Laura Mulvey- Visual and other pleasures.

I have been advised to read up on Laura Mulvey to give my video piece real content . I have already expressed my 'point of view' on 21st century beauty and the need for females to adapt but Laura Mulveys book of essays 'Visual and Other pleasures' has helped me start to get the grasp of the theory's on 'the gaze' particularly The Male gaze. The book contains historical content and was created as apart of a feminist movement. Laura Mulvey is a British feminist film theorist who examines women's roles in both social and film. The collection of essays found in 'Visual and other pleasures' were written between 1971 and 1986 giving the book a documentary style historical content. After reading snippets of the essays on show i found myself comparing what she has written about and relating it to issues now. The male gaze is still in full blaze , women are still dressing to appeal to the opposite sex and also women's still have the need to be gazed at. There is a newish photo craze called "selfies" where people and i would say the majority women take pictures of themselves usually on a camera phone and post them to on line social networking sites. This i feel fits into the gaze because it illustrates the need to be gazed upon. Photography has become so disposable now that people are taking pictures of themselves hourly (in extreme cases). Is this completely devaluing photography as a practised art form or is this just a craze that has come with the development of technology? I for one could not think of a worse pass time than taking photos of myself and posting them publicly , i feel it could leave you venerable. On the other hand many people who might suffer from low self esteem might upload pictures online to receive comments or likes again the need to be gazed upon , admired. But with online "selfies" you are in control of the gaze, you choose with sides of you the public wants to see. The effects of the male gaze idea can be found massively in the advertising industry ,women are used in advertising as a sex symbol to both men and women. Women gaze upon other women wanting to have whatever the model is advertising , wanting to be her. And men gaze well because they are men wanting the sex symbol.

Here is a classic example of wear "the Gaze" comes into advertising . As the models gazes into the camera the second model (the male) is almost pushed way into the background. She is the main feature to be gazed upon, she is also holding the gaze with the viewer. Girls want to be her , guys want to be with her. Which is a quick overview is the point Laura Mulvey is making in her collection of essay 'Visual and other pleasures. Clever to use in advertising , still being practised in modern culture.