Big issue deconstruction

• Education issue essay

Firstly looking at the media language for this Big Issue magazine: the layout, typography and colour all combined connoted intertextuality of Grange Hill which was a drama that centred around on a fictional comprehensive school. It deals with bullying, learning difficulties and conflicts around the school. This cover deals with a lot of intertextuality such as the most famous reference “Harry Potter”, with famous celebrities like Ozzy Osbourne, Benedict Cumberbatch...etc. Using celebrity can be a use of celebrity endorsement but since The Big Issue focuses on social contexts and issues that need to be brought up I think there’s more than just celebrity endorsement. Celebrity culture is another factor, Ozzy Osbourne has dyslexia and the school didn’t understand that and so he messed around instead, Benedict Cumberbatch has had great education experience with arts scholarship but theatre caught his imagination and says that he didn’t enjoy all of the experience. Now for these reasons, celebrity culture reflects on these people as they have had an eventful experience for education but has become the most successful and well known people of all (it’s a great way of representing the lack of opportunities and chances in education).

The biggest reference of all, Harry Potter. Harry potter is based on children, education and magic without those three things it would have been left with nothing so it’s a huge iconography of education in our society. In Harry Potter it explores that every identity is different (everyone has different powers) and how the education should handle them. The fact the it explores that everyone has different powers and when those different identities form a crowd it begins to show hope that they can change the world and they do (in the novel). Referring back to the social and cultural context, we live in a society where all the education is supposed to be ‘fair’ for everyone with the same rules, moral, context and ways of teaching. Whereas, really, we are all different with different qualities and personalities that should not be tolerated or restricted by the ‘criteria’ that can mechanic our individuality and let one letter grade determine our identity.