The Media's Gaze

Coward (2000 P.33) explains that "The film and television industries are dominated by men, as is the advertising industry." As such it is no surprise that the Media's gaze is so obsessed with the image of women. For decades images of women have been used to sell products advertise other media. It has produced an obsession in western culture in objectifying women and watching recorded images. Coward  (2000 P.33) writes that "The camera in contemporary media has been put to use as an extension of male gaze at women on the streets." Through a constant stream of women being objectified in media allow for the continued judgement of women based solely on there looks. While we as a culture like to pride ourselves on 'sexual freedom', it doesn't matter at the media society consume continues to engender the importance of beauty to women. Both Coward (2000 P.34) and Mulvey (2008 p. 204) explain how the Media's gaze promotes voyeurism. Mulvey explains that films "portray a hermetically sealed world which unwinds magically, indifferent to the presence of the audience, producing for them a sense of separation and playing on there voyeuristic phantasy." While Coward talks about how "the profusion of images of women which characterises contemporary society could be seen as an obsessive distancing of wome, a form of voyeurism." It could be said that this voyeurism could of formed from male society losing traditional control over females, and by constantly watching recorded images it allows the illusion of control for the people watching, a recording can't talk back. The consistent over sexualisation of females in the media is often explained away as a 'natural appreciation of objective beauty, however this is not the case. Coward (2000 P.34) explains that "The saturation of society with images of women has nothing to do with men's natural appreciation of objective beauty, their aesthetic appreciation and everything to do with recording and use of women's images  in ways which make men comfortable." For over millennia men have been the 'dominant' gender, and this saturation of women's images in the media is another way for men to feel more secure and powerful about themselves. Mulvey (2008 P.202) talks about how classic Psychoanalysis for women revolve around the lack of a penis and castration. She also talks about women being the 'more narcissistic' gender in Pychoanalysis. However this has been fostered by the constant barrage of female images in the media. Coward (2000 P.36) says that "it is often assumed that women identify with these images rather than desire them." That women see these models in magazines as if they are a mirror. Until the industry sees more diversty in gender, it is unlikely that sexualised images of women will be going away any time soon, as Coward (2000 P.39) writes "through this command to meet the ideal, our society writes one message loud and clear across the female body. DO not act. DO not desire. Wait for men's attention."