Fix Chapter II

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CHAPTER II

LITERATURE REVIEW

In this chapter, theoretical approaches and other studies related with the

research are served to answer the research question. This research uses the myth

of anti-intellectualism and bullying study, social psychological approach, and at

last semiotics film theory.

A. The Myth of Anti-Intellectualism

The myth of anti-intellectualism has two narratives frequently circling

among American societies. The first myth-narrative concerns about leadership and

judgment and it seems to be serious conversation. The second myth-narrative

centers upon peer culture. It seems less complex rather than the first but perhaps

even more common.

A. 1. The Myth among Adult Life

Firstly the myth of anti-intellectualism emerged as a form of dislikeness

European-Americans to their ancestor, aristocratic Europeans, devoting

themselves to study yet lack of human sight. As aristocratic people, the ruling

class, surely the condition had them be smart in order to organize the lower class;

they must enhance their education. Accordingly aristocratic Europeans spent their

much time in learning digging out any knowledge. But, higher intellectual quality

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became a causal problem of the fleeing Europeans. The fleeing people assumed

that the Europeans (aristocratic classes) had been blinded by glistened knowledge.

Aristocratic classes regarded themselves as human set in the top over others

snob and worthyand higher cleverness leading themselves to ignorant people.

Aristocratic Europeans tried to enrich their wealth by using their tricky skill to

befool the superficial poor people. Hence they were escaping because the better

educational people (aristocrat) took the poor peoples properties by using the

manipulated law. In brief, European-Americans hated Aristocratic-Europeans

started from intellectualism.

Therefore old Americans gave a suspicion to aristocratic Europeans that

the aristocratic people put power of mind or mind-over-body in the paramount

of life (so passionate in thought). In one side, because of rejection toward

intellectual people, The Americans did not count herself as dumb or stupid. They

regarded themselves as intelligent people perfectly suited to their circumstances

and needs. Then, the early settlers gave clearly characteristics separation among

intelligence and intellect. Toward the historian Richard Hofstadter, we can

see how American people differentiate themselves to aristocratic Europeans.

IntelligenceAmerican

Practical

Thought---action

Knowledge derived from experience and

books

Shrewd, clever, inventive

Democratic, common man,

One of us

Real world

Professionals (live off ideas)

IntellectEuropean

Contemplative

Thought---more thought

Thought derived from thought and

experimentation books

Abstract, ideological

Aristocratic, learned man,

One of them

Ivory tower

Egg heads (live for ideas)


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Intelligent and intellectual people are separated clearly by those opposition

values. Furthermore, the historian Hofstadter (1963), in Nachbar and Lause

(1992), gives additional information through his conclusion toward the opposition

values.

Intelligence isa manipulative, adjustive, unfailingly practical quality (which) works

within the framework of limited but stated goals, and may be quick to shear away

questions of thought that do not seem to helping reaching them.intellect, on the other

hand, is the criticaland contemplative side of mind.(I)ntellect examines, ponders,

wonders, theorizes, criticizes, imagine. (Nachbar and Lause, 1992, p. 87)

Then through the Hofstadters explanation we get clearly understanding

what American people hold. Americans believe that they have great way of life

Intelligence has ingrained and has mold their life. Intelligence is over intellect

because intelligence attributed with an amazing practical thought which can finish

problems quickly rather than intellect which needs thought and more thought

toward problems. Clearly, people who regard themselves as practical do not want

to think over about problems, they tend to have actions. Thus according to

practical people, ideologists like to think over problems and more thought so they

do not finish the problem effectively.

The value of anti-intellectualism, practical, and the value of

intellectualism, ideological, became an important problem during the exploration

age. In this age, many west countries did explorations to find something new for

progress of human civilizations. If American people say that they hate

intellectuals, it may be they less enlightened. American people such as John

Bartram contributed a science development in botany plain, Franklin and

Jefferson as cosmopolitan figures of scienceespecially Franklin contributed in


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electricity plain. Nevertheless during these ages many important people such as

politicians and keepers of the purse emerged a simple but clear boundary between

practical and ideological.

By and large, those who demanded only practical science in America and

Europe were not scientists but politician and keepers of the purse. And even

these men did not scorn science as long as it was practical, leading them to

mineral depositsand the discovery of commercial products like baking

powder, rubber, and most recently, oil. (William H. Goetzmann, 1992, p.

