergeant, who asks her if she's "bloody satisfied" (unit
56). In both instances, Asta's role is defined for her by the sergeant, who assigns her low status on the basis of sex. As numerous incidents--already noted--in the movie show, Asta's expertise in traditionally male activities transcend the low status accorded women in the town, in effect neutralizing the few incidents when her authority is shown to be low.
As the embodiment of authority in Shame. Asta is the focal point of the continuum of authority assumed. Despite the recurrence of high authority on her part in four general areas, her use of that authority to provide a role model rather than to dominate others mitigates that high authority to the presentational point on the continuum. The instances of low authority, assigned to her on the basis of biology rather than on actual assessment of her authority, exert little influence in the overall presentation of her authority, which is based largely on the four areas of high authority and judged to be presentational.
End Result
Actual physical action is not a required result of the process of empowerment; the audience should be persuaded 81
that action could be taken and, if it were taken, that it would have the potential to be successful. Because physical action is not required, the end result of empowerment might
fall anywhere along a continuum from an individual's feeling differently to an individual's taking action that has an external impact on others.
Four types of end result are offered in Shame: No action; support for others who decide to take action; legitimate, sanctioned, or legal action; and illegal or violent action. The main female characters--Asta, Gran,
Lizzie, and Tina--engage in all three types of action, while the minor characters are the ones who do not take action.
Even in those instances where characters take little or no action, those scenes provide a starting point for character development that eventually results in some kind of action by that character. Gran, for example, takes nearly no action at all when Lizzie is brought home, the victim of sexual assault by a gang of punks. Gran provides psychological comfort, some physical support, and little else to Lizzie. "Just you lean on me," Gran tells Lizzie
{unit 8). While Gran provides comfort for the young woman, the minimal action itself does nothing but sustain the status quo via a tactical retreat into the traditional domain of women, the home. Lizzie's friend, Lorna, moves to the verge of action but draws back at the last moment; as
Lizzie and Lorna talk outside the grocery store, they agree 82
to meet at the police station to press charges against the
punks who have assaulted them in separate incidents (unit
29). Lorna, however, is persuaded to retreat from the steps
of the police station when her brother arrives: "For God's
sake, Lorna," he says, and she leaves without a further word
(unit 33). Neither Gran nor Lorna demonstrates confidence
in her ability to affect her environment positively
following these end results; Gran disappears into the house
with Lizzie, and Lorna walks away, head bowed, thoroughly
cowed by the presence of her brother.
A lack of action is not always seen as neutral or
negative, however. The peaceful nature of Asta's evening
walk to the cafe for a takeout hamburger and a shake is
threatened as she sits at the counter, but she takes no
action. One punk says, "Y'know, I gotta admit she scrubs up
all right for an old chick . . ," and another opines that
she looks "pretty butch in them trousers." Asta doesn't
rise to the bait, however, but simply leaves the cafe. She
reacts without anger when a third young man follows her
outside and invites her to the sports bar for a beer. She politely demurs and walks away with her meal (unit 10). Her
refusal to participate in the baiting or to accept the
invitation could be viewed as some sort of action, but hers
is a reaction, in contrast to action she will take later.
This reaction is not portrayed negatively, but Asta--unlike the women of the town— already has demonstrated that she is 83 a different type of woman from those in the town. She already has the confidence to deal with her environment and because this environment is temporary, she feels no need to take action at this point.
The first type of action, supporting another character, occurs a number of times as a first step toward other action. Gran, who plays a passive role during the first half of the movie, begins the transition to a stronger character as Tim is attempting to dissuade Lizzie from pressing charges against the perpetrators of the assault.
Tim wants his mother to back up his assertion that pressing charges woul(f be fruitless, so he looks to Gran: "Mum?" he pleads. "I've ironed your dress, love," Gran tells Lizzie.
Her response, to iron the dress Lizzie will wear to the police station, demonstrates that she believes the young woman's story and supports her decision to press charges
(unit 30). This end result of Lizzie's first step toward legal recourse is a small supporting action by an elderly woman whose dreams betray her concealed desire to live in another world. "I dream of it sometimes," she says. "Of walking on the moon" (unit 42). Gran demonstrates a new found confidence in dealing with her environment after ironing the dress: She supports Lizzie's desire to take action and confounds the man who expects Gran to support him. 84
Gran's support proves to be the final nudge Lizzie
needs to take action, but the initial impetus is provided by
supporting action by Asta. After Gran goes to work, while
Tim is busy in the shop, Asta walks into Lizzie's room.
"Lizzie," Asta says. "For what it's worth, I believe you"
(unit 21). Asta, who already has confidence, instills some of that confidence in Lizzie with her supporting action; the audience sees the resulting increase in Lizzie's confidence as Asta and Lizzie spend the day together, another act of support by Asta. Lizzie gets dressed, leaves the house, and
finds the confidence to face the public by going to the grocery store, where she and Lorna talk and agree to press charges (unit 28). Lizzie's increase in confidence is directly attributable to Asta’s supporting actions that began with a statement of belief.
Lorna arrives at a higher level of confidence through her support of Lizzie, who already has taken action. As the film nears its end, Lorna steps forward to demonstrate both her confidence and her support by telling the sergeant that she will appear at the police station in the morning: "I’ll be laying charges. And this time I'm not runnin' away"
(unit 57).
The second form of action Shame offers as an end result is legitimate action, such as legal action or other actions that are sanctioned by societal norms. After Asta is attacked by a gang of young men near the railway station, 85
for example, she appeals to the legal system for help. When
the sergeant characterizes the attack as "boys having a bit
of fun," Asta lists the offenses with which they should be
charged. Amused, the sergeant says, "Well, well. Bit of a
bush lawyer, are we?," to which Asta replies, "A barrister,
as a matter of fact." Even though the sergeant is visibly
impressed by her credentials, Asta soon realizes he has no
intention of mounting a serious investigation, so she begins
to list his failures in the eyes of the law. "All right,
Miss Barrister," the sergeant says* "Do you wanta lay
charges?" he asks. "No. Forget it. I couldn't be
bothered," she snaps, turning on her heel and walking away
(unit 18).
Following Lizzie's legal action, the suspects post bond; Asta seeks an injunction against the suspects, but no
injunction is issued (unit 39). In lieu of the legal protection an injunction would afford--legally barring the
suspects from approaching Lizzie--Asta gives Lizzie a self- defense lesson at the shop. The futility of legal action is
further demonstrated at the end of the movie, when Lizzie
seeks refuge in the police station (unit 47), is abducted
from the station (unit 53), and is killed by being kicked out of a moving car (unit 55). Lizzie's rising level of confidence through the movie culminates in her pursuit of
legal action. 86
A final form of action that Shame offers as an end result is violent or illegal action. Although Asta is the primary perpetrator of violence by women in the movie, others take part and with positive outcomes. Tina, for example, participates in the largely female posse that forms to track down Gran and Lizzie. The women find Gran, abducted by punks who flee at the sight of the posse. Tina tackles one of the punks, beats him into submission, and drags him back to face the late-arriving police. "Now do your jobs, useless bastards," Tina tells the officers (unit
52). Gran, too, finds that violence by females is rewarded.
Abducted by punks, she burns one in the face with a fire extinguisher and spits on another in an act of defiance.
"Fightin* back, are ya, Grandma?" jeers one. In the process of fighting back, Gran staves off the punks long enough to allow the posse to come to her rescue (unit 52).
Asta, as the main character, provides numerous examples of actions, primarily violent, that support the notion that
Shame not only advocates action but has a bias toward action that falls outside societal norms. After Ross is beaten by punks and Asta has to drive him to Rodolph's abattoir, Ross is insulted by Andrew Rodolph, After Andrew takes a swing at Ross, Asta punches Andrew. The incident signals the beginning of the other women's admiration of Asta. Reaction shots to Asta's punch show that the women, including Tina, approve of Asta's action (unit 14). 87
Another incident demonstrates Asta's violent self-
defense in the face of an attack as much more effective than
the noncommittal response from the police following the
attack- Women in the town often are subject to sexual
assault, but Asta eludes the same fate by punching and
kicking two punks and smashing the windshield of a third one's car. The ineffectiveness of the legal system is demonstrated when Asta reports the attack; in disgust, she declines to press charges (units 17 & 18). The law again is
impotent near the end of the movie when the sergeant is unable to crack the alibi of Andrew and Denny, the young men who abducted and killed Lizzie. Andrew confesses, however, as he watches an enraged Asta choke Denny and pound his head on the ground: "Tell me or I'll break your neck," Asta shouts. Andrew tells the police that Lizzie is at the quarry: Asta’s violence has accomplished what the law cannot (unit 56).
Despite Asta's lack of action in the early portions of the movie, Shame appears to privilege action as an end result for empowerment. Gran, Lizzie, and Tina are the main examples, but reaction shots of other women demonstrate their approval up to the climax of the movie. Although
Lizzie has been killed, her actions have inspired others;
Lorna, for one, intends to take action of her own.
The end result in Shame falls in four general categories: No action at all; actions of support; legal or 88
sanctioned action; and illegal or violent action. These end
results span the continuum, but not all four carry equal
weight. Lack of action, for example, generally is
attributed to minor characters in the movie, rendering it of
low value as an end result. Even when a major character
takes no action, the ensuing character development produces
action of some kind; Asta, Lizzie, Gran, and Tina all take
action during the movie. Actions of support, such as the
support both Asta and Gran show for Lizzie, also appear to
be preludes to further action.
Of the remaining two types of action, illegal or violent action is shown to have more immediate effect than
legal or sanctioned action; Asta escapes rape and assault by
taking violent action, for example, while Penny Ross
suffered a similar assault and received no redress through
the law. Violent action appears to be most effective
throughout the movie until Lizzie's attempt at self-defense ends in her death. Almost certainly, action is the preferred end result in Shame; what kind of action to take
is left open to question by the tragic climax. Despite
Lizzie’s violent death, the preferred type of action appears
to be illegal, violent action; the majority of positive
results that are shown during the movie are outcomes of violence. The end result in Shame, then, is placed in the area of action on the continuum; illegal action appears to be accorded slight preference. 89
Specificity of Options
The options that the creator of an artifact offers to
the audience may range across a continuum from the very
specific to the very vague. The specificity of options
spans a continuum from a particular action to action in a
general direction or category (such as violence) to no
action at all.
The options for empowerment presented in Shame are
specific. The implied history of the women in the town
warns the audience that the politics of capitulation result
in oppression, not empowerment. The macho swagger of the male populace and the looks of disbelief that are
commonplace whenever Asta dares to question male authority
are clue enough to the nature of the status quo: Men say
and do what they want, and women do as they are told. The
specific options of retreat, legal action, and physical violence are offered in Shame. with only the latter presented as an effective option.
The option of retreat is presented several times but does not result in positive effects for those who select it;
in fact, it results in even more harassment and oppression
for them. Lizzie's retreat into her home and family--as
represented by Gran's welcoming embrace--is not an effective option, for example. Retreat makes her an outcast and a target for lewd insults: Tim's employee, Gary, for example,
sees that Lizzie has been out with Asta, riding the 90 motorcycle, and uses that as an opportunity to mention that her reputation is such that people say she’ll "ride anything" (unit 26). Gary, fired after a confrontation with
Tim, returns that evening with his friends to paint "Beware of sluts" on the shop wall (unit 27). The women of the town are no more kind: "I've seen you at those . . . club dances. You got what was cornin' to you," one of them tells her in the grocery store (unit 28). Gran's desire to walk on the moon symbolizes the ultimate retreat and its ultimate futility (unit 42).
Asta's attempts to retreat by repairing her motorcycle or taking a bicycle ride are likewise futile. She attempts to retreat from the sheriff when he stops by the shop, hovering too closely for her comfort (unit 11). That retreat, in the form of a bicycle ride, also is stymied when she has a flat tire; Ross, the man who picks her up on a lonely country road, is severely beaten by the punks (unit
12). Whenever she attempts to retreat, Asta's space is invaded.
Another specific option the movie presents is legal action. The farcical nature of the town's legal system and the shortcomings of the law as an option for action are pointedly demonstrated in the movie. The revelation that
Asta is a barrister is used to demonstrate the ineffectiveness of the small-town legal system, for example.
After Asta is attacked by the gang, she finds the sergeant 91
at the cafe and presses him to take action. Even though the
sergeant is visibly impressed by Asta's profession, she can
see that he simply will go through the motions of an
investigation, a small improvement over the lack of
investigation of previous incidents. As a result, she declines to press charges (unit 18). On repeated occasions,
the name of Ross's wife, Penny— who did press charges for sexual assault--is invoked, almost as a mantra to discourage those who would use the legal system for redress. The woman
♦ w- pressed charges and became a laughingstock when the punks hired a high-powered lawyer to defend them. "You leave it to someone else to be brave, Lizzie. W e ’re gonna put all this behind us," Tim tells Lizzie, when she says she wants to press charges. He reminds her that after her decision to press charges, Penny Ross "was a joke" {unit 30). Lizzie determines to press charges anyway; in response, the gang members discuss hiring a lawyer, confident that they will be absolved of culpability (unit 32).
The final 20 minutes of the movie would be comic, were they not so tragic, in their depiction of the law's incompetence to protect the women of the town: The sergeant and his assistant arrive too late at every important juncture, also suggesting the futility of legal options (units 43-57). Not only do the police arrive late to apprehend the punks, but the punks already had been arrested earlier in the day. The fact that they were 92
running amok again only a few hours after posting bond
demonstrates the complete impotence of the legal option in
Shame■
In addition to the lack of an effective legal system,
use of the legal option results in retaliation in Shame■
After a few beers at the sports bar, Andrew and Denny
organize a "little drive" (unit 43) that results in an
attack on the repair shop (unit 44), Lizzie's flight from
the shop on the back of Asta's motorcycle (unit 45), and the
abduction of Gran (unit 46).
The only specific option that appears to have any
positive effect at all is violence. Asta as the lawyer is
ineffectual, but Asta the street fighter gets results. Not
only does she gain the wary respect of the men of the town by beating up punks, slugging the boss's son, and dumping a young man from the back of her motorcycle, but she gains the
respect of the women, as well, who soon begin to emulate her by standing up to the men. "Somethin’s got into these women," Denny complains at the sports bar (unit 43).
There is more than one option for empowerment offered
in Shame, but only one— violence— is offered as an effective one. Retreat is shown to invite more oppression, rather than less. Legal action either yields no results or results
in unchecked retaliation. As Asta tells Lizzie while demonstrating how to hurt a potential attacker: "You can't count on anyone, Lizzie" (unit 40). The primary option 93 suggested in Shame is very specific: Physical violence is recommended.
Arena for Options
The continuum that describes the arena for options runs the gamut from public to private settings. At the most private level, the text or performer might urge psychological change, behavioral change falls in the middle of the continuum, and change in an external system represents an arena for options at the most public end of the continuum. Although the arena for options presented in
Shame varies from the private to the public, the film favors the public arena. Even when characters in the film opt for the private arena, a ripple effect occurs, moving the arena from the private into the public realm.
The arena for options is illustrated throughout the movie by the interaction of Asta's example-setting actions and the increasing confidence exhibited by Lizzie and by the women of the town. As the female characters gain confidence, their demonstrations of that confidence become more and more public. Early in the movie, for example,
Lizzie shows a distinct lack of confidence. She stays in her room, dressed in her nightgown, and rarely ventures out.
This attitude begins to change after Asta decides to stay in town another day and tells Lizzie that she believes her version of the assault (units 20 & 21). Soon after this,
Lizzie and Asta begin the process of bonding; they swim together, and Lizzie soon realizes that Asta is not like the
other women she knows. Asta travels alone, she has a
boyfriend but is not married, and she has a different way of
dealing with men. "You must be rich," Lizzie decides.
"You’re not careful." "Maybe I haven't had to be," Asta
replies. In this scene, Asta and Lizzie are photographed
in a manner that suggests Lizzie is adopting some of Asta's
philosophy and that she will attempt to emulate Asta. Their
conversation is shot at eye level--just above the surface of
the water— so their similarities are emphasized; both are wearing white T-shirts, both have light brown hair, and
their hair is of similar length. Their reflections are visible in the water, lending credence to the inference that
Lizzie is becoming a mirror image of Asta or that Asta sees
Lizzie as a young version of herself.
Following their swim, Asta and Lizzie take a motorcycle
ride that ends in town; that Lizzie even dares to venture
into town is a demonstration that she has gained confidence
from Asta’s example. In addition to the first step of appearing in public, Lizzie takes two more: First, she enters the store where she will encounter people she knows at close range; second, she confronts those people. "Having a good old gossip, are you? Talking about me?" Lizzie says.
As a crowd gathers, Lizzie spots the mothers of some of the punks who assaulted her and vows to press charges against the young men. In keeping with the increasing confidence 95
she has gained from Asta's example, Lizzie’s actions become
more and more public. The ultimate expression of confidence
occurs at the most public of venues, the legal system:
Lizzie goes to the police station to press charges and tell
her story for all to hear (unit 33).
Suddenly, what was formerly covert has become a public
topic. In contrast to the scene in the abattoir, for example, where the women silently applaud the punch Asta
throws at Andrew Rodolph, women now talk about their problems with men. After Lizzie presses charges, a group of women gathers at the shop, having a drink in the sun. One woman who works at the abattoir says her husband refused to have sexual relations with her unless she cooked his dinner.
The others ask how she handled the situation, and she replies: "I got him his dinner" (unit 36). This new openness culminates in a drastic rise in the confidence of the women of the town near the end of the movie. In the past, they cooked dinner; by the end of the movie, they have formed a vigilante group that apprehends the males who have been terrorizing them (units 50-57).
