(This was my submission for the Second Internal Assessment for the course on Cultural Studies for which we had to pick up an episode from a T.V. show and analyse it based on the topics taught to us in class)
Arrow S02 E13
Introduction
Arrow is an American action television series and the first
instalment of a series of shows which would collectively come to be known as
the Arrowverse. The show follows the adventures of Billionaire Playboy Oliver
Queen who was stranded on an island for 5 years and has now returned home to
Starling City to get rid of the people poisoning his city and to clean up the
city, as a masked, hooded vigilante called The Arrow.
Episode Summary
The 13th episode of season 2 begins at the
Starling City Airport where Nyssa Raatko, daughter of Ra’s Al Ghul (founder of
the League of Assassins) arrives at Starling City to use any method possible to
convince Sara Lance to return to the League’s base (Nanda Parbat) as she has
sworn an oath to the League. This follows attempts by Nyssa, (also known as
Heir to the Demon as she is the daughter of the Demon and founder of the League
of Assassins, Ra’s Al Ghul) and the League members to lure Sara back to Nanda
Parbat, by any means possible, including targeting her family (they poison her
sister Laurel Lance in the previous episode and kidnap her mother Dinah in the
episode 13). Also in this episode Oliver Queen’s mother, Moira Queen officially
announces her candidacy for Mayor of Starling City.
Culture Theories
Culture is the process by which meaning is produced,
circulated, consumed, commodified, and endlessly reproduced and negotiated in
society.(Williams, 1961,1981;Hall,1980)
In this analysis I will be focusing mainly on Orientalism which
I spotted whilst watching episode 13 of the second season which is the 36th
episode overall in the series. Also I’ll be focusing on Hegemony, how feminism
influenced the portrayal of female characters on the show and vigilantism.
Orientalism
It is a cultural ideology that rose from the process of
Colonisation of the Eastern (Oriental) countries by the Western countries in
the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. It becomes
hard to separate Colonialism from Imperialism, as both theories can be used to
define the means by which political and economic control are won and maintained
over a particular region. Now after the Western powers began ruling over the
Oriental lands, they naturally began to study the culture of their subjects and
initially experienced what can be known as Culture Shock.
Culture Shock happens when we encounter radically different
networks of meaning: when our natural or common sense is confronted by someone
else’s natural or common sense.
Orientalism is a cultural ideology that was named as such by
the west so as to give a name to the culture of the land they had colonised
It is a concept that there is something very special and
different in everything of people living in the East, it is a reflection of the
relationship of imperial and intellectual domination of a West which feels it
is superior to an 'inferior' East.
According to Edward Said, Orientalism dates from the period
of European Enlightenment and colonization of the Arab World. Orientalism
provided a rationalization for European colonialism based on a self-serving
history in which “the West” constructed “the East” as extremely different and
inferior, and therefore in need of Western intervention or “rescue”.
In this series, instances of Orientalism are found more than
any other. It starts from the season’s pilot episode where Oliver get
shipwrecked in a flashback, and is informed that he is on an Island on the
South China sea called “Lian Yu” which literally means purgatory. (It is on
this Island he learns combat and archery and all sorts of skills that help him
in his vigilantism) As in the opening quote he says he had to “survive”, this
portrays the east (South China Sea; the orient) as a savage land where each and
every single day, each and every single moment is a land of survival. It is somewhat
similar to the law of the jungle i.e. only the fittest survive. The show tries
to present to us that the Orient is literally purgatory. In Christian Doctrine,
purgatory is a place or state of suffering and misery.
Why couldn’t Oliver have been marooned on an island in the
Caribbean, rather than all the way in the Far East, South China Sea?
In episode 5 of season 2(the events which contribute to the
events of episode 13) Sara Lance is stalked by a League of Assassins member
Al-Owal as Ra’s Al Ghul wants her to ome back to Nanda Parbat to honour her
oath to the League(note the use of the Arabic name). He is clad in a black
outfit, and is killed by Sara. He targets members of Sara’s family in order to
coerce her back. Gives an image of person from the Orient as uncivilized and
dangerous.
The scene right at the beginning of the episode 13 shows a
mysterious woman approach immigration at the Starling City Airport. The
mysterious woman is wearing a black hat and overcoat. She is very slightly more
tanned than the other passengers at the immigration point at the airport. Nyssa
even looks Asian (that stereotype of being able to tell which person is from
which continent is a result of the consumption of pop culture in media which
shapes our beliefs) After an A.R.G.U.S. security alert appearing on the
immigration computer, viewers learn that she truly is a villainess and she gets
cornered by a security guard whom she smashes head first onto the glass of the
counter and proceeds to beat up four more guards. This short, less than 2
minute scene plants the image of an Asian in the minds of a westerner as one
who is vicious, extremely skilled in martial arts, uncivilized and dangerous.
