(1) Text Title
SAME LOVE
Author/Director
MACKLEMORE & RYAN LEWIS
Genre (& Media)
Hip-hop/Rap (Pop Song)
Context
Gay Marriage in America, modern day (2013)
Audience
Purpose
Mainstream listeners, young people, lovers of
To spread the message of equality.
hip-hop
To make money and be catchy and memorable.
Marginalisation and its effects are presented in this text when / through… (bullet points/notes –
include EVIDENCE – short RELEVANT quotes or techniques/aspects)
-
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The fact that homosexuals are being told by society that they need to change.
“And I can’t change, even if I tried, even if I wanted to…” – repetition in chorus reinforces the
idea that homosexuals are not accepted or allowed to exist, that they must change themselves
in order to co-exist with the rest of society.
The way that the hip-hop industry is marginalising homosexuals.
“If I was gay, I would think hip-hop hates me, Have you read the YouTube comments lately?”
Homosexuals are excluded from hip-hop because gays are seen as lesser and inferior.
The fact that gay marriage is going to reduce the marginalisation of homosexuals.
“And a certificate on paper isn’t gonna sole it all, But it’s a damn good place to start.”
One solution to reduce marginalisation is the law… it will not solve everything but it will help.
It mentions that children become traumatised by gay stereotypes
“Bunch of stereotypes all in my head.” – children learn what ‘being gay’ “looks” like and they
internalise these ideas and then become scared of being excluded if their characteristics
develop to look like those.
Is this a realistic/accurate/effective/successful/useful/unique(/insert critical judgment here)
representation of marginalisation? Why/Why not? (reflect on Context, Genre, Purpose, Audience)
This is an effective portrayal of the fight for gay rights in America because it is a pop song so it gets
broad cast to massive audiences. What it means to be gay and marginalised is realistic as shown
through this song because it refers to how marginalisation occurs not only within families but from
media as well (the internet) – which modern audiences are familiar with.
You could say that the genre of this song (pop/rap) goes against the grain of hip-hop and thus
REJECTS the anti-gay stereotype of that industry.
What is the greater significance of the narrative(s) of marginalisation being presented this way?
(reflect on Purpose, Audience, Context, Genre – can link to Theory, educational value, personal
significance, or application to other contexts such as New Zealand’s)
The message of this song is very significant to particularly young people across the world who
struggled with homosexuality. The song mentions how inescapable being homosexual is, so it is like a
ray of hope for people who are gay or who have gay family members, that the world is being educated
on this through this song so that the oppression that homosexuals feel is reduced.
It is significant that this song is presents homosexuality bluntly because some listeners of hip-hop are
likely to be homophobic (if they subscribe to the messages of hip-hop), so a song that defends
homosexuality in that genre will be rejecting those stereotypes and thus educating people that
probably need to be educated more than others.
(2) Text Title
BROWN BROTHER
Author/Director
JOSHUA IOSEFO
Genre (& Media)
Spoken Word Poetry
Context
Polynesians in New Zealand, modern day
Audience
Young people, particularly Polynesians
Purpose
To educate Polynesians to own their identities
and reject negative stereotypes.
Marginalisation and its effects are presented in this text when / through… (bullet points/notes –
include EVIDENCE – short RELEVANT quotes or techniques/aspects)
-
-
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-
Iosefo claims that he is a “dropout” and that his demographic is “high school cleaning ladies,
fast food burger-making, factory-box packing, rubbish truck drivers…” He is pointing out that
the stereotype of the typical Polynesian is that he/she is part of the working class, poor, and
does menial/weak jobs.
The stereotype that sports are the only way that Polynesians can succeed.
“hey, who needs to be able to quote Shakespeare when you can play rugby?”
This rhetorical question exposes the mentality that Polynesians can only be successful if they
are good at rough sports like rugby, and that they don’t need to use their minds or be
educated.
The fact that Polynesians are themselves perpetuating the stereotype that they are powerless
and unintelligent.
“will there be a time when our representation goes deeper than putting our own people to
shame?”
This shows how, according to him, Polynesians tend to agree humbly with the negative
stereotype and themselves express and continue it in TV shows that have ‘dumb’ PI
characters.
