An Unearthly Child
Narrative: A young genius Susan Foreman has been exhibiting strange behaviour at school so when her teachers see her outside of school they try to save her. When an old man is questioned by the teachers he acts strange, Ian fights him whilst Barbara enters the TARDIS and to her surprise, she sees Susan who tells her and her grandfather's secret. They are revealed to be time travellers. and Susan accidentally sends them to another time period, the episode is left on an enigma.
Character: Susan is the princess character because she seems like she needs to be saved, the Doctor is the anti-hero/ antagonist because he obstructs Ian from trying to save Susan, Barbara is the sidekick character because she assists Ian in his quest to save Susan. Ian is the hero because he physically fights the doctor in order to save Susan.
Iconography: The TARDIS has sophisticated and futuristic technology inside it which emphasises the Sci-Fi genre. In the opening, the bright white light used is also a convention of the Sci-Fi genre.
Setting: The music that Susan plays is diegetic sound and helps establish to the audience that this episode is set in modern day (for the 1963) audience. The junkyard where the Doctor was being questioned is also a convention of Sci-Fi as things are often hidden in the most unlikely of places in Sci-Fi.
2) How does Todorov's theory of equilibrium apply to An Unearthly Child? Try and use the expanded version of Todorov's theory: Equilibrium - Disruption - Recognition - Reparation - New equilibrium.
The equilibrium is present in the school scenes where Ian and Barbara are talking about Susan because her genius is established early on and is considered normal. The disruption is when Ian and Barbara are not able to go to Susan's house because Susan gives the feeble excuse that her 'grandfather doesn't like strangers'.The recognition is when Ian and Barbara realise that her address does not exist as there is just empty space. The reparation is not established in this because it is not an episodic narrative so the reparation will occur at the end of the two-parter. The new equilibrium is also not established in this episode but we can assume it will be at the end of the two-parter.
3) Applying Propp's character theory, what character roles do each of the main characters in An Unearthly Child fit into? Alternatively, you may wish to discuss how characters do not fit Propp's character types.
In this episode, the Doctor is an anti-hero character because he is made unlikable by not co-operating with Ian and Barbara and uses phrases such as "you stupid child". Susan is the princess character as she at least seems as though she needs to be saved from the Doctor. Barbara is the helper/ sidekick character as she is sidelined by the Doctor but does assist Ian in saving Susan, this plays into the binary gender roles of the 1960s. Ian is the hero character as he is on a quest to save Susan.
4) What enigma and action codes (Barthes) can you find in An Unearthly Child? Make specific, detailed reference to the text using media terminology (e.g. media language - camera shots, diegetic/non-diegetic sound, mise-en-scene etc.)
Susan has an iridescent silver vest and trousers, this shows that she is from the future as she is wearing a traditionally masculine costume in a time with very binary gender expectations. When the doctor is introduced, there are low angled shots to make him seem more powerful.
5) What examples of binary opposition (Levi-Strauss) can you find in An Unearthly Child? How do these create narrative or drama for the audience?
An example of Binary opposition in Doctor Who: An Unearthly child is young and old, this is shown with Susan and the Doctor, Susan's concerns are whether or not she will be able to go to school however the doctor is concerned about Ian and Barbara betraying their secret. Another example of this is gender, male and female shown by Barbara and Ian, while Ian is physically confronting the issue, Barbara goes inside the TARDIS to look for Susan.
Representations
1) What stereotypes of men are reinforced and subverted in Doctor Who: An Unearthly Child? How?
Men are presented as brave through the character of Ian Chesterton, who is desperately trying to save Susan, men are also presented as knowledgeable, this is evident when the Doctor states that Ian and Barbara could never understand the wonders of space and time.
2) What stereotypes of women/girls are reinforced and subverted in Doctor Who: An Unearthly Child? How?
The characters of Barbara and Susan are completely sidelined from the narrative. The Doctor only refers to Ian, using the repeated phrase of 'young man' to show that he didn't even consider Barbara as being any sort of threat to him whatsoever. At the beginning of the episode, Susan seems to be the focus of the narrative but later on, she is being scolded by her grandfather and made to look powerless. When explaining space and time, the doctor seemed to be the main fountain of knowledge and Susan was only his protegee.
3) What are common media stereotypes of young people and old people? Do any of the characters or scenarios reinforce or subvert these conventional stereotypes (consider this was 1963)? Has this changed in more recent series of Doctor Who?