It forms a stereotypical image of Asians in our mind.
After Sara meets her father in a deli and she leaves and is
walking somewhere, Nyssa make an appearance by falling down from the underside
of a bridge with the help of huge drapes. She is clad in a red and black
outfit, complete with a hood, a set of arrows and a bow and a dagger. She
advances towards weapon less Sara with the dagger held in an ice pick
grip(which as shown in many tv shows especially the detective ones is the most
effective grip and offers the most penetration if you want to stab someone).
She then suddenly lowers the knife and begins kissing Sara with Oriental music
playing in the background (this sort of music is what we have been hegemonized
to consider as oriental music as we can relate it to snake charmers). She
introduces herself to Oliver as ‘Heir to the Demon’. Viewers who only watch the
arrowverse shows believe that all Oriental and Islamic name people have
somewhat similar attributes to what the Islamic characters on the show have. It
will lead them to look at suspicion at any Muslim person they see while roaming
on the roads.
In episode 12 climax Laurel collapses and we see a man in a
beard he stuffs something into his pocket. Laurel returns to her apartment and
collapses immediately after that. In episode 13 it is revealed that Laurel
didn’t actually OD, but was poisoned by Tibetan Viper venom (Tibet is the
rumoured location of the home of the League of Assassins i.e. Nanda Parbat). A
snake from an Oriental land is shown to be the choice of venom, and an oriental
snake is portrayed by the show as much more dangerous than other dangerous
snakes. It is later discovered that Tibetan pit viper venom loses its potency
the moment it leaves the fangs and hence is difficult to transport and the
venom was procured from a species at a local zoo? Why was it a Tibetan pit
viper when there are a host of more lethal snakes at the zoo? The Tibetan Pit
Viper isn’t even among the most venomous viper’s let alone snakes? This is just
to show that the Orient is a land of dangerous reptiles!
In episode 13 Dinah Lance is shown exciting her daughter’s
room and heading for the water filter. The same man who was seen in Oliver
Queen’s night club, the same bearded man who poisoned Laural makes an entry
accompanied by extremely dramatic music and then puts a handkerchief around her
face and makes her unconscious. The kidnapper has a beard, which builds the
stereotype that all bearded men are evil.
A black hooded figure uses drapes to descend from a tall
structure and engages in combat with the White canary and the Arrow. He is
overpowered by Quentin Lance and when his hood is pulled off it is revealed
that he is the same person who poisoned Laurel and kidnapped Dinah. Consumes a
vial of something (assumed to be poison) and whispers an Islam prayer before
being committing suicide. He utters the phrase ‘la ilaha ila lah”. This phrase
represents one of the greatest oaths any Muslim, a believer of Islam, can make
in being a Muslim, and is known as the declaration of faith.
Nyssa gets mad when Sara consumes the venom and Lance and
Dinah rush to her side and kneel by her body. Then like a heartless beast tells
her that her mourning parents can join her in eternity. She knocks Quentin
Lance out and is moving to stab Dinah Lance with her dagger.
The people when they join the League of Assassins have to
take up a Muslim name for example Sara has the name Ateya – Al Saher. Viewers
then form the opinion that one with an American name like Sara Lance cant truly
be a cold blooded killer like the League requires them to be, and upon taking a
new name they can transform themselves into a killer. An image of any
individual with a Muslim name will be associated with violence and cold blooded
ruthlessness, if the show is consumed without people learning not to
stereotype. It’s not only Arrow, but a lot of tv shows portray Muslims as
villains, but here it says that American name not possible to be a villain, and
Arabic name is needed to be ruthless.
Such things are the reasons that Muslims are detained at
airports. Shah Rukh Khan has been detained thrice because of his surname. It
shows us that popular culture has influenced Western countries so much that
they are convinced that anyone who is Muslim is evil. If this is the state of
the global icon, what must be the state of those regular normal Muslims when they
go the America?
Going back to Said’s definition
Orientalism provided a rationalization for European colonialism based on a
self-serving history in which “the West” constructed “the East” as extremely
different and inferior, and therefore in need of Western intervention or
“rescue”. It shows us that the West needs to intervene in the East and
rescue them.
Feminism
Feminism is the advocacy of women’s rights on the grounds of
equality of the sexes. The feminist movement led to writers of shows falling
under pop culture to construct stronger female characters.
