1. Are mainstream Media Representations of women overwhelmingly negative?
Women have often suffered from a narrow set of representations in the media;
through films, TV, music and so on. They are labelled and put into their own
categories, therefore separating them from men in society, which are seen far more
ruling and powerful, and that women are there for their satisfaction. This is usually
done by them being sexualised and objectified to entertain and titillate the male
audience, which concludes in those women feeling diminished and used. For women
all around the world that are familiar with the unfavourable image the Media is
trying to portray, they believe that women’s voices aren’t being heard, because they
are not given the chance to speak, especially with the principals of male expectations
shading over them.
The Male Gaze theory by the feminist, Laura Mulvey, describes how the audience or
viewer is put into the perspective of a heterosexual male. The concept of ‘the gaze’ is
one that deals with how an audience views the people/person presented. Mulvey
states that in film, women are typically the objects, rather than the possessors of
gaze because the control of the camera (and thus the gaze) comes from factors such
as the assumption of heterosexual men as the default target audience for most film
genres. The male gaze occurs when the camera puts the audience into the
perspective of the man. It may, for instance linger over the curves of a woman’s
body, refer to women as objects rather than people, display women of how men
think they should be perceived and for the female viewers to also view the content
through the eyes of a man. The woman is usually displayed on two different levels;
as an erotic object for both the characters within the film, or the spectator who is
watching the film. The man emerges as the dominant power within the created film
fantasy. The woman is passive to the active gaze from the man and this adds an
element of patriarchal order and it is often seen in ‘illusionist narrative film’. Mulvey
also argues that in mainstream cinema, the male gaze typically takes priority over
the female gaze, reflecting an underlying power asymmetrically. Mulvey also states
that the female gaze is the same as the male gaze because women look at
themselves through the eyes of men. A feminist may see the female gaze as
inequality of power for the male gaze, as a woman who welcomes an objectifying
and sexualising gaze may only simply benefit men, whereas a male gazing over a
female would make the female distressed.
An example of the Male Gaze theory would be through the film ‘Transformers’,
starring Megan Fox; which is seen as one of the most beautiful/sexy women of our
generation. The film is a science fiction action film, which in itself doesn’t seem like it
would require a strong female lead, but instead the ‘sexiness’ is brought into the
equation even though the media product is completely different. Megan Fox is an
icon for beauty in the Media, and so the attention is blatantly going to be on her
physical qualities as opposed to who she is as a person, which men don’t want to be
distracted by. The camera angles in the film are generally drawn to her body which
entices the viewer into her inviting and seductive attractive trait. There are some
flaws and disagreements with the theory however. Some of the women enjoy the
attention and like men to look at them in a sexual manner. This may cause other

2. women to be even more infuriated as they will want women in the Media to respect
themselves and to go against the bad image that the Media already has of women.
Goffman’s Theory also suggests the portrayal of men and women being contrasting.
The conventions of superiority, domination and body language of men are shown in
mighty and vigorous positions and appear to be reflective of thought and
intelligence. Women are physically portrayed in sexual or reclining poses with blank
or inviting expressions. This can also be related to the Bechdel test for the presence
of women in films. To pass the test, the following criteria must be met; the film
includes at least two women, who have at least one conversation, and is about
something other than a man. In the film ‘Run Lola Run’, Lola (the protagonist) must
figure out how to come up with 100,000 Deutsche Marks in twenty minutes or her
boyfriend will be killed. Lola doesn’t have another conversation with another female
at any point in the film, but talks to her boyfriend, father and other males. This film
fails the test significantly as even though Lola is presented as a well-rounded woman,
she is still put in the position of having to do something for the sake of a man,
putting her in a rigid situation; as the Media has successfully done to the majority of
women.
As gender has been socially constructed, it will be difficult for the Media to turn
away from the detrimental views and stereotypes that have already been marked on
women and that have already gratified men. The Media may be able to turn away
from the damage already in general by creating countertypes as opposed to the
traditional labels of women being sex objects and men being dominant. However,
this can be highly controversial as it may ruin the norms that society has already
accepted, but it can also be a positive outcome for the public to be able to feel like
every person will be accepted as individuals rather than the needs of the Media. The
more recent femininity has been associated with a stronger, more independent and
confident woman which moves away from the hegemony and creates a civilized
community for women to feel much more untroubled and sheltered. These
characteristics can serve as role models for women who are looking for female
characters to exemplify. As long as there are enough positive and genuine examples,
women can be free to be whoever they want without having to be pressured by
representations of perfection that can affect our culture inevitably, especially for the
future generation.