The essay states that “film, photography, and other representational technologies enable the gaze and social control.” This means that directly or indirectly, media outlets promote a “directional gaze” where the type of media created influences the audience’s perception, interpretation, and understanding of that media. This can be seen by the “male gaze,” which is where stereotypical, heterosexual male desires and beliefs are projected upon media which exhibit the male gaze. However, this gaze is not limited to media, as it is linked to identity as well. There is a tiktok trend that conveys the gradual progression a person (most likely female) undergoes where they stop dressing towards the male gaze. It is engrained in society to dress in a certain way in order to let others perceive the individual better. Specifically, it is engrained in the minds of mainly, young girls, to dress or act in a way that’s “ladylike” or “acceptable.” This is seen in advertisements that benefit off of the audience’s insecurity, as well as comments from people around them, for example, “no boy will ever like you if you look like that.” From a young age, girls are systemically thrown into the “male gaze” as a way of living; dressing provocatively for the attention of others (not all cases, but is the case for some,) can be seen as an example of this. Therefore, because this ideology is continuously perpetuated through media, there is a need to fit a “beauty standard,” which additionally fits and thrives off of the “male gaze.” This is harmful because it teaches people that the only way to be “acceptable” is to fit this standard and to ultimately look best in the “male gaze.” Furthermore, it’s beneficial to young children to witness the bounds of the “male gaze” breaking as people straying away from that standard is becoming popular today.
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You bring up a very true point that gaze is linked to identity. Starting from a young age, the gaze is incorporated into most of the media we consume, which has so much influence on our values and perceptions of “normality.” I liked your example of the Tik Tok trend where girls post their “before” and “after” of stopping dressing for the male gaze. The male gaze is so heavily ingrained in our culture that we may not realize that most of the trends and “socially acceptable” clothing we follow are influenced by gaze. The beauty standards for women have always been determined by the male gaze, so it’s reassuring to see through examples like the TikTok trend that girls are beginning to break away from the standards.