The Male Gaze Theory

(And additional related research)

What is it?• This theory was mentioned in the essay ‘Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema’

written by feminist film critic, Laura Mulvey in 1975.• The male gaze theory is when the camera positions the audience into the perspective

of a heterosexual man. It may linger over the curves of the woman’s body structure for instance, showing the femininity and seductive side.

• The concept has subsequently been influenced in feminist film theory and media studies.

• The theory only applies if the curves of an woman is highlighted with the right camera shots and angling and editing, such as slow motion and noticeable camera movements or still shots and cut away.

L-R:Miley Cyrus – Wrecking Ball Mariah Carey – Touch My Body Fergie - Fergalicious

Low angle: man is watching over her from below

Red colour lipstick and dress is an example danger and seduce for costume/makeup

Very short and tight clothing are only for the male audience

The Gazes• Since it refers to the

way visual arts are structured around a masculine viewer, it gives an initial point of view or attitude towards women.

• The different gazes are the person behind the camera, character within the representation or film itself and the gaze of the spectator.

Feminists look at these gazes in three ways:1. Men look at women2. Women look at

themselves 3. Women look at

womenJustin Timberlake Ft. Timberlake – Cry me a river

One being from the audience ’s (women and men) perspective because in the picture on the left, the camera filmed Justin Timberlake filming himself and the so called seductress, for people to watch. The last two screenshots depicts the other perspective is through the male perspective (in this case, Justin Timberlake’s), as he is watching his ex girlfriend taking a shower.

This music video is a good example, since it highlights two perspectives.

Example of Music Video (1)• Katy Perry – Thinking of You

Her costume choice is for her current lover in the music video but she is mostly shown to be upset as she is perhaps is neglected from intimate love and she still mourns for her ex or lost lover. Her figure is curvy but slim, which is how a lot of woman are presented in the media, teaching the female audience you need have the perfect proportion of curvy hips and slim tummy to be considered as beautiful.

These shots are from a

man’s point of view Her hands resting

on her hands could either

represent her to be provocative or feeling lonely or

vulnerable

E.g.:Obvious depiction of her figure shape through her semi-transparent gown and tight fit short

clothing.

Example of Music Video (2)• Scouting for Girls – She’s

so lovely

1) The lyrics match the visuals, in

terms of how the video girl is presented

2) All these shots are filmed from an man’s point of view and the women is the

expected portrayal of ‘lovely’. From a female’s perspective, they would learn

that the depiction of the ‘lovely’ woman is the desired look of visual beauty.

I love the way she fills her clothes.She looks just like them girls in Vogue.

I love the way she bites her lipI love the way she shakes them hips.

Facial ExpressionsWomen (Marjorie Ferguson in 1980)

Men (Trevor Millum in 1975)

Chocolate Box (innocence, kindness through a friendly, warm half or full smile)

Carefree(Nymph like, active, healthy , vibrant e.g. smiling or ginning)

Invitational (mystery and mischief, model facing away with a hint of smileand emphasis on the eyes)

Practical(Short hair, serious, engaged with business in hang, mouth closed, slight frown, eyes object-directed.)

Super-Smiler(arrogant ‘‘look at me’’ attitude, carefree and toothy smile)

Seductive(Similar to looking cool in terms of eyes less wide, confident, slight smile but the cool look is more arrogant, aloof and reserved with straight lips, how a man looks at themselves in the mirror)

Romantic or Sexual(Not smiling, two people but still showing availability)

Comic(Deliberately ridiculous, exaggerated, foolish and pulling faces to an real or imaginary audience)

Catalogue(A neutral look, artificial, wax like and mannequin like. Eyes wide open, with a subtle smile, overall look is vacant and straightforward but lacks of personality.

Jonathon 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' ’’Types of Gazes:• The spectator’s gaze - the spectator’s gaze: the gaze of the viewer at an image of a

person in the text• The intra-diegetic gaze - a gaze of one depicted person at another (or at an animal or

an object) within the world of the text (typically depicted in filmic and televisual media by a subjective ‘point-of-view shot’);

• The direct address - the gaze of a person depicted in the text looking ‘out of the frame’ as if at the viewer, with associated gestures and postures

• The Averted Gaze - a depicted person’s noticeable avoidance of the gaze of another, or of the camera lens or artist (and thus of the viewer) - this may involve looking up, looking down or looking away (Dyer 1982);

• The look of the camera - the way that the camera itself appears to look at the people depicted; less metaphorically, the gaze of the film-maker or photographer

• The gaze of the bystander - outside the world of the text, the gaze of another individual in the viewer’s social world catching the latter in the act of viewing (Willemen 1992);

• The gaze of an audience within a text - certain kinds of popular televisual texts (such as game shows) often include shots of an audience watching those performing in the 'text within a text‘

• The Editorial Gaze - 'the whole institutional process by which some portion of the photographer's gaze is chosen for use and emphasis' (Lutz & Collins 1994, 368).

Examples These shots are example of women looking needy, making the male audience feel superior.

Katy Perry – California Girls Selena Gomez – Good For You

Lil Wayne - Lollipop

All these shots illustrate the spectator’s gaze, the audience is looking at their body shape and

where they are , averted gaze, the audience is looking their figures up and down and the gaze of an bystander., who is particularly looking at their body parts and

what attracts them.