Empowerment, the movie seems to suggest, begins with feeling better about oneself. Lizzie begins to feel better about herself after Asta talks with her, for example, but
Lizzie doesn't stay at home or even confine herself to her relationship with Asta; she demonstrates her new confidence in ways that are more and more public. The women of the 96 town, initially shocked at Asta's aggressiveness, eventually befriend her, begin to talk about their concerns, and finally appropriate some functions of law enforcement, taking action in more public ways.
In the final analysis, the arena for options in Shame progresses from the private to the public. Lizzie moves from the isolation of her room to a relationship with Asta to an emulation of Asta to the legal system. The women of the town progress from cowed acceptance of their plight to approval of Asta's actions to actions of their own that replicate public law enforcement. The arena for options, then, is a progression from the private to the public.
Nature of Spectator
The continuum for nature of the spectator describes the position in which the text places the spectator regarding empowerment. The text might place the spectator in a position that suggests the spectator has control or is dominant, is in a subordinate position, is in a position of parity, or is in an ambiguous position. Activities and experiences constructed into the text allow the audience to recognize portions of the text as being similar to parts of their lives, with attendant notions of being dominant or subordinate in those situations. Other inferences as to the dominance or subordination of the spectator can be drawn from the visual tone of the artifact, which can alter visual perspective to influence the spectator's perception of 97
dominance or subordination.
The nature of the spectator as constructed in Shame is
closely tied to Asta, who appears in nearly every scene in
the film and is the character with whom the audience chiefly
identifies. The omniscience of the audience— there are no mysteries in Shame, except for Asta's personal life--and the high authority ascribed to Asta result in numerous instances where the spectating position is dominant and few where the position is subordinate. Scenes of physical violence provide the basis for a dominant spectating position, but verbal confrontation also serves to establish such a position. The absence of Asta or other major female characters generally signals a scene in which the spectating position is ambiguous.
Asta's physical violence provides ample illustrations of a dominant spectating position. Because the audience identifies with Asta and because she physically prevails by beating up gang members and smashing a windshield, the fight in the alley provides such an illustration (unit 17). When
Asta strangles Denny to wrest a confession from Andrew, she again physically dominates another person. The camera work, shot from a high angle that emphasizes Denny's weakness and then from a low angle that creates the perception that Asta is extremely intimidating, reinforces the dominant spectating position identified with Asta. The audience fully believes Asta when she says, "Tell me or I'll break 98
your neck" {unit 56).
Non-physical confrontation on Asta's part allows for a
dominant spectating position as well. Her argument with the
sergeant over his lack of interest in investigating the
gang's assault against Asta allows the audience to align
itself with a clear winner. Not only does Asta win the war
of words by dipping into her barrister repertoire, but the
audience's perceptions of her physical characteristics are
manipulated through camera closeups at eye level that make
her appear to be the same size as the sergeant--a man taller
and heavier than she (unit 18).
The less frequent subordinate spectator position can be
found early in the movie before Asta has established herself
as an extraordinary woman in the smal1-town context. When
Asta arrives in the cafe for a burger and a shake, she is
flanked by punks, who make rude remarks about her as if she were not present ("Y’know, I gotta admit she scrubs up all
right for an old chick . . . "). The visual space created
for the audience is claustrophobia inducing: The camera angle is low, emphasizing that the men are larger than Asta;
in addition, the men are very close to either side of Asta, adding a sense of danger by their proximity. The three-shot
fills the screen, drawing the audience into the situation and creating a subordinate spectating position through
identification with Asta, who appears to be endangered. The final scenes of the film, which call into question all of 99
the actions of the previous 90 minutes, similarly undermine
the dominant spectating position. The final freeze frame of a haggard Asta, at the very least, nudges the spectating position in the direction of subordination; the audience, which identifies with Asta all through the film, now must re-evaluate everything she has done and most likely will not extend unqualified approval.
Because Asta establishes herself quite early in the film as one who can take care of herself, the opportunities for an ambiguous spectating position are reduced while she is on the screen. Neither Asta nor any other major female character is in evidence at the sports bar as the gang plans a "little drive" that terminates at Curry's repair shop; the spectating position for that scene seems ambiguous, partly because the young men are not strong characters and partly because the scene is largely transitional instead of confrontational. Such ambiguous scenes are rare in Shame, however, and do not weigh heavily in the overall evaluation of the nature of the spectator for Shame.
Shame provides a strong character throughout the film--Asta— with which the audience can identify. Not only is she imbued with high authority, but she appears in most of the scenes of the film. The audience that identifies with such a dominant character most likely will adopt a perspective to match. Asta dominates the film with physical violence and verbal confrontation; only rarely does she play 100 a subordinate role, and the spectating role mirrors hers.
Scenes that allow for ambiguity in the position of the spectator are similarly rare. The nature of the spectator for Shame, then, is judged to be dominant.
Duration
The continuum for duration of empowerment ranges from fleeting to permanent. An empowering moment or moments may result from interaction with a text, the entire experience of the text might be perceived as empowering, or the audience member might carry away a sense of empowerment from the performance. That sense of empowerment technically could stay with the audience indefinitely, becoming part of the processes of everyday life. As such, that process of empowerment would become, in effect, a permanent process.
Several sequences during the movie provide moments that most likely are perceived by the audience to be empowering at the time they occur. These take the form of verbal action and physical action.
During times of annoyance, the perfect retort to one's tormentor can be perceived as an empowering moment; Asta's reply to the gang's first approach provides such a moment when the gang shadows Asta and Tina as the two women walk to town. "Do you want something?" Asta asks the gang. "Yeah, wanna give it to us, honey?" one of them leers. "You couldn't cope with me, boys, so why don't you just piss off?" Asta replies (unit 16). Later, Asta berates the 101
sergeant for his lack of response to her complaint, much to
his discomfort. Her verbal jousting--which reveals her
barrister status to the sergeant, two women of the town, and
the audience--provides a moment in which her verbal action
is successful and also leaves open the possibility of
successful legal action. Asta walks away, however, saying
that she "couldn't be bothered" to press charges {unit 18).
Both scenes provide temporary assurance to the audience that
successful verbal action is possible.
Lizzie also demonstrates successful verbal action when
she accosts the gossiping biddies in the grocery store. Not
only do two of the other women of the town take her side in
the confrontation with the gang members' mothers, but Lorna
is inspired to promise that she will press charges when
Lizzie does (unit 29).
A moment of successful physical action occurs when the
punks trap Asta in an alley. She fends them off, smashing a
windshield in the process (unit 17). Asta provides another
moment of successful physical action when she offers a gang
member a ride on her motorcycle. Her riding lesson, in
which she flips the young man off the back of the
motorcycle, demonstrates successful physical action (unit
24). Her final physical action that meets with success occurs when she begins to strangle Denny; rather than watch
his friend die, Andrew confesses that he and Denny dumped
Lizzie near the quarry (unit 56). 102
Gran and the posse also provide examples of successful
physical action that provide empowering moments in the film.
Some members of the gang abduct Gran from the shop in the
tow truck (unit 46) and take her to an isolated area under a
bridge. Rather than succumb to the gang, Gran spits in one
gang member's face and struggles; she also manages to get
her hands on the tow truck's horn button. She fends off her
attackers long enough for the posse to rescue her (unit 52).
In the latter scene, physical effort by the posse also is
successful; the gang members are restrained until the police arrive to arrest them.
These scenes, where actions appear to have the potential for success, provide temporary respite from the overall oppressive world that is Shame but do little to negate the effect of the tragic climax. The empowering effect of Asta's strangle hold on Denny is seriously undermined when, in the following scene, Asta arrives to find Lizzie dead (unit 57). Although there are numerous moments in the film when successful action is taken, the empowering effects of such action most likely are of relatively short duration. During the fight in the alley, for example, the audience most likely will identify with
Asta's ability to fight her way out of a dangerous situation, but that feeling is temporary at best. Within the movie, the cumulative effect of Asta's actions are demonstrated best by the accumulation of support she garners 103 from the women of the town. At the end of the film, the gathering of women around Asta in the wake of tragedy offers some hope to the audience that the actions taken were not in vain; the audience members, therefore, might be expected to take some of that hope with them to the world outside the movie, at least temporarily. The duration of empowerment for Shame is judged to be temporary, lasting somewhat longer than the film itself.
Summary
The artifact of analysis for Chapter IV, Shame, was analyzed using the six dimensions of empowerment that comprise the schema proposed in Chapter II; the analysis for each dimension is summarized below.
Asta, the main character in Shame. defines the continuum of authority assumed; authority takes shape as a struggle between female and male authority in the movie.
Asta demonstrates experiential authority--high authority--in various ways: She has a visual association with power, she is a lawyer who challenges authorities, she has expertise in traditionally male domains, she successfully defends herself and others physically, and she serves as a role model for other women. She demonstrates low authority when she is depicted simply as a woman, a person with no status or authority in the town. Despite these extremes in Asta's authority, three reasons suggest Shame should be placed somewhere in the presentational area of the continuum for 104 authority assumed: (1) Asta uses her skills and experiences not to establish dominion over others but as a model for other women to follow; (2) she uses violence only to establish her rights as a citizen and not to gain authority; and (3) the instances of low authority are defined for her on the basis of her sex, a situation that she negates by her abilities to excel in traditionally male domains.
Four types of end result are offered in Shame: No action; support for others who decide to take action; legitimate, sanctioned, or legal action; and illegal or violent action. Action is the preferred end result in
Shame, although what type of action is preferred is unclear,
Lizzie's violent death notwithstanding, the majority of positive results in Shame occur following violent action.
The end result in Shame is placed at the action end of the continuum, with a slight preference for illegal or violent action,
Three options are presented in Shame that relate to specificity of options--all are specific, but two are shown to be ineffective. The option of retreat is presented several times but does not result in positive effects for those who select it; another specific option the film presents is legal action, but such action is shown to be fruitless. The only specific option for empowerment that appears to have any positive effect at all is violence;
Asta's violent actions, such as beating up punks who try to 105
assault her, pay immediate dividends. The primary option
suggested in Shame is specific: Physical violence is
recommended.
Shame favors the public arena, even though the arena
for options varies in the film. A ripple effect moves the arena from the private into the public realm, even when characters initially opt for action in the private arena.
The film seems to suggest that empowerment begins with feeling better about oneself but progresses to more public arenas as confidence increases. The arena for options in
Shame. then, progresses from the private to the public;
Shame does not fall on one spot on the continuum of arena for options but instead progresses across the continuum.
The nature of the spectator for Shame is closely tied to Asta, the character with whom the audience chiefly identifies. Both dominant and subordinate spectating positions can be seen when Asta is the focal point of the movie, while an ambiguous spectating position occurs when lesser characters are featured. Both physical violence and non-physical confrontation on Asta's part allow for a dominant spectator position. The subordinate spectating position also appears in Shame, but these instances do not carry the weight of the more numerous scenes that create a dominant spectating position. Ambiguity in terms of spectating position is rare in Shame; the few ambiguous scenes do not weigh heavily in the evaluation of the 106 spectating position for Shame, The audience identifies with the dominant character of Asta in Shame. leading to a preponderance of scenes that create a dominant spectating position. Asta rarely plays a subordinate role, and the
film rarely constructs an ambiguous scene; the spectator follows a similar pattern. The nature of spectator for
Shame is judged to be dominant.
Several sequences in Shame involving verbal action and physical action most likely are perceived by the audience to be empowering. The empowering effects of such actions most likely are of relatively short duration. however, and are undermined by the tragic ending. The increasing support
Asta gains throughout the film culminates in the final scene as the women gather around her, however, offering some hope to the audience that the actions were not taken in vain.
That hope, perhaps, will stay with the audience somewhat beyond the confines of the film. The duration of empowerment for Shame. then, is temporary, lasting somewhat longer than the film. CHAPTER V
ANALYSIS OF FIGHT THE POWER LIVE
The artifact that is the subject of analysis of Chapter
IV is a 1989 video release. Fight the Power Live. The title
song, "Fight the Power," was featured in a 1989 movie, Do
the Right Thing, directed by Spike Lee. Public Enemy, a rap or hip-hop group, is composed of 10 black males in their 20s who offer audiences a mixture of high-energy entertainment and social commentary. Three men, Flavor Flav, Chuck D, and
Terminator X, are the stars and are supported by the other seven, who dress in combat fatigues and project an image commensurate with their collective name, "Security of the
First World," or S1W.
Fight the Power Live features Public Enemy in concert as well as in offstage footage. The video does not attempt to replicate the concert experience for the viewer but uses a mix of images— a live performance in Nassau Coliseum, three prerecorded videos, offstage clips of the performers, and historical footage from the civil rights movement. Like the audio version of rap, which uses a multiplicity of sources--sampled by computer and reproduced forward, backward, and in many parts--to weave together a single
107 108
artifact, this rap video blends together a disparate array
of visual images to create an hour-long assault on the
senses.
The video opens with a clip of what is likely Malcolm
X's most famous speech, in which he stated the goal of the
civil rights movement as he saw it. The goal, he said, was
to bring into existence a society in which Blacks have all
the rights other human beings have "on this earth, in this day, which we intend to bring into existence by any means necessary." The members of Public Enemy display admiration
for him in several ways: His are the first words in Fight the Power Live: other taped statements by Malcolm X are used
in the video; the Public Enemy technician (a performer who operates much of the sound equipment) took Terminator X as his stage name; and Terminator X's equipment stand is decorated on the front with a large, lighted "X." No other individual from the early civil rights era is mentioned by name by Public Enemy in Fight the Power Live.
Following the Malcolm X speech, the members of Public
Enemy simulate a takeover of a television station as the opening credits roll. One of the sites of struggle for equality is the media; Fight the Power Live demonstrates the group's recognition that popular culture does not always reflect life outside the media and that there continue to be problems gaining access to mass media to disseminate a message that might be viewed as subversive. 109
Viewers next get a visual history lesson. Images of cops, dogs, fire hoses, and marches swirl through the video, along with footage of both anonymous and notable pioneers of the civil rights movement. The video cuts back and forth from the civil rights footage to concert footage, using the live performance as a soundtrack; offstage footage of Public
Enemy, fans, and other appearances by the performers are cut into the mix in this early portion, as they are throughout the video. The historical footage culminates with a newsreel titled The March on Washington: then the focus of the video shifts from the past and is brought up to date with a rights rally that provides the setting for "Fight the
Power" as performed on the Bedford-Stuyvesant set of Do The
Right Thing. The only individual referenced after "Fight the Power" is Malcolm X, suggesting that only he still has relevance for Public Enemy.
The performance of "Fight the Power" marks a turning point; after "Fight the Power," Fight the Power Live concentrates on the contemporary state of affairs for
Blacks. There is a video (shot in what appears to be an abandoned prison), which ends with Chuck D being hanged; another video condemns cocaine use and points the finger at
Whites, whose economic clout makes the drug industry viable.
Fictional news reports satirize media portrayals of Blacks and coverage of drug issues, and bogus commercials and public service announcements puncture consumerism and White 110
America's willingness to sell anything to anybody. Rappers
use computers to sample sounds from other performers; in
this case, Public Enemy uses video to sample history,
popular culture, and themselves.
Analysis
The analysis will follow the schema set forth in the
six dimensions of empowerment--authority assumed, end
result, arena for options, specificity of options, the
nature of the spectator, and duration. The unit of analysis
used is the genre; Fight the Power Live uses footage from a number of genres, real and simulated. The changes from genre to genre usually follow a change in the soundtrack, providing 16 units of analysis. This unit of analysis was adopted because virtually none of the footage comprises a complete episode in the traditional sense; the video careens
in and out of continuing story lines, across settings, and through performances. The complex structure of the video also adds difficulty to the task of distinguishing the boundaries between the 20 songs that are performed, rendering songs less useful as units of analysis.
Authority Assumed
Authority permeates Fight the Power Live. The authority attributed to the creator of an artifact can be categorized along a continuum that runs from great textual authority at one end to audience superiority at the other.
Falling somewhere between great textual authority and Ill audience superiority is the area of presentational expertise, in which the creator makes no claim to superior knowledge but instead relies on presentational skills the audience does not have to demonstrate similarities between performer and audience. In the presentational mode, the creator of the text demonstrates how the experiences of the audience and the creator are similar, but the rhetors have access to resources the audience does not. The rhetors in the case of Fight the Power Live are the members of Public
Enemy; their portrayal of their own authority and depictions of the power they fight place the artifact at the presentational point on the authority-assumed continuum.
The members of Public Enemy suggest that they have special skills as rappers and access to the music industry that allow them to present information to the public. This position is supported in the artifact by several elements of the artifact's visual tone, the lyrics, and the dialogue.
The visual tone of the video provides arguments for placing the artifact in the presentational area of the authority continuum; camera work, production values, setting, and costuming all play a role in supporting Public
Enemy as presentational rhetors. The concert footage from
Nassau Coliseum and the prison at Riker's Island favors the eye-level shot. Many videos replicate the concert experience by using low camera angles; such a shot looks like the view a front-row spectator would have, eyes at the 112
level of the performer's shoelaces. Such is not the case in
Fight the Power Live: Public Enemy does not rely on the
psychological dominance over the audience that a low-angle
shot affords the performer but instead builds a sense of
equality with its choice of shots. In addition, the concert
footage includes nearly as many shots of the audience as the
performers; most of the audience shots are eye level as
well. Performers and audience members, then, appear to be
nearly equal in importance in the video as a result of the
angle and frequency of shots.
In addition to the choice of shots, the production
values contribute to the presentational visual tone.
