Hello! In this blog I'll outline the 'male gaze theory' coined by Laura Mulvey in 1975, and explain why I believe it is outdated.
In her article 'Visual Pleasures and Narrative Cinema', Mulvey slated the Hollywood film industry for objectifying the females in their films. Her basic ideas were that all films are shot with men at the centre: homosexual males are usually the protagonist, the camera acts as a man's eyes with the angles and shots, and the target audience often places men before women. Male gaze theory is therefore the way in which a camera places the audience in the position of a man, and is in turn the way films are mediated from a male point of view. Mulvey is, in my opinion, a quite radical feminist in her views, though some of what she stated in her article can be applied to the modern film industry.
To use the James Bond film franchise as an example: excluding the main female characters, it has almost become a convention for a new attractive woman to become a temporary love interest for Bond in each new film. They serve no other purpose to the plot other than to satisfy both Bond and the male audience, and to show Bond's heroism in being saved by him towards the end.
However, the majority of films are no longer like this. Many now have strong female protagonists, and varied target audiences other than simply men to be pleased. I do still think women suffer from sexual objectification in the media, particularly in film, though it is not as dramatic as Mulvey cut it out to be in her 1975 article.
You have created an engaging blog, Britney, and you clearly know your way around the concept of blogging. Well done. I like the fact you have kept it personal as well, offering your thoughts on, for example, Male Gaze theory. As you continue, think about other ways of presenting your work rather than text / photos (which is perfectly fine, by the way, but other web based apps could be utilised too).
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