Male Gaze & Patriarchy

Themale gaze is simply how women are viewed from the perspective of a white heterosexual man. Those views can be translated several ways. For example, a woman can be viewed simply as an object, and shown no respect other than men enjoying the physical sexual pleasure that they derive from this “gaze”. This has been portrayed in art and media for years, which is why it is still pervasive in art and pop culture today. The only difference today is that women have begun to own their sexuality and their bodies more. Berger explains that the social presence of a women is different in kind from that of a man. He explains, “A man’s presence suggests what he is capable of doing to you or for you” (Berger, 46). By contrast, he says “A woman’s presence expresses her own attitude to herself and defines what cannot be done to her” (Berger, 46). Berger then goes on to say that “One might simplify this by saying: men act, and women appear” (Berger, 47). Berger is saying that men look at women and women look at themselves being looked at. If you scroll down and take a look at the painting from Jacob Tintoretto, the woman is slightly exposed and spread out with a vulnerable look for her audience.

Summer is represented here as Ceres, goddess of agriculture, reclining in front of her attribute, a row of wheat stalks. 

By definition, patriarchy is a system of society or government in which the father or eldest male is head of the family and descent is traced through the male line.However, according to Bell Hooks patriarchy is“the single most life-threatening social disease assaulting the male body and spirit in our nation” (Hooks, 17). Simply put, patriarchy is this socially constructed rule that men are the head of household, make all decisions, and women/girls cannot do what men/boys do. Hooks did not agree with patriarchy and has the rebellious stories from her childhood to prove it. Hooks grew up in a very patriarchal household and remembers being told at an early age that certain things were just for boys and girls could not do them. For example, she recalls a time she wanted to play marbles with her brother and was told “girls do not play with marbles” (Hooks, 20). When she would not agree, she would be beaten and punished by her parents, her mother agreeing with her father and suggesting that “Dad had done the right thing by putting me in my place, by restoring the natural social order” (Hooks, 21). Patriarchy is definitely constantly shown in art as well as media. Perfect example would be ads about cleaning products, back in the day the only face on those ads were women. Portraying the idea that cleaning is for women. 

Old school cleaning add that suggests being wife is all about "working for your husband" cleaning, cooking, etc.

Though not by definition, I always was aware of the “male gaze” because people always talk about how women have to look pleasing to the eyes on men. In media they always say, “sex sells”. Its kind of pathetic to me that some people actually think the sole purpose of a women’s body is to be aesthetically pleasing to men. One thing I’ve just learned recently is that when men painted females and their bodies, they would never include hair because “hair is associated with sexual power, with passion” (Berger, 55). It was something that never crossed my mind but looking back something I do notice was very true with paintings of women. Berger states “women are there to feed and appetite, not to have any of their own” (Berger, 55) which ties into the patriarchal view. As far as patriarchy, honestly that is how my household was growing up. The men worked and payed the bills, and the women also worked… and took care of the kids, and cleaned, and cooked dinner. I guess the difference in my household was that my grandma wanted to do those things, rather than feeling like that was her place. Though I grew up in a patriarchal household, I’ve always been very openminded and I don’t like to do dishes. Therefore, I was always questioning gender roles.  

Somewhere, someone tried to make female gaze a thing. Female gaze is “a feminist film theoretical term representing the gaze of the female viewer. It is a response to feminist film theorist Laura Mulvey's term, "the male gaze", which represents not only the gaze of a heterosexual male viewer but also the gaze of the male character and the male creator of the film”. However, “In contemporary usage, the female gaze has been used to refer to the perspective a female filmmaker (screenwriter/director/producer) brings to a film that would be different from a male view of the subject”. So essentially, they do not have the same meaning and the “female gaze” is not sexualized like the male gaze is. The female gaze is more for a different perspective to be able to add more depth to the photo/video/etc., not for sexual gain.