317)

The politicians and the money holders only employed the scientists to get

their purpose. As long as the scientists were able to make money, those men loved

and supported the scientists experiments. On the other hand the scientists who

failed in their experiments would be scorned and boldly classed as ideologists

who like playing with ideas but no clear stated goal.

Then whether this myth is still strong or decrease to weak, in fact, the

myth of anti-intellectualism is able to penetrate up to this era. Take a look at the

flash back journey of the myth. Through political field, according to many

researches, the election between Andrew Jackson and John Quincy Adams in

1828 was one of the realities of the applied myth of anti-intellectualism. Jackson

planned by setting Adams as an elitist intellectual with lack of moral and values

who could not relate to the common man. He had provoked the society that

intellectuals as counterfeiters used smart structured language and rhetoric to

deceive ordinary people. At that time Jackson was able to defeat Adams by setting

himself as the peoples candidate. Likewise president election between Jackson

and Adams, George Bush set Al Gore as a boring, monotonous intellectual, even,

an arrogant intellectual out of touch with the common man. As Jackson, Bush


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spread image that he was the right person who could bring America to the better

future because he was the common man who had heart than mind. Therefore the

myth of anti-intellectualism still remains and molds its holders to believe that

intellects are dangerous characters.

The issues around the myth of anti-intellectualism tend to be felt

ambivalence rather than totally hate intellects. Common knowledge, United States

of America is united by the great intellects founding fathers. Furthermore the

amazing development in its technologies and sciences does not apart from the

intellects contributions and the societies like them. But, the myth which is held for

long years from the ancestors makes them still in the same line with the other

major holders. Generally, if they are out of the culture has been built for long

years; certainly they are none other the outcast. Thus they hate the intellects; on

the other hand they love them.

A. 2. The Myth among Peer Culture

The second myth-narrative centers upon peer culture relating to an identity

and self-image. There is a group called as nerds comprising of intellectual

adolescents. An adolescent labeled as a nerd is always characterized has awful

characteristics. An intellectual adolescent is related closely to physically

repulsive, socially inept, shy, and show higher insecurity.

To understand the root of nerd, we can see its history development. The

terminology of nerd is firstly known from the comic book made by Dr. Seuss

(1950), If I Ran the Zoo. The word nerd is one of long list fantastic creatures,


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And then, just to show them, Ill sail to Ka-Troo, and bring back IT-KUTCH, a

PREEP, and a PROO, a NERKLE, a NERD, and a SEERSUCKER, too

(Anderreg, 2008: 25). Thereafter in 1951, term of nerd gets its first debut in an

article of Newsweek, In Detroit, someone who once would be called drip or a

square is now, regrettably, a nerd, or in a less severe case, a scurve. Around

1959, an Ottawa lab uses N.E.R.D acronym for Northern Electric Research and

Development. In another point of view, nerd derived from its origin tale begins

as a joke. The original spelling is knurd, or drunk spelled backward to

describe those who prefer studying to partying (ibid).

In 1985 Life magazine lists nerd characteristics, including adhesive-tape

repaired glasses, high-waisted and high-water geezer pants, goofy smile, nerd

pack (plastic protector with pencils, pen, slide rule or calculator, etc) (Nerd

Look, n. d.). Culturally, those characteristics firstly belong to male intellects.

Year by year, the characteristics of male intellects pervasively attach to female

intellects including wearing eyeglasses, dressing unfashionably, leaving her hair

in unfashionable styles, being shy and may be socially inept in social life,

unskilled in sports, may be slightly overweight or notably thin (Nerd girl, n. d.).

In brief, the stereotypes of male and female nerds are very close to students who

are socially inept, freak or uncool, out of style since nerds can be recognized by

their dress, clumsy, gangling or slovenly, and concentrates only on study.

Afterward, American culture still maintains the myth of anti-

intellectualism through its products. For example, there is a nerd self test

published broadly in society through a box of toy.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nerd_girlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nerd_girl


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SCORING THE NERD TEST: Each yes answer is worth three points. Total number of pointsdetermines your percentage of nerdiness, up to 100 percent. You get one point for reading this far.

