All throughout history women and men have never been see as equal. Women have always been taught to be submissive to men. The idea of masculinity and femininity have always been around. Men are thought of a strong, masculine, and providers. Women are thought of as soft, caretakers, and being created for men. In the art world that is not different.
According to John Berger’s in “Ways of Seeing” he states “men act and women appear”. (47) This is where male gaze comes in. Male gaze from my understanding is the way in which a man views a women. Usually the woman is seen as an object. Berger explains in his work that the presence of a man and the presence of a women are two different things.Berger says, “A man’s presence suggests what he is capable of doing to or for you”(46) and also “By contrast, a woman’s presence expresses her own attitude to herself, and defines what can and cannot be done to her.” (46) Basically what he is trying to say is that for a man its easy for him to pretend to be something he's not if he wanted to. When it comes to a women all she is, is what you see.
The male gaze is so pervasive in art and in popular culture because it follows the idea that society has lived up to all along. The idea that men are superior to women and that women should be submissive to men. Berger presents a very interesting point in his work, he states “To be born a woman has been to be born, within an allotted and confined space, into the keeping of men.” (46) To me this means that to be born a woman is to be born with restrictions. Restrictions to always stay small in comparison to a man. Even though in today’s society we see women doing great things and obtaining success and high positions that may have never been thought of before the intimidation factor is still there. Men are still intimidated by the fact that women are working towards becoming their equal.
In art nudity became the way in which men portrayed women how they wanted. Berger makes a clear distinction as to what “naked” means and what “nude” means. They are often thought of as the same but according to Berger “to be naked is to be oneself” (54) and “to be nude is to bee seen naked by others and yet not recognized for oneself.” (54) Meaning that when your naked your strip yourself down to the true you. As opposed to when your nude, although your naked you’re not you’re playing a party. In art men have the ability to manipulate a painting into what they wish to see in a women. Hence the male gaze.
According to bell hooks “Patriarchy is a political-social system that insists that males are inherently dominating, superior to everything and everyone deemed weak, especially females, and endowed with the right to dominate and rule over the weak and to maintain that dominate through various forms of psychological terrorism and violence.” (18) Basically put patriarchy is male dominance in society. This was a concept taught since birth and reiterated in different places such as church. Men where taught that they had to be strong, powerful, and have a mind to thing, and to be served. Women were taught to just serve the man, be weak, and do as they are told. Men were taught not to express feeling as women were taught to express feeling or at least some of them. Anger and rage was appropriate for men but not for women.
bell hooks recalls a time in her childhood where her and her brother played with marbles. Marbles back in the fifties was taught to be for men. Her brother obtained his marbles from other male members of the family who passed it down to him. Throughout their childhood bell hooks and her brother realized that they didn’t fit in to the idea of patriarchy. She was the more aggressive one and he brother the softer one. They would play marbles together as kids and when it was in front of their mom it was fine. When their father watched them play he didn’t like one bit because hook was being more aggressive in the game with her brother and that went against their beliefs of patriarchy.
These reading didn’t really change my view on art and media much. Growing up I've always seen how men are always considered the dominant gender and that women are supposed to be submissive. What I did learn and find to be shocking is that painting have more meaning then what meets the eye. I never knew that even in a painting a women is being objectified to still please a man. It’s shocking to me because women have come along way and have made it to positions that use to only be for me. They have become successful on their own without the help of a man. Even with all that the respect for women as a whole still isn't were it should be. Women are still being objectified and belittled just to feed the male ego.
The Male Gaze
This picture depicts the idea of what the male gaze represents. In this photo you see Marilyn Monroe holding her dress down as it is being lifted up by the air coming up beneath the side walk. She is being portrayed in a seductive manner. Then you notice the male. As he is passing he is staring at her and smiling finding enjoyment in her dress being lifted up
Patriarchy
This is an image of the cast of "Saved by the Bell". This image explains how although we know that the idea of patriarchy isn't right we are more afraid of how things will be if it changes. So since change is so scary they rather continue to accept the idea then go and try and change it and not know whats going to happen.
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