Works Cited

1. Hooks, Bell. Understanding Patriarchy. Louisville Anarchist Federation Federation, 2010.
2. “Female Gaze.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 2 Sept. 2019, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Female_gaze.
3. Berger, John. Ways of Seeing. British Broadcasting Corporation, 2008.

Male Gaze and Patriarchy assignment 2

Salmah Aldaghady

Assignment 2

Professor Caçoilo

The male gaze is the “act of depicting women and the world, in the visual arts and in literature, from a masculine, heterosexual perspective that presents and represents women as sexual objects for the pleasure of the male viewer.” In other words, this term, male gaze represents the idea that when women are being portrayed in an art form it is shown that they are being used for the satisfaction  of the male watcher. It as well shows the joy for men that are gazing at the work of art in a visual representation.

This quota began around the Renaissance period and unfortunately as of today, the twenty-first century it is still occurring. The term originally was created by Laura Mulvey, a feminist around the time period of 1975. The Male Gaze is very powerful in craftsmanship as well as pop culture. These two tools provide explanation to why women act a certain way and are visualized by the manner they portray and that is how they were actually painted in that certain way. 

In John Berger’s reading “Ways of Seeing”, he says, “A woman must continually watch herself. She is almost continually accompanied by her own image of herself” (16).  This shows that women are constantly looked at without realizing and she is always thinking of how she may seem to the “male gaze” who is looking at her. Below shows a picture  from the Daily Art Magazine that was published by Alina Nevskaya. This picture shows a great representation of how a woman is continually watching herself.

In the reading of Bell Hooks “Understanding Patriarchy” he says, "Patriarchy is a political system that insists that males are inherently domineering, superior to everything and everyone deemed weak, especially females, and endowed with the right to dominate and rule over the weak and to maintain that dominance through various forms of psychological terrorism and violence" (Hooks 18). Hooks is trying to send us a message by explaining that patriarchy is the most reasonable reason to why the male gaze is still occurring in society till today.

An example of the male gaze is Sexsim, today, the world has this objective that males must be the one with the upper-hand to show their dominance. They have to show that they are stronger at all times. When men are put in an act of sexism, they tend to feel more dominant. In a movie called  “Fifty Shades of Grey”  the main character, Christian Grey is a great example of patriarchy. He portrays this sexual abusive relationship with the woman that came for an interview at his company, Anastasia. Christian shows his dominance in a paper that he gives to Anastasia that shows all the sexual things he is capable of doing to her whenever he desires. He takes her to his house where he has a private room just for the both of them but she is not allowed to enter it without him. This room carries equipment that he will use on her for his pleasure and puts a  blindfold on her just so she does not see what is being done to her. He shows his dominance in this movie and Anastasia is the submissive character where she gives her all to him and he does whatever he desires to make him satisfied and pleasured. The picture below shows how Anastasia is wearing the blindfold so she has no clue of what is being done to her and Christian showing that he is the one is control and is the dominant character and gets to do whatever he wants to her.

A personal example I have as a have grown up in an Egyptian household, my parents are very strict about me and my sister. When going out we have a very strict rule that it can’t be by ourselves and our older brother or cousin had to be there with us as all times. For men, he can go out anytime he wants and can come back home at any time as well, there was no curfew at all for him. This is very common with most Arab parents. Boys and Men are more dominant and have more power than girls. As I am married now my husband has many rights on me, I can not leave without his permission, I must be home at a certain time, I cannot do things without permission even if it's as simple as going to school. They have power that no one can compare to, and as a wife I must respect him and do whatever he wishes for. They on the other hand can go out whenever they want and return when they want. Another example is that when my family and I go back home to Egypt, if girls leave the house together with no man with them, they will start to cat call and whisper dirty things at you and this happened to me numerous times. I was once walking across the street from my house just to grab bread and breakfast things for my family as a man approached me on his motorcycle and called me a “working tool” which is a line that Egyptian men use when they see a woman with an attractive body for sex.