1. Has anyone ever called you a nerd?

2. Did you skip a grade in elementary school?

3. Was your SAT math score 600 or more?

4. Can you figure out anagram without a piece of paper?

5. Did you try to figure out if the last question was an anagram?

6. Did you letter in high school for academics or band?

7. Did you have your first drink on your twenty-first birthday?

8. Do you know at least one of these languages? Perl. COBOL, C, C+, C++, FORTRAN.

9. Was your last intimate relationship in chat room?

10. Do you own a fanny pack or pocket protector?...

11. Do you consider chess a sport?...12. Have you ever told a joke about chemistry or physics?

(David Anderreg, 2008, p. 17)

Through the questions of the nerd self-test, we know that nerds have great

achievement in the math and scientific plane. They have SAT (Scholastic

Aptitude Test) score in or above 600 and they seem to know every single about

computer program. Definitely they have academic success since they much

allocate their time in academic sector.

Yet, the test seems to undervalue for the dumbest nerd. American societies

consider the test as a normal treatment for the young intellects; in fact, it actually

humiliates the intellectual adolescents. Through the point nine, the question

signifies that being a nerd is far from beloved person. None girls or boys want to

approach nerds because nerds spend more time in front of computer than real act

of social life. Nerds like to surf in internet world even for their date. Thus nerds

are always stereotyped having unsuccessful relationship in real social life.

The stereotypes labeled to nerds are often expressed trough negative

behaviors. Frequently, students perceiving themselves have higher status above a


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nerd always persecute and bully this intellectual student. For example, it comes

from the twelve years girl named Ellie. She was hospitalized briefly after taking

an overdose of Tylenol. The reason of her action based on the vicious her friends

about her bookishness, and she slowly lost one friend after another. Her last friend

abandoned her explaining that she still liked her, but could not be seen with her or

speak with her at school because Ellie was so nerdy that her friends own

reputation was in danger (Anderreg, 2008, p. 41).

Ellies experience may be suffered by many students labeled as a nerd.

Having no friends because of excluded by others make Ellie decide herself to try

doing suicide. However, the most terrible situation happened in April 20th 1999

when two students, Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris, shot 12 students and one

teacher before deciding to shoot themselves. All this time, there are two points of

view about the cause of Columbine massacre done by the two. In the book

Human Development written by Diane E. Papilia and friends say that Klebold

and Harris do the homicide because both of them show partly the anti-social

behaviors such as using drug and alcohol, involving into certain gang, fight,

stealing, and properties destruction. Diane and friend do not totally blame Klebold

and Harris because their anti-social activities. Yet, in their book, Diane and

friends tend to blame the sub-urban Columbines social condition. They

summarize a boy who live in bad social conditions tend to involve into violence

actions. On the other hand, several reports say that the two commit shooting

because of unbearable pressures being bullied. Since Klebold and Harris labeled


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as smart students, they often get humiliations by their average peers and even the

lower grades.

And after the Columbine massacre in 1999, parents and school officials across

the country started persecuting nerds and geeks in the same manner. They were

sort of like the Columbine killers: smart, computer-savvy, social outcast

(Anderreg, 2008, p. 32).

Additionally, according to Dedman (2000) (in American Medical

Association, 2002) U.S Secret Service reported that 41 school shooters (including

Columbine) disclosed two-third of the doers felt persecuted or threatened by their

peers. Thus the Columbine shooters are type of smart students who are often

bullied. Then they determine to express their hatred by shooting their peers

because negative effect of the awful pressures.

B. The Social Psychological Development of Adolescents

in High School Plane

The wider branch of psychology is social psychology which studies

individual behavior and thoughts and it is also concerned with the social side of

lifehow people think and interact with others. As stated by Baron and Byrne

(2000, p. 6), social psychology is the scientific field that seeks to understand the

nature and causes of individual behavior and thought in social situations. Hence,

to understand individual behavior and thoughts can be started from analyzing

psychology plane. Then, an individual psychology is linked with social setting

where the individual lives.


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Kids enter adolescence in the age between 12/13 up to 17 years old. In this

age, adolescents experience the blooming time in several facets such as biological

growth, psychological growth, and changes in their social environment. Because

of biological growth, adolescents reproduction organs both boys and girls start

undergoing sexual maturity. The maturity of reproduction organs can be seen in

several cues represented in adolescents body for example because of the ovum

maturity, girls are usually bleeding every month depend on their condition, and

their breasts are getting bigger. For boys, the average of their maturity is usually

about two years later than girls. Boys also experience increasing hormone and

usually their voices become husky. Definitely boys and girls become taller than

their childhood.

