2) What are the two texts the article focuses on?
- Pan Am: Aired on BBC2: Using Destiny's Child's iconic song 'Independent Women'.
- Beyoncé's music video: 'Why Don't You Love Me'
3) What examples are provided from the two texts of the 'male gaze' (Mulvey)?
Mulvey 'Male Gaze'
Subject female
characters to the ‘male gaze’ of the camera,
fragmenting and objectifying their bodies.
Pan Am
- Laura - main character on the front cover of a magazine: Pan Am stewardess who's image was put together in such a way that it would visually please men and be something to admire and aspire to be like for women.
- Laura (Pilot Episode) - Subjected to having her weight and appearance checked as well as humiliating girdle (support underwear to control the stomach and upper thighs) check in front of other people and on camera.
- Final sequence of Pilot episode: mid-shot of four stewardesses' fragmented legs as they walk in unison through the airport. allowing the audience to relish the rhythm of their walk.
- Then cuts to a long shot: Providing even more visual pleasure where all the glorious period detail of their uniforms and their perfectly coiffed hair and make - up can be admired. They cause the male characters in the airport to turn and stare but the stewardesses' don't acknowledge these looks.
'Why Don't You Love Me' - Welcomes the male gaze to an extent
- Costumes: Highly sexualised including tight high waisted knickers, a vintage style bra & suspenders, and stockings - Allows audiences (especially males) to appreciate Beyonce's figure.
- Playfully gazes at the camera: While she plays at being a 'housewife' burning dinner etc, while providing the audience with knowing winks in her sexy outfit. Parades to the camera in such a way that her attire is noticed and appreciated.
- Beyonce emphasizes her figure to the camera: While singing the lyrics she rubs her chest and body while looking down the camera allowing herself to be sexually objectified.
- Despite texts like this showing that there might not be a need for feminism which therefore suggests that we understand the topic and any past issues such as unequal pay are solved. We still need feminism because there are multiple occasions on which women are not equal still.
5) Choose three words/phrases from the glossary of the article and write their definitions on your blog.
- Third wave feminism: Was a movement that redefined and encouraged women to be dominant and sexually assertive.
- Nostalgia: A sentimental longing for the past, often only remembering the positives of the time.
- Post-Feminism: An ideology in culture and society that society is somehow past needing feminism and that the attitudes and arguments of feminism are no longer needed.
No More Page 3
1) Research the No More Page 3 campaign. Who started it and why?- The No More Page 3 campaign was founded by Lucy - Anne Holmes on August 22nd 2012. This campaign was started with the mission to persuade the editor of The Sun to stop including pictures of topless glamour models on its Page 3. It was an incredibly successful campaign, it ended with the feature being discontinued.
2) What reasons did the campaign give for why Page 3 had to go?
- Introduced in the 70's - "We aren't in the sexist 1970's anymore": The Sun were not the only newspaper to have such a page where females were objectified to 'decorate news stories both featuring and aimed at men'. Other papers such as the Daily Mail had a similar page but they moved on with the times and stopped the page in the 1980's unlike the Sun who kept going with. Which is why at the time of the No More Page 3 campaign they were the newspaper name in the headlines not The Daily Mail.
- 'Page Three is archaic, tasteless and has no place in a society where we supposedly champion women as the equals of men' (http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/ella-griffiths-/page-three-has-to-go_b_6531542.html)
- 'Women are not sexual objects'
3) Read this debate in the Guardian regarding whether the campaign should be dropped. What are Barbara Ellen and Susan Boniface's contrasting opinions in the debate?
- Barbara Ellen: The campaign against Page 3 should continue. Barbara says that if page three was dated and dreary before then it is hard to defend it on the basis that there "worse things" - 'There's no sliding scale for institutionalized sexism'.
- Susan Boniface: Believes that the No More Page 3 campaign has come to late the era we live in is developing and the campaign is fighting something of the past.
LITTLE MIXED UP ABOUT WHAT TO WEAR?
- This article talks about Little Mix's controversial attire that they wore when they performed on the X Factor with their new single 'Shout Out To My Ex'.
- Social media blew up and criticized them for the revealing look of their attire and everyone asked how such an attire was appropriate for something that was labeled a 'family show'.
- I agree with this article when it says that Little Mix are not 'exactly alone in that countless female stars wear barely there outfits and music videos are rife with hypersexualized imagery'. Which leads me to the question; Why was Little Mix picked on all of a sudden so greatly?
- I then agree to a certain extent when the article says ' sexualisation of women in mainstream women had a proven negative effect on young girls and women'. I agree with the article because there is definitely a sense of a particular way that women are meant to conform to presented in the media. However, I disagree with this statement because I feel that any proven information can not actually account for a wide enough representation of the effect that the 'sexualisation of women in the media' has on young people and women.
- The No More Page 3 campaign and Sexist News website can link to the idea of Post-Feminism because it demonstrates the changes in opinions of people about the issue of feminism over time. However, demonstrating such a change could just as easily suggest that feminism is no longer an issue for discussion or concern.
6) What are your OWN views on these campaigns? Do you agree with their aims? Is there still a need for these campaigns in the media?
- I personally, agree with the campaign that stopped the production of Page 3 through writing a letter to The Sun editor and drumming up support from MP's etc. However, I do not agree with the campaigns when they make a point showing the dramatic changes in feminism by using 'proven research...' because it does not show the research so I find it hard to digest what has been said as a valid reason for the point being made.
- I feel there is still a need for feminism campaigns in the media because despite improvements that have already happened it is not the end of the inequalities and we need to continue developing our understanding of the issue to continue making progress in allowing women to be on a completely level playing field with men.
- I believe that there is still a need for feminism yes we are moving towards a post-feminism state but I do not think we are quite there yet. The campaigns so far have gone a bit off topic I think the main aim which was to gain equality for women has been sidelined and people have forgotten that we still do not actually have this. Rather than gaining equality for women any such campaigns are now focused on nit picking celebrities dress codes and the negative effect that has on us regular people. What happened to working towards equal pay for women?
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