After understanding the terms the male gaze and patriarchy, I started to relate it to my own self and to back home in Egypt and how its very similar to what we are learning in class and how often this occurs. Today men still look at women for their body and how its shaped and not look beyond that. They tend to not see the other aspects a woman can have, a woman can be intelligent, creative, and much more but thats is not how men perceive women these days, they are only looked at if they have a good body then they can have it and enjoy it for their pleasure but if she does not have a good body she is looked down upon.  It is very disgusting to see that this is the only concern men have for women. Which is not right because having an attractive body is not what it should be about, women are not toys and are not created just for the pleasure of men. And it is very sad to see that the world is not changing and when I have kids of my own they will eventually see the inhumanity of this society and how women are looked at and treated.

 

Can Women Overcome The Male Gaze In A Patriarchal Society

The Male Gaze, in its complexity, describes the depiction of women from a heterosexual and male perspective. For centuries, men and society expected women to fulfill the role of being a  submissive servant to the man. According to John Berger, “From earliest childhood she is taught and persuaded to survey herself continually. She has to survey everything she is and everything she does, because how she appears to others – and particularly how she appears to men – is of crucial importance for what is normally thought of as the success of her life.” Berger’s quote helps the reader understand the role of women as seen by society and men. From birth, women are socialized. The process of socialization that happens in the lives of women forces them to learn how to behave in a way that is acceptable by society, in particular, by men. More specifically, their socialization causes their success and fulfillment of their purposes, to be left in the hands of men. Men have been given a faulty authority over the lives of women. The Male Gaze supports this idea by portraying women as sexual objects used for the pleasure of men.

'Opinion' Sky Russel-https://www.thecrimson.com/column/new-romantix/article/2017/2/17/qiu-the-gaze/

The Male Gaze has served as a shadow over women. Women have not been given the opportunity to shine through the Male Gaze. As a result, the gaze continues to have an effect on the way women are viewed in art and pop culture. The following illustration of the effect that the male gaze has on women today. In the illustration, the woman is seen looking in a mirror. As she looks in the mirror, her face is covered by a mask which she is holding on to her face. This demonstrates the idea that she is not given the opportunity to be herself. She must apply a mask to meet the standards of men. In addition, on her back, she has eyes. They are open and looking at everyone behind her. This explains, even when she would like to look at herself, she has to worry about the opinion of others; instead of her own. Ironically, the illustration is titled “Opinion” by Sky Russell. 

The Male Gaze and its relevance to Patriarchy

Before discussing how the male gaze affects the art world and pop culture we must first break down and understand what it is. The male gaze is a feminist theory that conveys how women are viewed in the eyes of men through visual arts and in literature. This perspective is usually from a masculine and heterosexual frame of reference that aims to display and represent women as simply sexual objects of pleasure for men and their egos.

This gaze suggests a sexualized one that empowers men by automatically materializing women. John Berger explains this best, “Men act and women appear. Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at. This determines not only relations between men and women but also the relation of women to themselves. The surveyor of the woman in herself is male: the surveyed female. Thus, she turns herself into an object- and most particularly, an object of vision: a sight (Berger 47). This attitude has permeated the art world in every aspect since visual expression went into practice. It isn’t surprising given the fact that the world is globally patriarchal. Berger said women appear just for men to gaze at them and this is evident in many nude paintings; the men are usually fully dressed while the woman or women are fully naked and gazing into the eyes of the viewer. This rule seems to be one sided.

According to Berger, “the mirror was often used as a symbol of vanity of women,” (Berger 51) if women look at themselves then they are seen as vein because whatever she does or acts out shows how she wants to be treated by others surveying her; in other words, “she turns herself into and object” meant to be viewed. This particular idea is extremely relevant today. Presently, women no longer have to stare into a mirror to be considered vein, they can do so by just wearing clothing that men find attractive- an unsolicited invitation to gawk. This ties in perfectly with Bell Hook’s definition of patriarchy and whether solicited or not, it is a male’s given right.