In some research, biological growth can influence the psychological of any

adolescent. The boys who are late in their maturity will be hard to join the same

activity. Those who are shorter and less strong among others, socially they might

lose opportunity to join certain activities and they are supposed to disable to

achieve same position with those who are mature earlier in handling every

physical activity. Hence boys who are late in puberty tend to be less popular.

Studi yang pernah dilakukan menunjukkan bahwa anak laki-laki yang lambatmencapai pubertas, cenderung menjadi kurang populer dibandingkan dengan

teman sekelas mereka dan memiliki konsep diri yang jelek, serta lebih banyak

terlibat dalam perilaku yang lebih tidak matang yaitu mencari perhatian

(Dharma and Adriyanto, 1991, p. 137)

The unpopularity labeled to boys who are mature later has a tendency to

commit inappropriate behavior such as looking for attention and they will also


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feel unaccepted and dominated by their friends. In one hand, for those who are

mature earlier tend to have more self-confidence and more independent.

As boys, girls condition in getting their maturity gives almost same

impact with boys. Psychologically girls who are mature earlier feel more prestige

than others and it gives contributions to social life. The earlier mature girls usually

become a leader in any school activity.

Furthermore the development of psychological can be viewed when

adolescents eagerly want to join in a desirable group. They are entangled in two

most common thingsself-esteem and self-competenceto enhance their image

among peers. Generally adolescents enhance their self-esteem trough appearance

it could be body shape, hair style, make up or dress that they are wearing.

According to research by Kwon cited in by Baron and Byrne (2000, p. 173) that

self-esteem increases when people like the clothes they are wearing. If an

adolescent ignore his appearance in the middle of crowd, it will denigrate his self-

esteem and it completely give serious negative effects. He may be excluded from

group or even he becomes an object of prank. Then adolescents who are excluded

tend to evaluate themselves negatively. In line with Olmstead and friends

research that people who value lower than others will suffer negative effects such

as less adequate social skills, loneliness, depression, and decreased effort on a task

following a failure experience (ibid). The adolescents success in enhancing self-

esteem is more capable to compete with the others and the possibility to involve in

their desirable group is wider than adolescents with low self-esteem.


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The changing psychological is going along with the alteration social life of

adolescentswhen adolescents begin to enter high school, relationship and

competition with their classmates are more important. In U.S., adolescents

allocate much their time with pleasant peers rather with their parents. Peers can

stand for an adolescent both in good or bad attitudes. Peers set parents position

when an adolescent has no enough emotional support. Fortunately if an adolescent

befriends good peers who have enough support for beneficial actions, it will lead

him into brighter future. Unluckily parents are worrying about peer friendship in

supporting bad attitudes, the idea here is that peers provide, or model, both

delinquent attitudes and delinquent behaviors, (Burfeind and Bartusch, n. d.).

Not only peers relationship which able to support delinquent behavior, but also

peers rejection represents a constructive factor for the development of antisocial

behavior, isolation by other students because peers do not want to lose status by

associating with him/her or because peers do not want to increase the risks of

being bullied by higher group, (Lumsden, 2002). It is because the nature

behavior of adolescents that they befriend with others who have same common

goals and they do not tolerate dissimilarity.

C. Bullying

Bullying study constitutes a new study. This study is inspired by the

suicides of several severely victimized students. One of prominent figures of this

study is Dan Olweus. Olweus has contributed his bullying prevention program

among students and he firstly has applied his program in Norway and Sweden.
http://www.eric.edu.gov.1997/http://www.eric.edu.gov.1997/


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Olweuss program is felt good for the development of children and then many

nations stand with him to prevent bullying. Those nations which conduct

prevention program for bullying such as United States of America, Australia,

Ireland, Canada, Great Britain, and Japan. Problems associated with bullying have

been noted and discussed wherever formal schooling environments exist. Thus,

Dan Olweus is recognized as the father of bullying research because of his big

contributions in preventing bullying.

Then what is meant by bullying? We know it is sort of like persecution

among children. Therefore Olweus is capable to enlighten through his

understanding about bullying:

A person is being bullied when he or she is exposed, repeatedly and over time,

to negative actions on the part of one or more other persons (Olweus, 1993).

