The male gaze

 In Greek mythology, we all know Medusa as one of the three Gorgons, a monster. People describe her as ugly and scary. She had a head full of snakes instead of hair and skin hue that was almost revolting to see. Those who gazed into Medusa's eyes would turn to stone, but this wasn't just anyone and everyone. Medusa's curse was strictly bound to her turning men to stone. 

Medusa's story isn't fully understood by many. People view her as a villain when she is a victim of patriarchal social norms. Medusa was disciplined for a man's actions. She's a woman who had her bodily autonomy taken away from her. She got forced to live a life she did not choose. Medusa was once a beautiful woman with gorgeous hair and mesmerising eyes, but that all changed when Poseidon, the God of the sea attempted to seduce Medusa in the temple of Athena, which is known for its purity. Medusa rejected Poseidon's advance. He did not accept the rejection and forced himself onto Medusa. She managed to escape and ran to seek help in the temple of Athena but Poseidon followed her and took advantage of her weakness by force, sexually harassing her. Athena did not react well to this. Rather than comforting Medusa and punishing Poseidon, she punished Medusa by turning her into an ugly beast. Any man who laid eyes on Medusa turned to stone, and Poseidon suffered no consequence for his actions.

Medusa has recently become a symbol of feminine rage for women fighting against male oppression, giving women a voice in their stories. Feminists often use Medusa's story to shift the blame for rape away from the victim and back onto the culture that fosters male sexual aggression.

Modern society is no different from Athena in the same situation, Blaming the victim and punishing them for someone else's actions.

In sexual assault cases,  such as the sexual assault case of Rose McGowan, it's common for the victim to get blamed for what happened to them simply because of what they were wearing. It's common for people to say the victim was "asking for it" because they were showing a little too much skin. Somehow clothes speak louder than words. If a woman shows even a bit of skin to a guy that apparently means he can just put his hands on her despite her words saying "no".

The male gaze is fundamentally the notion that society conditions all of us to view women and think of women as sex objects; typically to cater for a largely male audience. The male gaze is seen in the media, movies, tv shows, cartoons and even music. The way women are depicted in a majority of movies is hyper-sexualised and that's because they want the largely male audience to enjoy the female characters, to do that they will accentuate certain sexualised features of a woman whether that be the chest, hips or entire lower body, take the Incredibles for an example, Mrs incredible has unrealistic body proportions to keep the older male audience intrigued. In most action movies they'll make the women wear ridiculously revealing body suits that are also super tight and not practical at all while the men wear armour and more practical pieces of clothing. In lots of other TV shows such as game of thrones, they'll have the woman act submissive or act like a damsel in distress typically to cater to a male audience. In the music industry, the male gaze is plastered over any rap song you've ever heard.

The male gaze has also made its way into our education system, women typically have more of a dress code- however that is essential to prevent the male gaze from happening. Women are told not to wear any clothes that show any unnecessary skin but this doesn't apply to men.

In the media the male gaze is plastered everywhere, women who are typically influencers edit their photos to fit the succumb to the beauty standard that has been depicted by our society about what men like, which is usually fundamentally being short and having a big chest, small waist and big butt.

Some women typically look up to Medusa's curse, her gaze that turns men to stone. It's viewed as a sort of counter to the male gaze, a shield, a reminder that men don't own women