Find an image from contemporary mass media which reflects the issues using five quotes from this text. Analyse the gaze relationship in the image and think about what kind of masculinity and femininities are presented. What kind of challenges to the gender roles is happening?
Coward, R ., 'The Look' Pages 33-39
Initial Notes on the piece of text
I have broke down the initial notes that I made from the Seminar and tried to depict what these could mean in order to give me some reference for the piece of writing...
"Women's Experience of sexuality rarely strays far from ideologies and feelings of self image. There's a preoccupation with the visual image of self and others and concomitant anxiety about how these images measure up to a socially prescribed ideal."
This Quote is demonstrating that there is a socially prescribed ideal of how a woman should look in the current society. We are a visually dominated society
"Human Beings don't all look at things in the same way, innocently as it were. In this culture, the look is largely controlled by men. Men also control the visual media. The film and TV industries are dominated by men, as is the advertising industry."
"Entertainment as we know it crucially predicated on a masculine investigation of women, and a circulation of of women's images for men. The camera in contemporary media has been put to use as an extension of the male gaze at women on the streets. Here, men can, and do, stare at women."
This quote demonstrates the the visual culture is written through the eyes of men. TV, Film, Radio, Magazines and all other Visual Media is largely controlled by men. Images circulated are created from a male point of view.
"Women in the flesh, often feel embarrassed, irritated, or downright angered by men's persistent gaze. But not wanting to risk male attention turning to male aggression, women avert their eyes and hurry on their way."
There is an endless fantasy and power situation on the streets. Women get the pervy look from guys but don't often make anything of it because of this reason. If a women would say something to the man then it's seen as a frail form of power.
"In this society, looking has become a crucial aspect of sexual relations, not because of any natural impulse, but because it is one of the ways in which domination and subordination are expressed. The relations involved in looking enmesh with coercive beliefs about appropriate sexual behaviour for men and women."
It's not just natural attraction that people want to look beautiful for. It's all about domination and subordination. People are forced into the roles of domination and passiveness against their will.
"The saturation of society with images of women has nothing to do with men's natural appreciation of objective beauty, their aesthetic appreciation, and everything to do with an obsessive recording and use of women's images in ways which make men conformable."
The images represent a constant reminder that the woman is there to be controlled by the man.
"Clearly this comfort is connected with feeling secure or powerful. And women are bound to this power precisely because visual impressions have been elevated to the position of holding the key to our psychic well-being, our social success, and indeed to wether or not we will be loved."
Because these images of women are everywhere, Women start to believe that they have to look like this.
"Men defend their scrutiny of women in terms of the aesthetic appeal of women. But this so-called aesthetic appreciation of women is nothing less that a decided preference for a 'distances' view of the female body."
"Perhaps, this 'sex-at-a-distance' is the only complete secure relation which men can have with women. Perhaps other forms of contact are too unsettling."
This means that there is effects of anxiety in both men and women and the expectation of men to be dominant is too much and this creates anxiety for everyone.
"Thus the profusion of images of women which characterises contemporary society could be seen as an obsessive distancing of women, a fan of voyeurism. Voyeurism is a way of taking sexual pleasure by looking at rather than being close to a particular object of desire. Like a Peeping Tom."
With being a Peeping Tom, There is no interaction or challenge from the woman which means that you are constantly in control.
"In the twentieth century, sexology found a spectacle of incompetent fumbling and rampant discontent with 'doing it'. Heterosexuality, it seemed, was on the edge of extinction. Saved only by porn in sock draw or by the widespread availability of images which could be substituted in fantasy for the real thing. Perhaps in the images, the meanings are fixed and reassuring. Perhaps only in the images could true controlling security could be reached?"
Creating a Fantasy that isn't real, which replaces real life with a fantasy that can never be achieved. The male isn't this dominating figure and the female is not as good as porn. It's unobtainable for both sides and the fantasy is better than reality.
"Freud casually added to his account of the development of all humans that women were, however, 'more narcissistic'; 'nor does (their) need lie in the direction of loving, but being loved."
Freud has a pretty twisted view on how women work but he suggests here that all women are self obsessed with looking at themselves, their appearance and being loved by a man.
"Fascination there may be, but there's certainly no straightforward identification which women experience with the multitude of images of glamour women. Instead, advertisements, health and beauty advice, fashion tips are effective precisely because somewhere, perhaps even subconsciously, an anxiety, rather than a pleasurable identification, is awakened. "
Culture forces them into a position that they need to look good. Bulimia and Cosmetic Surgery are forcing ways for them to live up to this 'cultural ideal'.
Club Orange Commercial (2007) Analysis
I decided to look at this 2007 commercial for 'Club Orange' which was created by design agency, Chemistry. I feel that this advertisement hits on most of the points that are raised in the peice of text by Coward.
'Entertainment as we know it is crucially predicated on a masculine investigation of women, and a circulation of women's images for men.' (p. 35) It is interesting when referring this statement to this particular commericial. The commercial is clearly over the top and obvious with it's advertising techniques. It is blatantly using the extension of the male gaze without trying to hide it and although it is lighthearted, it still has serious undertones attached to the reasoning and positioning of women being displayed to men to help sell the product.
'The camera in contemporary media has been put to use as an extension of the male gaze at women on the streets. Here, men can, and do, stare at women.' (p. 36) The woman at the beginning says "Do you like my bits? Of course you do". This direct connection with the viewer instantly draws the attention and the fact that she gazes straight at the camera shows direct interaction with the audience. The women's pose is quite dominant and her gaze is powerful but the fact that she's she's showing cleavage and playing up to man's fantasy presents her as being submissive. This plays on the male dominance role. 'In this society, looking has become a crucial aspect of sexual relations, not because of any natural impulse, but because it is one of the ways in which domination and subordination are expressed.' (p. 39) In this advert, as well as in every day situations, both women and men are naturally forced in these passive and dominant roles.
The women in the advert appear to be really unintelligent and this creates a male fantasy that relies on the illusion that women are easy to control and dominate. The women feels the need to play up to this too. 'Clearly this comfort is connected with feeling secure or powerful. And women are bound to this power precisely because visual impressions have been elevated to the position of holding the key to our psychic well-being, our social success, and indeed to wether or not we will be loved.' (p. 37) In the haze of modern society women have been forced to see this as a perfectly normal way to behave in order to give the male what he wants.
The advertisement plays up to the 'sex-at-a-distance' relationships that men develop with women. There are pressures to the roles of dominance for both parts and this forces contact with women to be too much for men. 'Perhaps, this 'sex-at-a-distance' is the only complete secure relation which men can have with women. Perhaps other forms of contact are too unsettling.' (p. 37) In the advert, we feel it's okay to look at these women and build a relationship with them that is purely visual. The advert heighten's the male's senses by constantly referring to the two circular shapes. This is a direct reference to the women's breasts and the man's testicles. As you can see throughout the video, there is breasts on show, all of the women hold two oranges in their hands and there is a large diagram of two world's crossing in the background. All of this play's up to the male gaze in order to aim the product directly at them through heightening the 'sex-at-a-distance' experience for the male.
Reference : Coward, R., 'The Look', in Thomas, J. (ed.) (2000), Reading Images, Basingstoke: Palgrave, pages 33-39
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