Bullying happens because imbalance power between more powerful

students or group attacking those who are less powerful. Bullying is conducted

repeatedly and it certainly raises negative effects.

Through the characteristics above, students who close related to bullies

tend to popular students. Somehow, popular students set superior life over the

other students, and they often do well socially and get lots of friends (popular

students have a social capital). Hence, bullying actions most be conducted by the

popular students to students look like weak, less power, and etc.

Then bullying can be categorized into three forms: physical, verbal and

psychological (Ericson, 2001). Physical bullying, where the perpetrators use their

physical actions to hurt the victims. Physical bullying can be many actions


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including hitting, kicking, spitting, pushing, and taking personal belongings. The

second form of bullying is verbal bullying. The perpetrators make verbal threats

or inconvenience voices to their victims. Taunting, malicious teasing, and making

threats are the verbal forms of bullying. The last form is non-verbal/ non-physical

bullying. This bullying action attacks the psychological of its victims. It can be

embodied in several ways such as manipulating social relationships, or engaging

in social exclusion, extortion, or intimidation.

Those three forms of bullying can be subdivided into two methods: direct

and indirect bullying methods. Boys usually conduct direct bullying and girls tend

to use indirect bullying to others, Boys more often use direct bullying and

indirect bullying is more common in girls (Wyrick, 2002). To get clearly

description about bullying, it can be understood easily through simple table which

is got in the paper of American Medical Association in 2002. Types of bullying

and its methods are categorized finely.

Each two major groups involved into bullying action, the bullies and the

victims, has their own characteristics. According to Ron Banks, there are typical

Table 1. Common Forms of Bullying

Direct bullying Indirect bullying

Verbal bullying Taunting, teasing, name-

calling

Spreading rumors

Physical bullying Hitting, kicking, shoving,

destruction or theft of property

Enlisting a friend to assault

someone for youNon-verbal/

Non-physical bullying

Threatening, obscene gesture Excluding others from a group,

manipulation of friendship,

threatening e-mail


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characteristics owned by both the bullies and the victims. First, studies indicate

that bullies often come from homes where physical punishment is used or hostile

family environments." Their parents indirectly teach them to strike back

physically as the way to handle problems. Second, children are strongly predicted

conducting bullying behavior is because parents lack in supervising them. Third,

bullies displaying bullying action usually show defiant attitudes toward adults,

antisocial, and pertinent to break school rules (Banks, 1997).

In one side, victims of bullying have typical characteristics, anxious,

insecure, cautious, and low of self-esteem (ibid). The other opinion comes from

Charach and friends, in Banks (1997), about typical characteristics of the victims,

that students considered victims to be "weak," "nerds," and "afraid to fight back."

Beside those two groups: the bullies and the victims, we cannot ignore the

third party, the bystanders. Bystanders are the peers who attend when bullying

action happen. There are two types of bystander: the active bystanders who

participate in the harassment, and the passive bystanders. A study found that peers

were present in 83 percent of the bullying episodes but they intervened to stop the

bullying only 30 percent of the case (American Medical Association, 2011).

Numerous studies noted that some of them did not want to intervene bullying

because it was not their problem and many of them avoid intervening bullying

action because they did not want to be the next target (American Medical

Association, 2002).

Bullying creates huge effects both to the bully and the bullied. There are

short-and long-term consequences for the perpetrators and the victims of bullying.
http://www.amaalliance.org/site/epage/42275_625.htmhttp://www.amaalliance.org/site/epage/42275_625.htmhttp://www.ama-assn.org/ama1/pub/upload/mm/39/youthbullying)http://www.amaalliance.org/site/epage/42275_625.htmhttp://www.ama-assn.org/ama1/pub/upload/mm/39/youthbullying)


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The victims experience having no friends and having trouble making social

adjustment. According to longitudinal studies, victims of bullying in early grades

also reported being bullied several years later. The effect of bullying to the

chronic victims may be brought to the adult life such as depression, poor self-

esteem and other mental health problem (Limberand Nation, 2002).

The perpetrators of bullying also cannot avoid the negative outcome. The

bullies tend to drop out than other student. Several researches reported that

bullying behavior as a factor to the future violence and delinquency and according

to Dan Olweus that bullying could lead later criminal behavior.

