Friday, September 01, 2006

Male Gaze

Mulvey’s article argues mainly that the cinematic apparatus (specifically of classical Hollywood cinema) inevitably puts the spectator in a masculine subject position, with the figure of the woman on screen as the object of desire. In classical Hollywood cinema, viewers are encouraged to identify with the protagonist of the film, who tends to be a man. Meanwhile, female characters are, according to Mulvey, coded with "to-be-looked-at-ness." Mulvey argues that the only way to annihilate this "patriarchal" system is to radically deconstruct the filmic strategies of classical Hollywood with alternative methods. She calls for a new feminist avant-garde filmmaking that will rupture the magic and pleasure of classical Hollywood filmmaking. “It is said that analysing pleasure or beauty annihilates it. That is the intention of this article
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laura_Mulvey

Mulvey argues that various features of cinema viewing conditions facilitate for the viewer both the voyeuristic process of objectification of female characters and also the narcissistic process of identification with an ‘ideal ego’ seen on the screen. She declares that in patriarchal society ‘pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female’
http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Documents/gaze/gaze09.html

In Pretty Persuasion, although we get a female protagonist, there is a clear sense of sexual desire by the male. In the film the english teacher is accused of sexually harrasing the girls when he didn't really, but he isnt completely innocent. He buys his wife a mini skirt, similar to the ones the girls at his school wear and asks her to strip infront of him n put it on which leads us to believe he likes watching girls in skirts. Also at one point in the film, during drama lesson, he asks one of the girls to go up on stage close her eyes and imagine she is alone in her bedroom. While she has her eyes closed, she starts to get undressed and starts to please herself (infront of him and other class students) and we see he gets pleasure from watching her.

Sherish at 4:26 AM

3comments

3 Comments

at 10:01 AM  BusHaRa said...

hey sherish :)

i like ur blog :), i think what youve done so farand from your presentation it looks like your on the right track. well done for finding relevant theorists. Maybe for media langauge you could analyse your trailer? I think for the 'social' part you could maybe look at the 'cult of the celebrity' and see why your protaganist is so egar to become famous. anyhoooo.. chat 2 u later.. :) xx

 

at 5:08 AM  Xxx_kay_xxX said...

hey
the things i like about your blog is its well presented,well researched and has some useful links
"In classical Hollywood cinema, viewers are encouraged to identify with the protagonist of the film, who tends to be a man. Meanwhile, female characters are, according to Mulvey, coded with "to-be-looked-at-ness." is the bit i found most useful for my research.
to improve maybe you should add stills from the other texts you are using.
>---kalpan-->

 

at 12:02 PM  Anonymous said...

Pretty Persuasion....

I really like the blog as there is sooo much information on all different subjects. There are sooo many colours, pictures and the trailer also helps to figure out the movie. your doing very well!!

Harpsxx

 

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