Introduction to Laura Mulvey's "Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema"

Film & Media Studies

26 Feb 202121:20

EducationalLearning

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TLDRThis video analyzes Laura Mulvey's visual pleasure theory which argues that mainstream cinema frames women for the pleasure of the male gaze. It provides background on psychoanalysis and the unconscious before explaining Mulvey's argument that men fear castration when viewing images of women. As a defense mechanism, cinema encourages the male viewer to objectify women by halting the narrative to showcase erotic images of women, as seen in classic films like Vertigo. The teacher explains shot sequences that illustrate Mulvey’s argument about the male gaze and concludes by previewing how Hitchcock seems aware of these structures in Vertigo’s complex portrayal of viewing.

Takeaways

😀 Laura Mulvey uses psychoanalytic theory to analyze how patriarchy has structured film form and viewing pleasure
😯 She argues that women in film are simultaneously looked at and displayed as erotic objects for the male viewer
😮 The 'male gaze' is when the spectator is put into the perspective of a heterosexual male protagonist looking at women
🤔 Mulvey says women pose a threat of castration anxiety, so men objectify them to neutralize the threat
👀 Scenes in classical Hollywood film often halt narrative progress to allow for erotic spectacle of women
👁‍🗨 The camera movement often forces the viewer to participate in the male gaze by searching for the object of desire
🎥 Examples from Vertigo show how Hitchcock was aware of objectifying the female image and halting narrative
📽 Mulvey argues the male protagonist is the primary causal agent, linking to patriarchal society's dominance
💡 She uses psychoanalysis to diagnose the unconscious roots of female oppression under patriarchy
🎬 Her theory of the male gaze critiques Hollywood for positioning women as objects rather than subjects

Q & A

What is the primary focus of the unit on gender and spectatorship?
-The primary focus is on closely examining the film 'Vertigo' and Laura Mulvey's text on the male gaze, exploring how psychoanalytic theory and patriarchal structures influence film form and spectatorship.
What significant term did Laura Mulvey's text introduce into popular culture?
-Laura Mulvey's text introduced the term 'male gaze' into popular culture, highlighting how films reflect and reinforce patriarchal views.
How does Laura Mulvey propose to use psychoanalysis in her analysis of film?
-Mulvey intends to use psychoanalysis to uncover how film's fascination is reinforced by pre-existing patterns of fascination within the individual and societal structures shaped by patriarchy.
What does Laura Mulvey mean by 'film form'?
-By 'film form', Mulvey refers to the structural elements of films, including editing techniques and narrative styles, which she argues are influenced by patriarchal ideologies.
How does psychoanalytic theory relate to feminism in Mulvey's work?
-Mulvey uses psychoanalytic theory as a tool to diagnose and combat patriarchy by understanding the unconscious forces that underpin misogyny and gender oppression in cultural expressions like cinema.
What is 'castration anxiety' and how does it relate to the male gaze according to Mulvey?
-Castration anxiety, in Mulvey's theory, is a fear of emasculation rooted in the discovery of sexual difference. It leads men to objectify women in films as a way to manage this fear, signifying women as a threat of castration.
How does the objectification of women in film affect narrative progression according to Mulvey?
-Mulvey argues that the objectification of women often halts narrative progression, as films pause to focus on the visual and erotic spectacle of the female form, reinforcing their role as objects of the male gaze.
Can you give an example of how a film might suspend its narrative to focus on the spectacle of a woman?
-An example is a scene in a classic Hollywood film where the narrative flow stops for a performance by a female character, who is displayed for visual and erotic impact, drawing the audience's gaze and suspending the story.
How does Hitchcock's 'Rear Window' exemplify the concept of the male gaze halting narrative progress?
-In 'Rear Window', there are moments like Jeff looking at Lisa in a revealing nightgown, where the narrative pauses to focus on Lisa's visual spectacle, exemplifying how the male gaze can interrupt the story to objectify women.
What does the term 'eyeline match' refer to, and how is it used in film to convey the male gaze?
-An 'eyeline match' is a film editing technique that shows what a character is looking at, reinforcing their perspective. It's used to convey the male gaze by aligning the audience's view with that of a male character observing a female, thereby objectifying her.

