Research:The Male Gaze-Laura Mulvey

The concept of gaze is one that deals with how an audience views the people presented. In this theory it can be seen as how men look at women. The male gaze theory was created by Laura Mulvey who coined the term ‘Male Gaze’ in 1975. She believes that in film audiences have to ‘view’ characters from the perspective of a heterosexual male.

Features of the Male Gaze include:

•  The camera lingering on the curves of the female body 
•  The events which occur to women are presented largely in the context of a man's reaction to these events.
•  Women being reduced to the status of objects.

Other theorists also have noted the sexualizing of the female body ,even in situations where female sexiness, has nothing to do with the product being advertised. Here is an example of an advertisement for Budweiser beer and as you can clearly see there is no clear reason for there to be a woman in this picture but it is there anyway to attract men to look at.

Another example would be the music video for Eric Prydz - Call On Me in which the entire video consists of an aerobics class of women wearing aerobics outfits performing sexually suggestive gym routines which really has no link to the song in the background.

There are some flaws and disagreements with the theory however:

• Some of the women may enjoy the attention and like people to look at them.
• There are videos and media products which use men in the same light, for example in Kelly Rowland’s 'Motivation' some of the men  have less clothes on than she does and she treats them how some women are treated in other music videos-like objects.
• How is the heterosexual male gaze different from the homosexual gaze?
• The gaze can also be directed toward members of the same sex, not all of which are sexual, such as in comparison of body image or in clothing.