The stereotype of young people at the time was that they were interested in current trends which is reinforced by Susan's character as she is fashion-forward, wearing trousers in some scenes and is listening to pop music in the classroom.
4) What representations of race/ethnicity can be found in Doctor Who: An Earthly Child? Is this surprising or not? Give reasons for your answer and consider historical/cultural context (the 1960s). Has this changed in more recent series of Doctor Who?
All of the actors in An Unearthly Child are white, this is not surprising as there were scarce acting opportunities for people of colour in the 60s, especially for roles that weren't demeaning racial caricatures. Gender roles are very binary as Ian is the main hero and Barbara just assists him and is sidelined in most exchanges with the Doctor through the repeated phrase of 'Young man' used by Hartnell.
Education is a core middle class value, the fact that Susan yearns for an education when her grandfather tries to prohibit her from going. Her teachers also admire her genius and are willing to help her so that she can make something of herself which is also a core middle-class value - to gain a future through education rather than labour work.
1) Who is the target audience for Doctor Who? Has it changed since 1963?
I would argue that the target audience for Doctor Who, was and always will be a mainstream family audience. In 1963, there were only 2 channels available, the BBC and ITV so naturally, Doctor Who had to cater to a wide audience. Nowadays, although some episodes have elements of the horror genre, there is no explicit sexual content in Doctor Who or gory violence so viewing times for Doctor Who are before the watershed and so children can watch it along with their parents.
2) What audience psychographic groups might particularly enjoy Doctor Who?
Mainstreamers, as it can be watched by the entire family and explorers because in the 60s Sci-Fi was a relatively new genre and may not have been received well initially by everyone because people are often apprehensive when it comes to change.
3) What audience pleasures are offered by An Unearthly Child? Apply Blumler and Katz's Uses and Gratifications theory to the episode. Make sure you provide specific examples from the episode to support your ideas.
Personal Relationships: The Doctor is made to be an unlikable character so the audience may love to hate him, Susan is an innocent child who is being mistreated by her grandfather so the audience may feel sympathy and keep watching to see what happens to her.
Diversion (Escapism): Living in a fictional world with the TARDIS and time travel is far more interesting than the mundane, routine nature of everyday life.
Surveillance (Information / Facts): The decimal system is mentioned along with other historical developments.
4) What additional Uses and Gratifications would this episode provide to a modern 2018 audience?
Nostalgia could be part of the uses and Gratifications as our parents or grandparents may remember the initial release of this episode.
5) Thinking of the 3 Vs audience pleasures (Visceral, Vicarious and Voyeuristic pleasures), which of these can be applied to An Unearthly Child?
Vicarious pleasures can be applied to Doctor Who because the audience can imagine that they are travelling through space in time through the characters of the Doctor and Susan.
Industries
1) What was the television industry like in 1963? How many channels were there?
There were only 2 TV channels in England in 1963: ITV and the BBC.
2) Why is Doctor Who such an important franchise for the BBC?
Doctor Who unites different kinds of BBC fans, different ages because it is a long-running family show so both younger and older people would have an attachment to it and different demographic groups because it is aimed at a mainstream audience.
3) How does Doctor Who meet the BBC's mission statement to 'inform, educate and entertain'?
When the Doctor and his companions travel back in time, they educate the audience about the past. Doctor Who is an entertaining franchise because it gives the audience pleasure of diversion as living in a world of the TARDIS and travel in space and time to escape their everyday lives.
4) How is the BBC funded?
The BBC is funded by the annual TV license in which every TV owner has to pay to have the right to watch TV in England.
5) Who regulates the BBC and what is the watershed?
The BBC was self-regulated until 2017 when OffCom started regulating it, the watershed is that after 9:00pm, there can be more uncensored and sexually explicit content to protect children when they are channel surfing.
Grade 8/9 extension tasks and reading
Read this Media Magazine article tracing the cultural impact of Doctor Who. What does it suggest regarding the importance of Doctor Who, representations and industry?
Read this Guardian feature on female characters in Doctor Who. What does it suggest regarding the representation of women over time in Doctor Who?
Read this New Statesman feature on Doctor Who as a global phenomenon. What does it suggest about Doctor Who fandom, British identity and the importance of the brand to the BBC?
Read this Guardian feature on the representations of race and ethnicity in Doctor Who over the last 55 years. How has the programme changed in its representations of race and how does this fit the BBC's remit to inform, educate and entertain?
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