Suzanna's post about the male gaze made me think of one thing relating the the male gaze, Miley Cyrus and the apparent male gaze and the sexualization of girls and other things in the music video. In the video, Miley is continually seen as half-naked, and trying to be 'sexy'--this was also the case at the VMA's as well, as she was seen a nude outfit that showed a lot of skin, and the different camera angles that gave the public a glimpse of her body and how she presented herself as a 'sexual object.' In both cases, the camera angles and the words to the song related to the taming of women, and the lack of control that women have as beings, as well as the 'craziness' that women display.
Music video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrUvu1mlWco
VMAs:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZrHTUD7AVM
Kelly,
ReplyDeleteI am glad you brought up the topic of Miley Cyrus. I was absolutely appalled when I was watching the VMA's and saw her performance. She was completely inappropriate. I read some interviews after this went viral and the whole world was talking about how Miley did for attention. Clearly she wanted the public to see how much of a women she is and how "mature" she is. I think her idea of being mature and grown-up is skewed and she doesn't really know the right way to show the world how she is someone other than Hannah Montana.
Let's relate this idea back to music. I think that the over-objectified view that has taken such root in our society is not only the fault of men, but at the same time it's completely the fault of men, while congruently, women have some fault in it too (if y'all figured out that that sentence was English then Kudos). Let's just take a moment: of course male performers are infamous in objectifying women throughout their music, and it places unrealistic expectations on women when it comes to impressing men. In accordance, women objectify themselves as well (cough cough, Miley Cyrus like you said). This can also be seen in pop stars like Rihanna, Katy Perry, Britney Spears. What I"m wondering is if this is some result of a previously male dominated industry, or if it is actually the mentality of female performers to act in such a way.
ReplyDeleteGoing along with Miley being an object of sexual desire, I think people need to look a little closer into the industry that she belongs to and what they try to push: sex sells. Miley is doing whatever she can to ensure that she stays relevant. The object (her body) is definately one of the more attractive things that is happening within the tabloids currently, and it's going to continue to draw a large amount of attention now that she is 'available' once again. Although 99% of the common men throughout the country will never even have a shot at her, that does not mean that she won't become/remain an object to be desired and sought after until she again takes herself off of the market. Her PR people are doing a simply incredible job of ensuring that she is snaring everyone with a male gaze.
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