Applying Laura Mulvey's Theory
Laura Mulvey's Theory - The Male Gaze, suggests that as an audience we subconsciously consume music video's (and other media texts/products) from the perspective of a heterosexual male because the media present women as sexual objects that exist only in media texts for the gratification of the men not only within the media product as well, but also in the audience. They do this by dressing women in provocative and revealing clothing , they also show women as people that are constantly pining to be looked and win the attention of the men making them appear desperate and dependent on men. They also dance sexually and in ways that are suggestive of sex which results in the audience having a lack of respect for those women however because the media has such an impact and an effect on society now, people assume that this applies to all women however this is clearly not the case.
The women that appear in these video's have given full consent and are fully aware of what is expected of them thus giving consent to be presented in this way. The reasons for women choosing to be represented like this is because it makes them feel empowered and dominant and they don't necessarily to be looked at by men, some do it to empower other women and promote positive body image and confidence among women. One artist who is most well-known for doing this is Beyonce. She is recognised worldwide for her music but also her work in empowering women to be confident, independent and strong without having to rely on men, she also encourages women to be more supportive and have more respect for one another.
In Beyonce's music video for her song 'Pretty Hurts' she shows the ugly side of beauty and gives the audience a 'behind the scenes' view of what it takes to fit the mould and be societies version of beautiful. The meaning behind the song is that beauty should be judged on someones personality rather than on somebody looks like. The song and the video also reflects the negative impact this industry has on young girls growing up and on women as well and the pressure society and the media put upon women to behave and look a certain way whilst making special references to the expectations television has for people and also the expectations of Vogue Magazine.
Beyonce - 'Pretty Hurts'
As mentioned previously, this video is all about the industry surrounding beauty pageants and gives the audience a 'behind the scenes' insight into what it is like to fit into society's idea of beautiful because it is not as glamorous as it seems to the people who are less involved. The girls who take part in these competitions are represented as classy, lady-like women who are well-behaved and respectful of each other however this video shows the impact that competition has how desperate people are to be at the top in this industry and the sacrifices they make (mainly with their body) in order to be the best.
Laura Mulvey's theory suggests that women are only seen as sexual objects, this music video conforms to Mulvey's theory in that the women are dressed in skimpy clothing that accentuates certain body parts which are suggestive of sex.
Laura Mulvey's theory suggests that women are only seen as sexual objects, this music video conforms to Mulvey's theory in that the women are dressed in skimpy clothing that accentuates certain body parts which are suggestive of sex.
The thumbnail of the video (above) draws attention to Beyoncé's cleavage because the bralette she is wearing is covered in diamanté's and bright colours therefore the audiences eye is immediately drawn to this area of her body and,subconsciously, the audience view this from the perspective of a heterosexual male as Laura Mulvey's theory suggests.
Another example of this is the use of the close up shot of Beyoncé's bum.
Again, the diamanté decoration in the leotard that Beyoncé is wearing immediately draws the attention of the audience straight to this area, however the fact that this is a close up shot and fills up most of the frame also contributes to the fact that this is only thing in the frame that the audience will pay attention to. The fact that the audience view this in the sand way a heterosexual man would, immediately gives this frame sexual connotations and represents Beyoncé as a sexual obje ct.
Again, the diamanté decoration in the leotard that Beyoncé is wearing immediately draws the attention of the audience straight to this area, however the fact that this is a close up shot and fills up most of the frame also contributes to the fact that this is only thing in the frame that the audience will pay attention to. The fact that the audience view this in the sand way a heterosexual man would, immediately gives this frame sexual connotations and represents Beyoncé as a sexual obje ct.
