This is a question that could come up in the exam. To answer it well you must include reference to two types of media (e.g. TV, film) and demonstrate you understand the theoretical side. Image that the above information could act as an introduction showing you understanding what a collective identity is, your next task to explain how it is represented. Below is a list of types of representation with reference to a quote, what you have to do is give an example from contemporary media to back up that quote. Choose a character, text (film or TV show) then explain how that example affirms or opposes the quote.
1) Youth are often represented in accordance with popular or hegemonic notions of adolesencea) ‘A period of ‘storm and stress’ characterised by intergenerational conflicts, mood swings and an enthusiasm for risky behaviour.’
G. Stanley Hall (1906)
b) ‘Adolescence is conflict between identity and ‘role confusion’. Resolving this conflict involves finding a settled role in life. If unsuccessful this results in ‘maladaption’ in the form of fanaticism or the rejection of adult responsibility.’
Erik Erikson (1968)
c) Adolescence is a critical period of identity formation in which individuals over uncertainty, become more self-aware of their strengths and weaknesses.
Erik Erikson (1968)
d) Adolescence is primarily a state of transition, a matter of becoming rather than being. Here is some online help for parents to deal with the stages.
e) Continuing ‘confusion’ about one’s identity is a mark of incomplete development and may result in deviant or antisocial behaviour.
Erik Erikson (1968)
2. Youth are often ‘demonised’ the mass media.a) ‘We found some news coverage where teen boys were described in glowing terms – 'model student', 'angel', 'altar boy' or 'every mother's perfect son', but sadly these were reserved for teenage boys who met a violent and untimely death."
‘Hoodies or Altar Boys’
b) ‘the true horrors we fear day to day are not supernatural bogeymen or monsters created by scientists. They're our own youth.
Daily Mail
c) ‘I was reminded of something that the late Alexander Walker, film critic of the London Evening Standard, once wrote about Kubrick's Clockwork Orange: we hate and fear our children - because they are going to kill us.’
Peter Bradshaw- Guardian
3. Youth are represented as being let down by adults
a) ‘Parents aren't always around to help socialize their children — or even just to show them affection. Compared to other cultures, British kids are less integrated into the adult world and spend more time with peers.
Britains Mean Streets, Time Magazine
b) “Young people want to make healthy and informed decisions… but until now, too many have been let down by the education system. “
Katrina Mather, 16, Member of Youth Parliament
4. Youth are represented as part of a subculture
a) ‘Recent research has pointed to the dangers of romanticising youthful resistance and the tendency to overstate the the political dimensions of youth culture’
David Buckingham, Introducing Identity
b) ‘Youth reappropriate artefact which creates group identity and promotes mutual recognition by members.’
Jonathan Epstein
5. Alienation – youth are represented as being estranged from parts of society
b) “The Youth are prohibited from speaking as moral and political agents, youth become an empty category inhabited by the desires, fantasies and interest of the adult world.”
Jonathan Epstein
c) ‘Adolescence is a growth period conducive to alienation due the ‘betwixt & between’ nature of the this particular position in lifecourse.’
Calabrese
6. Youth are product of the society they were born into, and often embody the faults and fears of adult society.