Footage from Japan, Riker's Island, London, and backstage at
Nassau Coliseum, for example, is as spontaneous and candid
as home video; the members of Public Enemy appear to be
friends that the audience follows around. Much of the
footage appears to be shot with a consumer-grade camera operated by an amateur videographer; the picture resolution
is lower than professional quality, the sound is muddy, and all the shots are taken from shoulder height with a moderately wide-angle lens, the usual technique of an amateur. The production values in these segments are similar to the production values of audience members' videos; the audience sees that Public Enemy is not privileging its experiences over those of the audience because they are using a technique audience members would 113 use to capture their own lives on video. If the Public
Enemy experiences were being privileged, they would be captured with much more technical skill.
Although some of the locales might sound exotic, the settings are very ordinary, and the activities that are captured in the home videos are similar to those that typically would characterize the audience: Flavor Flav flirts with a Japanese woman in a nondescript indoor setting
(unit 13); Chuck D walks the prison corridors and talks with prisoners, much as one might make the rounds in the neighborhood (units 3 & 8); Flav talks with an elderly
Londoner on the street, who takes his pulse (unit 6); Chuck and Flav argue because Flav has lost a watch that is important for the performance (unit 16). These activities— flirting, greeting people, talking with an elderly person, arguing with a friend--are similar to the experiences of the audience, captured in a style that resembles the audience members' own techniques for capturing such events. Even the
PETV segments (units 1 & 14) are produced so the audience is able to see the set and the cameras, demystifying the process of television broadcasting and demonstrating that the credibility of broadcast news is highly dependent on presentational skills (units 13, 8, 6, 16, & 14).
Setting, also part of the visual tone of the artifact, argues for placing Fight the Power Live at the presentational point on the authority continuum. Flav's 114
address to students, for example, takes place in a high
school gymnasium, a mundane and familiar place to many
members of the audience. The students are seated on cramped
bleachers, the kind that pull out from the wall, indicating
that this is a school that has had to optimize space; the
students are dressed casually in sweat clothes, jeans and
jackets. The scene appears to be an ordinary high school,
neither rich nor poor, a setting that would suggest
experiences similar to those of audience members who had
attended unextraordinary high schools (unit 15). The
interior of the prison--especially the assembly hall--is presented matter of factly: No attempt is made to impress
the audience with, for example, dramatic, low-angle shots of the facility. Such shots would tend to emphasize the
imposing physicality of prison and enhance its authority by placing the video audience in a submissive position (unit
8). The band's dressing room backstage looks like any other room that has been invaded by a group of young men: Clothes are strewn on the floor, pulled from suitcases and duffel bags that have been tossed aside. The room is a mess (unit
16).
Costuming is similarly presentational, with the possible exception of S1W in concert. Flavor Flav and Chuck
D wear street gear at the concert in Nassau Coliseum— sweat clothes, jeans, warmup jackets, athletic shoes, and ball caps. At the prison, they wear muted colors and loose 115
clothing that replicate the look of prison garb. At the
high school, they wear letter jackets. They dress like
their fans, in other words. The members of S1W wear combat
fatigues and carry firearms, adding an air of high authority
to the visual tone at first glance, but their function does not appear to be to intimidate the audience; members of S1W
are not in evidence when the three members of Public Enemy are on the street meeting their fans, for example. During
the concert footage, S1W does not create an obstacle between
Public Enemy and the audience. To the contrary, the members of S1W, by virtue of their placement at the flanks of the stage, appear to be providing protection for the audience as well as for Public Enemy. This logistical arrangement reinforces the notion that Blacks in general are under siege
from the "powers that be," promoting audience solidarity with Public Enemy rather than distancing the audience from the performers.
The dialogue and lyrics of the video reinforce the argument for placing Fight the Power Live in the continuum's presentational area. The lyrics of "Don't Believe the
Hype," for example, are aimed at promoting critical awareness in the audience that the media are not the sole arbiters of truth in society, but in the process, the members of Public Enemy do not portray themselves as superior authorities: "As an equal, can I get this through to you?" they rap (unit 9). They also point out that they 116 do not see themselves as authorities by tearing up their own publicity materials in cutaway footage during "Don't Believe the Hype," creating a visual double-entendre that serves to emphasize the lyrics with a related image on the screen.
The publicity materials they destroy are hype--that have
"Don’t believe the hype" written on them.
A bit of on-stage dialogue also demonstrates Public
Enemy as presentational rather than authoritative: When
Flav is preparing to perform a number in which he is the featured performer, he tells Chuck D while on stage, "Yo,
I ’m gonna do my dance, man." Replies Chuck, "Ya gotta ask the crowd" (unit 10), demonstrating the nearly egalitarian nature of the dynamic operating between performer and audience. In this case, Public Enemy does not claim the authority to demonstrate its presentational skills without the consent of those who will witness the presentation and asks for validation of those skills from the audience.
Another example of the presentational attitude of
Public Enemy occurs on Riker's Island when Flav tells the inmates: "I was in the position that y'all are in now. I was here, too" (unit 8). Flav is emphasizing the similarities in the experiences that he and the audience have had, demonstrating that any special expertise he has lies in presentational skill, not in superiority of experience. Similarly, Chuck D says at a press conference in the prison, "But when I walk outside from Riker's Island, 117
I still have to face society as a Black man, whether I do
this music or not" (unit 8). He is emphasizing that he,
like members of his audience, daily faces some form of
oppression even though he is a star. Another example of the
presentational stance occurs in "Rebel Without a Pause,"
where the lyrics emphasize that the performers and the
audience share similar experiences: "No matter what the
name--we're all the same/Pieces in one big chess game" (unit
12).
The members of Public Enemy seem to sum up their
presentational expertise in "Prophets of Rage":
I’m considered the man I'm the recordable But God made it affordable I say it, you play it Back in your car or even portable Stereo (unit 15)
These men are "recordable" because they have superior
presentational skills, but no doubt they are aware that
there are rappers on street corners all across the United
States who never will get recording contracts even though
they have had experiences similar to those of the members of
Public Enemy. Flav emphasizes his special presentational
expertise by crooning a parodied line from "I'm in the Mood"
and singing it very poorly--”I'm in the mood for Flav/Just because Flav is near me" (unit 10). He is demonstrating
that he is not a singer but a rapper, which requires a different kind of presentational skill than singing does
(unit 10). The video’s depictions of Public Enemy's public
appearances other than at concerts also provide examples of
Public Enemy's presentational level of authority. Educating
youth to the pitfalls of street life is one example; Flav
addresses high school students in a gymnasium, talking about
the undesirable results of such a life. Relatively few
people are asked to address high school assemblies; clearly,
Flav's fame makes this appearance possible. Nonetheless,
his statement that "[djrugs turn you into the bugs" does not derive from experience or ideas that are superior to those of the high school or video audience; he is speaking from a realm of experience that is shared by many. A similar example is the press conference at Riker's Island; band members use the occasion to speak directly to the press and explain their views on how the media portray Blacks.
Because of their fame and thus their access to the media, the members of Public Enemy are able to gain a forum for airing their views, but what they say easily could be said by many others.
The level of authority in Fight the Power Live is not entirely presentational; a more authoritative side of Public
Enemy appears on occasion. As one fan says, "What they're sayin' and what they're tryin' to do is uplift the Black youth" (unit 1), a statement that suggests the members of
Public Enemy have superior experiences and knowledge to be used on behalf of others, raising those with inferior 119
experiences to Public Enemy's level. Chuck D*s dialogue
corroborates that analysis and also demonstrates that Public
Enemy privileges, to a certain extent, its own knowledge:
"You got to give the kids a little bit of what they want,
you got to tell 'em what they need to know in order to keep
them from failin' into the traps that's set for them" (unit
1). The double title of SlU's Professor Griff, Minister of
Information, also suggests a high level of authority, but
Griff's role in the video is limited, and his titles appear
on screen briefly. These instances that depict Public Enemy
operating at a level of authority that privileges its
experiences and knowledge over those of the audience do not
seriously undermine the generally presentational tone of the performance.
The visual tone of the video, with its emphasis on the performers rather than on a glitzy video product during the concert footage, its eye-level shots, its shots of the audience, and the amateur footage interspersed at various points, reinforces the presentational aspects of the dialogue and the lyrics. The instances where Public Enemy
appears to be operating in a high-authority mode have little
effect on the performance overall; Fight the Power Live
falls in the presentational area of the continuum of authority assumed. 120
End Result
Actual physical action is not a required result of the process of empowerment; the audience simply should be persuaded that action could be taken and, if it were taken, that it would have the potential to be successful. Because physical action is not required, an empowering artifact might fall anywhere along a continuum from an individual's feeling differently to an individual's taking action that has an external impact on others. There appears to be a recognition on the part of Public Enemy that external action is not to be expected from everyone in the audience, but everyone can benefit psychologically from the performance.
Fight the Power Live falls at the action point on the continuum of end result, although not all the action advocated is external. Public Enemy calls for various actions: Gaining knowledge; organizing seminars, press conferences, and rallies; and stopping the drug trade.
Knowledge is an end result that is advocated by Public
Enemy in dialogue and lyrics. Chuck D, for example, notes,
"We got to teach ourselves how to deal, because we have twice as many obstacles to face" (unit 3). At Hiker's
Island, he talks about knowledge and television: "And if you ain't got no information, you're gonna do what you're gonna do, blind," he says, adding, "The country is brainwashed by the medium of television, so there's really no understanding or getting into a subject ..." (unit 8). 121
Professor Griff states the agenda very clearly: "I can
handle what Public Enemy's saying— it’s a mind revolution"
(unit 8). Knowledge is addressed explicitly in the lyrics
of "Prophets of Rage":
Left or right, Black or White They tell lies in the books That you're readin* It's knowledge of yourself That you're needin', (unit 15)
Public Enemy also calls for external action that
resembles the group's actions as depicted in the video and
that seems designed to provide impetus to the knowledge
process mentioned in the dialogue and the lyrics. Chuck D
calls for such action as he addresses a crowd of extras that
is assembled on the set of Do the Right Thing. (Public
Enemy provided much of the sound track for Do the Right \ Thi nq . The "Fight the Power” video— packaged as part of the
Fight the Power Live video--was directed by Spike Lee, who also directed Do the Right Thing.) Chuck D tells the crowd:
Yo, check this out, man, we rollin' this way. That march in 1963? That's a bit a nonsense. We ain’t rollin' like that no more. Matter of fact, the young Black America, we rollin' up with seminars, press conferences, and straight-up rallies, am I right? We gonna get what we got to get cornin' to us, word up. We ain’t goin' out like that '63 nonsense. (unit 5)
With his repudiation of the 1963 march as "nonsense" and the notion that seminars, press conferences, and rallies are somehow different from the older strategies, Chuck D appears to be describing a version of the civil rights movement that is more dependent on participants' individual 122
knowledge and on direct access to the media than on the visual spectacle of thousands of marchers. Nonetheless, the
"Fight the Power" segment has all the trappings of a civil
rights march, complete with megaphones and signs, showing
that Public Enemy's new civil rights movement still has some
things in common with the movement of three decades ago.
Signs carried in the rally hint at other external actions that are advocated, as well, such as voting and working to end racial violence.
Stopping the drug trade, specifically that of Blacks selling cocaine to other Blacks, is another external action
Public Enemy favors. A recording of Malcolm X is used to introduce "Night of the Living Baseheads," a rap about using and dealing cocaine. On an audiotape that Terminator X plays during the concert in Nassau Coliseum, Malcolm X says:
Have you forgotten . . . when we were brought here, we were robbed of our name, robbed of our language, we lost our religion, our culture, our god, and many of us by the way we act, even lost our minds, (unit 3)
That Public Enemy believes drugs have caused many Blacks to lose their minds is evident from the lyrics of "Night of the
Living Baseheads," the rap that follows Malcolm X:
Here is a true tale Of the ones that deal Are the ones that fail . . . And brothers try to get swift an' Sell to their own, rob a home While some shrivel to bone Like comatose walkin' around . . . Shame on a brother when he deal in' The same block where my 98 be wheelin’ And everybody know 123
Another kilo From a corner from a brother to keep another-- Below . . . This stuff is really bad I'm talkin’ bout BASS (unit 3)
Public Enemy is telling the Black members of its audience
not to sell cocaine in their own neighborhoods. The final
two lines quoted here are a pun: Bass in music often is
complimented by calling it bad--a language inversion typical
of Black English. On the other hand, when talking about
freebasing cocaine, the stuff literally is bad, turning people into walking zombies who rob from their neighbors, as
described in the lyrics. That image is reinforced in a PETV
news segment, in which the reporter visits a basehead's
house: The basehead's wife is a victim of domestic violence, there is little furniture, and there is no food
for the children to eat (unit 14).
Action, both internal and external, appears to be the desired end result in Fight the Power Live. Audience members who rid their neighborhoods of drugs would be making a positive contribution, for example. Rallies, seminars, and press conferences are seen as actions that might effect positive changes, and the rally that is staged in the video
includes signs that recommend voting and ending racial violence. On the other hand, simply having knowledge of the
issues also appears to be an adequate end result; the blend of external action and internal changes that are suggested
in the video place it toward the action end of the continuum 124 of end result.
Specificity of Options
The options offered to the audience in an artifact may range across a continuum from the specific to the vague.
The audience is not necessarily told what to do, but various options are available for exploration. The specificity of options can span a continuum from a particular action to action in a general direction or category (such as violence) to no particular action at all. Public Enemy offers a number of specific options: Divesting oneself of gold, committing illegal acts, abolishing the death penalty, marching in rallies, seminars, press conferences, and voting. Three options that are somewhat less specific also are offered: Becoming acquainted with African culture, resisting White authority, and ending racial violence. Many different routes can be selected to achieve these latter three goals; the means are not specified in Fight the Power
Live. The artifact is positioned, then, toward the specific end of the continuum for specificity of options.
A specific option that is designed to foster solidarity among Blacks is offered in a vignette with an anti-gold message, one of several vignettes that break up the video in much the same way that advertising interrupts commercial television. On the screen, a young man and his friends act out a scene in which he decides to throw away his gold chain and start wearing an African medallion. The scene is played 125 out among several people and between two settings, while a two-person dialogue plays on the audio track. The protagonist of the sequence, a man in his 20s, leaves a living room setting and arrives on a street corner, where he meets two older men dressed in traditional African garb.
The younger man trades his huge gold chain— which is tossed into a trash can— for an African necklace. When the younger man returns to the living room, he and his friend celebrate their solidarity with an embrace and a handshake as the dubbed-in dialogue plays. The dialogue occurs between two men:
First man: Gold is played out .... Pick up on your culture. Pick up an African medallion .... Gold brain is better than gold chain any day. Yo, gold. We don't own it, so why wear it. Second man: Yo, man I see how you do. I see how you do. {unit 4)
The specific option offered to the audience members is for them to divest themselves of gold, a substance that is owned and controlled by Whites who run the economic systems of the country.
Illegal actions are a specific option that arises from the segment titled "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos."
Chuck D is shown as a victim of a society that wants him to join the Army, but he is innocent of the charges because
"I’m not a citizen"; that is, he doesn’t have the rights of a citizen. In addition, a guard is killed during the prison riot; that is the crime for which Chuck D is executed, a crime that was instigated by the society that unjustly 126 imprisoned him. Others escaped, however ("we are gone"), so resistance to White authority was, in part, successful.
The option of abolishing capital punishment also is offered by "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos." As the camera cranes upward, Chuck D's face is framed by a noose while he raps, "This is what I mean— an anti-nigger machine." At the presumed moment of hanging, which is not shown on screen, the reaction shot of the warden shows his head jerking back, as if he, too, is being hanged. The implication is that Whites running the justice system are hurting themselves by executing Blacks and that all people are hurt by capital punishment. This very brief portion of the video offers another specific option to the audience.
Other examples of resistance to White culture are offered during "Night of the Living Baseheads," which includes various cutaways to PETV news and commercials. In one segment, rapper MC Lyte, who is not a member of Public
Enemy, plays the role of a television news reporter, Lyte and a camera crew invade a Wall Street boardroom. Inside, she finds White executives freebasing cocaine. This suggestion that the drug trade is run by Whites to the detriment of Blacks is reinforced by a graphic in the video that depicts the White House as the teeth in a grinning skull: "CRACK HOUSE" is written above the skull; "WHITE
HOUSE" is written below. Further reinforcement is provided by the words of the song, which imply that justice is 127
corrupt: "Check out the justice--and how they run
it/Sellin, smellin'/Sniffin', riffin'" (unit 14).
The option of resisting White culture is developed
further in a commercial that features a White man selling
"Beeper Tie," a reference to the use of beepers by drug
dealers (unit 14). The commercial is an obvious reference
to White capitalists who hypocritically make money by
selling products that help keep Blacks oppressed by removing
the incentives to engaging in legitimate enterprises in
favor of such activities as drug dealing. Public Enemy's
scorn for such activities is apparent; the options offered
are ending the drug trade as an act of resistance to White
authority and resisting consumerism that feeds White
authority economically.
The rally for "Fight the Power" (unit 5) is another
example of specific programmatic options that Public Enemy
presents. The rally itself is an option, but during the
rally, Chuck D and the other participants provide other options. Just before the music starts, Chuck D offers two
specific programmatic options, seminars and press
conferences. After the music starts, the camera offers multiple views of the rally; hundreds of people sing, dance, march, and carry banners and signs. The signs offer clues to two other options; the specific, programmatic option named on a sign is voting. 128
Other options are offered in Fight the Power Live, but they are less specific than those just discussed. A larger issue addressed in the anti-gold commercial--and another, less specific option--is to become acquainted with and draw from one’s own heritage and culture and to recognize that
Black participation in White culture constitutes a submersion of Black culture. In the anti-gold sequence,
African culture is offered as an alternative to White culture. The audience is being urged to forsake White culture in favor of getting in touch with its African heritage.
