The Male Gaze

The male gaze is the look that asserts his dominance and control over the woman. It is described as a voyeuristic pleasure adapted by white men to ensure a patriarchal society. His gaze objectifies and sexualizes the woman to his viewing pleasure. The male gaze has created a culture of sexualizing women and represents a production of reality. Women are encouraged to look sexy and desirable for men. The gaze has enforced a self reflection and consciousness of how one should look. The white male gaze is deemed responsible for undermining woman’s work. This has been embedded in popular culture through films, billboards, advertisements, etc. The woman has been displayed as pinups, strippers, playboy models. Women are utilized to secure market profits and draw a male audience. This strategy of marketing women as sexual objects has proven to be very lucrative.

According to Bell Hooks, the oppositional gaze is a powerful look that challenges authority and serves as a powerful tool for colonized black people globally. Black women refer to the gaze as a form of resistance to the male gaze and its perception of the ideal image of woman. The white male gaze has enforced the ideology of racial superiority and white supremacy. The ideal women presented in cinema were white woman who exhibit beauty and sexiness. Bell Hooks claims that black women are not granted the permission to look. The oppositional gaze is a form of confrontation to the male gaze and its dominance in society. In reference to Bell Hooks, “Not only will I stare, I want to look to change reality.” The oppositional gaze is a look that gives women the power and encouragement to change the construction of reality.


As a young woman who loves to watch television and films, I understand the production of the male gaze. Our culture is centered on presenting women as sexual objects whether it’s through music videos, magazines, or movies; women are the central source for drawing the audience. I loved watching Britney Spears videos because I wanted to look just like her and dance sexy like her. I think I was around thirteen at the time and I recall that every little girl wanted to look like Britney Spears. Her performances and music videos aimed to draw a male audience by her sexy dance moves and lack of clothing. I understand that times have changed but race continues to be an issue. Women are consistently being portrayed as objects of viewing pleasure and these images perpetuate women’s growing consciousness on
appearance.