2017). The female gaze is used as an attempt to subvert the image of the man being “the bearer of the look” and the “woman as the image” (Mulvey, 1975: 19). Yes, in that specific scene, the belly dancer was the “image” to be looked as we would expect from traditional cinema, however, she was not sexualized in the way a masculine point of view would present her (Mulvey, 1975: 20). What this does is that it feminizes both the spectators and the camera’s point of view from the very beginning, indicating a sign that we will be introduced to events and relationships from a female perspective that would otherwise be unknown to us in the male dominated world of Bent Familia (Mulvey, 1975: 25). This scene is also very important because it tells the …show more content…
However, that does not mean that the male figures are not present in these female-only spaces. By presence, I do not mean a physical one necessarily, but a metaphorical presence where a man is still some way involved in the exclusively female space the director has created. An article by Tingting Qi evokes the argument of Charles Peirce by pointing out that “we can’t separate our ideas from experiences” (Qi, 2010: 329), and he continues to state that “any women must impact or be impacted by be impacted by their relationships with those men in her life” (Qi, 2010: 329). In this sense, a female only space is very hard to achieve as long as the women’s lives are intertwined with those men around them (Qi, 2010: 329). This is exemplified in the types of conversations these Tunisian women would have between themselves, which are always centered on men and how to deal with their issues (Bent Familia). The first example of such an occurrence would be when Amina visits a fortune teller, where we are initially introduced to this scene from a feminine perspective, we are then thwarted back into a patriarchal order through the nature of the conversation between Amina and the fortune teller. A conversation that resulted in putting all the blame on Amina for her marital problems, absolving the
In Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema, Mulvey states that, “Traditionally, the woman displayed has functioned on two levels: as erotic object for the characters within the screen story, and as erotic object for the spectator within the auditorium, with a shifting tension between the looks on either side of the screen.” (Mulvey 40). A woman’s role in the narrative is bound to her sexuality or the way she
This shows the early flamboyance that would be present in the film. The next scene shows members of drag on the stage of the club; many which are minorities. This shows not only gay men but also black gay men which is not the norm of American culture. The film relates comedy through gender as well, in which a lot of the male characters portray or act like women. Also the women within the film are not truly funny which makes the focus on the film around the male characters such as Armand, Albert, Agador and Val.
Led by Laura Mulvey, feminist film critics have discussed the difficulty presented to female spectators by the controlling male gaze and narrative generally found in mainstream film, creating for female spectators a position that forces them into limited choices: "bisexual" identification with active male characters; identification with the passive, often victimized, female characters; or on occasion, identification with a "masculinized" active female character, who is generally punished for her unhealthy behavior. Before discussing recent improvements, it is important to note that a group of Classic Hollywood films regularly offered female spectators positive, female characters who were active in controlling narrative, gazing and desiring: the screwball comedy.
In Laura Mulvey’s “Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema”, she presents a number of very interesting facts regarding the ways that the sexual imagery of men and women respectively are used in the world of film. One such fact is that of the man as the looker and the female as the looked upon, she argues that the woman is always the object of reifying gaze, not the bearer if it. And “[t]he determining male gaze projects its fantasy onto the female figure, which is styled accordingly. In their traditional exhibitionist role women are simultaneously looked at and displayed, with their appearance coded for strong visual and erotic impact so that they can be said to be connote to-be-looked-at-ness” (487). Mulvey makes the claim that women are presented and primped into this role of “to-be-looked-at-ness”. They are put into films for this purpose and for very little other purposes. However, this argument cannot be incorporated with The Treasure of the Sierra Madre; the existence of women in the film is extremely insignificant to an extent that could be considered absent. “In a world ordered by sexual imbalance,” male serves as the dominant figures with which the viewer can identify, women only appear in the film for a very short moment of time. For instance, the appearance of women is only shown when Howard rescues the ill child in the village and his return to the village for hospitality reception...
An example of the media degrading and objectifying women is Laura Mulvey’s ‘Male Gaze’ theory. In Laura Mulvey’s essay ‘visual pleasure and narrative cinema’; she discusses the term ‘Male gaze’. In film, the male gaze occurs when the audience is put into the perspective of a heterosexual man, for example, a scene may focus with specific conventions such as slow motion or deliberate camera movements on a sexual aspect of a woman’s body, forcibly putting you as the viewer in the eyes of a male. This theory suggests that the male gaze denies women human identity, manipulating them to the standard of manifest objects to be appreciated solely for their physical appearance. The theory implies women can more often than not only watch a film from
It revolves around the issues of gender oppression, sexual assault, and importance of social status. Alifa Rifaat manages to express her opinions towards these themes by writing about a typical Egyptian marriage. She puts in focus the strong influence that a patriarchal society has. She also manages to prove how important social status is in society. The uses of literally elements such as theme and irony help express this view. It shows that in a typical Egyptian society women are commonly oppressed by all males in society
In fewer words, Jon Berger’s Ways of Seeing discusses how humans see the world and he does so through the lens of art, seeing as he is an art historian. Specifically, in chapter three, he brings to attention how the portrayal of women in art and in the world is contingent on the male eye and its ideals. Women have been oppressed in their sense of selves because men dictate what they prefer in a women. Even in this day in age, a woman’s self-worth banks on the acceptance of men. Her only way of making a way in the world is by impressing men with hyper-sexual and or submissive tactics because that tradition has been drilled into all of our brains since Adam and Eve.
