Infection of the Gaze

The male gaze involves the psychology of scopophilic, which is taking pleasure in looking at a person as a sexual object. The male gaze within media, women are to be looked at while men take the active role as the looker,the voyeur. The the use of the male gaze has been rewarded and has become an infection,used as a weapon on consumers. The sexual innuendo used in advertisements and cinema also appear in Japanese animations.

In anime, it has been called "fan service" for the use of sexual innuendo or revealing shots. This is used to abuse the male gaze, for people aren't restricted for looking at women as a sexual object. Because it is an animation, the women viewed in anime are just fantasy women who do not exist. In a sense the producers are justifying the use of the male gaze for the sake of profit. It does not help that abusing the male gaze in media works, or it would not be deemed profitable. Producers find profit in selling figurines of these anime characters in poses filled with sexual innuendo, such strategy works in advertisement as well.

THE OTHER GAZE

The oppositional gaze is critical thinking of the black women spectators of the white male dominant control of the portrayal of a black woman in media. The oppositional gaze has developed as the black female spectators watching movies and watching the portrayal black women media. They feel compelled to sacrifice not think too deeply into the movies to enjoy it.

The oppositional gaze grew as individual black women actively resist the dominant ways of how they are perceived. Because in past portrayals of black women in media such as the character "Sapphire" from Amos 'n' Andy. In the reading by Bell Hooks, "They resented the way she was mocked. They resented the way these screen images could assault black womanhood, could name us bitches, nags." This representation when use of critical thought is applied, they feel objectified and dehumanized.

The oppositional gaze told by Bell Hooks helped created a critical thinking about black women spectators. To help rethink black female subjectivity and black female spectatorship.I have already been aware when watching animations, of the recent abuse of "fan service" and the use of the male gaze. Understanding why that the male gaze is abuse makes watching these new animations more tolerable. In a sense I too have gained an oppositional gaze against the abuse of sexual innuendo within media. There shouldn't be an excess of innuendo as I feel it beings down the story. Profits are made at the expense of the story of the animation, and at the expense of women in general.