Another less specific option--that of resistance to
White authority--is offered in the segment, "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos." This segment is a separate production that--like "Fight the Power"--has a different producer and director than Fight the Power Live. Although the video’s nominal topic is a prison riot, the ending— in which the protagonist, Chuck D, is hanged--demonstrates that it is not to be taken literally but rather as a statement of a cultural condition. Resistance begins for Chuck D when he ignores a draft notice from the Army and is arrested. From that point on, he is confined to a Black society in prison with boundaries defined by the White authorities. In the end, the lyrics note that there are "53 brothers on the run, and we are gone" (unit 11); the prisoners, except for Chuck
D, were able to break out of White confinement. Chuck D is 129
hanged for killing a guard during the prisoners* uprising.
A final option that belongs in the somewhat less
specific area of the continuum is offered in the rally
during the "Fight the Power" segment. A sign urges an end
to racial violence; like the other two less specific
options, the goal is named, but specific means to achieve it
are not named.
With almost no exception, the options offered in Fight
the Power Live are specific. Options offered to the
audience are: Divesting oneself of gold, committing illegal
acts, abolishing the death penalty, marching in rallies, seminars, press conferences, voting, becoming acquainted with African culture, resisting White authority, and ending racial violence. Fight the Power Live falls toward the specific end of the continuum for specificity of options.
Arena for Options
The continuum that describes the arena for options runs the gamut from public to private settings. At the most private level, the text or performer might urge psychological change; behavioral change falls in the middle of the continuum; and change in an external system represents an arena for options at the most public end of the continuum. Fight the Power Live can be positioned at more than one place on the continuum of arena for options, spanning the range from private to public. 130
The collective name for the performers--Public Enemy—
suggests a public arena for options. Although the name
conjures up images of a Hollywood crime movie,
Cutler's (1862) description of slavery as a public enemy
that ought to be abolished seems a more likely origin for
the name. The use of "public" in the name, which references
slavery, suggests a public institution that ultimately was
eliminated by armed conflict following less extreme
political measures, thus keeping the public arena for
options at the forefront. The lyrics of "Bring the Noise"
indicate that the performers are taking public action and
incurring institutional wrath--the sale of their records
being confined by the "cell" of censorship--for their
willingness to speak out in public and endorse Louis
Farrakhan, another controversial public figure:
Now they got me in a cell 'cause my records they sell Cause a brother like me said, "Well . . . Farrakhan's a prophet and I think you ought to listen to what he can say to you, what you ought to do." Black is back, all in, we're gonna win Check it out, yeah y'all here we go again Listen for lessons I'm saying inside music that the critics are blasting me for. (unit 7)
The range of subjects and possible remedies suggested
in the dialogue and lyrics of the artifact also point toward the public arena as being a viable option in the opinion of the creators. Chuck D, for example, suggests a public arena with this comment: "This is how to deal with America 'cause
America is dealin' with us" (unit 3). The use of 131
"America"— the larger culture— and "us"--the submerged Black culture--implies that options are to be exercised in a public arena where clashes among large groups of people might occur. The drug problem, addressed twice in separate performances of "Night of the Living Baseheads," is a public problem; there is a strong implication that Blacks should take action to address the drug problem, an action that would require the use of a public arena: "Shame on a brother when he dealin'/The same block where my 98 be wheelin'" (unit 3).
The examples of personal action taken by the performers suggest the public arena: Flav's address to high school students concerning the street life (unit 15), for example, and the performers' interaction with and performance for prisoners on Riker's Island (unit 8} also suggest a public arena for options. Schools and prisons are not lucrative venues for big-name recording acts, so Public Enemy’s motivation for appearing at both places most likely was not financial. Both types of institutions do have an impact on social problems, however, and both are funded with public money. In both cases, the performers address public issues; at the high school, the issue is street life, and in prison, the issue is black representation in the media. The logical inference is that the arena for options suggested by these appearances is public. 132
The use of civil rights footage also suggests the public arena by association with activists of the past who
chose highly public routes in their quest for equal rights.
Many scenes from the struggles of the 1960s are used: A crowd of Whites taunting a Black man, firehoses turned on demonstrators, a burning cross, a policeman striking a Black man with a rifle butt, a Ku Klux Klan rally, Black Panthers,
Angela Davis, Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, and the 1963 march on Washington (units 2, 3, & 5). All of these show the struggle for rights as one that occurs in a public arena. The suggestion seems to be that the forum--the public arena— is still valid, but a more radical approach is needed. The lyrics of "Party for Your Right toFight" pay homage to the rightness of the more radical approach: "This party started right in '66/With a pro-Black radical mix . . . " (unit 3) .
On the other hand, there is a more private arena that is acknowledged in Fight the Power Live, one that centers on private actions that audience members might take that eventually could result in change in a more public arena.
These primarily take the form of knowledge: Knowledge of culture, awareness of self, and critical awareness of perceived biases of the mass media. Knowledge of culture is exemplified by the anti-gold commercial in which one man tells another, "Pick up on your culture," enacted by the wearing of an African medallion. "Gold brain is better than 133 gold chain any day," he says (unit 4). In another commercial, Flav pitches his own brand of cereal, which consists of little clocks: "Eat this cereal and you’ll know what time it is, you know what I'm sayin?" (unit 10). What he is saying is that buying the Public Enemy product is one way for audience members to gain an understanding of what is happening around them. This is, however, a bogus product.
The cereal purchase, as well as the language, is metaphorical, and Flav is urging the audience toward self- knowledge (unit 10). Another example of a more private arena for options is the performers' exhortations to view the media--and critics within their own peer groups— with a critical eye, as in "Don't Believe the Hype": "Some perpetrate, they drink Clorox/Attack the Black, cause I know they lack exact/The cold facts ..." (unit 9). Adopting such a critical perspective at the individual level, a relatively private arena, eventually would yield results in a more public arena, but the initial impetus is provided by action at the private end of the arena continuum.
Fight the Power Live is positioned at various points on the continuum of arena for options. Suggestions range from public to private: Speaking out in public on recordings; speaking out in other public arenas, such as prisons and schools; adapting the public techniques of civil rights pioneers; and gaining knowledge of culture and of self at a private, individual level. The arena for options suggested 134
by the members of Public Enemy, then, covers the continuum
from private to public.
Nature of Spectator
The continuum concerned with the nature of the
spectator describes the position in which the text places
the spectator regarding empowerment. The text might place
the spectator in a position that suggests the spectator has
control or is dominant, is in a subordinate position, or is
ambiguous. The spectating position for a text might vary
among these three areas as the text develops. The world
that is created within the artifact, activities and
experiences constructed into the text, and visual tone of
the artifact all might influence the spectator's perception
of dominance or subordination.
Fight the Power Live is an example of an artifact that
demonstrates the full range of spectator positions,
careening from the dominant to subordinate to ambiguous
positions at various times throughout the 60 minutes of the
artifact. The dominant spectator comes into play during
scenes where the audience can assume the role of omniscient
observer, especially those scenes where the camera operates
in subjective mode, allowing the audience to participate
vicariously in the scene. Examples of those scenes occur when Public Enemy commandeers a television station (unit 1); when Public Enemy organizes a civil rights march (unit 5); when Public Enemy plays a concert on Riker’s Island (unit 135
8); and in the concert footage from Nassau Coliseum, which
runs throughout the video. Examples of subordinate
spectatorship occur when the historical footage predominates
(units 2 & 3) and in the "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos"
segment (unit 11). An ambiguous spectating position results when Public Enemy attempts to satirize television, possibly
as a result of using the television medium to critique
television (unit 14). The dominant, subordinate, and
ambiguous spectating positions in Fight the Power Live are discussed in more detail below.
The dominant position is evident from the video's beginning. The video opens on a hopeful note, featuring a
fallen hero, Malcolm X, making a forceful statement about equality. The text of his statement implies a certain
inevitability, a belief that equality will arrive "in this society, on this earth, in this day." The brief statement
is followed by successful action--taking control of a television station— which the audience sees in great detail.
The cinema verity style, the subjective angles taken by the camera, and the strobe effect that depicts the action in animated snapshot style capture the event in a manner that suggests the audience is participating in this successful action (unit 1). Identification with and vicarious participation in a successful action create the feeling that there is potential for other successful actions. The spectating position, therefore, is one of dominance and 136 control through visual tone that reinforces the perception of participation in the action.
The rally in Bedford-Stuyvesant that comprises the
"Fight the Power" video works in much the same way to create dominant spectatorship. This rally stands in stark contrast to the rallies and protests that are seen in the historical footage that is used in Fight the Power Live. No police officers, fire hoses, attack dogs, or Hu Klux Klan members make an appearance at Public Enemy's rally, so the ideas that are being presented are being heard, not suppressed.
Much of the footage is shot at eye level, there are numerous closeups of rally participants, and everyone who appears on screen is singing the same song in a display of unanimity.
The song itself has an anthemic, hypnotic quality, as it repeatedly urges listeners to "fight the powers that be."
The camera acts as the audience member's surrogate, witnessing and participating in a successful event; the members of Public Enemy occasionally break the fourth wall by mugging for the camera, just as they mug for other participants in the rally (unit 5). The position of the spectator, then, seems to be omniscient and dominant.
The performance on Riker’s Island, which also includes footage from a press conference, often takes the perspective of the members of Public Enemy--a group of people engaging in a successful activity. Camera position almost always keeps the audience for the video away from a perspective 137
that could be interpreted as being from the inmates'
position— a position that would be subordinate in the
extreme* Instead, the camera is quite often positioned in
proximity to the performers, and the audience often sees the
scene from the perspective of the members of Public Enemy.
Parts of the press conference, for example, show the press
corps as Public Enemy would see it from the stage. In
addition, inmates most often are seen from a distance and
rarely in closeup; quite frequently, they are seen behind
bars and other barriers, a perspective that distances the
audience from the inmates. The camera angles and distancing
devices adopted in the sequence encourage the audience to
identify with Public Enemy--a successful group of people--
and discourage identification with the inmates. The
dialogue reinforces the feeling that Public Enemy is a success when Chuck D looks straight at a bank of television
cameras and says, "The country is brainwashed by the medium of television . . . ", a remark that exhibits a confidence born of success (unit 8). The identification of the audience with the successful persons in the sequence— a vicarious participation in the experience--suggests a dominant spectating position.
The concert footage that is sprinkled throughout the video also suggests a dominant spectating position through
identification with the successful members of Public Enemy.
The video audience is privy to the best seat in the house: 138
The perspective generally is at eye level with the performers, suggesting that the audience enjoys equity with
Public Enemy; the pace of the music and the editing are rapid, suggesting life and activity; the message conveyed by the performers is positive, rather than negative, showing the members of the audience what can be done to better their situation rather than simply pointing out that the situation is poor; and the audience is able to identify with Public
Enemy because of these factors, allowing the audience to share in the success that Public Enemy is having. This vicarious success suggests that the spectator for the concert sequences is a dominant one.
Other aspects of the video create a subordinate spectating position for the audience. The civil rights footage that commands the audience's attention through much of units 2 and 3 creates a visual world where even those who are sworn to protect others attack them instead. Due to technical limitations of the era, the footage is black and white and often of poor quality by today's standards; the grimness of black and white and the erratic quality of the footage add to the sense of an artifact created under duress. The representational qualities of the images are grim as well, with footage of Whites taunting Blacks, Black protesters hit with a full-force stream of water from a fire hose, Blacks attacked by White police officers and their dogs, white-robed KKK members burning a cross, the Reverend 139
Martin Luther King in jail, and the like. The world presented in this footage is one in which every effort to achieve equality is thwarted, often by violent official action.
Although this archival footage is interspersed with concert and other footage, the impact of this visual history lesson casts a pall over both units in which it appears.
Viewing this material, audience members would get a sense of the size of the task that faced civil rights pioneers; this visual entry into the violent milieu of the early 1960s would allow the audience to confront vicariously the obstacles of those days and suggests a subordinate spectating position similar to the subordinate position that
Blacks occupied when Jim Crow ruled the South.
A similar feeling of subordination infuses the video within the video, "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos." The screen space constructed in the video is dark, moody, and claustrophobic, befitting the grimy prison setting. Low- angle shots are used to demonstrate the power that the White guards hold over the Black inmates. Violence and chaos prevail as the inmates riot, take six guards hostage, and kill one. Yet, the conclusion of the video, in which Chuck
D is hanged, seems inevitable given the limited space the inmates inhabit and the unlikely possibility that they actually can breach the bars and the doors of the prison, and the concertina wire that surrounds it. The feeling on 140 watching this segment is that the prisoners are wreaking havoc on their own space and on themselves but are having little effect on anyone else. The audience has little choice but to identify with the prisoners in this sequence; other people rarely appear on screen, and much of the footage is taken from the perspective of a prisoner who is involved as the riot develops. The spectating position suggested in this sequence, then, is subordinate.
The spectating position becomes ambiguous when Public
Enemy embarks on its satire of television (unit 14). What position the spectator might assume somehow gets lost, possibly because the satire is aimed at a medium that is in use at the time of the performance. How does the spectator react to a performance that suggests that the very medium on which the performance appears is a major factor in oppressing the audience member? Satirical news segments suggest that television news treats drug addiction and domestic abuse superficially, for example, contributing nothing to solving problems and perhaps exacerbating them.
The spectator in this case might be dominant by virtue of being privy to a critical perspective that understands the mechanisms of media oppression. On the other hand, the spectator might be subordinated by simply tuning in and therefore conspiring to perpetuate the oppressive medium.
The spectating position, then, is ambiguous during the satirical segments aimed at the media. 141
Fight the Power Live demonstrates the full range of spectating positions. Examples of the dominant, subordinate, and ambiguous spectating positions all exert influence on the artifact as a whole. One spectating position, then, does not fully describe the artifact.
Duration
The continuum for duration of empowerment ranges from fleeting to permanent. There may be an empowering moment that occurs during the course of a performance, the entire performance might be perceived as empowering, or the audience member might carry away a sense of empowerment from the performance. That sense of empowerment could stay with the audience indefinitely, a sense that becomes part of the processes of everyday life. As such, that process of empowerment would become, in effect, a permanent process.
Fiaht the Power Live emphasizes change in the personal and social status quo; such changes, whether they involve knowledge of self or social action, either will not come about easily in the short term or will result in changes that have lasting effects. The choices of subject matter, such as problems with drugs and violence among Blacks, also imply a long-term process due to the complexities of the problems. If the audience for the video remembers the lessons given or acts on the ideas presented, the implication is one of long-term or permanent empowerment. 142
Public Enemy demonstrates its sensitivity to the long term view by the subject matter of the dialogue and songs and with visual tone throughout the video. Among the last words of dialogue are Flavor Flav's admonition to high school students: "Lemme tell you, man, drugs turn you into the bugs." He is describing the fatal results of involvement with the short-term lure of a glamorous street life spent dealing drugs. That speech is offered in proximity to "Prophets of Rage," the song that advises listeners, "It's knowledge of yourself/That you're needin'"
(unit 15). A listener who heeds such advice is taking action that will have lengthy effects. A Philadelphia fan has heard the message: "They tryin' to get people off the pipe, you know there's a lot of people out here on crack.
They tellin' us crack not what it is, you know what I'm sayin', they tryin' to put us down" (unit 1). (Down is interpreted here to mean close involvement with a situation, an involvement that implies agreement. The speaker, in other words, believes Public Enemy is trying to persuade the audience to get down with its perspective that crack is not good--"not what it is.")
Other examples show the concern with long-term issues, such as Chuck D's reference to the 1963 march on Washington and the strategies that "young Black America" will use to get its civil rights (unit 5). The use of non-concert images throughout the video emphasizes the lengthy duration 143 of the process: Footage from the civil rights movement of the 1960s is sprinkled through the artifact; reality-based and fictional footage from prisons also is used, adding to the sense that the problems being discussed require long term solutions (units 2, 3, 5, 8, 9, & 11).
There is a sense of progression in the artifact that helps build a belief on the part of the audience that successful action is possible. The civil rights footage primarily is used in the first half of the video; the rally that provides the setting for "Fight the Power" occurs after
Chuck D declares that different strategies will be used, rather than following the path set by the "nonsense" of
1963. Visual references to the Black Panthers, Malcolm X, and Angela Davis, in addition to references to the Panthers in the lyrics of "Party for Your Right to Fight," suggest that Chuck D believes that the struggle for leadership of the civil rights movement concluded with his second choice of leaders at the helm.
Knowledge and resistance to the dominant culture are offered in the latter half of the video, with the final song, "Prophets of Rage," advising listeners, "Put your motherfuckin' fist in the air" {unit 15) in what seems to be a clear reference to the Panthers and the more militant wing of the civil rights movement. "Prophets of Rage" is the finale of the video and of the live performance that unifies the video artifact. The song caps 60 minutes of 144
discussion--through lyrics, dialogue, and video--on issues
that a submerged minority faces in contemporary America.
The song is an anthem that drives home a point that has been made throughout the video— that of resistance to authority.
The song imparts a feeling of strength in the face of adversity and could act as a catalyst for audience members
to act on some of the advice given during the previous hour.
If, indeed, audience members act on some of Public
Enemy's suggestions, the duration of the feeling that successful action is possible would be permanent because of the long-term nature of the suggestions for action. Because rap privileges lyrics— listeners cannot get caught up in a melody while ignoring the words--there is a strong likelihood that the messages offered throughout the video in the songs and dialogue will be processed. At the very least, the feeling that action has the potential for success is likely to last beyond the confines of the video. The duration of empowerment for Fight the Power Live most likely fluctuates, ranging from fleeting duration of an hour or less to moderate duration that will extend beyond the confines of the video to permanent duration.