Both el Saadawi and Al-Shaykh both show how perception and expression are both affected within the confines of politics, social opportunities, and male privilege depicted in their stories. Whether the reader is a follower of the feminist movement or not, it is very clear and easy to see that these women are not being treated with the respect that any human being deserves. The misogynistic stranglehold on society, especially in this part of the world, is excessive and avoidable in today’s world but it is very likely that the traditional, conservative ways of the past will continue to control and inhibit women from being able to be fully treated as equals for many years to come, perhaps even after this generation has
Throughout the first half of Tahar Jelloun’s novel The Sand Child, the female characters within the novel all abide to idea that they are lower than the male figures in their lives. They suppress their feelings, thoughts, and even attacking themselves for what is not in their control but their men. The acceptance that the women hold for these actions forms the gender normative for women. Gender is defined by their actions, if they did not play the same role, the normative would change. However, since they comply, that is when the gender normative of women is created. The Sand Child uses Ahmed in his male and female aspects to point out that woman willingly accept their social standing, and therefore create their own gender stereotypes.
Judith Lorder writes in Night to His Day: The Social Construction of Gender, "talking about gender for most people is equivalent of fish talking about water" because gender is so routine that its "assumptions and presuppositions" are taken for granted and left unquestioned and unchallenged. Institutions such as religion has remained virtually unchanged for hundreds of years and has teachings that are outright sexist, which limits lives of women because it creates the idea that there are just two extremes and no in-between : the virgin or the whore. Men do not have to face persecution or tyranny in instutions and social systems have a patriarchal foundation. Gender inequity operates within instutions because the institutions are in the control of men who are privileged from the gender inequity. Institutions limit women 's lives by excluding women who do not conform to their expectations or follow their "rules." The rules or norms within these instutitions were determined by men which explains why women 's problems or limitations are not a concern for
From birth, people are divided into two sex categories- male or female. This is inevitable, and is given to each individual person based on the reproductive organs they were born with. Gender, on the other hand, is the social and cultural difference of being either ‘male’ or ‘female’ instead of the biological difference . This leads into stereotyping, which dictates ones first impressions of others judged by their clothing, style or personality. Society has already outlined the stereotypical gender roles for both men and women, examples being that women are associated with the colour pink and are usually housewives. Men however are associated with the colour blue and are the financial providers. This is also demonstrated with classic children toys. Little girls are usually given baby dolls and cooking sets with pink being the dominant colour, whereas boys are given DIY sets and war toys. American born photographer Cindy Sherman (19/01/1954) deals with the typical gender roles within society and is one of the most influential artists in contemporary art. Her film stills consist of using herself as the subject and portray the ‘everyday, average woman’. An example of her using a woman stereotype is her ‘Untitled film still #35’. At first glance, we can judge by the subject’s clothing that she’s a housewife; she has the apron, hair tied up etc. Noticing the coat and scarf on the left we can assume there’s a male present, most probably one whom she is glaring at. Her unfriendly expression could suggest that her husband demanded she hang...
Also, the film revealed women empowerment and how superior they can be compared to men. While demonstrating sexual objectification, empowerment, there was also sexual exploitation of the women, shown through the film. Throughout this essay, gender based issues that were associated with the film character will be demonstrated while connecting to the real world and popular culture.
In order for us to deal with how a consideration of femininity can effect our understanding of a literary text, we must also be able to grasp the notion of `feminism' and `Feminist Literary Theory'. A dictionary definition of `feminism' is: `the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of the equality of the sexes.' Although this leans towards feminism in the historical sense of the word, it still provides the grounds, or foundations, from which feminist literary theories were created. Feminists argue against the stereotyping and social construction of female norms, seeing them as created by men in order to establish their own sense of power. It is thought that while males suggest that gender is sex and not actually a construct, the female role will become much more passive, stereotyped and controlled.
...rt they have between each other show their roles as empowering and independent as they can be. Their husbands are not oppressing them but at they same time they don not lose their femininity or condition of being women because of the empowerment there is.
“Gender is one of those big themes that is a little difficult to nail down, in part because it often informs a text without being explicitly addressed. Of course, there are instances in Sula in which we do get direct commentary on gender and gender roles, particularly as they relate to the limits placed on women. But more often than not, we have to dig a little deeper to understand the gender dynamics. And it 's not just men who are invested in upholding certain gender roles while dismantling others. Some women are just as invested in maintaining these societal roles, no matter how restrictive they seem.”