Representaion of Class and Status

Textual Analysis - Downtown Abbey

Representation of class and status is constructed in this extract from the popular birth period drama, Downton Abbey. It reinforces the stereotypical binary opposite between those with higher social class (wealthy, educated sophisticated) and those with a lower social class and status (uneducated, poor, backwards). these representations position the audience to get validation for many of the generalisations already in place.

In the opening scene of the clip we are introduced to a delivery boy riding a bike up to the castle. This is shown through a panning shot. As the shot pans, a long with the boy, we are also shown a beautiful shot of the estate. It is a huge, striking building that is lit up buy the sun. This shot reflects a very common stereotype. The delivery boy is shown to be in a lower class as he is dressed dark and dirty clothing with a woven bag on his shoulder, this costume is that of a typical working boy in the eighteen hundreds. We are also shown through the shot that he is riding a bike. Diegetic sound accompanies this shot with the clinking and squeaking of a bike. This suggests that the bike is old and used. Incidentally it portrays the boy as lower class as he cannot afford to repair his bike. In contrast, as the camera pans, the magnificent estate is revealed in all its glory. They use the lighting from the sun on the building to makes it stand out against the background. Due to the beauty, size and scale of the building, it gives you the impression of power. This is highlighted when you can see the contrast of the small delivery boy in comparison to the huge building next to him. Stereotypically, those of a lower status or class or thought of as less powerful than those of a higher social class. This is clearly demonstrated in this opening scene.

In most cases, wealthy people are associated with unsympathetic or selfish behaviour. This generalisation is challenged when we are introduced to the character Lady Mary Crawly. The director uses sound bridge which adds to the continuity of the transition between the new and previous scenes.  Using cut eating, the audience is positioned inside the house in the characters room. The producer has then used soft lighting on the character which makes her protrude from the background. It also positions the audience to see her as beautiful due to the way the light hits the female character.  She is dressed in all white which could be a symbolisation of her wealth as it gives her a well cared for and clean appearance. White is also often correlated with purity, innocence and is often used to highlight an antagonist character. This contrasts with the stereotype that people of a high social status are mean spirited as the director positions the audience to view this wealthy character as virtuous.

The audience is then shown a physical representation, of what some would consider, a physical representation of a social hierarchy. Using a tracking shot, the audience follows Lady Crawley over to the window where we see the delivery boy cycling past the house though a point-of-view shot. The same non-diegetic sound form the previous clip resumes as we see the action take place. Through the perspective of the Lady, we are looking down at the boy from high up in her bedroom. Typically, those who are wealthy are thought of as being above those of a lower social class. In the clip Lady Crawly, who is of a higher social class, is positioned above the delivery boy, who is of a lower social class. The social hierarchy portrays that she is more powerful as she is positioned higher and have more control.

Following form the bedroom scene, we then move down to the servants quarters. The soft piano music, that was recognised in the previous scenes, fades away and is replaced with the sound of dishes and cutlery. As well as this diegetic sound there is also a lot of dialogue between characters. The two sounds work together to create a mixture of sounds and high volume. This creates a chaotic atmosphere which the director could be using to emphasise the contrast between lifestyles of the wealthy Lady Crawley and the servant workers. You can here that many of the servant characters have heavy northern accents. The director may also have used this to demonstrate the effects of poverty as it was often a sign that you were of a lower class or that you were uneducated as wealth often depended on region and location. This might have been because it contained more colloquial expressions and slang words. In addition, if you had a higher status, society expected you to speak using received pronunciation. The way that someone spoke often demonstrated to others how wealthy they were therefore it was an important part of society.

The director also uses a variety of camera angles to demonstrate the different statuses with in the servant quarters. When the head butler enters the room where a footman is ironing the papers, filmed through a low angle shot to demonstrate his power. In addition, he is also filmed through a hand held shot which reiterates the chaos of the scene. When he proceeds to deliver several orders the camera cuts, with a sound bridge of the dialogue, to an over-the-shoulder shot of the footman receiving the orders.    

Following the seen from the kitchen, the scene changes to the grand stairwell of the house. The  rise en scene reflects the wealth of the family. The directer has used a deep red carpet which is often associated with fame (i.e. red carpet at a film premiere)  and there is a huge, magnificent painting hung on the wall that is framed in gold. The interior design of the stairwell suggest the wealth of the family living there. The soft piano music resumes and the sound of dishes stops abruptly. during this we are introduced to another member of the house, Robert Crawley. Both the calming music and the morning sunlight shining through the windows of the stairwell gives us a preservation of the relaxed lifestyle that the wealthy character lives.