Post 1
February 11,2020
Male Gaze
The male gaze has been defined and redefined many times over the course of the past few decades and even the past few centuries. Viewing the literally works of John Berger in "Ways of Seeing" we can define the "male gaze" as the way men see women, mainly objectifying them and seeing them for their viewing pleasure. Berger writes, "You painted a naked woman because you enjoyed looking at her, put a mirror in her hand and you called the painting 'Vanity'", which summarizes his definition of the male gaze and condemning women's nakedness for male pleasure. It is pervasive in art and media today due to the patriarchal belief that has practiced objectifying women for years and made. Many times in art, it is a norm to view women as a supporting character in a larger tale surrounding a mans story, or even just placed in it for men to admire.
Bell Hooks blames the patriarchy for allowing the male gaze to be made a norm. She states that men are in control - he is looking at a woman and she is allowing it to happen and conforming to the idea that she has to be presentable to him and every other man that lowers his eyes to her.
In the picture below, the birth of Venus, the God of Beauty is being depicted. The artist chose to capture the moment female beauty and standards came about and is celebrating it. Here we have a nude painting of a women right in the front of the canvas so you as the viewer cannot miss her. She tries to be modest but is still inviting you to see and enjoy her body as she holds a gaze with the audience.
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| Titian. The Birth Of Venus. 1538 C.E |
Cites:
Berger, John. Ways of Seeing. British Broadcasting Corporation, 1972.
Hooks, Bell. The Will to Change: Men, Masculinity, and Love. Washington Square
Press, 2005.
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