OUGD501 - Triangulating Texts

Laura Mulvey

Academic text
Femanist
Objectifying women
Sexuality is tied into the narrative
Women are displayed as an erotic object for the characters and audience.
Male figure can not bear the burden of sexual objectification - Femanist view

J Storey

Active male and passive female
Male must fulfil its ego by being active

R Dyer

Aware of male objectification
Homosexual - Different perspective
Critical writing on Mulvey
Males are made to look threatening and aggressive - However they aren't now

Storey and Dyer have both written essays based on Mulvey's 'Visual pleasure in narrative cinema'. Mulvey's academic writing argues that women are being objectified in film as they are often portrayed as an 'erotic object for the characters within the screen story and as an erotic object for the spectator within the auditorium'. This is evidence of the male gaze, which Mulvey coined in 1975 and believes 'projects fantasy onto the female figure'. However, Dyer's perspective allows him to critique Mulvey's writing by analysing the male role in film. Dyer provides evidence to suggest that men are purposefully made not to look like an erotic figure, instead they're 'made obviously threatening and aggressive in order to divert their erotic potential'. This evidence from Dyer and Mulvey suggests that women are objectified for the purpose of the male gaze, whereas men are objectified so that he doesn't distract the audience from the females. Both texts are outdated so these proposals aren't completely solid, however Storey's modern text summarises Mulvey's text, rather than provide any evidence to disprove her.










Further Notes:


Murley also believes that the 'male figure can not bear the burden of sexual objectification' however Dyer provides examples where the line between screen and celebrity status is blurred, 'counteract Holden's objectification and authenticate the reality of his masculinity'.

These two examples contradict each other because they are both written in different times and therefor they'll have different perspectives on the subject of gender and film.

derogative terms in this modern age.

eing objectified in film as they are often portrayed as an 'erotic object for the characters within the screen story and as erotic object for the spectator within the auditorium'.

 that 'pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female' as sexuality is very much tied into the narrative. Women in film have  suggests a feminist