The video itself, however, does not include many male 'characters' which means that the video does not present women as sexual objects for the gratification of men and therefore rejects The are of Mulvey's theory that women only exist in media products as a result/for the gratification men. It encourages one of the crticisms of Mulvey's theory - that women represent themselves in a sexual way as they find it empowering and they want to use their body positivity and confidence to empower and encourage other women to do the same thing. Another point to make is that one of the few men that do appear in this video is a very influential figure of the fashion industry and men surrounding this industry are often surrounded by the stereotype and stigma that they are gay, which is of course a inaccurate assumption that is placed upon all make figures of the fashion industry. If the men in this video did happen to be gay though, they would not be looking at the half dressed women that are in the video, in a sexual way which again supports the criticism that Mulvey's theory doesn't take into account the opinion of a homosexual audience as their opinion will most definitely differ to that of heterosexual man and Mulvey's theory assumes that all audiences will take on this point of view when faced with women in the media.
Another part of this music video that represents women as sexual objects is that Beyoncé appears not once, but twice wearing rabbit ears as an accessory to go with her outfit
however these can be closely linked to Playboy which is a media text whose purpose is to represent women as sexual objects and they appeal to an audience who encourage this and consume their products because they have a reputation for showing graphic images of women. The iconography and connotations/denotations surrounding this idea is that these women have no respect for themselves as well as the men who are the dominant audience for this product and also have very little or no respect for the women who are involved in the media product they are consuming. They also use their bodies to make money which is seen as shallow and the women are often referred to as 'slutty' by the media and other women who have little or no understanding for why other women want to do such a thing and present themselves in this kind of way.
This can be applied to the music video by saying that as a result of the industry that Beyoncé shows herself being involved in in her music video, she has lost respect for herself and only now competes for the pride of winning and the rewards that come from being successful in this industry rather than because it is something that she enjoys doing. She has lost her own identity and now only represents herself in a way that will be accepted by society as she wants to fit in even though the feelings and emotions that Beyoncé portrays in her music video is that doing this makes her miserable and that being constantly compared to the other girls/women doing the same thing as her and having to be constantly better than them has a huge impact on her confidence - something that she has to pretend she has in order to be successful in what she is doing.
Applying Richard Dyer's Theory
Another part of this music video that represents women as sexual objects is that Beyoncé appears not once, but twice wearing rabbit ears as an accessory to go with her outfit
however these can be closely linked to Playboy which is a media text whose purpose is to represent women as sexual objects and they appeal to an audience who encourage this and consume their products because they have a reputation for showing graphic images of women. The iconography and connotations/denotations surrounding this idea is that these women have no respect for themselves as well as the men who are the dominant audience for this product and also have very little or no respect for the women who are involved in the media product they are consuming. They also use their bodies to make money which is seen as shallow and the women are often referred to as 'slutty' by the media and other women who have little or no understanding for why other women want to do such a thing and present themselves in this kind of way.
This can be applied to the music video by saying that as a result of the industry that Beyoncé shows herself being involved in in her music video, she has lost respect for herself and only now competes for the pride of winning and the rewards that come from being successful in this industry rather than because it is something that she enjoys doing. She has lost her own identity and now only represents herself in a way that will be accepted by society as she wants to fit in even though the feelings and emotions that Beyoncé portrays in her music video is that doing this makes her miserable and that being constantly compared to the other girls/women doing the same thing as her and having to be constantly better than them has a huge impact on her confidence - something that she has to pretend she has in order to be successful in what she is doing.
Applying Richard Dyer's Theory
Richard Dyer's Star Theory has 4 main components:
1. Stars are constructed and artificial even though they are represented as being 'real people'. They are manufactured and have a USP which enables them to be copied by their fans who go to gigs and allows their merchandise to be sold successfully. E.g. the photo-copied nature of teen boy bands, institutions know what makes them successful and so reproduce the same things time and time again.
2. By conforming to certain attitudes and ideologies for a particular social group stars make themselves desirable to audiences allowing them to then be successful (hegemony).
3. Stars try to represent shared cultural values and attitudes as it promotes an ideology surrounding them as a brand. This is usually based on what they think an audience wants to consume and what the institution thinks is desirable to the target audience.
