Theory:
HOW THE MEDIA INFLUENCES WOMEN
The Male Gaze, Self-Objectification, and the Beauty Myth
Who are you? For women, even more important than any academic, athletic, social, career, and artistic accomplishments is their beauty and the way they look in the construction of her identity.
In our society, a woman's subjective attractiveness can have real impacts on her life. Overweight women face discrimination in their jobs. Women often treat beauty as a social currency and popularity and romantic relationships are often correlated with beauty. Women are aware of the value that our society places on beauty and makes efforts to improve theirs, looking to the media as a guide.
The Media
In the media, including television, advertisements, the music industry, and the fashion industry, women are often depicted through the male gaze and are objectified. They are shown in a way that highlights their body, usually, an aspect of their body and women are taught of the power that they have in their physical self. The media is often created by white men and present a certain type of beauty and acceptable features that can oppress women who do not fit the unrealistic, skinny and white beauty expectations.
Examples of the Objectification and Hypersexualization of women in the media
Click through this slideshow for examples of objectification and hypersexualization of women in the media
Objectification Theory
As defined by Fredrickson and Roberts
“Objectification theory possess that girls and women are typically a culture to internalize an observer's perspective as a primary view of their physical self.”
Self-objectification occurs when women internalize the representation of women in the media and view their bodies from the perspective of a third person. They begin to care more about how others think they should look than how they feel. This can lead to issues in disordered eating, anxiety, and depression. In a study where women wore either a sweatshirt or a swim shirt and looked in the mirror, the women in the swimsuit ate less of the cookie even though they reported that it tasted just as good as sweater group. This shows that women constantly monitor their body and that monitoring influences their decisions around food. ​
In her novel, "The Beauty Myth", Virginia Wolf argues that the idea of feminine beauty is a cultural conspiracy created to oppress women and sell products. The media places value in beauty and creates an unrealistic expectation for women to follow. This leaves women constantly feeling less than through their whole lives and keeps industries like the fashion and beauty industry making billions of dollars each year off of women's insecurities.
Want to learn more?
Watch this TED talk on Beauty Sickness