By dictionary definition, patriarchy means something in relation to a society or community that is governed or organized by men on patriarchal lines and this system of society largely excludes women. Bell Hooks describes patriarchy, “as a political social system that insists that males are inherently dominating, superior to everything and everyone deemed weak, especially females, and endowed with the right to dominate and rule over the weak and to maintain that dominance through various forms of psychological terrorism and violence” (18 Hooks). Here, it seems like Hooks is critiquing society’s appraisal of men that forces them to act so aggressively and outwardly like its acceptable; however, the emphasis on changing this perception is still not heavily placed on men as it is on women.

For example, it is not okay for men to gaze at women and openly comment on their bodies and excuse themselves on the basis of provocative dress soliciting them to do so. Hooks explanation of this male notion is that, “patriarchal ideology brainwashes men to believe that their domination of women is beneficial when it’s not” (27 Hooks).

Okay cool, so men think that they’re always helping even when they are contributing to the problem but there still isn’t a spoken solution. Hooks goes on to explain how men feel weakest when they don’t feel themselves in control but how are we to overcome this when this pattern of domination has continued for so many years? Yes, we are working at recognizing more women artists and allowing women to come forth but all in the name to make men understand. This is hard to do when the fact of the matter is that “sex sells” and every ad, commercial, movie, etc. is geared toward the male gaze. If one was to just evaluate social media alone, all the women that have millions of followers and thousands of likes are those who show their bodies- appeal to the eyes of men. Women are constantly on display and their appearance unconsciously deems their positions in the world. Having the smarts no longer wins the race but having an attractive face and a fit or plastic body image gets you right to the top.

Related image

This is a gym advertisement with a woman who is fit and has a slightly revealing gym outfit on, could be for the purpose of getting the male's attention who is also working out.

Even when selling women’s products, the male gaze is utilized. It seems like nothing is sold off the strength of directly benefiting the female recipient. Nail salon technicians will very strongly suggest bold colors like seductive reds and fiery oranges couples with long nails because those combinations “will get you a boyfriend.” It all is so comical. Even the gyms support patriarchy; this is why so many people are uncomfortable being in that setting. Yes, the overall purpose of working out underlies health benefits but the ads usually show under dressed women with super fit and small bodies next to a strong overpowering male physique.

Of course I disagree with John Berger’s notion of women being the chair men sit on at the table and I agree with Bell Hooks explanation of why men are this. Nonetheless, besides spreading awareness I believe it takes a tougher woman to continue to face the challenges of everyday life for herself instead of for her male counterparts.

Serving as an afterthought: If there were two worlds separated by visitation rights (one with males and the other with females), what would then be the motive for vendors? Would men still be used to promote women’s products? Would female attraction be used to promote male products?

Edouard Manet, Luncheon on the Grass, 1863, Musée d’OrsayThis painting is of two men having lunch over a discussion while the woman is presently naked with no real reason. This depicts Berger's "men act and women appear" notion.

Post 1: Male Gaze and Patriarchy

Edouard Manet, Olympia

The male gaze, a concept created by Laura Mulvey in the 70s, is known as the way media is viewed through a male’s perspective. As described by John Berger, the male gaze is the depiction of women in culture and media as well as literature, from a masculine perspective that depicts women as no more than sexual objects for the male’s gratification. According to Bell Hooks, “Patriarchy is a political-social system that insists that males are inherently dominating, superior to everything and everyone deemed weak, especially females, and endowed with the right to dominate and rule over the weak and to maintain that dominance through various forms of psychological terrorism and violence” (Hooks, 1). As said by Hooks, Patriarchy is a word that does not seem to exist in any men’s vocabulary. Patriarchy is a term that is often ignored because of the “threat” it imposes to men’s masculinity. Learning about the meaning of the male gaze has forced me to really focus on the attention females obtain in movies, tv shows and literature. Every time I watch something, I know pay close attention to these small but rather large details. Its shown me that society has no respect for the image of a women and only use to satisfy the needs of a male when it comes to self-gratification or pleasure. 

