The Male & Oppositional Gaze

Tyler the Creator has been criticized for his misogynistic and violent lyrics

Media has been objectifying women in its many outlets since its inception, and that does not seem to be changing. Often, this is done intentionally and helps to perpetuate stereotypes and roles in society. "The popularization of gangsta rap, spearheaded by white male executives in the music industry, gave a public voice to patriarchy and woman hating." (Bell Hooks, 129) This is just one example of mass media (in this case, record executives,) to push their agendas on the general public. These thoughts and ideas subconsciously effect the listener and keep women down by consistently portraying them as inferior to men.

The male gaze objectifies females and puts the audience into the perspective of the heterosexual male, making women out to be lesser individuals than their male counterparts. "One might simplify this by saying: men act and women appear. Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at." (Berger, 47) Men are personified as the strong character. The one who gets things done. Women, on the other hand, are just there for show. They bring nothing to the table in the form of intellect or action, and are continually objectified in pop culture. At this point, the male gaze is something that is just accepted in society. Most viewers are not even aware that it is happening, and this trend will continue if the audience does not become aware. Their are many examples of this, especially in Film, Television and Music. In most films, the women are just their for show, contributing very little to the storyline. Same goes for Television, as many shows have weak female characters that are highly influenced by their emotions and often times are not the decision makers. Music is a male dominated industry, and Hip Hop, which is the most popular music of the past 25 years, continually demeans women and perpetuates stereotypes about them.

I thought this picture was a good representation of the oppositional gaze

The oppositional gaze takes a stance against the male gaze, urging viewers to look at media differently and challenge the thoughts and ideas that are given by mass media. If you begin to look at media with the oppositional gaze, you can discuss, analyze and interpret the way that women are treated and portrayed. I believe that hooks feels that if enough people were to develop the oppositional gaze then maybe some changes could be made in mass media. This gaze effectively challenges the male gaze and was developed to do just that. Hooks is writing as an African American female, whose role in media has always been minimal at best. Her oppositional gaze stems from her not recognizing or being able to relate to main characters in media, as most of them were white males.

"Nothing discounts the old anti-feminist projection of men as all-powerful more than their basic ignorance of a major facet of the political system that shapes and informs male identity and sense of self from birth until death. (Bell Hooks, 17) This quote really opened up my eyes and made me take a deeper look at how our society is constructed. We still live in a male dominated society, and although women have made great progress, there are still people running this country whose objective is to keep women down. How can men be all powerful if they don't understand that everyone in society is equal and should be treated and portrayed as such? If we continue to live in a patriarchal society we will never reach our full potential, but it is difficult to see how we will change the thinking of popular culture.

Before this class, I've never really thought about how women are portrayed in media. I have always just been a consumer and someone who sees things how they are presented. After reading this material, I now understand the subliminal messages portrayed by the male gaze and how that effects peoples thoughts and ideas. Being a white male has always kept me protected from both society and media stereotypes, so I have never been faced with discrimination. Going forward, I will do my best to view things differently and challenge the prevailing thoughts and ideas that are engrained in us as individuals from an early age. I do not think that this will prevent me from watching or listening to things that I enjoy, but I do think that it will help me to better understand them and have a more well rounded view of my favorite media.

Although it is a few years old, I thought that this article from The Atlantic was very interesting:

Works Cited:

Berger, John. Ways of Seeing. London: British Broadcasting, 1973. 47. Print.

Hooks, Bell. Feminist Manhood & Pop Culture. 129. Print.
Hooks, Bell. Understanding Patriarchy. 17. Print.