Reading in to Gaming

According to Stuart Hall (1973) there are 3 types of reading strategies used to interpret texts, dominant-hegemonic reading or preferred reading, the negotiated reading and the oppositional reading. Depending on which method you choose in which to interpret a certain text plays a major role in how you see the world.

Hall (1973) defines each of the readings as follows;

Preferred reading- “the dominant of preferred reading has the whole social order embedded in it…” it is basically the natural reading of a text, something we don’t have to think about and is just accepted by our social order and past experiences.

Negotiated reading- Acknowledges the legitimacy of the hegemonic or preferred definitions yet at the same time changes the rules and allows for logic, reason and personal opinion to put the text in to context and change the reading, not merely accepting the preferred and dominant reading.

Oppositional reading- “viewer perfectly understands both literal and the connotative inflection given but chooses to decode the message in a globally contrary way. [The viewer] detotalizes the message in a preferred code in order to retotalize the message within some alternative framework or reference.” Basically ignores all preferred and negotiated readings and chooses reader chooses how they want to receive the message.

One of recent history’s most controversial video games is Rockstar games ‘Grand theft Auto’ (GTA), which deals with drugs, sex and violence in a more participatory manor than any game before it. So when discussing different ways to read texts there seems to be no more fitting example than the racial stereotyping that occurs throughout the game.

Within GTA there are many representations of gangs and, unequivocally, all the different gangs are segregated by race, there are Hispanics, African Americans and Irish, just to name a few. Each representation of race in GTA is shown adhering to the white bred American society's stereotypical view of that particular race. The Hispanics drive low rider cars, have tattoos and wear bandanas; the African Americans wear baggy clothing, carry around guns and swear a lot; and the Irish drink, swear, talk a lot and have red hair. Using the three reading strategies these representations could be read either as true to life, partially true to life or as totally wrong.

 While none of these readings would be incorrect, it is pretty clear to see that to merely accept these representations would be morally and socially wrong, if you have any culture about you at all.  After reading Halls article and discussing the reading strategies I am now asking myself “is GTA racist?” And one would have to say yes, GTA is horribly racist. The stereotypical representation of race in GTA is a hindrance to the progression of the human race and is quite disturbing.