D. Semiotic Film Theory

To be certain Christian Metz is well-known as person who develops

semiotic into film theory. However, when this study is rolled back into its root,

two famous persons such as Ferdinand de Saussure and Roland Barthes may

enlighten our understanding about semiotics.

Semiotics or semiology is a science that studies how a meaning is derived

from signs. Through Swiss linguist Ferdinand de Saussure about his language

study, we can get the understanding of semiology. Semiology comes from Greek

semeion which means sign. Sign is a union of signifier and signified. The

signifier is the sensible, material, acoustic, or visual signal which triggers a

mental concept, the signified while the signifier is the perceptible aspect of the

sign (Stam, et al, 1992). In short, we can say that the signifier is the image and

the signified is the mental concept, and the relation between image and mental
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concept is sign. Afterward the relationship between signifier and signified

according to Saussure is arbitrary. For example, the word shoes are interpreted

differently by each person. Nevertheless what are imagined by persons when they

hear the word shoes in a sentence I need a new shoes remain shoes itself, not

the image of sandal, stone, or anything else. Every person has own mindset about

shoes and whatever model of shoes are (basketball shoes, boot, and etc), there is a

convention in society that shoes refers to outer covering for persons foot. Thus,

arbitrary means certain idea (regardless types or models) related to certain form

based on a convention among societies.

Then this science is advanced by Roland Barthes who studied signs in the

mass culture. In Barthes book, laculture de masse, Barthes uncovered meaning

in the product of mass culture including advertisings, newspapers, magazines,

photographs, cars, childrens toys, and so on. In his book, Barthes added one

system of the Saussures sign (sign= signifier + signified) by including second

order semiological system. We can see it through the Barthess sign diagram.

1. Signifier 2. Signified

3. Sign

I SIGNIFIER II SIGNIFIED

III SIGN

Through the diagram, we can see that there are two semiological systems.

First, it is like Saussures system. For example, the word ROSE, in the language

plane, the signifier is the alphabetic order of R-O-S-E, and the signified is the

Language

Myth


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conventional meaning of rose, (bush or shrub, usu with thorns on its stems,

bearing an) ornamental and usu sweet-smelling flower, (Hornby, 1994, p. 1100).

The word of rose interprets meaning explicitly of rose itselfthere is no implicit

meaning behind it. Hence in the first, it is found denotation meaning both

languages and images. Subsequently a sign created in the first system becomes a

signifier in the second order semiological system and it automatically forms a new

signified. After that, the combination between both new signifier and signified

create a new sign. A sign in the second system is clarified implicitly. In brief,

when a certain sign is viewed from the second order system, it directly explains a

certain myth which full of connotation depends upon the users cultural

experience (Turner, 1993, p. 46).

Then around 1960s semiotics develop again reaching the range of film

theory. Christian Metz becomes the prominent figure in introducing this new

study. According to Metz that semiotic system in film is not like semiotics in

language system. Language system can modify a certain root of word, yet in the

film, object which is shown cannot be modified. For example, along with Metz in

Monaco a rose can be simply a rose, but it can be modified with similar words:

rose, rosy, rosier, rosiest, rise, risen, rows (ruse, arose, roselike, and so forth

(Monaco, 2000, p. 158). Distinctly semiotics in film lacks of the arbitrary

linguistic sign (Stam, p. 35). Signs in film consist of the signifier nearly equals

with the signified.

As language system, film also has its own language. Film language can be

recognized through its terminologies and techniques. To know more about film


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language, lets have a look what types of terminologies and techniques contained

in film.

D. 1. Codes

There are a number of codes that cinema shares with culturally derived

codes and allocates with other arts. Culturally derived codes are set outside of film

and the filmmakers reproduce it simply, for example the way people eat. Then

codes shared with the other arts, for example a gesture, which is a code of theater

as well as in film. The use of illumination in the film also uses shared codes with

the photography, where the filmmakers want to modify the image with certain

lighting. There is also musical code existing outside of film.

