Graduation Year
2024
Document Type
Campus Only Senior Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Media Studies
Reader 1
Elizabeth Affuso
Reader 2
Nancy Macko
Terms of Use & License Information
Abstract
Violence on-screen is a common feature of modern mainstream films. Arguably, graphic depictions of pain are on the rise. Mediated violence can position the viewer vis-a-vis the subject in pain in a variety of ways; variables which affect this include narrative, form, and personal experiences of the audience member. The viewer is ultimately positioned in one of three ways: they identify with the body itself and are positioned as the victim of violence, are aligned with the camera and thus positioned as the perpetrator or bystander of violence, or they are positioned outside the work entirely, aligned instead with the omniscient creator of the work. All three positionalities allow the viewer to derive a pleasurable viewing experience which outweighs the instinct to empathize with the pain of another being.
Recommended Citation
McCord, Chelsea D., "Victim, Perpetrator, or Mastermind: Examining the Relationship between the Viewer and Bodies in Pain on Screen" (2024). Scripps Senior Theses. 2431.
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/scripps_theses/2431
This thesis is restricted to the Claremont Colleges current faculty, students, and staff.
