MIGRAIN: Feminist theory

1) What are the two texts the article focuses on?

The article focuses on two texts, these are: Pan Am and Beyoncé.

2) What examples are provided from the two texts of the 'male gaze' (Mulvey)?
Pan Am- They also have a magazine cover which is heavily mediated which has a purpose to be visually enjoyed by men. There is also a scene at the end where there is a close up of the 4 women's legs. This causes the men to turn around and stare, which suggests that they enjoy and get pleasure out of seeing the females walk, their appearance and generally their bodies.Beyoncé- She playfully gazes at the camera providing the audience with knowing winks in the 'sexy outfits'. Also, at one point she is openly rubbing her chest and body, whilst playfully looking down the camera, clearly submitting herself to sexual objectification and openly acknowledging the 'male gaze'.

3) Do texts such as these show there is no longer a need for feminism or are they simply sexism in a different form?
I believe sexism still exists because women everyday are being measured against the stereotypes- attractive, dependent, inferior etc. This is because both Pan Am and Beyoncé sexualise themselves, however Beyoncé is able to have control of the gaze which empowers her, she also mocks the typical stereotypes, e.g. cooking, cleaning etc.4) Choose three words/phrases from the glossary of the article and write their definitions on your blog.

• Post-feminism- An ideology in culture and society that the society is somehow past needing feminism and that the attitudes and arguments of feminism are no longer needed.

• Patriarchy- An ideology that places men in a dominant position over women.

• Nostalgia- A sentimental longing for the past, often only remembering the positives of the time.

Music video analysis
 1) How might this video contribute to Butler’s idea that gender roles are a ‘performance’? 

This contributes to Butler's idea of gender roles as a 'performance' because she is the constructed stereotype of the 50s/60s society of being a typical housewife, who is meant to cook and clean.2) Does this video reinforce or challenge the view that women should perform certain roles in society? This video has two different interpretations. One is that she empowers women, by challenging the stereotype. This is because she is deliberately failing the tasks a housewife would do and crying out "Why don't you love me" at the same time. This implies that she is mocking the whole idea of women performing certain roles because it could be seen as a joke. However, the fact that she reinforces the idea of needing a man may offend women because she is somewhat showing how she is useless without a man and can't perform these certain roles women should. Also, the fact that she cooks, cleans and turn herself into a sex object is also offending. 3) Would McRobbie view Beyonce as an empowering role model for women? Why?

I think that McRobbie would view Beyoncé as an empowering role model for women because Beyoncé is mocking the whole idea of having specific role, she is also glamourous and has control of the situation, like the gaze, which empowersher. However, McRobbie may not see her as a fit role model for empowering women as she could also portray how she is incapable without a man as she cry's out "Why don't you love me", which suggests that she is dependent on him.4) What are your OWN views on this debate – does Beyonce empower women or reinforce the traditional ‘male gaze’ (Mulvey)? I believe that Beyoncé empowers women because she is goes against the traditional values of society by mocking the certain roles women do and its seen as a joke. Also, her lyrics empower women because she claims that she is "smart"and "has an ass" which shows how she is capable without a man and doesn't need him. Additionally, the fact that she hascontrol over the gaze gives her more domination. However, she can be seen as reinforcing the gaze due to making herself a sex object.