Transcript The Male Gaze

The Male Gaze
Laura Mulvey
“Visual Pleasure and
Narrative Cinema”
What is the Gaze?
The concept of gaze is one that deals with
how an audience views the people
presented.
For feminists it can be thought of in 3
ways:
•
How men look at women,
•
How women look at themselves
•
How women look at other women.
Gaze and feminist theory
Laura Mulvey
coined the term
‘Male Gaze’ in
1975. She
believes that in
film audiences
have to ‘view’
characters from
the perspective
of a heterosexual
male.
Features of the Male Gaze
The camera lingers on the curves of the
female body, and events which occur to
women are presented largely in the context of
a man's reaction to these events.
Relegates women to the status of objects. The
female viewer must experience the narrative
secondarily, by identification with the male.
“I love the way she
fills her clothes.
She looks just like
them girls in Vogue.”
Watch the video and
then be prepared for
questions
Quick questions
What colour top was he and she wearing?
What bowling lane was used?
What colour belt did he and she wear?
What colour shoes did he and she wear?
What colour eyes did he and she have?
Why some of you might not have known
the answers to all the questions.
You were too busy looking at the woman.
Use of the Male Gaze in
everyday life
Some theorists also have noted the
sexualizing of the female body even in
situations where female sexiness has
nothing to do with the product being
advertised.
Can you think of any examples of this?
Criticism of Mulvey and Gaze theory
Some women enjoy being ‘looked’ at e.g. beauty
pageants.
The gaze can also be directed toward members
of the same gender for several reasons, not all
of which are sexual, such as in comparison of
body image or in clothing.
Are there any ‘flaws’ in these arguments?
Categorising facial expressions
Women:
• Chocolate box
• Invitational
• Super-smiler
• Romantic or sexual
Men:
•Carefree
•Practical
•Seductive
•Comic
•Catalogue
Marjorie Ferguson
(1980)
Trevor Millum (1975)
Key theorists beliefs
Jonathan Schroeder (1998), “to gaze
implies more than to look at – it signifies a
psychological relationship of power, in
which the gazer is superior to the object of
the gaze.”
Charlie's Angels female
empowerment vs sexuality
Watch this clip and
note down
examples of female
empowerment and
sexuality.
Are they mutually
exclusive?
Does Shroeder’s
belief apply to this
trailer?