D. 2. Mise-en-scene

Mise-en-scene pronounced as meez-on-scene, is derived from French

phrase which has literally means placing on stage. The phrase refers to the

arrangement of all visual elements within a given playing area or stage. People

and object are arranged in actual space which means that all of the measurement

on the frame has been thought including depth, height, and width. Mize-en-scene

itself is three dimensional, but after mize-en-scene is on frame of shot, it seems

like two dimensional images. In brief, mize-en-scene resembles the art of painting


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where the image presented on a flat surface and enclosed with a frame. Beneath

several involving in part of mize-en-scene:

D. 2. a. The framed shot

According to Louis Giannetti, the movie frame has function as a metaphor

since through the frame, the filmmakers put their ideas. For instance, when a

visual image is set near the top of the frame, it will deal with power, authority,

and aspiration. Yet the top does not always give such kind of ideas, sometimes

image which is shot from medium shot seems to be set near the top of the frame.

The images are also set in the bottom of the frame and these images will deal with

the meaning of subversive, vulnerability and powerlessness. Moreover, the images

are also set onto the side of frame: left and right edges which suggest

insignificant, and usually the filmmakers give darkness lighting to the images.

The framed shots also contain the illumination in cinema. There are three

ways of the filmmakers in using light: key, fill, and backlighting. Then, the key

lighting is divided into two: low and high key. High key lighting gives most the

scene of the film bright light, whereas low key produces less light in the scene or

even give it darkness shafts. Fill light is an additional illumination; it usually

gives illumination from side of the subject. This function can soften the shadow of

the subject. The backlighting in the movie produces a silhouette of visual image in

the screen. This technique is taken from the rear or the bottom of the image, often

with a glaring light. The filmmakers use these three kinds of illumination to


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describe the genre of the movie, for instance, high key in comedy and low key in

horror film.

Besides explaining illumination, obviously the framed shots give certain

understanding about limitation of visual image in frame. There are two aspects

which are considered important in the framed shot; limitation and composition.

Since the frame determines the limit of images, composition must be arranged

carefully.

The framed shot is divided into two: closed and open form. Closed form is

when the image of the frame is self-sufficient, conversely if the filmmakers have

composed the shot in such a way that we are always subliminally aware of the

area outside the frame, (Monaco, 2000: 213) then the form is considered as open

form. For instance, if the camera follows the subject constantly, we can call it as

closed form. And on the other hand, when the filmmakers encourage the subject

to leave and reenter in the shot, then this form is clearly open.

D. 2. b. Diachronic shot

Shot of the image in the frame is the way the filmmakers portray the

images to the audiences. Shot is also very important to give clearness to the

images. Giannetti stated that there are six categories of shot in cinema; the

extreme long shot, the long shot, the full shot, the medium shot, the close up, and

the extreme close up and the examples each of the shots are taken from Wilson

(2010).


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D. 2. b. 1. The Extreme Long Shot

The extreme long shot is taken from a great distance around a quarter of

mile away. This shot happens mostly on exterior shot where the visual images

taken appear as mere specks or spots on the screen. The film genres that always

use this shot are including western, war film, samurai film, and historical film.

Figure 2. 1: Extreme long shot

D. 2. b. 2. The Long Shot

The long shot is hard to describe because this shot is the most complex in

the cinema and the term itself is one of the most imprecise. The easiest way to

understand the range of this shot as many filmmakers said, The range of the shot

is like the distance of the audience in the live theater. (Giannetti, 1972, p. 7).


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Figure 2. 2: Long shot

D. 2. b. 3. Full Shot

Full shot is the closest range within the long shot. This shot shows full

human body with the head near the top and the feet near the bottom.

D. 2. b. 4. The Medium Shot

The medium shot is taken mostly for conversation and movement of

characters. This shot contains a figure from the knees or waist up. The medium

shot is always used for transition between close up and the longer shot.

Figure 2. 3: Medium shot


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D. 2. b. 5. The Close Up

The distance of this shot appears almost on the frame space, for example

the cat face in the figure 2.4. This shot usually to lift up the importance of things.

Figure 2. 4: Close-up

D. 2. b. 6. Extreme Close Up

This shot is variation of close up shot. Extreme close up might show only

a persons eyes or mouth or a cats eye in the figure 2.5.

Figure 2. 5: Extreme close-up


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D. 3. Sound

Sound is one of the richest sources of meaning in films. There are several

sub sounds, but only dialogue which gives the audience of major source of

meaning. In domain of sound, sound is divided into three classifications: sound

effect, music, and spoken language. Sound effect is also sub-divided again into

three aspects, those are: pitch, volume, and tempo. Three of them are sub-divided

again into, pitch: high and low, volume: loud and quite, tempo: fast and slow.

