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| Nicolette Capua, Confidence & Strength, 2022 |
In this picture I am looking at the "male" figure with confidence and poise. I am challenging the male gaze by looking back with strength and power. Mickalene Thomas models' always have a brave face on and are presented in a charming but dominant way.
Ways Of Seeing
John Berger
Two Quotes:
1- “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 of crucial importance for what is normally thought of as the success of her life” (Berger 46).
This quote is explaining how a woman has to present herself in a attractive way that will draw men's attention everyday. Berger suggests that a woman’s success is determined by her own beauty. His interpretation of a woman’s success shows that he believes a woman’s value is only to serve as a form of pleasure to man. Berger seems to think that without their beauty a woman would be essentially useless. I feel this is in some ways true because women today are still struggling to find opportunity and equality due to the abundance of patriarchal ideologies in society.
2- “To be naked is to be oneself. To be nude is to be seen naked by others and yet not recognized oneself. A naked body has to be seen as an object in order to become a nude. (The sight of it as an object stimulates the use of it as an object.) Nakedness reveals itself. Nudity is placed on display” (Berger 54).
This quote exemplifies the beauty and innocence of the human body. Berger interprets nakedness as something natural whereas he believes nudity is the exploitation of this state. He explains how being naked is being free of disguise while he believes nudity is like being fully dressed. Nakedness is an act of selflessness and freedom. The sight of being naked shouldn't be taken negatively or inappropriately. Women's bodies have been seen in many paintings and photos, causing these women to be seen as objects and not who they actually are as humans. The art of nakedness through photos can only be displayed through true passion and vulnerability otherwise it is seen as being a pleasure to men.
1- “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 of crucial importance for what is normally thought of as the success of her life” (Berger 46).
This quote is explaining how a woman has to present herself in a attractive way that will draw men's attention everyday. Berger suggests that a woman’s success is determined by her own beauty. His interpretation of a woman’s success shows that he believes a woman’s value is only to serve as a form of pleasure to man. Berger seems to think that without their beauty a woman would be essentially useless. I feel this is in some ways true because women today are still struggling to find opportunity and equality due to the abundance of patriarchal ideologies in society.
2- “To be naked is to be oneself. To be nude is to be seen naked by others and yet not recognized oneself. A naked body has to be seen as an object in order to become a nude. (The sight of it as an object stimulates the use of it as an object.) Nakedness reveals itself. Nudity is placed on display” (Berger 54).
This quote exemplifies the beauty and innocence of the human body. Berger interprets nakedness as something natural whereas he believes nudity is the exploitation of this state. He explains how being naked is being free of disguise while he believes nudity is like being fully dressed. Nakedness is an act of selflessness and freedom. The sight of being naked shouldn't be taken negatively or inappropriately. Women's bodies have been seen in many paintings and photos, causing these women to be seen as objects and not who they actually are as humans. The art of nakedness through photos can only be displayed through true passion and vulnerability otherwise it is seen as being a pleasure to men.
Understanding Patriarchy
Bell HooksTwo Quotes:
1- “As their daughter I was taught that it was my role to serve, to be weak, to be free from the burden of thinking, to caretake, and nurture others. My brother was taught that it was his role to be served; to provide; to be strong: to think, strategize, and plan; and to refuse to caretake or nurture others” (Hooks 18).
Hooks illustrates how these children were brought into the world with this idea of gender roles and who played the more dominant part. Their parents raised them to follow the ‘gender roles’ and if they didn’t, they would get punished for it. If a girl were to play with a football or a boy play with a Barbie Doll, this would be seen as abnormal and there would be consequences for their actions. Hooks explains that these gender roles and rules affect our everyday life and should not exist.
2- “Despite the contemporary visionary feminist thinking that makes clear that a patriarchal thinker need not to be a male, most folks continue to see men as the problem of patriarchy. This is simply not the case. Women can be wedded to patriarchal thinking and action as men” (Hooks 23).
Both women and men can be patriarchal thinkers. Most people associate men as patriarchal thinkers because we have seen more instances of men telling women what they think they should be doing or telling women what to do. Women can also be patriarchal thinkers by doing the same thing back to men and thinking they should be doing a male job or task. This idea that men hold a higher power than women also makes us think that there the patriarchal thinkers but women can just as easily turn around and tell a man what “he should be doing” or that “it's his job to do a certain activity.”