Iosefo asks Polynesians listening to his poem to consider themselves worthy of getting
degrees.
“Are we not capable of attaining a Bachelor’s, a Master’s or a P.H.D.?”
His rhetorical question challenges Polynesians to stop marginalising themselves, and instead
get further education as a way of ‘getting out’ of marginalisation.
Is this a realistic/accurate/effective/successful/useful/unique(/insert critical judgment here)
representation of marginalisation? Why/Why not? (reflect on Context, Genre, Purpose, Audience)
This is an accurate portrayal of marginalisation of Polynesians to the extent that he highlights some of
the negative stereotypes of Polynesians that Polynesians themselves wouldn’t admit.
However, it is inaccurate in that it paints Polynesians in a negative manner, and not all Polynesians
are like this – there are many success, unsung stories of Polynesians who are mothers, teachers etc.
but who don’t get media time.
Probably what this rather shows is that media likes to portray Polynesians in a specific way, and that
stereotype is being absorbed by the young generation like Iosefo.
What is the greater significance of the narrative(s) of marginalisation being presented this way?
(reflect on Purpose, Audience, Context, Genre – can link to Theory, educational value, personal
significance, or application to other contexts such as New Zealand’s)
Iosefo’s message is powerful because it reaches the audience of Polynesians and resonates to some
extent with the pain and marginalisation that they are subjected to.
The value that it has for Polynesians is also educational, because it is able to suggest that getting
higher education is a way of reducing marginalisation. Because it is also Spoken Word, it is probably
closer to an Oral Tale, and since Polynesian languages are more oral than written in terms of tradition,
perhaps it reaches more Polynesians than a written poem would.
Text: SAME LOVE
!!! You can develop ONE or TWO paragraphs depending on how detailed this page is
(one pgph on Similarities, one Pgph comparing the differences in marginalisation)
Unique Way(s) Marginalisation is Presented
and WHY (Genre, Purpose, Audience, Context)
Similarities/Connections
Text: BROWN BROTHER
Unique Way(s) Marginalisation is Presented
and WHY (Genre, Purpose, Audience, Context)
CONTEXT
-
PURPOSE
-
PURPOSE
-
PURPOSE
The song highlights how the trend
in the hip-hop industry
marginalises homosexuals
(because hip-hop music usually is
meant to be provocative and
criticise society).
The song also challenges that
trend, and in a way criticises the
hip hop industry itself, thereby
challenging the audiences that
may have negative impressions of
homosexuals and who may
themselves be guilty of
marginalising gays.
Marginalisation affects
homosexuals also in the sense that
they are being told they need to be
different, to be something they are
not. The song is trying to get
people to become aware of this
damaging aspect of the way
homosexuals are treated.
GENRE
AUDIENCE
Both texts stress the
importance of legal
documents in
reducing
marginalisation.
(marriage certificate
in SAME LOVE, and
university degree in
BROWN BROTHER)
-
AUDIENCE
CONTEXT
-
Both texts also
indicate how
marginalisation
influences
children/the new
generation. (children
internalise anti-gay
messages in SAME
LOVE, and negative
stereotypes in
BROWN BROTHER,
as author is young)
CONTEXT
GENRE
PURPOSE
PURPOSE
-
Iosefo points out that Polynesians
are marginalised by their being
boxed/labelled as poor and part of
the working class, with little
future. The Polynesian audience
would be able to recognise these
stereotypes and thus be propelled
to act/change/criticise the poetry.
Polynesians also suffer from
marginalisation based on the
potential future/success they are
said to have (success is only
sport). As a Spoken Word piece by
a Polynesian, this is already
rejecting that trend, and he is
calling on to other Polynesians to
reject that stereotype too.
The media is greatly to blame for
creating negative stereotypes, but
it is also Polynesians themselves
who perpetuate them. “Brown
Brother” is a call for Polynesians
to re-create their image and pride.
Why are these differences and/or similarities significant? How do they contribute to offering a greater understanding of humanity?
The fact that both texts show how marginalisation is internalised by younger generations means we need to be more aware of the effects of our
prejudices and stereotypes as they are shaping the future of our generations. Humanity can learn from its mistakes by looking at their young.