For this assignment I went onto www.hulu.com to find an episode of something I had not seen or would not normally watch. The episode I picked was Louie - Season 2, Episode 9. I first watched this episode without sound.
By watching the body language and actions of the characters I gauged that the main character was obviously a stand-up comic. He comes off stage and it appears he meets up with someone he is very familiar with because he smiles, hugs, and slaps the other man on the back. It appears they are close friends. From the flashbacks to younger version of the men in black and white I assume they have been friends for some time.
From the body language of other people who come into contact with the main character's friend it does not appear they like him very much. One man gets up close to the friends personal space, his face looks angry and he is waving his arms. There is another instance in a liquor store where the store clerk is obviously yelling at the friend, waving his arms, pointing at him and pointing at the door.
From their body language it appeared the main character was well liked but that the 'friend' was not. Even toward the end of the episode it appears that the main character is mad at his friend because his face shows concern, mouth open, looks away from him, waves his arms about, points at him and shakes his head.
After watching it with the sound on I found out I was right, it was an old friend who came to see the main character, Louie, do his stand-up routine. They greet each other, the other man does offend others with his language and comments. I was not really able to determine the "plot" or what was actually occurring by watching with the sound off. However, with the sound on I learned that the man had come to say "good-bye" to his old friend because he had not been as successful as Louie and felt he had nothing left to live for in his life. He talks about killing himself in the end which is what makes Louie so mad.
If I had watched an episode of a show I was familiar with I think my assumptions would have been more correct because I would have had previous knowledge and experience with it, I would have created a schema and would have been familiar with relationships and characters. My schema, or previous experience, could have given me an idea of what the plot would be and what the relationships were between characters.
I found this exercise to be very interesting. I was bored and found it difficult to follow the episode without the sound. I also found myself looking closer at facial expressions, body language, and the actions and movements of the characters.
By watching the body language and actions of the characters I gauged that the main character was obviously a stand-up comic. He comes off stage and it appears he meets up with someone he is very familiar with because he smiles, hugs, and slaps the other man on the back. It appears they are close friends. From the flashbacks to younger version of the men in black and white I assume they have been friends for some time.
From the body language of other people who come into contact with the main character's friend it does not appear they like him very much. One man gets up close to the friends personal space, his face looks angry and he is waving his arms. There is another instance in a liquor store where the store clerk is obviously yelling at the friend, waving his arms, pointing at him and pointing at the door.
From their body language it appeared the main character was well liked but that the 'friend' was not. Even toward the end of the episode it appears that the main character is mad at his friend because his face shows concern, mouth open, looks away from him, waves his arms about, points at him and shakes his head.
After watching it with the sound on I found out I was right, it was an old friend who came to see the main character, Louie, do his stand-up routine. They greet each other, the other man does offend others with his language and comments. I was not really able to determine the "plot" or what was actually occurring by watching with the sound off. However, with the sound on I learned that the man had come to say "good-bye" to his old friend because he had not been as successful as Louie and felt he had nothing left to live for in his life. He talks about killing himself in the end which is what makes Louie so mad.
If I had watched an episode of a show I was familiar with I think my assumptions would have been more correct because I would have had previous knowledge and experience with it, I would have created a schema and would have been familiar with relationships and characters. My schema, or previous experience, could have given me an idea of what the plot would be and what the relationships were between characters.
I found this exercise to be very interesting. I was bored and found it difficult to follow the episode without the sound. I also found myself looking closer at facial expressions, body language, and the actions and movements of the characters.
I stopped by your blog today.
ReplyDeleteAnn
Hi Toni,
ReplyDeleteI found this assignment interesting too. I compared it to a non-English speaking person and how it must be for them to watch TV in English. Difficult!
Toni
ReplyDeleteYou are right. When we already know the characters and have seen the people before we basically know whats happening and going on. Th hard part for me is remembering when I am communicating with someone is that they may not necessarily know the same things that I know. This was a fun assignment.
Toni,
ReplyDeleteI was also surprised at how 'right' I was when watching with the sound off and then on. Like you, I was bored watching without sound and found this very interesting. I have told some friends to try it! Thanks for the post.