4. Dyer suggests that stars have 2 paradox's - ordinary and extraordinary. The star needs to be like their audience so the audience are able to relate to them however they also need to be extraordinary to leave something for the audience to desire.
1. Stars are constructed and artificial even though they are represented as being 'real people'. They are manufactured and have a USP which enables them to be copied by their fans who go to gigs and allows their merchandise to be sold successfully. E.g. the photo-copied nature of teen boy bands, institutions know what makes them successful and so reproduce the same things time and time again.
2. By conforming to certain attitudes and ideologies for a particular social group stars make themselves desirable to audiences allowing them to then be successful (hegemony).
3. Stars try to represent shared cultural values and attitudes as it promotes an ideology surrounding them as a brand. This is usually based on what they think an audience wants to consume and what the institution thinks is desirable to the target audience.
4. Dyer suggests that stars have 2 paradox's - ordinary and extraordinary. The star needs to be like their audience so the audience are able to relate to them however they also need to be extraordinary to leave something for the audience to desire.
Beyoncé is perhaps one of the biggest stars there is, mainly because she is extremely desirable to her female audience however women still feel that they can relate to her because of the themes of her songs - being insecure, teaching women they do not exist only for men (rejecting Mulvey's theory).
Beyoncé is someone that most women wish they could be and because of the fact she is so desirable she becomes a star which leads her to bring very successful within the music industry as her media products are always going to be widely consumed by her target audience of females.
The stage, the spotlights, the dressing room etc. are all signifiers for the audience to show them that Beyoncé is being represented as a star in this music video, however, although she is still a star, which is how her target audience see her anyway, she is still playing a character in this video because she is not representing herself as we know it, as a singer, she is representing herself as being a successful contestant in beauty pageants.
My chosen music video conforms to the 4 main components of Dyer's Star Theory:
The first suggests that 'Stars' are artificial although they appear to be presented as 'real people', this is done in Beyoncé's music video where she goes on stage to sing a short extract of a song and in the long shot of all the contestants on stage together. (see below)
In these two parts of the video Beyoncé is represented as showing her true self through her talent of singing and also in her response to the question she is asked on stage - "what is your aspiration in life?" as the audience feel that they are getting to know the person shown on stage in a more personal way. Her response - "my aspiration in life is to be happy" links to the fourth component as well as the first because it shows Beyoncé in a way that 'ordinary people' will be able to relate to as it makes her seem in touch with reality and shows that she isn't as materialistic as people would believe 'stars' to be.
In these two parts of the video Beyoncé is represented as showing her true self through her talent of singing and also in her response to the question she is asked on stage - "what is your aspiration in life?" as the audience feel that they are getting to know the person shown on stage in a more personal way. Her response - "my aspiration in life is to be happy" links to the fourth component as well as the first because it shows Beyoncé in a way that 'ordinary people' will be able to relate to as it makes her seem in touch with reality and shows that she isn't as materialistic as people would believe 'stars' to be.
The second component is all to do with conforming to certain ideologies and attitudes based on what an industry thinks the audience wants to consume. The leading narrative and main idea throughout the music video all links back to physical appearance and attempting to conform to societies idea of 'beauty' and 'perfection' which involve having the correct body shape and size, and being at the correct age (30 years old max.). This is shown to the audience throughout the entire video, an example is when Beyoncé is getting measured and weighed and the facial expressions of both her and the person she is being measured by that she has not met the 'standards' that are expected of her if she is to be successful in his industry however, the long shot of Beyoncé sat surrounded by trophies suggests that she is capable of winning and has been very successful in beauty pageants at some point as trophies and medals connote both winning and success.
Careers in this sort of industry tend not to be very long-lasting and perhaps seeing Beyoncé 'fail' is a sign that her time in this industry is up as she may be seen as 'too old' to compete by the audience. If this is the case they will not want to consume, or continue support her as their will be younger contestants moving in who will now be likely to be more successful than she is.