Summary
The artifact of analysis in this chapter, Fight the
Power Live, is a 60-minute rap video that offers its audience Public Enemy's ideas on the status of the struggle for equal rights in the contemporary United States. The 145 video was analyzed using the six dimensions of empowerment described in Chapter II; the analysis for each dimension is summarized below.
Fight the Power Live falls in the presentational area on the authority continuum. This position is supported in the artifact by several elements of the artifact's visual tone, the lyrics, and the dialogue. Camera work and production values, setting, and costuming all play a role in demonstrating Public Enemy as presentational rhetors. The dialogue and lyrics of the video reinforce the argument for placing Fight the Power Live at the continuum's presentational point. The level of authority in Fight the
Power Live is not entirely presentational, but there are not enough instances of high authority to push Fight the Power
Live out of the presentational point on the authority continuum.
Fight the Power Live falls in the action area on the continuum for end result. Public Enemy calls for various actions: Gaining knowledge; organizing seminars, press conferences, and rallies; and stopping the drug trade. The dialogue and the lyrics demonstrate knowledge as an end result, and some of the recommended actions in the video also seem designed to provide an impetus for the knowledge process.
Public Enemy offers a number of specific options.
Among those placed in the specific area of the continuum for 146 specificity of options are divesting oneself of gold, committing illegal acts, abolishing the death penalty, inarching in rallies, participating in seminars, holding press conferences, voting, becoming acquainted with African culture, resisting White authority, and ending racial violence. The latter three options are less specific than the others, offering goals but no strategies to achieve them. Overall, Fight the Power Live is placed at the specific end of the continuum for specificity of options.
Fight the Power Live can be positioned at more than one area on the continuum of arena for options. The collective name for the performers and the range of subjects and possible remedies suggested in the dialogue and lyrics of the artifact point toward the public arena. On the other hand, there is a more private arena that is acknowledged in
Fight the Power Live, primarily shown as individual actions that take the form of knowledge. The arena for options suggested by the members of Public Enemy cover the continuum from private to public.
Fight the Power Live is an example of an artifact that demonstrates various spectator positions. The dominant spectator comes into play during scenes where the audience can take the role of omniscient observer; examples of the subordinate spectator occur when the historical footage predominates. An ambiguous spectating position results when
Public Enemy attempts to satirize television, possibly as a 147 result of using the television medium to critique television itself. No one position fully describes the nature of the spectator for Fight the Power Live, then; spectator position is variously dominant, subordinate, and ambiguous.
Public Enemy demonstrates its sensitivity to the long term view by the subject matter of the dialogue and songs and with visual tone throughout the video. There is a strong likelihood that the messages offered throughout the video in the songs and dialogue will be processed because rap privileges the lyric. In addition, the feeling that action has the potential for success is likely to last beyond the confines of the video because the video emphasizes change in the personal and social status quo; such changes, whether they involve knowledge of self or social action, either will not come about easily in the short term or will result in changes that have lasting effects. The duration of empowerment for Fight the Power
Live ranges from moderate to permanent. CHAPTER VI
CONCLUSION
Two primary tasks guided this study: The first was to
develop a schema that operationalizes empowerment in a text;
the second was to apply the schema to texts to discover the
kinds of insights it provides into the rhetorical
construction of empowerment. Both of these tasks rest on
the definition of empowerment used throughout the study.
Empowerment. as it has been used here, is defined as a state
of confidence in one's ability to affect positively one's
environment, a state initiated by a text that presents options for action of which the audience previously was
unaware.
A search of various literature bases resulted in the development of a schema that included six dimensions of empowerment, each conceptualized as spanning a continuum.
The first dimension, authority assumed, is concerned with the authority that is attributed to the rhetor or creator of the text; authority attributed in a text can be categorized along a continuum that runs from great textual authority at one end to audience superiority at the other. Falling somewhere between great textual authority and audience
148 149
superiority is the area of presentational expertise, in
which the rhetor makes no claim to superior knowledge but
instead relies on presentational skills the audience does
not have. In the presentational mode, the creator of the
text demonstrates how the experiences of the audience and
the rhetor are similar but that the rhetor has access to
skills and resources the audience does not.
End result, the second dimension, spans a continuum
from no action to action. Although the audience should be
persuaded that action could be taken and, if it were taken,
that it would have the potential to be successful, physical
action is not required. The end result of empowerment might
fall anywhere along a continuum from an individual's feeling
differently to an individual's taking action that has an
external impact on others.
The continuum for specificity of options, the third
dimension, describes the options offered by the text and
places them on a continuum from vague to specific. The
specificity of options runs from a particular action to
action in a general direction or category (such as violence)
to no action at all.
The fourth dimension, arena for options, describes the
options that are offered by placing them on a continuum that
runs from private to public. At the most private level, the
text or performer might urge psychological change; behavioral change falls in the middle of the continuum, and 150 change in an external system represents an arena for options at the most public end of the continuum.
The continuum for the fifth dimension, position of spectator. locates the artifact on a continuum ranging from dominant to ambiguous to subordinate. In other words, this continuum describes the spectating position created in the text in terms of the agency and power accorded the spectator.
The sixth dimension, duration. describes the empowerment potential of the artifact on a continuum from fleeting to permanent. An empowering moment or moments may result from interaction with a text, the entire experience of the text might be perceived as empowering, or the audience member might carry away a sense of empowerment from the text. That sense of empowerment technically could stay with the audience indefinitely, becoming part of the processes of everyday life. As such, that process of empowerment would become, in effect, a permanent process.
Following the development of the six-dimension schema, the schema was applied to the three artifacts selected as data--A Conversation with Ross Perot. Shame. and Fight the
Power Live. Units of analysis were developed for each artifact: For A Conversation with Ross Perot, the question was selected as the unit of analysis; for Shame, the scene was used; and for Fight the Power Live, the genre was the unit of analysis. Each artifact was viewed at least six 151
times, once for each of the six dimensions, and the results
were noted on a grid that included four elements of the
artifact. The four elements were: Dialogue, or the words
spoken by persons who appear on the screen; audio, which
includes all audio other than dialogue, such as sound
effects, voice overs, song lyrics, and the like; image,
which is the visual representation seen on the screen; and
visual tone, which includes formal qualities of the video
such as camera angle, editing, lighting, and the like.
Examples of dimensions of empowerment at work in the
artifacts were noted in the column for the element that
provided the example. Each artifact was described in terms
of its characteristics as exemplified by each of the
dimensions; those findings are summarized below.
In A Conversation with Ross Perot, the level of
authority assumed varies from presentational to high
authority. The presentational level of authority is
supported throughout the video by the visual tone as well as
by the dialogue in three key units. A higher level of
authority is exhibited by the dialogue in every other unit,
however. The artifact, then, is not placed in one area on
the continuum for authority assumed but varies across the
continuum.
The end result in this artifact privileges action but not to the degree that it excludes all other end results.
The recognition of alternative end results noted in the 152 arena for options places the artifact near the action end of the continuum for end result, with a recognition that other end results also are desirable.
Overall, the specificity of options offered in the video is no more than moderately specific. Specific actions are advocated in this artifact, but strategies for accomplishing those actions--specific options--are in short supply.
The arena for options as presented to the audience of this video is public. The majority of the options suggested occur in the public realm, and those that operate in a more ambiguous area appear aimed to foster social--i.e ., public-- change after a gestation period in an arena that is less public.
The nature of the spectator in A Conversation with Ross
Perot shows some changes as the video progresses. The spectating position suggested by the video appears to vary from a position of parity to one of subordination due to changes in the dialogue.
Although successful action appears to be possible, the notion of success is undermined a number of times throughout the video, which leads to an attenuation of the duration of empowerment in the artifact. Even though the final statement is a call for action, the action is not defined, leaving the audience with a vague sense that something must be done but with no clear direction to take. The duration 153
of empowerment for the artifact, then, is judged to be
temporary.
In Shame. Asta's character constitutes the continuum of
authority assumed. Asta demonstrates high authority in
various ways, including her visual association with power
and her expertise in various areas. Asta demonstrates low
authority (where the audience is her equal or even her
superior) when she is depicted simply as a woman in a small
town in which women are denigrated and, as such, someone with no status or authority. Three reasons suggest that
Shame should be placed somewhere in the presentational area of the continuum for authority assumed, despite the extremes
in Asta's depicted authority: Asta provides a model without attempting to establish dominion over others; she uses violence only to establish her own rights; and low authority
is defined for her on the basis of her sex, a situation she negates by her non-traditional abilities.
The end result in Shame is placed at the action end of the continuum, with a slight preference noted for violent action. Four types of end result are offered in the artifact: No action; support for others who decide to take action; legitimate, sanctioned, or legal action; and illegal or violent action. The majority of positive results in
Shame occur following violent action.
The artifact is placed in the specific area of the continuum for specificity of options. Retreat and legal 154
action are two specific options offered, but both are shown
to be ineffective. The specific option offered is violence.
Shame favors the public arena for options, even though
the arena varies in the film. Even when characters
initially opt for the private arena, a ripple effect moves
the arena from private to public. Shame does not fall in
one area on the continuum for arena for options but instead
varies across the continuum.
The high authority generally ascribed to Asta results
in a nature of the spectator that largely can be described
as dominant. The audience chiefly identifies with Asta
because she appears in nearly every scene; her verbal and
physical authority as played out in those scenes show her in
control. As a result, the film creates a spectating position that almost invariably is dominant.
The duration of empowerment in this artifact is placed
in the temporary area of the continuum. Moments of
successful verbal and physical action persuade the audience
that successful action is possible, but those moments do not appear to extend much beyond the confines of the film. As the women of the town gather around Asta at the end of the
film, some hope is offered that the actions taken were not
in vain; the audience might be expected to carry some of that hope with them. The duration of empowerment is judged to be temporary, lasting somewhat longer than the film itself. 155
In Fight the Power Live, the artifact is placed in the presentational area on the continuum for authority assumed.
Several elements of the visual tone, the lyrics, and the dialogue all support the presentational level of authority.
Two instances in the dialogue indicate a higher level of authority than the presentational level, but these exceptions do not carry enough weight to push Fight the
Power Live out of the presentational area of the continuum.
On the continuum for end result. Fight the Power Live is placed in the action area. The members of Public Enemy offer various courses of action, such as gaining knowledge, organizing seminars, calling press conferences, participating in rallies, and stopping the drug trade.
The specificity of options varies somewhat in this artifact, but Fight the Power Live generally is located in the specific area of the continuum. The most specific options are: Divesting oneself of gold, committing illegal acts, abolishing the death penalty, marching in rallies, participating in seminars, holding press conferences, and voting. Less specific options are: Becoming acquainted with African culture, resisting White authority, and ending racial violence. Overall, the artifact is placed in the specific area of the continuum.
Fight the Power Live acknowledges more than one area on the continuum for arena for options. The collective name of the performers and the subjects and remedies that are 156 addressed suggest a public arena, but individual actions of knowledge acquisition are suggested as well. The arena for options, then, is not confined to one area of the continuum but spans a range from private to public.
A full range of spectator positions is acknowledged in
Fight the Power Live. The spectator appears dominant when the footage demonstrates the audience members to be omniscient observers; the historical footage demonstrates a subordinate viewing position; and an ambiguous spectating position results when Public Enemy attempts to satirize television, possibly as a result of using the medium to critique television itself. No one position fully describes the nature of the spectator for Fight the Power Live.
The duration of empowerment for Fight the Power Live varies; it ranges from fleeting to moderate duration and possibly to permanent duration. Because rap privileges lyrics, the message has a strong likelihood of being processed and remembered; the members of Public Enemy are offering long-term remedies such as knowledge acquisition, so audience members who take the message to heart are likely to experience long-term empowerment.
Rhetorical Construction of Empowerment
One of the purposes of the study has been to construct a schema for use in discovering and assessing the rhetorical construction of empowerment. The analysis of the three artifacts revealed that there is no one way to construct 157
empowerment rhetorically but suggested criteria that might
be used to guide the construction of texts of empowerment
and the assessment of such texts. In this section, I
suggest such criteria, recognizing that these proposed
criteria are neither exhaustive nor prescriptive. What
follows, then, are criteria that would guide a rhetor in
selecting options from the array presented by the six
dimensions of empowerment developed in this project and that would guide a critic seeking to evaluate the empowering potential of texts. Four criteria are proposed: Clarity of
relationships, breadth of latitude, evaluation presented, and internal consistency.
Clarity of Relationships
The first criterion concerns clarity of the relationships presented. To meet this criterion, the rhetor must articulate clearly relationships presented in the text so that audience members are able to understand its primary message in terms of possibilities for empowerment. The relationships of concern in this criterion are major— those that seem to have significant impact on the process of empowerment as depicted in the artifact. The units they connect are not necessarily the units of analysis used in each artifact but instead could combine a number of units of analysis. One such combined unit could be the rhetor's vision of the present, for example, linked clearly to a vision of the future. Other relationships might include 158
(but are not limited to) those between character action and character motive; cause and effect; dimensions; and action and outcome. Ambiguity within each unit can be tolerated; the necessary condition is a clear relationship among major units in the text. Clarity of relationships can be accomplished in virtually an infinite number of ways in an artifact, so this criterion does not specify how such clarity is achieved; the task for the rhetor is to demonstrate clear relationships among various units within the artifact, choosing strategies as they seem appropriate.
This requirement admittedly advocates a certain kind of art, but the criterion does not demand huge adjustments.
Ambiguity is a linchpin of art and the clarity criterion is not a call for the elimination of ambiguity. Ambiguity within dimensions is tolerated, and even encouraged; what is being advocated is clarity between and among large units of the artifact, not micro-level clarity that would, indeed, eliminate all ambiguity--if that is possible— and destroy the art of the artifact.
Because of the assumption that one person cannot empower another, providing clarity of relationships is not a rhetor's attempt to persuade but simply to elucidate; the audience members, then, are free to accept or reject the rhetor's vision as they see fit. What is important, then, is that the rhetor provides audience members with sufficient clarity of relationships to allow them to make informed 159 choices about the message of empowerment in which they are invited to participate.
Breadth of Latitude
The criterion of breadth of latitude suggests that the rhetor should allow audience members the freedom to make their own choices rather than prescribing a particular choice. Latitude in an artifact suggests that the artifact invites participation in empowerment rather than imposes it, consistent with the notion that empowerment cannot be given to or imposed on one person by another.
Latitude can be built into each dimension of the artifact by allowing audience members more options than the one(s) presented by the artifact— by not restricting the empowering potential of the artifact to the vision it presents. An artifact that prescribes action in the public arena, for example, only would offer empowerment to the segment of the audience that is comfortable in or conversant with that arena. Likewise, an artifact that suggests that the only way to rectify a particular situation is by taking action in public is closing off other avenues of empowerment to audience members, as does a text that prescribes too narrow a focus for end result, closing avenues that could prove useful to audience members.
Latitude can be created without sacrificing clarity and specificity. A balance between an artifact's clarity of relationships and the latitude provided to audience members 160 for freedom of choice can be achieved in a number of ways.
A clear sense of a message can be created with enough ambiguity in its consequences, for example, to encourage audience members to question the choices made in the process that led to those consequences. Such balance also might be achieved if specific positions on five of the dimensions are presented, and audience members are provided little information on the sixth, leaving it open so that audience members themselves must construct the position on the continuum they choose. By offering room to maneuver within the various dimensions, the rhetor creates more latitude for the audience member to make an informed choice about whether to accept the vision offered.
Positive Evaluation Presented
The attitude that is conveyed by the artifact will have an impact on the willingness or ability of the audience members to embrace the rhetor's vision and engage in the process of empowerment. Either the rhetor's vision of the process or the final results of empowerment must have positive value for the audience if the audience is to find the artifact inviting. This is not to suggest that the depiction of unrewarded struggle or negative outcomes, for example, cannot result in a sense of empowerment. If these are part of the artifact's vision, however, they must be balanced by a positive presentation of another important part of the vision. 161
A martyred character's death, for example, could encourage a sense of empowerment in the audience, despite the negative value likely to be assigned to it by an audience, if it is mitigated by a positive presentation of the vision to which the character was committed and the tenacity with which he or she held on to that vision. The outcome might not be perceived as desirable, then, but the undesirable outcome is balanced by another dimension to create a positive evaluation of some other aspect of the artifact. The artifact, in effect, privileges the process more than the product by a positive presentation of the process; the martyrdom is mitigated by a positive presentation of the process.
Internal Consistency
The fourth criterion I propose for the construction and assessment of options from among the six dimensions is internal consistency. Internal consistency can be violated or maintained across dimensions and within a single dimension.
Some dimensions clearly relate to one another; a rhetor who offers options that contradict or undermine one another creates internal inconsistency that prevents audience members from obtaining a clear picture of the rhetor's message. The dimensions of end result and arena for options, for example, are related; an artifact that recommends internal change as an end result will be 162 perceived as inconsistent if the preferred arena for options is public. A similar inconsistency would occur if the artifact offers a specific option--reading a book to gain knowledge, for example--but again makes the case for a public arena for options. Yet another case of inconsistency could result if the primary character of the artifact is shown to be low in authority, yet the options specified require high experiential authority. The audience would have difficulty resolving the apparent conflict between identifying with a low-authority character and agreeing with a demonstration of high experiential authority as a necessary ingredient of empowerment. All such examples of internal inconsistency will have the effect of confusing audience members by obscuring their perception of the rhetor's vision.
Inconsistency that arises within a single dimension also will impede the audience's ability to perceive the rhetor's vision. Apparent inconsistencies can be resolved if the artifact somehow makes clear, for example, that a move from the private arena for options to the public arena is part of a logical progression. An artifact that is located on various positions on a single continuum but then fails to provide an adequate rationale for those positions will create inconsistencies that cannot be resolved.
Demonstrating a progression or cause-effect relationships across dimensions are among the possible ways of creating 163
such a rationale.
