Comparative Essay

Comparative Essay

English Comparison Essay Term 1

In both texts, visual and written, satire is used by the composers to convey an underlying message in a humorous manner. ‘Frontline’ is a television series composed by the ABC in 1994 and ‘Sportsfield’ was composed by A.D Hope in the 1950’s. Both use satirical techniques to expose the vices and follies of their particular target to the responder. By doing this ‘the satirist points out the large gap between what we assume happens in particular social situations and the truth.’

A.D Hope, composer of the written text ‘Sportsfiled’, uses context in an effective manner. Hope manages to convey context through his extended use of jargon from the 1950’s. Language such as ‘loins’ and ‘lover by proxy’ is terminology of the 1950’s, which is no longer considered mainstream today.   This gives the responder an insight into the way people interacted with one another and reflects the time the text was composed. In both texts the composer implements the idea of context to give the responder an insight into the writing environment and time in which the text was composed.

In contrast, ‘Frontline’ is a satirical visual text composed by the ABC and first aired in 1994. The text revolves around the media of the 1990’s and their unscrupulous manner of manipulating stories and people in their quest for television ratings. The composer conveys context to the responder in an assortment of ways including the attire of characters. An example of this is television presenter Mike Moore who is seen in expensive suits to display his wealth or bright neon coloured shirts and tight jeans, which are both typical fashion traits of the 1990’s.

In addition, the composers of each text satirise the idea of sex in sport through a range of techniques. In the text ‘Sportsfield’ A.D Hope blatantly attempts to expose the vices and follies of the way human relationships are depicted in film through satirical techniques and the exploitation of sex in sport. The use...