In these slides I will be explaining how Laura Mulvey's 'Male gaze' theory is applicable to music videos. Additionally, I will look at the effects of the theory on music videos and the impact on the audience. Getting a good understanding of the theory will help me when I create my music video.

LAURA MULVEY – THE MALE GAZE THEORY

LAURA MULVEY Laura Mulvey developed the 'male gaze' theory in her essay 'Visual pleasure and narrative cinema'. The 'Gaze' was a previously recognised concept but Mulvey created the term 'male gaze' to further study the gaze in media texts and contexts.

The Male GazeSince men were mostly in charge of the camera, the audience experiences the film from a heterosexual male perspective. The male gaze theory can be seen in music videos through the camera angles and movement.The camera has a tendency to linger on the curves of the female body and/or the response of the male within that shot. This places the female as an object for the audience to view. The being there of the female in some music videos can purely be for the purpose of display rather than a narrative. The audience are encouraged to gaze at females in medias that sexualises a woman's body.