Male Gaze

The Male Gaze is described as how men depict women. This is, in most cases, how women are seen as just objects to men sexually through the way they are portrayed in art and media. This sexualization of women is what makes men feel empowered over women and leaves women in many cases to feel as mere objects. An author discussed the first case of the Males Gaze by the name of John Berger. In his book, he discussed how the first idea of nude came to be. It was two people by the names of Adam and Eve that decided to eat an apple off a tree. God punished them by bringing them to the realization that they were naked, causing them to see each other in a nude form, which brought them shame. God then brought more pain over women by claiming that women bear children and men rule over them for eternity.

Because of this story, men after this time have felt as if it was their right to control what women do, and women must listen and serve all the needs of man. Berger emphasizes this idea of how women live to serve the eyes of man when he wrote, "One might simplify this by saying: men act and women appear. Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at. This determines not only most relations between men and women but also the relation of women to themselves" (Berger, 47). What this quote is saying is that women are always being watched. Whenever a man does something it goes unnoticed many times, but when women do things it is amplified many times and many stares and judge them. A perfect example of a real-life scenario is when a man gets into a fight. It is seen as something healthy, but when women fight, they are looked down upon and are seen as disgraceful to what a "lady" is supposed to act like. This is a negative way of viewing women because it makes them feel restricted and makes them very wary of their actions putting many of them in uncomfortable positions.

Megan Fox, Transformers. 2007

The movie Transformers is an example of the male gaze as its director Micheal Bay sexualized female character Megan Fox. Megan is depicted in a scene as a "sexy" girl as she wears a crop top shirt to show off her body as she bends over a car. This scene had no purpose in the storyline other than to satisfy the males that are viewing the movie. Women portrayed like this are what the Male Gaze represents and is something that creates a cynical look for what women should look like. Men make these women seem to be what "sexy" is and in many cases leads to a harmful effect on women's self-esteem.

Patriarchy is another concept that feeds into the idea of the Male Gaze. Patriarchy defined by men is the belief that men hold all the power, and women are excluded. Patriarchy came to be a political thing throughout the system. The system came up showing men as being superior and the only possible leaders of the world. This also depicts women as being too weak to rule and lead as their deemed to be weak mentally and physically. Patriarchy creates a barrier between masculinity and femininity. Men are supposed to be healthy physically and mentally, along with being able to keep their emotions hidden inside them. Females, on the other hand, are intended to be soft and emotional, living to serve what man needs of them. Bell Hooks, the author of "Understanding Patriarchy," states to us how lousy Patriarchy is when he writes, "Patriarchy is the single most life-threatening social disease assaulting the male body and spirit in our nation" (Hooks 17). The reason Hooks says this is because of the fact that Patriarchy created a stereotype of how men should look and act. It does not allow people to be who they want and intended everyone to act and look the same was based on your gender. The issue with this that categorizes it as a so-called disease it that it makes it difficult for people who are gay or transgender to come out to the public because of the way society has made this behavior seem disgusting.

Who needs Patriarchy?

Patriarchy has affected my life and my everyday choices. Ever since I was little, the media has painted the idea that men are to go out and do all the hard labor while the women stay home and take care of kids. People always made it seem not very good if a woman was capable of completing a physical task, and a man was not. It is nice to see how today's society has welcomed change, and the idea of Patriarchy is slowly disappearing.

Hooks, Bell. Teaching Critical Thinking: Practical Wisdom. , 2010. Print

Berger, John, and Michael Dibb. Ways of Seeing. London: BBC Enterprises, 1972.

https://www.filminquiry.com/film-theory-basics-laura-mulvey-male-gaze-theory/

https://everydayfeminism.com/2013/05/patriarchy-and-how-it-shows-up-for-everyone/