Media Language
Media Studies: Eduqas GCSE, topic 5.3.2
'The Man' - Media Language
'The Man' is a 2020 music video from Taylor Swift’s 2019 album Lover. It depicts a male character (played by Swift) being treated differently compared to others.
Challenging music video conventions
- The video challenges typical music-video conventions by not featuring Swift performing the song.
- Swift adopts a character role and therefore does not use direct mode of address.
- The video is mostly narrative-based, following 'the Man’s' actions rather than showing musical performance.
- A short behind-the-scenes sequence at the end reinforces that Swift is the creator behind the character.
Narrative theory
- According to Propp’s character roles, 'the Man' functions as a false hero.
- Swift is revealed as the true hero at the end, emphasised through credits such as “written by Taylor Swift” and “directed by Taylor Swift”.
- This reinforces her creative control and positions her as a powerful, successful female artist.
Test yourself on Media Language
According to Propp’s theory, what character role does 'the Man' fulfil?
What do the reaction shots of the crew member and Loren Gray communicate?