Objectifying Beauty: A Multimodal Analysis of Female Representation in Selected Punjabi Songs and Their English Subtitles

Abstract

This research analyzes the representation of females in the selected Punjabi songs and their English subtitles. Representation of females in the media plays a significant role in shaping people’s perceptions of gender representations and stereotypes. The objectification of females in multimodal elements (lyrics, imagery, and subtitles) emphasizes stereotypes, and translation techniques alter these representations. This study examines how female roles and identities are objectified in songs and their corresponding English subtitles. The theory of objectification is employed to analyze the objectification of females in multi-modal elements of Punjabi songs collected from YouTube. Research finds that most female representations are maintained in English subtitles, highlighting external beauty, with translation techniques such as omission and expansion used to make lyrics understandable, although some cultural expressions are lost. This research highlights the need for further studies on the influence of translation on the depiction of gender in popular culture.

Keywords: Representation, Stereotypes, In Multi-Modal, Objectification