The Possible 'Female Gaze'

Is There a Female Gaze?

The ‘male gaze’ is obvious in many different types of music videos. It is now so common that it is almost an expected feature. In my previous post I mentioned and analysed the features of the male gaze, however, I am now considering whether or not there is also a female gaze as a contradiction to the male gaze. Women are constantly being the object of voyeurism in music videos, however it appears that they are not the only ones. Men are being used in music videos to support the new concept of the ‘female gaze’. An example of how the male gaze exists within music videos is in the video 'Stupid Love' by Jason Derulo. 

The way in which the female character is laughing at what Jason is saying signifies her enamour of him. She is clearly happy just being round him and this attraction which is made very obvious with the way the camera is angled to show her reaction to him, allows the target audience to feel like they want a relationship like that with a man. 

Similarly, in this image, we can see her pose is implying how engrossed she is in what he is singing to her. She feels lost in what he's saying. It's as if she's in her own bubble with him and her gazing at him is used to show the affection she wants to show him. The fact he is looking away shows her releasing her emotions without him knowing. 

This pose highlights his strength which could be interpreted as something women want in a man. Therefore, it would attract the female audience to watch the video just for the images of the artist as women want a strong man to love and protect them and make them feel safe. 

The image of Jason Derulo being shown topless in this scene emphasises the female gaze as the director was aware the target audience would be engaged whilst watching this part of the video as he is seen as exposing himself in order to appeal to the women watching. 

The male is the subject of the female gaze and although he is presented sexually, it's in an intimate and affectionate way. This symbolises how women see men as more then just sexual objects which is expressed through the female gaze.