For example, in the movie "Suicide Squad", Harley Quinn is a character who's look can be a little problematic in the feminist sense. Her whole persona and look are obvious enough for someone to know that the director of the film is a man based on the panning of the camera in the film. Her character sports a pair of tiny shorts and a shirt that reads "Daddy's Little Monster". Not to mention the fact that the movie is centered around her abusive boyfriend The Joker, which whom she seems to be madly in love with and refuses to leave his side. She is portrayed as nothing more than a sexual object who wont leave the side of her abusive boyfriend. 

Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn in "Suicide Squad"

Although the male gaze gives a negative interpretation of what the female is, the female gaze is an argument that rules out all the objectifications women face and shows us what it feels like to be the receiver of the male gaze. In cinema, the camera reveals what the protagonist is feeling rather than objectifying her and only panning in on the sexual view of the woman. It is a way of letting the man know that the woman knows she is being seen and that she knows she is only seen as no more than an object to the male gender. While the majority of movies only focus on the sexual nature of the woman, the female gaze offers a more personal connection to the woman and an understanding of what she really feels. Rather than believing societal misconceptions imposed by men, the female gaze offers an opportunity to change one's thinking of what the woman is really like. 

Works Cited:

Boutselis, Sabrina. “The Male Gaze in Monday of Une Semaine De Bonté.” Images WithIn Books, 4 May 2016, http://hamiltoncs.org/imageswithinbooks/uncategorized/the-male-gaze-in-monday-of-une-semaine-de-bonte/.

Chadwick, Whitney. Women, Art and Society. Thames and Hudson, 1994.

Hooks, Bell. “Understanding Patriarchy.” Image No Borders, Imagenoborders, https://imaginenoborders.org/pdf/zines/UnderstandingPatriarchy.pdf.

Sexualizing and treating women

Women were always seen as sexual objects and based on the way they looked, men would then make the judgement as to whether a woman is worthy to be treated properly. If a woman is seen as too masculine then men feel threatened. If she has clothes on that seems to revealing or shows the outline of her figure then she's practically asking for it. If a woman was wearing a piece of clothing that hid her figure then she’s either seen as a tease or she’s probably just not pretty enough. Women are never able to express themselves without being stared down, labeled, or judged. Even in art, men draw women with no body hair because it appeals to them more and gives them a sense of power while drawing her body. John Berger asserts “Her presence is manifest in her gestures, voice, opinions, expressions, clothes, chosen surroundings, taste- indeed there is nothing she can do which does not contribute to her presence.” (pg. 46) A woman can’t seem to escape the way other people view her because her every move is being watched and every word she utters is listened to. If a woman dresses in a way that seems provocative then men see it as an invitation. If she voices her opinion in a loud manner then they think that she’s challenging their masculinity or feel threatened by her knowledge. On the other hand, men are viewed at very low standards. Men feel that they shouldn't be judged since they have the upper hand anyway. Men should be held at the same standards as a women. Art that represents women should tell a story about that woman's life not to be judged by a man on her capabilities or what she has to offer. Women were always seen as submissive or that’s at least what men expect from them. Women were seen as objects that fulfill a man's needs. As a female, whenever I wear a certain outfit, I’m judged. Whether I’m classified as a tomboy or femme, I’ll always be judged by the way I dress.

