Laura Mulvey's male gaze theory talks about how the audience view women in the media. She states that women are used in music videos as sexual objects because of how the camera portrays them through the use of shot types and movements.
She focuses on:
- How men look at women in those images.
- How women look at themselves from those images.
- How women look at other women from those images (do they also see them as sexual objects of unrealistic ideologies).
How men look at women in these images
Men will look at the women in the video in a sexual way. It will attract men to watch the video.
How women look at themselves from those images
Women will look to themselves and feel bad about themselves if they do not fit the ideologies seen in the music video.
How women look at other women from those images (do they also see them as sexual objects of unrealistic ideologies)
Women will look at other women as unrealistic ideologies for how they should look. They will see the women featured as the 'ideal' for how women should look.
The male gaze theory mainly focuses on:
- Emphasizing the curves of the female body.
- Referring to women as objects rather than people.
- The display of women being how men think they should be perceived.
- Female viewers view the content through the eyes of a man.
- Woman are often sexulaised and as seen as objects and viewed based on sexual desire and the way they look.
Emphasizing the curves of the female body
When the camera is positioned and moved in a way to emphasize parts of the woman body that could be seen as sexual e.g. breasts, bottom. This in turn will attract heterosexual male viewers because of the sexual desires towards women.
Referring to woman as objects rather than people
Woman in the music videos are used as objects rather than as people, playing no part in the video other than to be there and appear sexual. An example of the use of this is Calvin Harris and John Newman's video for 'Blame' (see below). This is again done to attract heterosexual male views.
The display of woman being how men think they should be perceived
This follows the idea that men see woman as objects of sex rather than as people, so in the videos, woman will be portrayed in a sexual way, rather than with any personality.
Female Viewers view the content through the eyes of a man
Women see the other women as they believe they should themselves look. They see the women as the ideal, believing that should be how they look.
Woman are often sexulaised and as seen as objects and viewed based on sexual desire and the way they look.
The women featured in music videos are all what others would see as the 'ideal'. They are all skinny and attractive. This will play on other woman's belief of what they should look like.
Mulvey states that in film, women are typically portrayed as the objects rather than as the possessor this is displayed by the control of the camera. The camera moves in a way to perceive a woman in the idealistic view. Some woman may disagree with this but others will feel liberated. Men will emerge with the power in the film fantasy while the woman is passive to the gaze of the man. Mulvey also states that a woman's gaze will be the same as the mans gaze as they will look to the woman through the eyes of a man, maybe seeing the woman as the idealistic standard for what woman should look like.
During lessons we discussed how Mulvey's theory had been used in music videos and watched the top five videos in the UK Charts at the time. In all of these videos Laura Mulvey's theory is present in some way.
The videos we looked at are;
Calvin Harris ft. John Newman - Blame
The video is a prime example of Laura Mulvey's theory featuring a woman lying on a bad in lingerie throughout the entire video. She does not serve any other purpose than to appear in a sexual way. The cinematography is done in a way to place emphasis the the curves of the woman's body. Other woman appear throughout the video and they all are what people would see as the 'ideal' for a woman.
Robin Schultz & Lilly Wood - Prayer in C
This video features the use of Laura Mulvey's theory throughout the video featuring shots of females bums as they wear short shorts and women kissing. Also featured in the video is a shot of women's bums hanging out as they drive along int the car. The video features no close up shots of male bums and it is only women who show off their bum.
Sam Smith - I'm Not the Only One
This video features examples of Laura Mulvey's theory. It features sexual shots of shirtless woman from the wide and from behind. The camera shots are used to emphasize the womans curves.
Taylor Swift - Shake It Off
This video does not feature Laura Mulvey's theroy as it would typically be seen, however it is still present. An example of the use of the theory in this video is the woman twerking in shorts. At one point one of the woman's bums takes up the entire screen. Also Taylor is shown to be wearing tight clothes at points of the video.
Iggy Azalea ft. Rita Ora - Black Widow
This video features examples of Laura Mulvey's male gaze theory. The costumes that Iggy and Rita are wearing are tight and the both have cleavage showing. It also features shots that emphasize the curves of their bums.
Also while watching music channels I found some other videos that feature Mulvey's theory to certain degrees.
They are as follows;
Nicki Minaj - Anaconda
The video features many examples of Laura Mulvey's male gaze theory. Immediately as the song starts, the first thing seen is a woman's bum that has very little covering it. This is a continuing theme throughout the video with many of the women featured wearing clothing that covers little of their body. Another example is when Nicki is spraying whipped cream over herself in a sexual way.
Ariana Grande - Break Free
The video features Ariana stripping down from a spacesuit to a costume that only covers small portions of her body. Also during this the camera has placed emphasis on her body shape. Throughout the video, Airana is looking sexually towards the camera. All of this is an example of Laura Mulvey's theory.
Jennifer Lopez feat. Iggy Azalea - Booty
This video features prominent use of Mulvey's theory with the entire song being focused on Lopez's and Azalea's bums. The camera angles are used to emphasize the curves and size of both of the artists bums. Also the two rubs their bums together in a sexual way, something that may appeal to a heterosexual male audience. They also wear skimpy outfits that show off their curves.
However, there are some downfalls of Laura Mulvey's theory. Women are choosing to represent themselves these ways in the videos and may find it flattering to be represented in this way. They feel desirable and powerful because they are being seen as an object of affection. Another downfall of this theory is now a days men are also represented in this way. Men are now more sexualised for the pleasure of women, maybe not to the extent that women are but this still exists. An example of this is;
Marina and the Diamonds - How to Be a Heartbreaker
In this video men are being used as sexual objects in the same way that women are in the videos I spoke about before, maybe more so than the women are. The men are wearing nothing but speedos and all have good bodies. This video does not disprove Laura Mulvey's theory but it does create some conflict towards it.
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