Another example within the music video that shows the lengths that the girls go to to be successful in the industry they are working in is when we see a girl eat a ball of cotton wool.
Instantly the audience knows that this to make her feel full without actually eating proper food in order to stay thin as any audience, whether they have an interest in this industry or not, knows the conditions and struggles that people will put themselves through in order to be the best. Again, the facial expressions of the girl shows that this not in any way enjoyable to her but shows she understands the expectations she has to meet and is desperate to succeed and be accepted.
Instantly the audience knows that this to make her feel full without actually eating proper food in order to stay thin as any audience, whether they have an interest in this industry or not, knows the conditions and struggles that people will put themselves through in order to be the best. Again, the facial expressions of the girl shows that this not in any way enjoyable to her but shows she understands the expectations she has to meet and is desperate to succeed and be accepted.
The third component put forward by Dyer says that stars create a character based on what they think an audience wants to consume and this suggests that the person they present themselves as on stage is different to the person they are in real life and therefore although the audience may love the person who is on stage they might not always like who the person becomes off stage.
An example of this in Beyoncé's music video is again, the long shot where she is surrounded by trophies. In this shot she is sat slouched over, leaning on her knee, with her legs apart and overall she does not look lady-like neither is showing very good posture, nor is she in the picture below.
In juxtaposition to this there is a point in the music video where she is being taught how to stand correctly in order to present herself well therefore this is a clear example of her showing herself one way on stage and another when she is not competing.
In juxtaposition to this there is a point in the music video where she is being taught how to stand correctly in order to present herself well therefore this is a clear example of her showing herself one way on stage and another when she is not competing.
The fourth component suggests that 'stars' have two sides to the character they show on stage, one that is extraordinary is to be desired by an audience, and the other that is ordinary and gives the audience something them and the 'star' have in common so that the audience feel they can relate to the 'star' in some way.
The same as the example I used when explaining the first component, when Beyoncé is asked what her aspirations are, she simply replies 'to be happy'. The audience would probably be expecting her to say something in relation to winning more pageants, instead the answer she gives is much more personal and puts her on a level with her target audience rather than them seeing her as being higher than them. Her response is also very ironic because, as discussed before, there are several points in the music video where she appears to be unhappy, perhaps this is her admitting to the audience that she is not happy in what she is doing because by saying she aspires to be happy it suggests that she is not happy t the present time. It also reinforces my point earlier about saying that she has outgrown the industry she is working in. The montage shown after she says this reinforces the irony of her answer and confirms that she is unhappy in what she is doing.
Tessa Perkins identified 5 assumptions based on stereotypes:
1. They are not always negative
2. They are not about minorities/less powerful groups
3. They can be held in ones own groups
4. They are not rigid or unchanging
5. They aren't untrue
The stereotypes surrounding the 'Pretty Hurts' music video include the stereotype of all blondes being 'dumb' which rejects the fifth assumption identified by Perkins because the colour of your hair does not define someone's level of intelligence and although the initial idea from which a stereotypes is triggered does have some truth to it, it does not mean that it applies to all women with blonde hair nor does it mean that all brunettes aren't 'dumb'. An argument that challenges this idea is that say if a brunette dyes their hair blonde, do they go from being intelligent to dumb? And another argument could be the question of why does this stereotype only apply to women and not to men?
The fact that the women shown in this video have a career in beauty, fashion, makeup etc. also reinforces the ideas behind this stereotype as it is looked down on by other people who have 'proper jobs' and so in this case rejects the second assumption Perkins identified, that they aren't always about less powerful groups/minorities however stereotypes about upper class and social majorities do also exist, for example people who are rich can be called spoilt or snobby however people can achieve wealth through working hard meaning they are not spoilt and have worked hard for the money they have and the stereotypes surrounding social class tend to apply more to people who are born into it therefore in some ways agreeing with the fifth assumption identified by Perkins but also with reason to reject it depending on the context of a situation.
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