Consistency also is maintained in an artifact through
relationships developed through chronology. An end result
of action, for example, that follows a presentation of a
specific option allows an inference on the part of the
audience that the specific option is somehow linked to the
end result. The proximity of arena for options and
specificity of options provides another possible scenario.
A specific option such as writing, for example, could begin
and end in the private arena, but placing that specific
option in proximity to a suggestion in favor of the public
arena could create the implication that writing, to be an
effective option for empowerment, somehow must become
public. The structure of the artifact that results in the
drawing of particular inferences, then, may contribute or
not to the internal consistency of an artifact.
Four criteria, then, are proposed for the critic to use
in assessing an artifact for its empowering potential or for
the rhetor to use in choosing how to present the various
dimensions in an artifact. The relationship among major
units presented must be clear, audience members must be
allowed some freedom of choice in the options with which
they are presented, some aspects of the vision must be accorded positive value, and the artifact must manifest
internal consistency. 164
Evaluation of Artifacts
The six criteria described above are suggested as tools
to be used by the rhetor attempting to construct a text of
empowerment by selecting among the options offered through
the six dimensions of empowerment. They also are useful in
the assessment of artifacts for their empowering potential.
In this section, each of the three video artifacts analyzed
in this project will be evaluated in light of the four
criteria to discover the extent to which each optimizes its
potential.
A Conversation with Ross Perot
Perot attempts to provide clarity of relationships by
demonstrating a relationship between his description of the
present situation and a proposed future situation. The
present situation, according to Perot, is a United States with its educational system, economy, and business structure
in a shambles. Perot's descriptions of public education,
the economy, and business document well his version of the
current situation. A future situation--not described as clearly as the present one--would find the country in a position to effectively compete with other countries in these areas. The relationship between the two is articulated by the end result of action, which Perot proposes as the present cause of the changes he envisions for the future. 165
Perot fails to provide the needed clarity of
relationships, however, when he offers specific options
without specific strategies to attain those goals. He
speaks more than once, for example, of small neighborhood
schools to help disadvantaged children develop skills and
self-esteem, but the relationship of those schools to voting
is no more than tenuous; voting is not a guarantee that such
schools will be built. Similarly, the relationships between
voting for President and revitalizing the economy and the
private sector are not well defined. The artifact, then, is
judged to be lacking in terms of clarity of relationships.
There is very little latitude built into A Conversation
with Ross Perot; the primary limitations on latitude occur
within the dimensions of arena for options, end results, and
nature of spectator. The arena for options, for example, is
very clearly public, and the end results offered are
virtually all action. The members of the audience,
therefore, have little latitude for choice, contradicting
the notion that empowerment is not a gift but a set of
conditions conducive to development. There is little choice
in terms of the nature of spectatorship assumed by audience members as well, primarily because the audience really has only one choice of character with which to identify, again negating the notion of choice. By largely denying the possibilities of choice, A Conversation with Ross Perot does not meet the criterion of breadth of latitude. 166
A Conversation with Ross Perot offers a positive evaluation of the end product of empowerment. The dimension of end result, action, is presented very positively, in light of the expected consequences, such as improvements in education, business, and the lives of workers. The process that will ensue from such action and presumably lead to positive consequences, however, is not presented positively but rather as a duty that must be undertaken to stave off otherwise certain disaster. The positive value of the consequences is given more weight overall, however, and the sacrifices demanded are made to appear noble and worthy, attributes the audience is likely to evaluate positively.
In general, then, the artifact seems to present a positive evaluation.
A Conversation with Ross Perot seems to offer a modicum of internal consistency— the fourth criterion--to the audience or at least keeps the inconsistencies to a manageable level. The artifact maintains acceptable consistency across dimensions but varies somewhat within dimensions. The end result of action, for example, is consistent with the public arena for options, and neither is inconsistent with the moderate specificity of options that are offered. The dimensions of authority assumed and nature of spectator, on the other hand, vary through the artifact, resulting in some inconsistency within dimensions. There seems no compelling reason, for example, for Perot's shift 167
from presentational authority to high authority; similarly,
the nature of spectatorship within the artifact not only varies, but at times the dialogue contradicts the spectating position indicated by the visual tone of the artifact.
Generally, however, the artifact exhibits reasonable
internal consistency.
To summarize the application of the criteria to A
Conversation with Ross Perot: Major relationships in the video are unclear, little latitude is built into the artifact, the artifact offers a positive evaluation of the end product of empowerment, and the artifact exhibits internal consistency within and across dimensions. Had the artifact been changed to enhance the clarity of relationships and increase latitude, its empowerment potential would have been greater.
Shame
The clarity of relationships offered in Shame generally is high, with two notable exceptions. Changes in how the women of the film interact with the men, for example, are explained by Asta's actions and the ensuing emulation by the women of the town. The relationship between Asta and violence is less satisfactorily demonstrated; she is a barrister who implies that she has not had to be "careful," yet she has a quick temper and is prone to violent action.
Her relationship to violence is mitigated somewhat by motivation provided by other characters, but the nature of 168 the relationship is not fully explained. The relationship of Asta to the motorcycle is problematic as well; although the motorcycle is instrumental in the process of empowerment, the clear implication in the film is that it was a gift from Asta’s boyfriend. Her ignorance of the cost of the machine demonstrates an inconsistency in her relationship to the machine and thus to the process of empowerment. With these two exceptions, which do not outweigh the more significant relationships depicted, the film demonstrates general clarity of relationships; Shame. then, is judged moderately clear.
Shame offers a considerable amount of latitude to its audience in some areas and less in others. Although the vision of authority is quite clear in Shame, for example, the audience is shown that either high or low authority can be wielded presentationally and effectively. Although the public arena for options clearly is favored, the artifact demonstrates the private origins of empowerment, a demonstration that offers latitude to the audience. The specific options that are offered, however, are further limited by the judgment offered that only one— violent action--works; end result is limited in a similar manner because of its similar insistence that only action is effective in the process of empowerment. On the other hand, some latitude is offered in the sense that the efficacy of violent action eventually is undermined, encouraging the 169
audience to look for alternatives. Both of these dimensions, then, offer some latitude. Overall, the artifact presents a mixture in which greater or lesser amounts of latitude are offered in various dimensions.
Shame offers an example of an artifact that offers an unambiguously negative consequence of death, yet the artifact does contain a powerful positive evaluation in another area. The film clearly privileges process over product; many scenes offer positive affect for the audience during the course of the movie, yet it ends with a death--a negative consequence. The negativity of the consequence is mitigated by the change that has been initiated throughout the film by various actions--end results--that the audience most likely finds positive. Despite the negativity of the consequence the film offers, the process that propels the audience through the movie offers a positive evaluation that is not subverted by the death at the end of the movie.
The internal consistency demonstrated in Shame is high, both across and within dimensions. Across dimensions, the presentational authority accorded to Asta in the movie fits well with the arena for options, which progresses from private to public; Asta’s presentational authority is exhibited in a variety of venues, private and public. The arena for options, in turn, provides consistency with the dimension of end result, which shows a variety of end results. Both the dimension of end result and arena for 170 options offer a variety of options, both showing preference for options that are undertaken publicly. Within dimensions, there seem to be no inconsistencies; the arena for options, for example, which offers options from private to public, is consistent because the variety of options is demonstrated as a progression. The variety of options in end result and arena for options appear similarly consistent--options are explored, with some accepted and some rejected on the basis of perceived efficacy.
To summarize the criteria as demonstrated in Shame:
The clarity of relationships is moderate; the latitude offered is mixed, with some dimensions offering a great deal of latitude and others very little; there is a positive evaluation of the process used to move toward empowerment; and the internal consistency of the artifact's dimensions is high. With more clarity and latitude, the artifact's empowerment potential would be improved.
Fight the Power Live
Fight the Power Live contains at least two significant relationships that are not adequately explained, leading to the conclusion that the artifact does not have adequate clarity of relationships. In the first case, the artifact depicts a racist society that is in need of change, but the relationship between past, present, and future civil rights efforts is not made clear. Skipping from genre to genre, the members of Public Enemy demonstrate a vision of a 171 society that is racist by offering historical footage of unjust acts, footage of champions of the civil rights cause, current perceptions of the media, and lyrics that explicitly describe the perceived ills of present-day society. Today's society is shown to be similar to that of 30 years ago; the future situation is implied to be a society cured of those ills. The relationship among these versions of society is not established clearly, however; even though the members of
Public Enemy discount the tactics of the past as "nonsense," the tactics they offer for the present--rallies and press conferences, for example--appear to be nearly identical to those of the past. Similar strategies are offered, in other words, but different results are implied without justif ication.
In the second case, the relationship between Chuck D and the government in "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos" is not made clear, even though the lengthy video offers a significant commentary on the general relationship of Black men to government. The offense with which Chuck D is charged is vague, and the offense for which he is hanged is briefly mentioned in the lyrics but not shown in the video.
The most significant problem with the relationship is the motivation of the government for its oppressive tactics; if that were addressed, the relationship would be much clearer.
The relationship between the past, present, and future is not clear, nor is the relationship between offense and 172 punishment; the artifact, then, does not appear to demonstrate adequate clarity of relationships.
The artifact offers a great deal of breadth of latitude. The dimension of end result, for example, while favoring action, offers latitude in the choice of actions to take. Gaining knowledge, organizing rallies and press conferences, and stopping the drug trade are among the options offered. Similarly, while the options suggested are quite specific, a variety of specific options is offered, again enhancing the latitude provided by the artifact. The arena for options and nature of spectatorship offer similar latitude. Options as private as gaining knowledge and as public as working to eradicate the drug trade are offered.
The nature of the spectator varies from dominant to ambiguous to subordinate, depending on the footage that is playing at a given time; the civil rights, backstage, and television-news footage offer a variety of spectatorship positions, for example. Fight the Power Live, then, contains great breadth of latitude within its boundaries.
Fight the Power Live offers a positive evaluation of the process of empowerment, even though certain consequences may be perceived negatively. Part of the process is the performance itself, a relentlessly upbeat affair even when the raps deal with serious problems. The continuum of end result illustrates the positive evaluation of the process; press conferences and rallies, which are some of the 173 recommended options, are depicted as enjoyable and effective actions. The members of Public Enemy demonstrate presentational authority as an enjoyable and positive experience by the exuberance of their performance. Not all consequences are positive, however; arrest and death are two possible consequences of the process of empowerment. Chuck
D's continued appearances in the video after his simulated hanging, however, mitigates somewhat the impact of those undesirable consequences. The empowerment process itself is shown very favorably and fulfills the requirement for a positive evaluation.
Fight the Power Live demonstrates the preferred internal consistency across dimensions, although there is some inconsistency within one dimension. The specific options offered, for example, are consistent with the arena for options, which ranges from private to public on the continuum. Both of those dimensions are consistent with presentational authority, which can be utilized either in a private or public arena. The major inconsistency noted is within the dimension of the nature of the spectator; the ambiguity of the spectating position in the satirical television-news sections of the artifact departs from the very clear spectating position that is offered in the rest of the video. Aside from this deviation, however, the artifact demonstrates internal consistency. 174
To summarize the criteria as demonstrated in Fight the
Power Live: The clarity of relationships is not satisfactory; the latitude offered is high; there is a positive evaluation of the process used to move toward empowerment; and the artifact generally is internally consistent. Overall, the empowerment potential of Fight the
Power Live would increase if more clarity were provided.
Utility of the Schema
A schema of six dimensions was developed and used to analyze three video artifacts in this project. Following the analysis, the dimensions of the schema were used as points of reference for evaluating the artifacts based on four criteria that may be used either to construct an empowering artifact or to deconstruct an existing artifact.
This process prompts questions about the utility of the schema that was used: (1) How useful were the dimensions at uncovering the rhetorical construction of empowerment? (2)
Did the analysis itself suggest other dimensions of empowerment that were not captured in the schema?
One way in which the dimensions appear to have utility is by providing numerous points of entry into the artifacts.
The notion of authority assumed, for example, provides the means to explore the effect of the main character's presentation on the artifact, while the dimension of end result provides a way to investigate the depiction of the consequences of actions in an artifact. Each dimension, 175
then, encourages the rhetor or critic to pay attention to a
different aspect of a complex process.
Some dimensions clearly are of more value than others.
Authority assumed, for example, was important in all three
artifacts and provided numerous insights into those
artifacts. The interaction of end result, arena for
options, and specificity of options certainly was useful for
fleshing out the framework of each artifact. Nature of the
spectator added an audience-centered dimension that clearly
was needed. Of the six dimensions, duration appeared to be
of the least value; inferring--and then assigning--the
duration of empowerment proved to be difficult, and the
claims made about it were the most difficult to support from
the artifacts. In addition, the dimension of duration did not appear to have the intrinsic value for the project that other dimensions had, most notably authority assumed. The ephemeral nature of video could be a contributing factor to
the lesser utility of the dimension of duration; an analysis undertaken in another medium might demonstrate a greater utility for the dimension. Other subject matter or a different genre within the same medium also might prompt a shift in the perceived utility of the dimension of duration--or other dimensions.
Although the review of the literature, used as a basis
for developing the dimensions, suggested the six dimensions that constitute the schema, the analyses suggested other 176 dimensions that might be added to make it more comprehensive* I suggest that three dimensions be added to the schema: Consequences of options, feelings or emotions, and obstacles presented.
The criterion of positive evaluation suggests that a dimension that takes account of the consequences of options might be useful. A continuum that runs from positive to ambiguous to negative could be used to describe the consequences of acting upon the options that are offered in the artifact. A description of the consequence of taking the option of violent action as suggested by high authority, for example, would add fullness to the description of Shame. in which Lizzie is killed after trying to put Asta's self- defense lesson into practice. This negative consequence introduces doubt into the audience's assessment of the high authority Asta exhibits by giving such a lesson, and a dimension that describes such consequences would add richness to the analysis or assessment processes.
Another dimension that seems worthwhile to develop is one that assesses feelings or emotions. A video presentation does not depend exclusively on rationality; affect is an integral part of the video viewing experience, and attempting to assess that in some form would prove useful. Exactly how a continuum could capture emotion would be need to be worked out because the depiction of an emotional response as negative, neutral, or positive would 177 seem to be too simplistic as well as difficult to determine.
The effort to develop such a schema would seem to be worthwhile, however, because there well might be occasions when the emotional impact of an artifact renders other dimensions insignificant or impotent. What an audience feels, in other words, can override what it thinks.
Examples of strong emotions from Shame and Fight the
Power Live spring to mind. In Shame, Lizzie's death at the end of the movie could indicate that striving for empowerment is a doomed effort; the emotive aspects of the process to that point, however, seem to indicate otherwise.
In addition, the emotional impact of the character's death inspires resolve in another character--Lorna— an inspiration that some audience members certainly would share. Another example is offered by Fight the Power Live, an artifact that exudes positive affect through the energy of the performance; that some of the footage depicts violence, death, and injustice seems not to matter in terms of the positive affect. In both of these examples, the evocative, emotional aspects seem to take precedence over the rational aspects, indicating a need for a dimension that takes note of emotions and feelings.
Another dimension with potential for utility would be one that evaluates the obstacles that impede progress during the process of empowerment. Not every obstacle can be overcome, but one does not fail to continue in the process 178
of empowerment simply because one is stymied by the presence
of an obstacle. An empowering artifact most likely can be
constructed, for example, that demonstrates a distinct lack
of success in overcoming obstacles, but nonetheless presents
examples of perseverance. Lack of empowerment on-screen,
then, does not necessarily translate to lack of empowerment
in the audience.
Suggestions for Future Research
As the disparate nature of empowerment in the various
literature bases suggests, many avenues of research into the
nature and function of empowerment remain. This complex
phenomenon hardly can be thoroughly explored with one study;
thus, some suggestions for future research follow.
Because this study was limited in the number of
artifacts that could be studied, a first step in future
research would be to study additional video artifacts.
Although the three artifacts in this study differed dramatically from each other, they by no means exhaust the possibilities for study. Documentaries and news accounts,
science fiction, how-to videos, and other genres of
commercial videotapes spring to mind. Non-commercial videotapes— home movies, student projects, and the like— also would provide material for further research.
Certainly, other types of artifacts also could be analyzed to discern how empowerment is constructed rhetorically. Using the schema devised (including 179 additional dimensions, as deemed appropriate} for analysis of artifacts in different media would prove enlightening.
Video was selected because it provided a rich environment for analysis, but computer multimedia, virtual reality, and other multi-faceted media also would be good choices for additional research. This is not to suggest that more limited media also might not be appropriate; talking books, for example, could prove fruitful given the special challenges facing many users of books recorded on audiotape.
If and how such artifacts contain empowerment potential would be of extra significance to those with physical limitations. New media, such as electronic mail, might also be fruitful areas for study. Artifacts that do not involve the mediation of new technologies--such as books and paintings--also would produce important insights into the process of empowerment.
The characteristics and values of particular kinds of audiences also received little attention in this study; such considerations were subsumed in the continuum of the nature of the spectator and were not developed to any extent. One of my artifacts has as its typical audience White men, one seems directed at an audience of women, and one appears to be aimed at African Americans, but the differences in such audiences and what might appeal to them in terms of empowerment were not addressed in this study. Future studies in which such characteristics are highlighted might 180 produce dimensions and criteria very different from those suggested in this study.
Despite the research that still needs to be done in terms of the rhetorical construction of empowerment, this study represents a first step in understanding that process.
