Use of sound to represent disability in Secret Diary

One very noticeable thing when looking at sound in this extract is that there is no soundtrack for the majority of it. This helps to build tension because awkward silences are created. After being invited in, there is very little conversation going on between Blake, his father and the call girl. All that we hear is the sound of footsteps and Blake's wheelchair.

Most of the dialogue in the extract is very short so it is like they are avoiding talking to each other. There also a lot of unfinished sentences because the characters seem to not know what to say out of embarrassment or awkwardness. The characters also seem to stutter a lot to show that they are not relaxed.

After the father leaves, the call girl starts locking the door. The sound of the locks is very loud and has probably been enhanced by fitted microphones on set. The reason for this is to show Blake's feeling of vulnerability with being locked in a room. After realising Blake's discomfort, the call girl starts to unlock the door and starts talking but not finishing her sentences ("I'll just leave it... just in case you want..."). This shows how uncomfortable she is and how she fears she may have frightened Blake. The call girl starts trying to make conversation to which Blake just stares at her unable to think of what to say

The scene then shows Blake's dad outside, where ambient sounds of cars in the distance can be heard. He turns on the radio which starts to play very happy classical music. This is asynchronous as it doesn't reflect the father's anxious feelings. He quickly turns it off. We then hear the diegetic sounds of him winding down the window, fidgeting on his chair and accidentally beeping his car horn. This is all done while there is still no soundtrack which makes these sounds appear louder and makes the car horn more startling

As the scene cuts between the two locations, a sound-bridge of non-diegetic music is heard. The music sounds quite sad and pitying as the call girl starts to come on to Blake. The instrument used is a harmonica which is an instrument associated with the blues which is a style of music where the singer sings about their troubles