Ways of Seeing and Viewing

       The portrayal of women in media is defined, predominantly, by the male gaze. The male gaze is a way of viewing women that objectifies and sexualizes them in order to appeal to the audience, which is considered to be male. Essentially, women cannot exist in media without being somewhat sexualized or suggestive. If a women appears on a magazine cover, even if it is for her accomplishments as a politician, photoshop will make them sexier to appeal to the male population.

Sarah Palin, though a Governor, is sexualized to appeal to what men want.

       The male gaze is the foundation for how women are portrayed in all things media. It creates an unrealistic bar that women must face. The majority of women in films, TV shows, magazine covers, etc, are considered attractive. Some are even considered PERFECT. This is how the male population views it. In turn, women strive to reach that unrealistically high standard that is created by the male gaze. Essentially, the beauty and portrayal of women depend on the approval and vision of men. "Her own sense of being in herself is supplanted by a sense of being appreciated as herself by another." (Berger, 46) The "another" is a man.

This high standard cannot be realistically reached by all women.
I mean, no one looks like this while fixing a car.

        As a counterpoint, bel hooks describes a technique that transforms the sense of the word "gaze" when viewing media. The oppositional gaze is a way of viewing media critically and analytically and without the bias and prejudice against women and women of color. The oppositional gaze, much like the male gaze, is a figurative approach to a literal experience.
        The literal experience here is described by hooks: "When thinking about black female spectators, I remember being punished as a child for staring…looks that were seen as confrontational. Afraid to look, but fascinated by the gaze." (hooks, 115) She claims that gazing and staring, especially by colored women and children, was seen as forbidden and punishable. She goes on to say that as she got older, she just kept staring. By confronting with an unrelenting gaze, one defeats the forbidden quality of the gaze. "Not only will I stare. I want my look to change reality."(hooks, 116)
         The oppositional gaze was developed as a response to the stigma around staring and gazing. Though the literal sense of gazing is challenged here, so is the figurative sense in that it challenges the male gaze. In a world where all women are judged by men, whether by staring at them or a picture of them, the visual aspects of women in media are determined unjustly. The oppositional gaze aims to break this tradition by transforming the "gaze" and by using it as a powerful tool in analyzing and viewing media.
          My role in media is directly related to how women are portrayed. They are portrayed how I want them to be portrayed. That is something that I did not realize before. Even though it is not me, personally, it is me as a consumer that influences how a woman is seen in media. Knowing, as a consumer, that I am contributing to the problem of the male gaze is eye-opening and redefines who I am as a media consumer.

Beyonce: Women can "Gaze" Too

Bibliography

1. Berger, John. Ways of Seeing. London: British Broadcasting : Penguin, 1972.
2. Hooks, Bell. Black Looks: Race and Representation. Boston, MA: South End, 1992.