The Male & Female Gaze
In this essay I will examine the concepts of ‘The Male Gaze’
and ‘The Female Gaze’ and use these concepts to understand how dance and pole
dance in particular is portrayed and perceived by different gender. There is a
focus on the sexually represented side of this throughout time and in the production
of films. My own short dance film was performed by an experienced dancer and
pole fitness instructor and a range of techniques have been used in the filming
of this, especially related to the speed and focus, to try and portray the
dancer in a different light, and change perception based on the overriding
stereotype. The film changes the focus from the sexuality of the dance to the
portrayal of the dancers body and mind into an expressive form of performance
art.
Laura Mulvey in the 1970’s began research on the way in which
women are represented in film. The concept of the ‘Male Gaze’ was used to
explain the representation of females within media. It was thought that because
of the majority of filmmakers, producers and other controlling members of the
film industry were (heterosexual) male; women were portrayed in a certain way
that appealed to them. Therefore the audience was also placed into a
‘masculine’ perspective. The ‘Male Gaze’ objectifies women and makes the male
viewer a kind of ‘voyager’ who experiences pleasure from looking at her. The
‘male gaze’ can also have the effect of partially controlling the woman seen in
this way, because it convinces them of a certain way that they should look and
should be perceived, therefore they may perceive themselves with the same
expectation. "Men dream of women. Women dream of themselves being dreamt
of. Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at. [...] Women
constantly meet glances which act like mirrors
reminding them of how they look or how they should look." (John Berger
(1972) ) Mulvey’s view can be dismissed by some as just a feminist opinion but
there is clear evidence in the way that men ‘gaze’ upon women through films,
adverts, pornography and even the use of the topless page three models in
newspapers.
When a production is presented from a female perspective,
reflects female attitudes or is specifically aimed at a female audience, the
‘Female Gaze’ can be used in the representation of men and to meet the
expectations of a female audience. It is only relatively recently that men have
been portrayed in a sexual way, although often in a way that does not
disrespect them or threaten their masculinity. The existence of a fan base for
many men considered attractive is possible evidence for the female gaze, as
there are women who adore men due to their portrayal in the media designed to
put them in a sexual light. Male pole dancers and strippers also now exist that
can be objectified in the female gaze. An example of a book using the female
gaze to appeal to women is ‘The Beautiful Boy’ by Germaine Greer (2003) which
features images of boys through the ages in a controversial display of
‘beauty’.
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(skipped to a different section)
In the short video created the film has been slowed down to
fully appreciate the ‘form’ of the dance. In this way the movement of the body
performed in a well practiced and hard trained manner can be clearly seen, even
though the body itself is out of focus. In this way the exact body shape, type,
clothing and appearance so often critiqued and examined within the male gaze is
not the main focus. The elegance and grace displayed along with the hard to
attain strength and technique used in this dance are allowed to be more of the
focus in the film. Every move is well practiced and thought out and there is
much expression and feeling as you would like and expect to see from
performance art. However at the end of the film, when the dancer comes into
focus, the beauty and details and the ‘male gaze’ look for can start to be
seen. This indicated that there may always be this appealing view to men but
also that the dancers themselves like to have the appeal and attraction related
to the pole dance. In the opinion of photographer Julie Cook in response to a
e-mail, “I understand that pole ’fitness’ is very popular but I cannot see how
you can ‘take it away’ from the sexual side of pole dancing (or why you would
want to). There will always be a link
there as it is part of out culture and as adults we all understand what pole
dancing is and where it originates”.
Cook adds, “Nudity or very few clothes semiotically equals sexual desire
for most people. It can still be
something beautiful and many commercial pole dancers do aim for this. By slowing it down you may even make it more
sexual”.
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I wanted to include some of my Essay (20%) as it shows and reads exactly what I think about from my video and the reasons why I worked towards a non sexual aspect of my film. I was advised to look at the subject of the Gazes and include in my research for my film that I was creating. I have linked my essay to them same subject and am happy with the discussion of what I think about the gazes. They do have a huge link to my work and the way that people look at my film, as every male and female will look at it in a different way.
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