It offers a definition of empowerment, a schema for operationalizing empowerment in a text, and sample analyses of texts in which the schema is applied. APPENDIX A
DATA RELATIVE TO CHAPTER III
181 182
Data grid for A Conversation with Ross Perot
Unit# Diaension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Iiage Visual tone 1 authority •we are the Perot in his HCU/eye- / (presentational) least office (iiage level/intiaate, 0:00 literate... continues equal •we need to throughout face reality video) •we will not be world end result class... (action)
specificity •we need (vague) "finest educational arena systen in the (public) world* •put my effective spectator front end on (preferred) public schools office/books/su •lake children it/tie of non duration productive people productive •turn out lore engineers •"stuck" w,breakdown of faiily unit Data grid for A Conversation with Ross Perot (continued) 183
Unit* Diaension / D E T A I L S Tine (Position) Dialogue Audio Iiage Visual tone If Q: What are we Perot holds up Deieanor iore 2:14 going to do finger, cuts authoritative about it? off question here than in Where do we Unit 1 authority start? (ethos) "disadvantaged neighborhoods" (patriarchal] "any end result psychiatrist (action) will tell you if specificity (specific) •build tiny little schools arena ■recapture (public) school day for learning, spectator longer school (preferred) year •rigorous school systens office/books,'ti • core e curriculua, duration high standards (permanent) •last year's first grade [parents] •disadv neigh •psychiatrist [cite authority] [coaaitient to schools] Data grid for A Conversation with Ross Perot (continued) 184
Unit# Dimension / D E T A I L S Time (Position) Dialogue Audio Image Visual tone 3 / Q: ifhat do we 5:40 do with the children of the last 15 authority years? (high) 5:45 life is hard 5:52 victory to the strong 5:56 end result historically, (action) life is survival of specificity the fittest (vague) 6:36 Stretch minds of 16- arena year-olds--our (mostly private) future 7:20 get rid of social spectator promotion (preferred) 7:40 develop full potential of child duration (permanent) 6:36 stretch minds 7:46 dev full potential 7:20 social promotion 7:40 our country, not overseas [but could appeal to lenophobes] 5:50 historically 6:36 our future 7:35 world of future Data grid for A Conversation with Ross Perot (continued) 185
Unit# Dnension E—* / D E I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Image Visual tone \t Q: Give le 7:32 soie lodels that you think, uh, soae illustrations of activation authority for these authoritative (high) young people deieanor. no that could be ■ore 'aw end result put into shucks'—HP has (action) place. THE answers specificity He has the (soiewhat} answers
arena 10:20 we need (public) action in education 8:30 this little building 9:23 East Dallas [model] spectator 8:30 this (preferred) little building 9:23 East duration Dallas [model 1 (pemnent?) 10:07 this is like a pothole in the street 11:13 we cone from a country... 11:20 we better get on this one 10:28 $326 billion a year? Soiebody's qettin' it [special interests]. 3/ ff/A 0: 11:22 Neighborhood level up or federal level down? Data grid for A Conversation with Ross Perot (continued) 186
Unit* Dimension / D E T A I L S Tine (Position) Dialogue Audio Iiage Visual tone 6/ Q: What can 16:00 the average person do? authority (presentational) 16:10 Each of us is a proud end result part-owner of this country. specificity (specific) 16:45 Kalce arena sure educators (public) run schools 17:49 Place of learning, not of play 17:35 people spectator w/eiperience 16:10 Galloping (preferred) in sanaging cowboy- systeas individual— duration myth of West, etc. 7; K;'A Q: How do you 10:50 feel about merit pay for teachers? Data grid for A Conversation with Ross Perot (continued) 187
Unit! Dimension / D E T A I L S Time (Position) Dialogue Audio Image Visual tone B/ CG: ON TEE 19:34 ECONOMY authority 22:OB This (superior) shows the avg. citizen how end result things have (action) shifted. specificity 24:35 The avg. (somewhat) citizen arena thinks... (public) 25:10 They are the tax spectator base... (preferred) 25:55 They duration determine who gets to be President. They determine who gets to be Senator. 26:15 The buck stops with you [avg, citizen) 19:45 strong family unit 2f:4E work and sacrifice for the next generation 22:30 They got cur money [i.e., trie Japanese] 24:00 Clouded linds...will not be able to compete [drugs]. 25:05 Everything comes down...on ordinary people. Data grid for A Conversation with Ross Perot (continued) 188
Unit* Dimension / D E T A I L S T ne (Position) Dialogue Audio Inaqe Visual tone V Q: What is the 27:20 answer? authority (superior) result 27:30 He aust (action) build the specificity finest (specific) products (not arena be a service (public) econoay) 10/ Q: Give ae a 27:40 few--what are these ene- authority liners? (superior) 30:47 I don’t think I'm typical. [able to resist Lexus] 11/ Q: Did we ever 31:00 make the best? authority (pres*superior) Listen to the people who do the work. Data grid for A Conversation with Ross Perot (continued) 189
Unit! Ditension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Inage Visual tone 12/ Q: What is (0:43 stopping us? authority 40:50 ordinary (superior) person has not figured audience out...he is (secondary the key preferred) 41:05 This is his country 41:10 He is all-powerful 43:11 You can't have a winning tea® with two sets of rules-- pretty sinple 46:16 The owners of this country--the ordinary people *y friends down here 1 repeatedly] 13/ 5: What's our 47:42 solution?
end result 48:10 very (action) inportant that the average arena citiien get (public) involved in this b/c we’re talking about their future and their children's future 49:16 the leaders are never gonna qet out in front of the people in a free society Data grid for A Conversation with Ross Perot (continued) 190
Unit# Dimension / D E T A I L S Time (Position) Dialogue Audio Image Visual tone IV CG: ON SMALL 53:11 BUSINESS 58:45 people who hear voices and dreams and have to do it [entrepreneurs who are driven to succeed and conquer the odds] ...and can't recognize failure 15/ K'A Q: Do you 58:14 thinfc we do enough to support our entrepreneurs in this country? Data grid for A Conversation with Ross Perot (continued) 191
Unit! Diiension / D E T A I L S Tise (Position) Dialogue Audio Image Visual tone 16/ Q: Talk to 1:00: ae.. .about 36 treating huian capital. 1:02:03 adversity builds strength 1:02:42 Toyota factory sign-- every enployee is a brother 1:04:20 get rid of all these things that separate people (e.g. exec dining roon) 1:06:01 (series of rhetorical quesiions-- workei pm LKipdliuii in cuip decisiun- ndkinq (none)] 1:07:50 tap potential, aake everyone a part of the team, listen to the people who do the work Data grid for A Conversation with Ross Perot (continued) 192
Unit# Diiension / D E T A I L S Time (Position) Dialogue Audio Image Visual tone 17/ Q: What's your 1:09: greatest 28 ■essage for the American authority people? (presentational] 1:09:30 This audience is our country (preferred) 1:09:38 Step one, when you have probleis, is to face thei 1:09:56 Let's fix this before it gets any worse 1:10:0# Demand...our officials...ge t to work 1:10:1# Cut out the PP and go for action IB/ String quartet Fade to black 1:10: Credits 20 APPENDIX B DATA RELATIVE TO CHAPTER IV
193 194
Data grid for Shame
Unitf Dimension / D E T A I L S Time (Position) Dialogue Audio Image Visual tone 1/ AU driving iusic, credits, rustic pastoral, 0:00 (high) guitar, synth scenes, LA shot peaceful SP of person on MC power, freedom dale) fall ISP] 21 SP 1:37 (gale) 3/ night/crash over hill, 2:05 brought down by sheep, in dark (foreshadowing) m
Unit! Dimension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Inage Visual tone 10/ Eli PUNK 1: Y'know, Three nen and Asta closed in 11:48 (no action by I gotta adait Asta by aggressive Lorna or Asta- she scrubs up •ales [AU] -retreat) all right for an Lorna and lout old chick... lorna's space AU PUNK 2: Pretty invaded [AU] (loving up-- butch in thei [ER] Asta doesn't trousers. back down) 11/ AU Day 2--repair Sgt. hovers 15:14 (okay) shop, Sgt. closely around visits, Asta Asta--ne’s in Eli leaves. her space [AU] (retreat) !ER] AU buoyant lusic, Asta takes a Bicycle-'Own K J -
-- o (high) airy bicycle power--f reedon, AR ride/flat sunlight [AU] (private) tire/Ross gives [AR] ER Asta a ride LA can, hair in (action-- breeze positive retreat) 13/ AU PUNK: Hello Machinery SFX-- Asta in driver's Machinery 19:25 (high) Butch. non- seat (AR] [ER) bearing down ER PUNK: How's perspectival-- (■ale?) [AU] (futile lale Penny these tco loud Fight--ian action, days? overwhelied by retreat ROSS: You adolescent action) bastard. rowdies-- AR ROSS: Well, prox inity to (loving to Penny, she likes unapproachable public, a bit of woman [AU] engagement coipany, a few with victim-- laughs, a few see 9*) drinks. Why, she likes a good tiie. Why not? I give her that, all right...Then she tries to lay charges. Charges? Penny Ross? Everyone knows she. She. What's a aan supposed to do? Blokes look at >e in the street, in the club, laugh. Data grid for Shame (continued) 196
Unit* Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Iiage Visual tone IV AU RODOLPB: Abattoir—Ross Hrs. Rodolph is 21:56 (in Goodness ie, we leaning on Asta in charge. contention— have been in the Abattoir as Asta and Hrs. Kars, haven't we Asta slugs feiale world- Rodolph) Ross? What Andrew Rodolph aeat chewed up ER happened? [ER] and spit out. (action—force Other woien in defense of secretly delight Ross) (seeds of AR rebellion (public) planted) Data grid for Shame (continued) 197
Unit! Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Iiaqe Visual tone 15/ TINA: How luch SFX: nature, Night 22. Shop. Asta, Tina, Liz 23:54 that bike cost night creatures Asta, lizzie, shot equally— ya? (AU] [AR]? Tina eye level MS. ASTA: I don’t know, it was a SFX: horn, car Dark, tales in present. machinery, TINA: Now you're drinking. piss-fartin around the countryside, on a holiday. ASTA: Ui-hia. Seeing how the other half lives, you know. TINA: No. 1 don't. ASTA: A motorcycle engine is completely logical. I find it lakes a nice change from people. TINA: You were right. He had it coinin'. But see, you can just get on this fancy lotorbike ana piss off, ya don’t have to work out there. ASTA: So what, so you just let then walk all over you? TINA: It’s that or you don’t work, siarty, "Cept laybe on your back. ASTA: Sounds like the saae thing to ie. Data grid for Shame (continued) 198
Unit# Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Inage Visual tone 16/ ED ASTA: Do you walk to 27:14 (retreat, Liz) want soiething? town/Asta, Tina ER PUNK: Yeah, ignore, wanna give it to retreat--Tina) us, honey? AR ASTA: You (public) couldn't cope ER with ie, boys, (Asta, so why don’t you confront) just piss off? AU (Asta, high) 37/ AU PUNK: Playing Asta’s solo walk Asta hemmed in 30:16 (high) hard to get, eh? to RR station, by nales, car, ER PUNK 2: chase, fight headlights-- (action-- Tonight's the self-defense force) night, AR sweetheart. (public) Data grid for Shame (continued) 199
Unit* Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Image Visual tone 18/ AU SGT: What the police dept, Sgt and Asta 32:30 (hiqh-- hell were you quick cut to both shot at eye increasing) doing down there cafe, reporting level KS—appear ER anyway? the assault. to be equals (legal ASTA: What has [AU] rhetoric) that got to do Other woien-- AR with it? reaction shots-- (public) approval of SO ASTA: l ai a Asta's actions (specific-- citizen. I have legal) every right to do whatever-- SGT: We’re talking about four boys. Boys, having a bit of fun. ASTA: Hey girls, what do you do for a bit of fun? SGT: I could charge you. ASTA: Charge me? And when will you start on the fun-loving boys? Driving under age, driving with blood alcohol above the prescribed liiit, negligent driving, conspiracy, uh, attempted abduction, assault. SGT: Well, well. Bit of a bush lawyer, are we? ASTA: A barrister, as a latter of fact. ASTA: All right, let's talk about you. Failure to act on a legitimate complaint, Data grid for Shame (continued) 200
Unit* DiaensioD / D E T A I L S Tine (Position] Dialogue Audio Iiage Visual tone 19/ HU night, repair Frustration. 31:23 (high) shop, working on Beating on ■otorcycle. Tii ■achinery. brings tea [AU?] 25/ AU LIZZIE: Andrei. piano theie Day 3 lorning. Asta heued in 33:30 (Asta-- Listen to ie Punks arme for by sales. increase) please. You'ee gas, Asta is Tn iipotent, got to tell it fueling, Lizzie Liz helpless. ER dad what really runs to car in Asta--iacho, air (retreat-- happened. nightgown, Tn hose, fuel Lizzie, Til, Andrew. Please. drags her out of nozzle, qreasy Gran) How could you car, Gran takes jeans and shirt, let then do her to house. then leathers that? Please. Andrew reading (AU] Just tell hi® I Echo--headline didn’t know. "Dirtiest town TI“: No work at in West." all from Hiss alnighty runoff GRAN: Will you stay with little Liz? Just for today. Could you? 21/ ASTA: Lizzie. Lizzie's rooi pix of hunks on 38:37 LIZZIE: What? the door. ASTA: For what it's worth, I believe you. Data grid for Shame (continued) 201
Unit# Diiension / D E T A I L S Time (Position) Dialogue Audio Isage Visual tone 22! LIZZIE: I vas so Piano these, Asta and Lizzie Reflections in 39:13 stupid, wasn’t nature sounds. swimming water, similar I? I didn't do dress, show one thing to similarities them. I just between Asta and sort of sat Lizzie, shows alone, talked them as (near) and that. Andrew equals. said he loved me. ASTA: Lizzie, it wasn't you. It wasn't Lizzie Curtis. It was just a woman, anybody. LIZZIE: You must be rich. You’re not careful. ASTA: Kaybe I haven't had to be. 21! Asta and Lizzie CU: freedom, 42:53 on sotorcycle flying, smaller machine than males, unencumbered 24/ AU ASTA: Flooding Asta flips punk Asta surrounded 43:16 (high) ay carbies, off back of by men, but AR sate. bike, then prevails [A(J] (public) ASTA: Sorry, I wheelies away ER only got it back with Liz on back (action) together this [Ml] morning, [meth Reaction shot: expertise--AU) Liz, Lorna, two other women-- PUNK: Want approval somethin' big between yer legs, do ya? ASTA: If it does 190K. [AU]
IS! Asta, Liz, 45:13 riding motorcycle Data grid for Shame (continued) 202
Unit* Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Iiage Visual tone 26/ AU TIM: What's Asta, Lizzie, Lizzie in 45:20 (Asta high) going on? Gary at shop. A- background. Tin AR [irrelevant G square oft to in siddle, (seii-private) liddle-aged fight. confused. ER ■ale] (action- violence) GARY [to Asta]: ER OK, sos iaybe (retreat—Tin, you're ainio1 to Li:} get into her pants. OK. Liz convinces Yin to listen to her. IV AU Night 3. shop. 49:19 (Liz gains Tin, Liz, Asta. soie) T6L spray paint ER yellow stripe on (action) punk's hack. AR (seii-public) SO (semi* specific— revenge?) Data grid for Shame (continued) 203
Unit* Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Iiage Visual tone 28/ AU LIZZIE: Having a Day 4. Horning. 51:05 (lizzie’s good old gossip, Store, Lorna, AN'D rises) are you? Talking gossiping woeen. 29/ ER about ie? Lizzie stands up 52:54 (action-- WOKAN: No one’s to thea says legal) talking about she’s pressing AR you, Lizzie charges. Outside (public-- Curtis. store with personal and RITA: Ah, Lorna. Lorna, legal) bullshit. too, pressing SO 'Course you’re charges. (specific) talkin' about DU her. Cause she's (1st ei. of the latest. long) HOHAK: Ah, give it up Rita, Just because a feu little sluts in this town get what they deserve. GRAN: Don't worry sweetheart. We're going straight hole. LIZZIE: Little sluts? Is that how you explain it? You stupid-- WOYAN; Ah, bullshit Lizzie Curtis, I've seen you at those . . . club dances. You got what was conn' to you. Data grid for Shame (continued) 204
Unit* Dimension / D E T A I L S Tine (Position) Dialogue Audio Image Visual tone 30/ AU TIM: You leave Shop. Tim and 53:15 (Lizzie's it to soaeone Tina trying to rising) else to be talk Lizzie out brave, Lizzie. of pressing We’re gonna put charges. ail this behind us. TINA: look, Liz. You know Penny Ross. She’s as hard as nails. LIZ: She used to be. TINA: Yeah. She tried laying charges. LIZ: So? TIM: So people wouldn’t even talk to her on the street. She was a joke. LIZ: Yeah, I remember you laughing. LIZ: Look, I know other girls, lots of them, they could easily be doing what I'm gonna do, but no, everyone just says 'remember Penny Ross.1 And they just go and hide until the shaae goes away. And nothing ever happens. TIM: Hub? [i.e., talk Lizzie out of pressing charges] GRAN: I’ve ironed your dress, love, [i.e., she supports Lizzie's decision] 31/ To town to PD 54:25 Data grid for Shame (continued) 205
Unit# Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Iiage Visual tone 32/ Guys in town. Gang. Demeanor 5 4:45 Strategy, unsure, false lawyer, etc. bravado. 33/ PD. Lorna leaves Shadowy feiale 55:14 with boyfriend, authority figure doesn't press pulls Lizzie charges. into PD. 34/ AU Shop. Hrs. 57:03 (Rodolph’s Rodolph tries to vanes) settle out of court with Lizzie. No deal. 35/ Cafe. Sergeant 1:00 arrests punks. :05 Tim arrives, senseless brawl ensues. 36 AU W0KA5: I got hii Shop. Women 1:03 (related to his dinner. drinking, ;41 sex) talking about ER their nen. (capitulation) AR (personal) 37/ Shop. Liz and Togetherness. 1:04 Tim. M4 38/ Bail's been set. Shop. Women, 1:05 They’ll be on :35 the street within the hour. 33/ Asta arrives at Surrounded by 1:06 PD--seeks ien--they are :00 injunction arrogant against punks 40/ LIZ: Kell Shop. Teaching Lots of CU. 1:07 anyway, 11■ not Lizzie self- Lizzie's Ml scared with you defense. Not a siallness [Asta] around. good student. eiphasixed by ASTA: What about caiera angles. you, Lizzie, sticking up for yourself? ASTA: Y'can’t count on