Outlines

00:00

🎥 Introducing the video lesson on gender, spectatorship and Vertigo

The instructor introduces the video lesson which will focus on analyzing the film Vertigo and Laura Mulvey's essay Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema. The goals are to understand Mulvey's arguments about how patriarchy and masculinity are structured into film form, especially classical Hollywood narrative cinema.

05:05

🧠 Explaining key concepts of psychoanalytic theory and psychoanalytic feminism

The instructor explains key concepts from psychoanalytic theory that inform Mulvey's arguments, including the unconscious, childhood events shaping desires/anxieties, and the theory of castration anxiety. Psychoanalytic feminism uses these concepts to diagnose patriarchy, such as seeing female image as a threat.

10:09

👀 Describing the 'male gaze' and woman as erotic object

Mulvey argues films encourage men to objectify women with their gaze. Women are coded for visual/erotic impact and displayed as sexual objects. The male look halts narrative progress so the spectacle of women can be appreciated.

15:13

🎥 Examples of the male gaze and halted narrative in Vertigo

The instructor analyzes scenes in Vertigo that demonstrate the male gaze and interrupted narrative flow. Examples include Scotty objectifying Madeleine with his look, the green dress shot, Scotty undressing Madeleine.

20:14

🌸 The power of the male gaze in the flower shop scene

The vibrant flower shop shot is compared to Dorothy entering Oz, creating a visual spectacle while halting narrative. But Madeleine knows she is being objectified, unlike Mulvey's simplified theory.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡psychoanalysis

Psychoanalysis is a set of theories and therapeutic techniques related to the study of the unconscious mind, developed by Sigmund Freud and Jacques Lacan. In the video, Laura Mulvey uses psychoanalysis to uncover how the unconscious patriarchal ideas in society have shaped film form and cinema.

💡male gaze

The male gaze refers to the act of depicting women from a heterosexual, masculine perspective for visual pleasure. Mulvey argues that in classical Hollywood films, women are often objectified through the male gaze of characters and the audience.

💡castration anxiety

Castration anxiety refers to the male fear of losing power or masculinity. Mulvey relates this to Freud's idea that men subconsciously fear emasculation after discovering as children that women lack a penis. The image of women then represents a threat that films attempt to subjugate.

💡objectification

The video discusses how films encourage the audience to view women as erotic objects rather than human subjects through their appearance, attire, and framing on screen. This offsets castration anxiety but dehumanizes women.

💡patriarchy

Patriarchy refers to social systems and power structures dominated by men. Mulvey wants to reveal how the unconscious ideas of a patriarchal society have shaped common film tropes in classical Hollywood cinema.

💡spectatorship

Spectatorship looks at how films are constructed to guide the viewer into certain perspectives and responses. Mulvey examines how female characters are framed to induce objectification from a heterosexual male viewer.

💡phallocentrism

Phallocentrism describes social attitudes and institutions centered on the masculine point of view. Mulvey seeks to reveal phallocentrism in Hollywood's stereotypical depictions of male and female characters.

💡psychoanalytic feminism

Though Freudian theory is often accused of misogyny, psychoanalytic feminism appropriates it to analyze the psychological roots of patriarchy and women's oppression. This informs Mulvey's approach.

💡cinematic apparatus

This refers to the camera, lighting, editing and other film techniques that control perspective. Mulvey looks at how the cinematic apparatus guides sexual objectification of women.

💡visual pleasure

Visual pleasure describes the enjoyment, delight or titillation from looking. The video analyzes how Hollywood narrative and style provides visual pleasure through eroticized depictions of women.

Highlights

First significant research finding

Introduction of new theoretical framework

Discussion of limitations and future work

Transcripts

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