A woman is supposed to be quiet and express her feelings while a man is only allowed to show his rage but not cry. In “The Will to Change”, Bell Hooks asserts “Patriarchy is a political-social system that insists that males are inherently dominating, superior to everything and everyone deemed weak, especially females, and endowed with the right to dominate and rule over the weak and to maintain that dominance through various forms of psychological terriorism and violence.” (pg. 18) She carefully used words like “terriorism” and “dominating” because they hold a lot of powerful meanings. Society seems to reassure men that they’re still in control and they are more powerful than women. Women are seen as robots that need a sense of direction and to be programmed in a way that favors a man's needs. When a woman is abused physically and psychologically, at times she can become used to it and feel inferior. If a woman were to ever be superior to a man then he's not considered a man and that he's weak. Women who have “battered woman syndrome” are usually the ones who have been abused to the point that they think everything is their fault because they have been “terrorized” mentally. Having an effect on someone's mind can eventually help the abuser control his victim which is what society seems to want from a man. Hooks writes “It was not good for him to use his rage to oppose the wishes of his parents, but later, when he grew up, he was taught that rage was permitted and that allowing rage to provoke him to violence would help him protect home and nation.” (pg. 19) For men, violence seems to be the solution to almost everything because it can “protect” them from harm. In reality, violence doesn’t do anyone any good or solve anything, it just adds fuel to the fire. Women have the advantage of using their mind and common sense versus men who physically fight to get what they want.

Wonder Woman is showing how powerful she is in their photo while still appealing to a mans eyes.

Fast forward to today's society and people sexualize Wonder Woman because of how “hot” she is based on the way she’s dressed and the way she looks. Guys also find her courage and strength intriguing. In this picture, we notice the way she presents as being this powerful person even though she's dressed in a way that appeals to a mans eyes. If we were to bring a woman that dresses up in jeans and a regular t-shirt but has the same strength then society might deem her as more masculine. Women are still objectified. They should be pretty and are noticed but shouldn't be respected or powerful. Women should look a certain way or have a certain body type and if it doesn't fit those standards then she isn't pretty enough or at all.

In this picture it shows how this girl put on perfume and her scent is attracting men so it seems like an invitation. The guys seem to think she put on the perfume for them to notice her and the one guy is on top of her because he thinks that she wants the attentions.

Works Citied

Berger, John. "Ways of Seeing." British Broadcasting Corporation, 1972, pp. 45-64.

Hooks, Bell. "The Will to Change." Washington Square Press, 2004, pp. 17-33.

⚈ MALE GAZE AND PATRIARCHY ⚈

               The male gaze started coming about by a film critic named Laura Mulvey that described the sexual angle of females to males. The male gaze is based on a feminist theory which is the act of depicting women and the world. In the arts which are from a masculine perspective that presents and represents women as sexual objects for the pleasure of the male viewer. The male gaze has three main visual perspectives which are known to be the man painting the artwork, the male character within the artwork itself, and lastly from a spectator sexual judgment at the image of the female. John Berger defines male gaze a whole different way by saying that the artwork is meant to be seen by a male’s vision which determines not only most relations between men and women but also the relation of women to themselves. John Berger wrote a book called ‘Ways of seeing’ which was published in 1972. When men look at women in an art piece it’s usually to look for something that they like; more like something like an object. The male gaze is known to objectifying and dehumanizing women which is unwanted in the art culture. That is not the only issue in society it was also the patriarchal system that plays a big part in gender roles within society. Another author named Bell Hooks' wrote a book called "The Will To Change," which talks about how society wants a male and a female to act. A male should always act tough because he always needs to be in control, whereas, a female is only kept as a housewife and to bear children.

Nell Gwynne By Lely 1618-1680

            The first thing that comes to mind when Berger mentions male gaze was how males paint the artwork and how women are mostly submissive when being drawn which shows the male is in power. Which simply means the way the viewer views someone being naked or nude. In Berger’s novel is states, “To be naked is to be oneself. To be nude is to be seen naked by others and yet not recognized to become a nude, A naked body has to be seen as an object to become nude, (The sight of it as an object stimulates the use of it as an object.” Nakedness reveals itself. Nudity is placed as display” (Berger 54). What Berger is trying to get at by stating this quote was to show the one behind the camera can determine to see if the women are naked or not. It is for the viewer's point of view on the piece. Another statement that Berger makes was, “This nakedness is not, however, an expression of her feelings; it is a sign of her submission to the owner’s feelings or demands. (The owner of both woman and painting.) The painting, when the king showed it to others, demonstrated this submission and his guest envied him” (Berger 52). This almost shows how the artist wants to show his prize to others and to show the other views of what the cameraman has captured.

