Women,
as a general population, are regarded, or rather rated according to their
looks. Beauty has become, or perhaps has always been, a means of measurement.
How beautiful, or not-beautiful someone else is in comparison, seems to be a
source of reassurance. And who gives this reassurance? Men. The woman becomes
an object to be measured and rated by a man. As John Berger so wonderfully puts
it, “And so she comes to consider the surveyor and the surveyed within her as
the two constituent yet always distinct elements of her identity as a woman.
She has to survey everything she is and everything she does because how she
appears to others, and ultimately how she appears to men is crucially important…
[for] the success of her life” (Berger 46). The way a man looks at a woman, and
ultimately forms his opinion of her is a key factor in how the woman perceives
herself. Berger uses various images from history to convey this point in his
book Ways of Seeing. One of my favorites is the Reclining Bacchante by Trutat (1824- 1848). The male’s vision as
well as perception are so vividly and clearly expressed in this painting. Not
only that, but the way the woman’s seductive posture is capturing the male’s
attention is so clearly visible, as if she has positioned herself in that way
for the sole purpose of catching a man’s glance.
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| Reclining Bacchante by Trutat 1824-1848, presented in John Berger's Ways of Seeing to display the male gaze. The male is presented in the background being enraptured by the woman's seductive posture and grace, giving reassurance of her beauty. |
Furthermore,
the male gaze seems to have such an effect on women that at a point it seems as though the woman becomes the spectator herself (Berger 50). John Berger, in his book, Ways of Seeing, shows the moment of transition of when the woman becomes the spectator herself; the moment of when the woman, herself, objectifies herself and views herself "as a sight" (Berger 50-51).
In paintings such as Vanity by Memling (1435-1494), as a woman holds the mirror, the image pointing towards the spectator, the woman is acknowledging herself as a sight, and nothing more. This objectification, thus, is not merely the man's doing; the woman, herself is presenting herself as a sight. Why? Again, to be reassured that she is beautiful, as if her beauty is defined by her outer appearance alone.
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| Vanity by Memling (1425-1494) The woman in this painting is holding a mirror, which carries the reflection of her. She, however, is not looking at the mirror, she is presenting the mirror (reflected image of herself) to the spectator. She, herself, seems to view herself as a mere "sight". |
It may be safe to say that these concepts
give much power to men, bringing up the concept of patriarchy. As defined by Gloria Jean Watkins, or "bell hooks", patriarchy is, "a political social system that insists that males are inherently dominating, superior to everything and everything deemed weak, especially females, and endowed with the right to dominate and rule over the weak..." (bellhooks 18). Patriarchy is a system that allows males to dominate over women. It is a cultural norm that is imposed on men, that nearly forces them to want power; to crave a sense of dominance, masculinity, and power. Notice how the terms masculinity and dominance seem to be intertwined, well, I believe this is due to the imposed notions of patriarchy that we have made so normal in our society. Not to mention, this "patriarchal" way of thinking seems to be motivated and pushed forth through women. As bellhooks mentions, "yet many female-headed households endorse and promote patriarchal thinking with far greater passion than two parent households" (bellhooks 24). I cannot help but relate this to the concept of vanity, where the woman, herself seems to endorse objectification. In terms of households, women seem to also stick to weaker roles and remain undermined, or overpowered by men.
It is interesting to note the changes,
or rather lack of changes regarding our mentalities given history and present
times. It seems that concepts of vanity, the male gaze, or male approval are
still being implemented today. Even in times today, we can see models posing, looking out towards the audience, as if waiting for some kind of praise or approval. Women pose, seductively or graciously to appear "mesmerizing" to men, because if a man thinks you are beautiful– then and only then you are beautiful. We even see women, especially these days, posing in a mirror, looking at their reflection and posting that reflection, bring up the notions of vanity even today. For one instance, Kim Kardashian has been posting pictures on twitter of herself, with eyes piercing into the spectator's soul. She is, of course, well known for her mirror selfies none the less. It is remarkably shocking to see that such notions are yet present today, where women are so empowered (or at least much more aware and boldly expressive of their intellect and self worth). I wonder if these notions of the male gaze, male approval, vanity, and patriarchy will soon die down in the future. I believe that the only way to catch and eventually rid of such fundamental issues with our cultural norms is to first and foremost be aware/learn about them. Knowledge is key.
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| Kim Kardashian posing, looking out of the frame to the spectator. This picture was posted on her twitter on January 29, 2018. |
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| Kim Kardashian posing in front of a mirror, taking a mirror selfie. Here, she becomes the spectator, looking at herself as a sight to be seen. |
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| Another Kim Kardashian twitter post. This picture was posted on January 29, 2018 and also displays Kim looking out, to the spectator. |
–Tanvi Singh
Works Cited:
1) Berger, John. Ways of Seeing: Based on the BBC Television Series with John Berger. British Broadcasting Corp., 2012.
2) Hooks, Bell. The Will To Change: Men, Masculinity, and Love. Simon & Schuster, 2004.
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