Blog Post #5

Laughey (2007), Carter (2012), Litosseliti (2013), and Al-Mahadin (2011) main argument is that gender is a social/cultural construct , and one can disrupt by changing the categorization of female and male. One main approach to feminist analysis of media is the “Theory of the male Gaze” , which according to Laughey (2007) that male characters are he observers and women characters are passive objects of male’ s sexual desire. The theory relates Sigumend Freud argument about the connection of the mind and body, especially in early years of human life .As well ,The notion of “scopophilia” which suggests that humans instinct is to find pleasure in looking. Therefore, Movies , Tv Shows and video games main focus is visual pleasure rather than intellectual stimulation. Another Notion explained by Laughey(2007) is identification , the act of identifying oneself with the ideal charachter represented in media , as it can create ‘ego ideals’. Moreover, Carter (2012) argues how the media marginalized and stereotypes women, by outlining the ideas of poststructuralist feminist’s , Judith Butler and Teresade Cauretis. To reconstruct gender , one must break free from the terms created by patriarchay which is male-centered. Another research method used is Audience research. According Litosseliti (2013) through watching soap operas women live out a more pleasurable life, this leads to women associating with the characters role.