Moira Queen and Sara Lance are the prime faces for Feminism
in this episode.
Moira Queen is a strong female character who is convinced to
run against Sebastian Blood for mayor as every other candidate has been
trounced. Campaign is about connecting with people. ”Wants to help rebuild the
city, not pander to it.”
Her mayoral rival, Sebastian Blood tells her to “get out” as
in get out of the election race, to which she responds “I can take care of
myself” further reinforcing to the viewers that she despite being a female can
be considered as equal to men in terms of courage, guts and determination.
Sara Lance leaves Starling City and goes away because the League
Of Assassins is after her. She tells Nyssa to “do what you have to”, fully
expecting to be stabbed. She shows strength over here and is willing to ‘honour
her commitment to the league in one way or another.’ Later on in the episode
Nyssa asks Sara whether she has come to a decision as the time is up and she
says that she is ready to come provided Nyssa lets go of Mrs. Lance. Before
feminism movements very few female characters would be shown in this manner as
emotionally strong and willing to sacrifice themselves for others.
Sara also after freeing her mother collapses following which
it is shown by a reaction in her eyes that she has consumed Tibetan Pit Viper
venom. She chose to sacrifice herself so as to end the ordeal of her running
from the League, re-joining it, the League harming members of her family to get
to her.
Popular Culture
The show is extremely popular, as it is based on a vigilante
and it falls under the category of popular culture. Pop or Popular culture is
also known as culture of the masses. Television series nowadays are aired
weekly and form a part of the everyday life of the larger number of people. The
show seems to promote Islamophobia as is very evident from this episode.
Earlier the culture
of television show consumption would be considered as ‘inferior culture’, but is now popular among
the Youth as it offers them to see a superhero on the small screen on a weekly
basis. Hence due to watching this show on a regular basis, viewers will begin to
form stereotypes and even see things that influence them and that some
stereotypes are wrong.
Stereotype
It is considered as a widely held but fixed and
oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or thing.
Mr.Lance is shown cooking and washing utensils in the flashback
scenes of episode 13 thus bucking the stereotype of men don’t cook or
contribute in the house work.
The two women who have a crush on the same guy can work
together on the same team. Sara and Felicity break the stereotype of how two
women who have a crush on the same guy can’t be friends or work cohesively.
Felicity breaks the stereotype of a hot girl being unable to
have excellent hacking skills. In episode 12 she confesses to having hacked
into a prison.
The stereotype that all people with Arabic names have some
evil aura or connection is promoted heavily in this episode and this stereotype
exists a lot in the real world as the show is a part of pop culture and is
consumed by the masses.
Uplifting music is used as background for western characters
and suspense building music oriental music is used for all characters from the
Orient, enforces the stereotype that characters from people in shows and even
in real life need to be viewed at with suspicion.
Hegemony
It is the leadership and dominance over another person or group
by a person or a group.
Nyssa is the powerful figure in the league and everyone in
the League accepts her dominance over themselves. She too is shown to be
hegemonised as she accepts Ra’s Al- Ghul’s domination over her. Sara Lance by
fleeing the League and not returning to the League displays an example of
counter hegemony in this episode.
Vigilantism
A vigilante is a
person who is not a member of law enforcement but who pursues and punishes
persons suspected of law-breaking. Vigilantism is the methods, conduct and
attitudes associated with vigilantes, especially militancy, bigotry, or
suspiciousness. It is a cultural ideology that seems to condone or even
advocate the use of violence in criminal justice.
In the show, The Arrow is a masked vigilante who takes the
law into his own hands and delivers justice. The vigilante culture is seen in
Starling City a what originally was only The Arrow has now become the White
Canary (Sara Lance) and Roy Harper (who is seen in episode 12)
Misrepresentation of
the Oriental Culture
Here I’ll focus solely on the phrase “La ilaha ila lah.”
When watching the episode I thought that Islam actually promoted sacrifice of
life in the name of God. The phrase literally means ”There is no deity but
god.” People think that Islam condones suicide in the name of Allah, but it is
a gross misrepresentation as in the qu’ran suicide is forbidden and is
considered a sin. But popular culture paints the reverse image in our head.
Bibliography
1. www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/purgatory
2. http://www.muslimphilosophy.com/ip/rep/H014.htm
3. http://www.arabstereotypes.org/why-stereotypes/what-orientalism
4. http://www.thefreedictionary.com/vigilantism
5. http://www.danielpipes.org/comments/30463
6. http://www.arabnews.com/node/251387
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