Monday, 6 October 2014

Laura Mulvey's theory

The 'male gaze', developed by Laura Mulvey, describes how the audience is put into the perspective of a heterosexual male. Mulvey states that women are objectified in a sexual and seductive way because heterosexual men are in control of the camera; the woman is passive to the active gaze from the man, which indicates to the audience that the man is the dominant character on screen. This theory was originally applied to films, but can also be applied to music videos, which is the form I am applying it too. The main genre that the male gaze is enforced is in Rap/R&B music, the majority of the time the women in the videos have a lack of clothing and may pose seductively and dance erotically. 

Dizzee Rascal - Holiday


  • All the females featured in the music video are wearing a swimsuit or a bikini, whilst Dizzee Rascal and another performer are dressed in suits.
  • There are also elements of tracking shots which tracks a woman from behind from the torso down, this objectifies her in a sexual way as she has no identity and the camera mainly focuses on her bum and leg.
  • The women in the music video look happy and as if they're enjoying the way they are presented in the music video. This shows that the women are passive to the active gaze of the man, which signifies that the man is more dominant.

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