Group H - Editing

Fast paced editing is used in the fight scene between Merlin and Arthur. There are lots of cuts, and some shots are only 2 seconds long before switching to another shot. This helps emphasise the drama of what is happening, and makes the fight scene more exciting. An example of this is when Arthur throws the weapon to Merlin, and there is lots of fast paced editing which makes Merlin seem more clumsy and not as experienced as Arthur. There is slow motion editing before Arthur is about to hit Merlin. This makes Arthur seem stronger and reiterates the point that Arthur is of higher class compared to Merlin.

During the fight there is an element of subversion, because Merlin is winning although Arthur is royalty and Merlin is a servant which means this should not be happening. When Merlin is about to attack Arthur, there is a close up shot of Merlin looking at someone, it then cuts away to Gaius which indicates that that's what Merlin was looking at. He looks at Gaius with more importance, and Gaius' presence halts the subversion which is currently taking place, this is shown by Arthur striking Merlin and winning the fight.  When Gaius and Merlin enter the house Gaius seems to be telling Merlin off, this also illustrates that Gaius is an authoritative figure to Merlin, There is also a shot reverse shot (SRS) which shows intimacy between Merlin and Gaius. This is important because it illustrates to the audience that they possibly have a close relationship.

Group G - Sound

Sound in Merlin is used in an effective way to reprisent class and status. For example as Merlin walks into the witches room at the beginning of the extract the sound is very eerie and creates a tense atmosphere that suggests that Merlin isn't supposed to be in the room as it is in a castle and due to his class he may not belong in the castle. This is effective as it instantly makes it clear to the audience that Merlin is in the wrong and that he doesnt seem to fit in to his surroundings, this must be due to his class.
Merlins dialogue when speaking to Arthur also helps to portray their different class and status. When Merlin addresses Arthur saying 'My lord' in a mocking tone and with a slight bow suggests that Arthur is of a higher class to Merlin and requires respect from those he is superior to.
The comic sounds of the fight between Arthur and Merlin draws a compariosn between a 'peasant' like Merlin fighting royalty like Arthur, as this would never have been able to happen in that era as the differences in status between royalty and their subjects would have been too great for a meeting like this to ever happen.
Overall this is effective as the sound is effectively used to portray class and status between Merlin and his surroundings or other characters in a subtle way to communicate with the audience.

Group F - Camera (movement, framing, composition)

The sequence starts off with a pan shot which sets the scene and shows Merlin walking into a room. As the woman walks into the room, the camera holds on her which shows status as she starts conversation, we know that she's an important figure in this scene because we are still able to hear her speak as the camera is focused on Merlin. The camera then follows Merlin out of the room instead of the woman which shows the importance of Merlin. The establishing shot of the market is used to portray the difference between the rich and poor. As Arthur comes along, the camera is still focused on Merlin at the front allowing us to see his actions and emotions, this is a subversion of class as Arthur should typically have more power.

When they're fighting, there are various camera close - ups on the weapons allowing the audience to see that Arthur has more experience with using weapons which at the time would suggest that Arthur is of higher class and status to Merlin. The high shot of the fight shows power of Arthur over Merlin and also suggests that he's winning. In contrast, the low angles of Merlin on the floor as he's fighting shows that he's weaker than Arthur. The cutaway from the fight to Gaius was used to introduce Gaius and so that his later entrance makes sense,it also shows a contrast between his room compared to the woman's room in the castle which emphasises the divide between rich and poor.

The fight is stopped as Gaius later goes to the scene where the camera shows Gaius and Merlin making eye contact, which suggests that Gaius has power over Merlin because he was able to control him and stop the fight. Finally, the last shot is back in Gaius' room where the camera focuses on Merlin at the front of the shot with Gaius at the back and then changes to a shot-reverse-shot which shows Merlin's eyeline being higher than Gaius' suggesting Merlin's importance has maintained throughout.

Group E - MES

The class and status in the extract is shown through the Mis en scene.  Merlin's clothes represent to the audience a lower class and status and they contrast against the grand castle. His clothes are torn and ragged telling the audience he is lower class and is most likely a servant. There is also a contrast between the outfits and appearance of Merlin and the woman, the woman is glamourised and it is clear she is upper class and of a higher status than Merlin, the colour of her dress connotes this as it is purple and is considered regal. When Merlin leaves the room we follow him instead of the women who is a high class, this is interesting and is an example of subversion.

Group C- Editing

Editing is a technique used to show class and status. For example when the woman goes to the door she pauses as well as the camera, so this gives her importance.the editing goes really fast when he is inside the castle showing that he doesn't belong there and maybe indicating that what he is doing is wrong. The camera also follows him as he leaves the room showing his significance to the audience (his character) in the film. The use of parallel editing when he is inside the castle as she realises he is there it builds tension with this technique. During the opening sequence, shot reverse shot is used which makes the characters of equal importance as one is the main character and one is royalty also by the use of matching eye-lines. Rhythmic editing is used with the non-diegetic sound track as the fighting matches it and makes it almost like a montage and slow motions also used in the fight to make it melodramatic.  this may illustrate the subversion between the two characters giving the fight a light-hearted feel to it, it shows that his secret powers maybe a more significant part of his character as to the audience he is not expected to get hurt but in a realistic situation royalty would attack the peasant if he was being violated. When the camera goes back to gaius the audience now know who the character is by showing the audience a short clip of him in a POV shot aswell as a medium shot while he is looking through the window. This use of cutting with the appearance of his character lets the audience know that his character might be popular in relation to Merlin, showing him not just as a peasant but a mysterious knowledgable character in relation to Merlins magic. Furthermore in the fight scene the shots mostly focus on Merlin, this technique of focus concentrates its attention of the reaction on Merlins face as he looks frightened but without taking away from the Kings son as his skills are demonstrated on camera with the use of props such as fruit making him look powerful along with his status.

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MERLIN - TV Drama - Class & Status

Group B - Sound

The sound in the extract from Merlin helps to define the class and status an example of this would be the non-diegetic sound of deep strings and choir to create tension which builds up to when she walks in to her room this could imply that a class based rule has been broken showing that she is of higher status.
In addition the sound of the footsteps of the woman walking in at the beginning are slow this builds up tension, as she walks in she asks him "what are you doing here?" this shows she has power over Merlin and that her status is greater than his. As Merlin walks out we hear the sound of the market this may include the sounds of animals and other people, this may show a contrast between how quiet the castle was and how busy the market is, this may typically represent the sounds of the lower class.