Feminist theory: Blog Tasks :)

Media Magazine reading - two articles on feminism and theory

Read Playing With The Past: Post-feminism and the Media (MM40, page 64 - our Media Magazine archive is here).

1) What examples are provided from the two texts of the 'male gaze' (Mulvey)?

• Beyonce: though she declares herself as an independent woman, she objectifies herself in front of the camera in order to appeal to the 'male gaze'
• Pan Am: a period drama about pilots that was criticised for the stewardesses using their looks to their advantage which allows the audience to focus on their bodies and suggest that the way they are perceived is the most important thing for women 

2) Do texts such as these show there is no longer a need for feminism or are they simply sexism in a different form?

Personally, I believe that shows such as these portray sexism in different ways that may be more subtle than the common stereotypes and perhaps these nonchalant portrayals of sexism are due to subconscious ideologies that have been embedded into audiences from the media. These shows have failed to represent the idea of post-feminism as they have still portrayed ideas of sexism which suggests that there is still internalised stereotypes and ideologies within the media and media creators 

3) Choose three words/phrases from the glossary of the article and write their definitions on your blog.

• Patriarchy: an ideology that places men in a dominant position over women 
• Feminism: a movement aimed at defining, establishing, and defending women's rights and equality to men 
• Nostalgia: a sentimental longing for the past, often only remembering the positives of a time 

Now read The Theory Drop: Gender Performativity (MM69, page 25) and answer the following questions.

1) How does the writer suggest gender performativity is established from a young age?

Clothing and difference in words put on clothing establishes gender performativity from a young age because shops such as Mothercare and Primark tend to sell clothing for girls that teach them to be passive, caring and responsible so that they can please others whereas boys are encouraged to do what they want because it is seen as cute and attractive

2) What does the phrase 'non-binary' refer to and how does it link to Butler's theory?

'Non-binary' refers to someone who doesn't define themselves exclusively as either male nor female so they tend to use and prefer gender neutral pronouns or neopronouns when being referred to. This links to Butler's theory that gender is a performance because it supports the idea that gender is culturally and socially constructed- people who identify as non-binary don't adhere to social norms that have been enforced by society 

3) How and why does the media help reinforce gender stereotypes? The writer provides several examples in the final section of the article.

The media presents certain roles in one way in order to make the opposing side look better- for example, presenting females as inferior to make males look superior compared to them. However, it can also be said that the media reinforced stereotypes so that it is easier for audiences to understand certain characters, subjects and storylines as they present ideologies that we have already embedded in our minds 

Music video analysis

Beyonce music video

1) How might this video contribute to Butler’s idea that gender roles are a ‘performance’?

Butler suggested that gender roles are a performance because they are patterns of repeated acts of acting or dressing a certain way. This links to this music video because throughout the video, Beyonce is wearing minimal clothing which emphasises Mulvey's theory of 'the male gaze' and women should dress in a specific way. She is also acting helpless when she is attempting to fix the car at the start of the music video which emphasises the idea that women can't do tasks that require physical labour (like fixing cars) and instead they should cook and clean (which she is seen doing throughout the whole music video)

2) What might van Zoonen suggest regarding the representation of women in this video?

Van Zoonen suggests that women are seen as a 'spectacle' for men- in this music video, Beyonce is heavily made up whilst wearing limited clothing. There seems to be closeups on parts of the body that are commonly sexualised (in this music video there were closeups on her face, breasts, and butt) or there tended to be long shots of her body to "show off" her body and allow her to present herself as a 'spectacle' for the man she is singing to in the song. She also reinforces the idea of western beauty ideals and she has done this by presenting herself as young, slim, tall, having blonde hair- although she isn't white, she seems to be altering her appearance in order to conform to the societal standards of beauty 

3) What are YOUR views on this debate – does Beyonce empower women or reinforce the traditional ‘male gaze’ and oppression of women? 

Typically, Beyonce's brand is essentially her empowering women and encouraging women's independence but there are a few songs that are exceptions to this general theme in her music. I believe it is important to have music like this to show that women are not always strong and have it all together- despite the obvious objectification of herself in this video, it is clear that she had a moment of weakness and is singing for a man that loved her to come back to her instead of the sexist interpretation that she needs a man in her life. Perhaps this video isn't sexist because there are also songs written and sung by men begging women to come back and love them too 

Will Jay's music video

1) How does the video suggest representations of masculinity have changed in recent years?

Masculinity has clearly changed over the years because, as presented in this music video, men are no longer expected to be strong or be good at sports or have no emotion. These stereotypes are recognised by Will Jay through his lyrics and are rejected as the things that make someone a 'real man'

2) What does David Gauntlett suggest about representations of men in the media over the last 20 years?

He suggests that the representations of men in the media over the last 20 years (especially through the explosion in media consumption in the 1980s-1990s) gave audiences the chance to actively construct their own identities and potentially begin to reject from common stereotypes. But he doesn't believe that masculinity is in crisis which leads us to believe that masculinity in the media may be toxic 

3) What is YOUR view on the representation of men and masculinity? Are young men still under pressure from the media to act or behave in a certain way?

I believe that toxic masculinity is decreasing due to the amount of diverse representation of men in the media- for example: single dads, gay men, feminine men, etc. This means that the media and society is beginning to actively challenge stereotypes and reject them. However, there are still a lot of men with fixed mindsets so they may pass on their beliefs to their children which might make it hard to reverse the ideas put into their heads from a young age. There also may be pressure from the media for young men to act in certain ways because there isn't enough representation for them yet so they still feel the need to be confined to what society deems as 'normal' and gives them the lack of freedom to express themselves however they wish to