Downton
Abbey Analysis
Genre: The
genre of Downton Abbey is that of a historical period drama. The maids all have
a sense of distain towards the scullery maid we see a lot of, this could link
to the idea that even the maids have a hierarchy in their own way. She is
looked down on by everyone, and this can be seen from the way that everyone is
raised above her in each shot, just like how when she is seen as being below
the main cook, as she is stood up while the scullery maid is on her knees
grabbing the equipment, and the way she is talked to. There are many codes and
conventions of period dramas in this clip, like the way that the costumes the
actors wear are made to look like they have walked right out of the early
1900’s. Another convention of period dramas is a sense of class and hierarchy
in the home and workplace, and this is very evident in this show it is obvious
that the lower class generally dislike the upper class. This can be seen by
when the first bell rings, signalling the awakening of the upper class, they
feel like they need to get back to work, being pulled away from their breakfast
and haven’t got a second to relax before they are dragged about again. The show
is set in 1912, this being another convention of period dramas, text or
dialogue telling the audience when the show is set to take away the ambiguity.
We see telegrams, the introduction of electricity and the papers just reporting
the sinking of the titanic, these things all point towards it being the
beginning set around this time, which could make for some interesting moments
throughout the show with the less educated individuals learning the ways of the
world, and these all help to confirm the historical setting of the show and
help to reinforce the codes and conventions of period dramas. The clip very
clearly showed a number of different, open, multi-strand narratives throughout,
showing the audience the different characters we will be seeing in the future,
and fleshing almost all of them very well with their sound and looks. Whether
it be the way the sound changes when we first a new character or the way the
camera moves to a different position or even just what someone is wearing, all
of these are different ways of altering the way we read a character.
Sound:
The sounds used throughout the clip are very specific. From the way the audio
picks up and lowers during specific points to the way the audio will stop
entirely during specific scenes. When we are first introduced to the Lord, I
noticed that the music picks up from the previous scene and enters a higher
note, royal sounding music. This can be seen as the show trying to show that
this individual is more important than everyone else in the building. The sound
also seems to slow down from the previous scene, this could mean that the scene
is winding down to a close of sorts. The sounds also cut off completely when we
see the lord find out about the titanic sinking, showing that his mind is
cleared and he is focusing entirely on this news report, just like we are
supposed to shut off from the rest of the background noise and focus on the
fact that this unsinkable ship has been sunk. The sound also gets dramatic when
the lord gets the telegram, showing that whatever it revealed to him is upsetting
or fills him with dread. The music is also fast paced and upbeat when we see
the long trailing shot following the scullery maid through the house, showing
that it is a fast paced environment and the upbeat nature of the music shows
that she is busy and running around trying to get her jobs done as fast as
possible before the owners get up. The music is also very dramatic when the
paper boy arrives to deliver the news about the titanic, seeming to show that
we should already be thinking that something bad is going to come from reading
the news that day. The music also quietens down when we are introduced to the
people who live in the manor, this could be done to show that we need to pay
attention to their every move because they will be important to the story. The
musical choices throughout the clip seem to imply that our feelings and
mind-set is intended to change when the music does, to help improve our
immersion and get us more into the scenes. The diegetic sound is also very
important throughout the clip, with specific things being emphasised throughout
specific shots. One of these is that the bells that are used to get the
attention of the maids and butlers are louder than most other sounds in the
room. They are always able to be heard even behind dialogue and background
music. This implies that the maids and butlers don’t actually get to sit in
peace and quiet fort long before they are needed by the owners again.
Camera shots,
angles, movements and editing:
The camera work was actually really important in
this clip, more so than in most modern drama TV shows. One of the best examples
I saw was the long tracking shot in which the camera follows the scullery maid
through the house for some time, showing off a lot of the main rooms in the
house while also showing what’s happening around and inside them. While it
follows the maid through what looks like a library of sorts we see many maids
working to clean the place up and get it ready for the owners of the building.
This is important to the show because it tells us that the entire building is
busy even when the owners are still in bed, though it isn’t of that much
importance to us as we move by it tracking the scullery maid. There is also a
sequence of long shots when the lord first shows up, which give us the indication
that he is important because he is in every shot in the sequence, and is the
main focal point of the sequence. Later on, when the lord is getting his
breakfast, we see that the camera always has him in shot. This is symbolic of
the fact that back in these days the lord’s word was law, and they were the
most important person in the entire household. It could also be to give a
specific connotation of what the director wants the audience to think of this
sequence. It can be to imply that he is higher above everyone else in the
building, and this is what I took form the scene. When he is conversing with
the head butler, in the shot reverse shot sequence, we see that in every shot
the lord can be seen in some way. He is being looked at directly when he is
speaking, but when the butler is speaking he is off in the distance and we are
looking over the shoulder at the side of the lord, showing that even when he
isn’t speaking he is the most important part of a scene. This is a signifier
that he needs to remembered about by the audience, but also that the director
wants to show that he is more important than the butler. It also shows that the
head butler isn’t that important as he is placed off in the corner out of
focus, away from the table and the owners in the room. This is an example of
the class system in place in the show in that it places the lord above the
butler and shows him more prominently than everyone else. It implies that he is
of a higher class by showing him more than people who are not owners of the
manor. The editing is not very spectacular, but it does slow down the space
between cuts when we are introduced to the lord, showing that he is moving
slowly and letting us take in both the lord and the area around him. It also
speeds up between cuts when we are following the scullery maid, showing that it
is faster paced when she is working on the morning.
Mise En Scene:
The mise en scene of the clip we watched shows that
the family who lives in the manor are incredibly wealthy and well off. At first
we see that they obviously have a lot of maids and butlers working for them.
When we see the older butler walking around the house with his silver tray we
see that he isn’t just picking up any old ordinary glasses, he is picking up
ornate crystal glasses and champagne flutes. In comparison to this we see the
maids and butlers eating from older ceramic bowls and mugs, spending their time
in areas that aren’t decorated as nicely or aren’t made to look as fancy
compared to the luxury that the family live in. This again goes to the show the
class system in place in the manor, that the upper class people live in a
luxury and enjoy the finer things in life, while the maids and butlers must
live in comparably worse off areas. These places aren’t as good looking as the
main areas of the manor because the guests aren’t likely to be coming back
here, and neither are the owners.