1- “As their daughter I was taught that it was my role to serve, to be weak, to be free from the burden of thinking, to caretake, and nurture others. My brother was taught that it was his role to be served; to provide; to be strong: to think, strategize, and plan; and to refuse to caretake or nurture others” (Hooks 18).
Hooks illustrates how these children were brought into the world with this idea of gender roles and who played the more dominant part. Their parents raised them to follow the ‘gender roles’ and if they didn’t, they would get punished for it. If a girl were to play with a football or a boy play with a Barbie Doll, this would be seen as abnormal and there would be consequences for their actions. Hooks explains that these gender roles and rules affect our everyday life and should not exist.
2- “Despite the contemporary visionary feminist thinking that makes clear that a patriarchal thinker need not to be a male, most folks continue to see men as the problem of patriarchy. This is simply not the case. Women can be wedded to patriarchal thinking and action as men” (Hooks 23).
Both women and men can be patriarchal thinkers. Most people associate men as patriarchal thinkers because we have seen more instances of men telling women what they think they should be doing or telling women what to do. Women can also be patriarchal thinkers by doing the same thing back to men and thinking they should be doing a male job or task. This idea that men hold a higher power than women also makes us think that there the patriarchal thinkers but women can just as easily turn around and tell a man what “he should be doing” or that “it's his job to do a certain activity.”
The Oppositional Gaze
Bell Hooks
Two Quotes:
1- “The “gaze” has always been political in my life. Imagine the terror felt by the child who has come to understand through repeated punishments thats one’s gaze can be dangerous. The child who has learned so well to look the other way when necessary. Yet when punished, the child is told by parents “Look at me when I talk to you.” Only the child is afraid to look. Afraid to look, but fascinated by the gaze. There is power in looking” (Hooks 115).
Gaze refers to the act of seeing and being seen. With certain gazes come different reactions and situations. This child, who was African American, was expressing how she was taught to be terrified by one's gaze because you never know what can come out of looking back. One's gaze can have several different meanings. Looking into someone's eyes can tell you a lot about them and what they are feeling. The gaze from a male or a female also comes off differently and can mean different things.
2- “As one black woman put ‘I could always get pleasure from movies as long as I did not look too deep.” For black female spectators who have ‘looked too deep” the encounter with the screen hurt. That some chose to stop looking was a gesture of resistance, turning away was one way to protest, to reject negation” (Hooks 121).
Several movies and films have not included black women or belittled them when they were included. The very few times black women appeared in films, they were either the object of the male gaze or played servants of white women. Hooks explained how even when black women were presented on film, their bodies and being were there to serve. These black female spectators that have to look into the films always get hurt by reading through the lines of the movie and seeing racist and inappropriate actions taking place. These women would look away to show how they will not accept it and reject being taken advantage of.
1- “The “gaze” has always been political in my life. Imagine the terror felt by the child who has come to understand through repeated punishments thats one’s gaze can be dangerous. The child who has learned so well to look the other way when necessary. Yet when punished, the child is told by parents “Look at me when I talk to you.” Only the child is afraid to look. Afraid to look, but fascinated by the gaze. There is power in looking” (Hooks 115).
Gaze refers to the act of seeing and being seen. With certain gazes come different reactions and situations. This child, who was African American, was expressing how she was taught to be terrified by one's gaze because you never know what can come out of looking back. One's gaze can have several different meanings. Looking into someone's eyes can tell you a lot about them and what they are feeling. The gaze from a male or a female also comes off differently and can mean different things.
2- “As one black woman put ‘I could always get pleasure from movies as long as I did not look too deep.” For black female spectators who have ‘looked too deep” the encounter with the screen hurt. That some chose to stop looking was a gesture of resistance, turning away was one way to protest, to reject negation” (Hooks 121).
Several movies and films have not included black women or belittled them when they were included. The very few times black women appeared in films, they were either the object of the male gaze or played servants of white women. Hooks explained how even when black women were presented on film, their bodies and being were there to serve. These black female spectators that have to look into the films always get hurt by reading through the lines of the movie and seeing racist and inappropriate actions taking place. These women would look away to show how they will not accept it and reject being taken advantage of.
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