High pitched sounds generally produce a tension sense in the listener and low

pitched sounds emphasize the dignity of scene or it can also suggest anxiety and

mystery. Loud sounds in a film seem threatening, forceful, and interested for the

audiences, whereas quiet sounds make us delicate, doubtful, and often weak. The

last is tempo which goes along with the pitch and the volume. The faster the

tempo of sound, the greater the tension produced in the listener.

The second type of sound is music. Music in the films tells the listener

what kind of film they are watching. We can understand a genre of film from the

very beginning when a film is opened which is usually accompanied by music.

For example, music of frontier instruments such as harmonica or concertino

identifies that the movie has a theme of American frontier.

Spoken language is the third types of sound. In sound affairs, language in

film can be more complex than in literature. The words of film are spoken, not

written, and the words have more degrees than printed words. And tone of voice

can be much more communicative than words in revealing a persons thought. A


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sentence of language when it is spoken using different tone, then the sentence has

several meanings to deliver to the listener.

D. 4. Angle

The filmmakers always use angle of camera to make connotation meaning

of image. Angle happens when camera is set in certain position from the image.

Somehow, angle can be juxtaposed with a writers use of adjective which they

often reflect his or her attitude toward a subject. There are three types of angle in

film: low angle, eye-level angle, and high angle.

Low angles are when camera set near the ground toward the subject

vertically. In short, low angles increase a short actors height that means heighten

the importance of the subject. Eye-level shots mean to keep the camera neutral.

Eye-level shots permit us to think what kind of people is being presented. High

angles are when camera set upon the image. According to Giannetti, high angles

reduce the importance of the subject. Subjects shot from above seem harmless and

significant.

D. 5. The Moving Camera

Cinema has many types of camera movement in shooting the image on the

screen. According to Giannetti, there are seven basic moving camera shots

including pans, tilts, crane shots, dolly shots, zoom shots, hand-held shots, and

aerial shots.


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Panning shots is a movement of the camera that scans a scene horizontally.

The camera moves horizontally in order to keep the subject in the center of the

composition. The filmmakers always support this movement with a tripod. Tripod

makes the camera more stable since the filmmakers want to get clear image.

Figure 2. 6: Panning shots

Tilts shot movements are like the pan shots where the movements of

camera keep the image in the center of composition, but the way this shot taken is

not horizontally but vertically.

Dolly shots are sometimes called trucking or tracking shots. These shots

use a moving vehicle (dolly) to catch the subject. The vehicle regularly moves in,

out, or alongside a moving figure or object while the action is taken.

Hand-held shots are, like their name, mounted on the shoulder of

cinematographer. The characteristics of these shots are often jumpy and ragged

since the cinematographer moves to follow the figure unstably.

Crane shots movement using vehicle also seem like dolly shots. A crane is

a mechanical arm which has more than twenty feet in length. It can move virtually

in any direction: up down, diagonal, in, out, or any combinations of these.


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Figure 2. 7: Crane shot

Zoom shots are combination between the movement and the lenses of

camera. These shots permit the camera to change from close wide-angle distances

to extreme telephoto position almost simultaneously.

Aerial shots movement usually use helicopter to take the figure. These

shots are variation of crane shot. Since a crane is impractical to be used in exterior

locations, helicopter is more flexible in taking the image.

D. 6. Editing

Editing is the main part of a film to create motion picture. As stated by

Giannetti (1987, p. 125) that many talented people including Eisenstein,

Kuleshov, and Pudovkin believed that montage (editing) was the foundation of

film art. Editing is to disguise the transition from shot to shot, making the film

flawless in flowing images. In short, editing is a primary means of organizing the

film. There are four types of basic transitional happening in contemporary cinema:

the cut, the fade, the dissolve, and the wipe. The cut is simple break where two

shots are joined together. There are two kinds of fade; fade in and fade out. Fade

in is where the shots take a darkened image which gradually because the

illumination to the image, then the image becomes visible and achieve its proper


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brightness. Whereas fade out is the converse of fade in where the image

undergoes gradual darkening until it becomes black. The dissolve is achieved by

at the same time fading out in one shot while fading in on the next so the image

gradually disappears in one hand and another becomes visible. The last is wipe

transition, a transition in which the second shot appears to wipe the first shot off

the screen.

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