anyone, Lizzie. - Data grid for Shame (continued) 206
Unit# Disensioo 1 D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Iiage Visual tone <1/ WOMAN: You’se (SFX-CSW MUSIC): Night 4: Sacrificial 1:09 fellas can do "Cause he’s *y Saturday night virgins offering : 11 what ya like. ■an, the tan in front of the theiselves to SACRIFICIAL that I love." Sports Bar abusive priests. VIRGIN: Hi Denny. Me and Dulcie’s not doin’ anything tonight. 42/ SFX: Night Shop. Asta, Liz, Pale lighting. 1:10 sounds Gran Moon (women 4 :59 longing for escape to another world) 41/ DENNY: SFX: Ear sounds Interior of 1:12 Sonethin's got sports bar. Guys : 05 into these drinking. women. 'Little drive’ 44/ Night. Shop 1:12 exterior. Cars :59 arrive. Vandalism, assault. 45/ Night. Asta, Ln LA. Dia, dry 1:16 escape on ice. Glamor shot :5B motorcycle. of lotorcycle leaving garage. Power. 46/ Shop interior. 1:17: Trying to escape 12 in tow truck. 47/ PD. Asta drops 1:17 Liz off. :34 48/ Asta on 1:17 motorcycle. :46 49/ Shop. Asta, et 1:17 al. Tia beaten. :54 50/ ER/ Town. Women fora Just like 1:18 action by posse to search Westerns. :48 women for Gran. Data grid for Shame (continued) 207
Unit! Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie {Position} Dialogue Audio Iiage Visual tone 51/ PUNK: Fightin' Gran, punks 1:19 back, are ya under bridge. :33 grandma? She spits in one's face. 5 21 TINA: Now do Posse arrives, 1:20 your job, Asta and Tina :35 useless bastards beat up two punks, cops arrive. Other women restrain punks, woian spits on son (?)• 53/ PD. Liz 1:21 abducted. : 59 PD. Asta and
>— * >—c * n Tina arrive. * * * * - - (_0
55/ ANDREW: Stop the Car. Lizzie 1:23 car. struggles with :00 Andrew, kicks him in balls, he kicks her out of the moving car. 56/ ER/ ASTA: Tell ie or PD. Posse 1:23 action I'll break your already there. : 16 (violence) neck. Cops arrive with SO/ Andrew, Denny. very specific Asta chokes DU/ Denny. ADdrew temp? confesses to dumping Lizzie near the quarry. 5 V Quarry. Posse Dark. Asta's 1:26 and cons arrive. power (HC) :25 Asta already turned over. Pan there with body. left across HC Virgin tosses to Asta--she is away in depths with "comforting" body. ■ale an. Sgt. can't ieet Tina's gaze. 58/ Freeze frame. 1:30 Asta. :00 Data grid for Shame (continued) 208
Unit# Tiie (Position) Dialogue Iiage Visual tone Credits Coiposed and Arranged by LUCKY OCEANS Special thanks(various) Sexual Assault Referral Centre, Perth Shaie was filled in an around Perth and Toodyay, Western Eastiancolor Negative APPENDIX C DATA RELATIVE TO CHAPTER V
209 210
Data grid for Fiaht the Power Live
Unit! Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio liage Visual tone
1/ HALCOLH: we Halcoli X 0:00 declare our speaking. right oo this earth to be a ■an, to be a huian being, to be respected as a huian being, to be given the rights of a hunan being, io this society, on this earth in this day, which we intend to bring into existence by any leans necessary, Data grid for Fight the Power Live (continued) 211
Unit# Diiension I D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio laage Visual tone
1/ ER PHILADELPHIA Songs: Group arrives Frenetic, COQt. (internal FAN: They Countdown to at TV station forceful. Cuts, change) tryin to get Anageddon CG; "Freedom strobe effect, people off the is a road blurs, caiera SP pipe, you how Fight the seldoi ■oveient. (preferred) their's a lot Power traveled by of people out the here on crack. ■altitude*. (long-tera) They tellin us Takes over the crack not what station, it is, you establishes know what I'a PETV. Intro at sayin, they Coliseua--SlU. tryin to put Professor us down. Griff. Bus. CHUCK: You got Flav. LL Cool to give the J. S1W. kids a little Philadelphia. bit of what SIB. On the they want, you bus. Fans. got to tell Soul Train e« what they Awards 196B. need to know in order to keep the* froi fallin into the traps that's set for thei. HALE FAN: Bhat they're sayin and what they're tryin to do is uplift the black youth. A lot of people don't agree with the way that they say it and how they voice their opinions but 1 agree with 'e« and everybody here agrees with 'ea and what they're sayin needs to be heard. Data grid for Fight the Power Live (continued) 212
Unit* Diiension / D E T A I L S T ne (Position) Dialogue Audio Iiage Visual tone
21 SP PEN1 Songs: S1H. Barrage of 415 (preferred t) ...you'll be Security of Song intro by cuts, clips disgracin' the First X and S1U, fro* civil ER You and your World Flav enters, rights era, (internal aind froi a (intro/jas) Chuck D strobe lights, change) beatin’ froi enters. S1U and ■y rhyies weapons, A tiie, a Public Eneiy Concert coibine to criie that I No. 1. (534) footage, assault viewer. can't find record store, Visual latches I’ll show you signing between dogs ay gun--iy Un autographs. grabbing at weighs a ton black Because I'm Concert: S1W deionstrators Public Enemy Hiuii weighs a drilling with and fans umber one ton. (601) Uzis grabbing at PE. HUZI Militant, Accused of News footage: aggressive, [My assault--a 1st crowd of Uzi is a degree crioe whites tongue) Cause I beat taunting black competetitors nan, with ay firehoses, rhyies.., burning I'm a Public cross, cop Eneiy but 1 striking black don't rob man with rifle bants butt,KKK I don't shoot rally, hands bullets and 1 of black ian don’t shoot in jail, blanks.. police dogs Rock--get up-* grabbing black get down ian, Hiuzi weighs a ton Data grid for Fight the Power Live (continued) 213
Unitt Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Audio Iiage Visual toneDialogue
3/730 ER VO: You're SONG: Party CG: Stop the Chuck D with (action X 4) quite hostile. For Your Right Violence ■egaphone His CHUCK: This is to Fight Hoveient (over provides visual tory. how to deal Colored ■atch with Civil with Aierica, Power Equality Waiting Rooi documentary right cause Aierica And we're out sign) footage of s is deal in with to get it Press rallies, foot us... 1 know soie of conference. ■arches. age. CHUCK: And if you ain’t wit’ stOD the PE you ain't got it violence larch talks no This party Black Panthers information, started right MLK in jail, Loss you're gonna in ’66 ■arching of do what you're With a pro- Angela Davis'? cul gonna do, Black radical woman with ture, blind. lii large Afro drug CHUCK:I ain't [assassination Cops arresting prob gonna try to s/arrests set protester lem. fool y'all up by govt] Black Panther because that's rally what it's Chua D with about. We got megaphone to teach Rally. ourselves how Angela Davis. to deal, because we Night of the have twice as Living many obstacles Baseheads to face. e.g. Here is a Peace. true tale CONCERT HALCOLK VO Of the ones (playback by that deal X?): Have you Are the ones forgotten.,.wh that fail... en we were And brothers brought here, try to get we were robbed swift an' of our naie, Sell to their robbed of our own, rob a language, we hoie lost our While soie religion, our shrivel to culture, our bone god, and sany Like coiatose of us by the walk in way we act, around... even lost our Shase on a ■inds. brother when he dealin' The saie block where my 99 be wheelin’ And everybody Data grid for Fioht the Power Live (continued) 214
Unit! Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Iiage Visual tone
4/105 Aft VO Several people 4 (private) conversation at a party between two acting out the anti ■en: VO dialogue. gold Teacher: Gold cone is played rcial out... Pic) up on your culture. Pic) up an African ■edallion.., Gold brain is better than gold chain any day. Yo, gold. We don't own it, so why wear it. Pupil: Yo, ian I see how you do. 1 see how you do. Data grid for Fight the Power Live (continued) 215
Unit! Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio laage Visual tone
5/110 ER Chuck: Yo, Song: Fight Flav and Spike Staged rally 1 (action) check this out the Power Lee has the ian, we appearance of a inter SO rollin' this Universal- civil rights view (fairly way. That International rally of ’60s, with specific) ■arch in 1963? News: 'The with signs, Spike That's a bit a Harch on posters, PE Lee, DU nonsense, we Washington" leading the ’FTP" (long-tera) ain't rollin (Newsreel of ■arch. video like that no the 1963 Harch Bullhorns. Pics direc ■ore. Hatter on Washington) of HLK, Hal cola ted of fact, the 1. S1W dances by young black on stage, but Lee. Aierica, we also fills role rollin up with of "security" seninars, for the press leaders--PE. conferences, Also looks like and straight- a political up rallies, ai convention, I right? We with signs that gonna get what naie urban we got to get centers (Kiaai, conn to us, Staged Harch, Brooklyn, word up. We rally, on the Philadelphia) ain't goin’ Bed-Stuy block where blacks out like that where Do the are lajority. '63 nonsense. Right Thing Includes stage was filled. show. Crowd: Cot to get busy. Chant; Don’t believe the hype. 6/158 Elderly 5 British Woian: Is that the PETV correct tiie? inter Flav: That view sure is. That with ■eans we know fan what tiie it in is. Londo n Data grid for Fight the Power Live (continued) 216
Unitt Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio liage Visual tone
7/161 AR Song: Bring Lots of eye- 2 (public) the Noise level shots, PE ’Pive-O' said and crowd. Conce *Freeie!" and Concert rt I got nuab costuies are Can 1 tell 'ea street gear. that I really never had a gun? But it’s the wai that the Teninator X spun Now they got ■e in a cell 'cause iy records, they sell Cause a brother like ie said, 'Nell... Farrakhan's a prophet and 1 think you ought to listen to what he can say to you, what you ought to do.' Black is back, ail in, we're gonna win Check it out, yeah y’all here we go again Listen for lessons 1'■ saying inside ■usic that the critics are blasting ie for Data grid for Fight the Power Live (continued) 217
Diiension Position Dialogue Visual tone
8/162 All CHUCK D: If Song: Interior of Hoie video, 1 (presentations yon study Rightstarter prison, PE e.g. Chuck at 1 I 3) society out (Message to a entering, bus window Piker there, Black Man) talking to underexposed. ’s ER basically you Soie ask us prisoners, Stage costuies Islan {internal studyin why we act the perforiing for look like d change X 2) society in way we act prisoners. prison garb. here. Without SO FLAV: I was in lookin' how CG (crawler): (non-specific) the position long they kept Most people that y'all are us back sent to prison SP in now. I was are not sent (preferred) here, too. there for CHUCK D: We violent SP are living in criies. (preferred *) Aierica. It's real. More CG (crawler): real than a Imprisoning heart attack. aore people Gut when I has not walk outside reduced criie. froi Piker's Island, I still have to face society as a black san, whether I do this ausic hews stories: or not. 'New Age PROFESSOR Pappers With A GRIFF: I can Conscience' handle what e.g. Public Enemy’s saying--it's a ■ind revolution. CHUCK: The country is brainwashed by the lediui of television, so there's no really no understanding or getting into a subject as long as ... Flav: The press soietnes put it in their own words, Data grid for Fight the Power Live (continued) 2
Unit* Diioos ion / D E T A I L S Time (Position) Dialogue Audio Image Visual tone
9/198 AU Song: Don’t Concert. 9 (presentationa Believe the Various media 1) Hype (technical) Don't believe people. News AH the hype--it's footage of a (private) a sequel cop heating up As an equal, a black man. SP can I get this Someone (preferred) through to ripping up PE you. , . publicity Some ■aterials; a perpetrate, pic of Flav[?) they drink that says Cloro* Don’t Believe Attack the the Hype at Black, cause 1 the margins. know they lack Prisoners eiact giving Black The cold Power salute. facts, and Chuck as still they try leader of new to lerox school Leader of the new school, uncool
10/ AU Flav; Eat this Song: Flavor hone video, 2210 (presentation cereal and Flav Cold concert 1 * 2) you’ll know Lampin' footage Cold what tiie it Lampi AR is, you know n (private) what I'i Cerea sayin? 1 come Flav; To, I’n rcial gonna do ay r dance, aan. conce Chuck: Ya rt gotta ask the crowd. Flav: I'i in the wood for Flav, just because Flav is near ne (sings poorly) Data grid for Fight the Power Live (continued) 219
Unit) Dliension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Tosi tioD) Dialogue Audio laage Visual tone
11/ SO Song/video: Flav All prisoners (specific) Black Steel in introduces black, shows 2415 the Bour of Black Steel white authority Chaos confining then. Song/video: Uprising. I got a letter Black Steel Singer is froa the in the Hour of innocent of governaent. . Chaos—set in charge b/c "I'i prison. Shows not a citizen", They wanted ae black aan but kills a for their any locked up, guard trying to or whatever . white get out- authorities, coanits criie riot, taking b/c he’s a Here is a laud guards victia of a that never hostage. Song society in gave a daan ends with which he is About a successful powerless, in brother like escape, but other words. ae and ayself video ends Because they with hanging. never did 1 wasn't wit’ it, but just that very ■inute... It occured [sic] to ae The suckers had authority They could not understand that 1'■ a Reinforcing the Black aan Crane up to words-capital And 1 could noose, rope punishient as a never be a fraaes Chuck way to veteran walking toward ehainate it. blacks. This is what I lean—an anti- Last cut— Harden’s head nigger aachine reaction shot jerks as if he of warden. is being hanged. Implication that hurting blacks hurts whites, too. Data grid for Fight the Power Live (continued) 220
Unit! Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio liage Visual tone
12/ At) Song: Rebel Intro: Rebel-- 2629 (presentations Without a CG: DUG i) Pause International Awards London No aatter what 66 the naie-- Concert we're all the saie Pieces in one big chess gase Yeah--the voice of power Is in the house—go take a shower boy PE a group, a crew—not singular We’re on a ■ission y'all
13/ Japanese guy: Song: Show ’Em Flav, Japan, i m Kajor force What You Got hoie video posse in the nouse. Data grid for Fight the Power Live (continued) 221
Unit! Diiension / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio tiage Visual tone
H/ SO Song/video; PETV Mews NOLB video: 2996 (specific X 2) Night of the Dancing around Living NOLB video- chalk outline PETV, Basehesds runs of body on video throughout, paveient. Check out the but cutaways justice--and to various (3242) Crack how they run PETV News Bouse/White it reports Bouse, skull, Sellin ’, MB as teeth in siellin' TV News skull. Sniffin', reporter, riffin’ interview with And brothers Brown Bags, try to get protesting swift an' against rap ANNCR: Has Sell to their (sign: Elvis this ever own, rob a Lives) happened to hoie you before? While soie DC Lyte at They think shrivel to Mall Street, you re a drug bone enters dealer, we Like cosatose boardroos, know you’re walkin' around white Whitey's not. executives hypocrisy Shane on a w/'cocaine taking a buck brother when on blacks who he dealin' Comrcial for buy products The saie block Beeper Tie. that keep then where iy 98 be oppressed e.g. wheelin’ beepers. Looks And everybody like bad used- know TV News at car salesian. Another kilo basehead’s Froi a corner house. froa a brother Pretty obvious. to keep Closing shot: another— PE gathered Below around a Stop illin' toibstone. and killin' Stop grillin' Data grid for Fight the Power Live (continued) 222
Unit# Diaensioo / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Iaage Visual tone
15/ AU FLAV: Yo, Song: Prophets Fla? talking 3289 (presentations check this of Rage{3335) to high school 1 1 2} out, aan. On a students. serious tip. I’i considered ER the aan Concert. (internal FLAV: That I'i the change) stuff gets you recordable no place, But God aade SO aan... it affordable (soaewhat Leaae tell you I say it, you specific) aan, drugs play it turn you into Back in your DU the bugs. car or e?en {long-tern X portable 2) CHUCK: We Stereo ain't goin' Describes ay out like that. scenario Left or right, Black or White They tell lies in the books That you're readin' It's knowledge of yourself That you're needin' Handela, cell dweller, Thatcher You can tell her dear the way for the prophets of rage (Fower of the people say) Put your ■otherfuckin fist in the air Data grid for Fight the Power Live (continued) 223
Unit* Di lensioa / D E T A I L S Tiie (Position) Dialogue Audio Iiage Visual tone
16/ AU Credits, hose Hoie aovies, 3478 (presentations video relaxed 0 (backstage production 3570 rehearsal, values, aessage conversation not so with London iaportant, woian, etc.) winding down CG: PRODUCED after intense AND DIRECTED eiperience. BY HART PERRY 'NIGHT OF THE LIVING BASEHEADS" DIRECTED BY LIONEL MARTIN CLASSIC CONCEPTS INC. 'BLACK STEEL IN THE HOUR OF CHAOS" DIRECTED BY ADAM BERNSTEIN SCORCHED EARTH PRODUCTIONS 'FIGHT THE POWER* DIRECTED BY SFIKE LEE 40 ACRES AND A MULE FILMWQRKS LIST OF REFERENCES
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