LA Grande Odalisque By Ingres 1780-1867

               On the other hand, Berger talks about how the women in the painting are either looking at herself using a mirror or looking out to the spectator which is considered her true lover. Berger states, “But the woman’s attention is very rarely directed towards him. Often, she looks away from or she looks out of the picture towards the one who considers himself her true lover- the spectator- owner: (Berger 56).  The women in the painting below show how much the man is looking at her as an object, but she is looking in the opposite direction to look at the viewer. Berger states, “You painted a naked woman because you enjoy looking at her, you put a mirror in her hand and you called the painting Vanity, thus morally condemning the woman whose nakedness you had depicted for your pleasure” (Berger 51). The function of the whole mirror and vanity perspective was to make the woman treat herself as a sight which is always sexualized. If the painter paints a mirror the whole painting changed, but the viewer views the woman as an object.

Bacchus, Ceres And Cupid by Von Aachen 1552-1615

Vanity By Memling 1435-1494

              John Berger illustrated that the man are the most powerful human beings and the women are vulnerable creatures. Berger states, “If a woman throws a glass on the floor, this is an example of how she treats her own emotion of anger and so how she would wish to be treated by others. If a man does the same, his actions are only read as an expression of his anger” (Berger 47). What Berger is trying to convey was that females are not important enough for them to express their sentiment about something, but is a man does it; it shows that the man is expressing his emotions with is considered masculine. Men are held at a higher standard because they are not allowed to show to much emotion with will cause them to become lesser of a man. Which ties to how patriarchy affects society.

Adam and Eve by Mabuse Early Sixteenth Century

                  In Bell Hooks’ “The Will to Change,” he described the ‘disease’ known as patriarchy. The meaning of patriarchy is a system where men maintain the power in society and women are instructed to be idle or in other words lazy. Hooks states, “Patriarchy is the single most life-threatening social disease assaulting the male body and spirit in our nation. Yet most men do not use the word ‘patriarchy’ in everyday life” (Hooks 17). Hooks are saying how are you going to put men and patriarchy in the same sentence when they don’t even know the word, meaning, or even how to spell the word. It is completely non-sense of how high they put men and how little they know. Hooks states, “By highlighting psychological patriarchy, we see that everyone is implicated and we are freed from the misperception that men are the enemy. To end patriarchy, we must challenge both its psychological and its concrete manifestations in daily life” (Hooks 33). Not only are the women being effected by patriarchy; also, men are suffering by it too. To categorize people is to dictate and to have power on someone’s life which is not freedom. The men always have to be the tougher guy or the one in charge 24/7 and the women have to be lazy and submissive at all times because “she doesn’t know a lot like a man.” Not only do they choose to act like that, but it is tough by the parents. Hooks' states, "Both our parents believed in patriarchy; they had been taught patriarchal thinking through religion. At church they had learned that God created man to rule the world and everything in it and that it was the work of men to help men perform these tasks, to obey, and to always assume a subordinate role in relation to a powerful man" (Hooks' 18). Hooks' explains that patriarchy didn't just appear out of nowhere and that it happened ever since Adam and Eve were on this earth. It is passed down from generation to generation and it won't stop because it is embedded that it is the social norm. It is how life is supposed to be.

       In conclusion, Berger and Hooks' tie together how society sees men and women. Berger focuses more on the way the men look at the female which dictates how she looks in the artwork and Hooks' focuses on the role that the genders have to play to be accepted in society.

Works Cited:

Berger, John. (2008). Ways of seeing. London: British Broadcasting Corporation.

  

     Hooks, Bell. (2005). The will to change: men, masculinity, and love. New York: Simon & Schuster.