Explore different ways in which audiences and/or users respond to your chosen texts...

• Discussion on the representation of gender

- "Mad Men is a hamfisted portrayal of a some of the more obvious biases and blindnesses of the early 60s. As if every day dawned in 1960 in order to provide white men with opportunities to manifest their sexual and racial biases and -- along with all the women and negros -- to smoke all the day through."

- "expertly captured the cultural mores and human interactions of that period of history. This is a show for those who remember those times. Some people may wax woefully about the good old days of the early 60's, but for most of us THIS was the reality. The actors behave as if they stepped out of 1960 complete with their cynicism, twisted morality, sexism, and racism. Thankfully most of us have matured beyond the behavior portrayed in 'Mad Men"

- "It is good for young people today to see what it was like in the days before feminism, when attitudes about race, religion, and sexual harrassment in the workplace stagnated opportunities for women, minorities, and gays. Things aren't perfect now, but at least there isn't a smoky haze creating a smug fictional perfection over American life"

• Lethargic pace of story lines
• Critical acclaim

http://www.metacritic.com/tv/mad-men

- "Mad Men is poorly written, it spews continually lackluster dialogue, and it struggles with one boring plot line after another."  

- "show proved slow, akward, boring, and seemingly uncomfortable with itself"

- "Puzzling, with so much hype and potential, but . . . mostly unlikable characters, from Don Draper (either an adulterous war hero or a tender, loving father), to manipulative underlings and a strangely misscast Elizabeth Moss, who is either frumpy and frigid or accessible and promiscuous but can hardly be both at once. The writing is curate's-eggish--good in parts, but uneven. The agency scenes don't ring true--too pat, too shallow. On the bright side, production values are excellent , the settings and costumes authentic and the videography above reproach. "

• Provides inspiration for other shows
• Actively research further into issues of the narrative