The Male Gaze and Patriarchy
According to John Berger The Male Gaze is the way women are portrayed in paintings and how men (the intended audience) view them. Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at. Berger argues that in European art from the Renaissance onward women were depicted as being aware of being seen by a male spectator. Berger adds that at least from the seventeenth century, paintings of female nudes reflected the woman’s submission to the owner of both woman and painting. Berger insisted that women were depicted in a different way to men because the spectator is always assumed to be male and the image of the woman is designed to flatter him. This idea of The Male Gaze still surrounds us in modern TV ads and commercials. For instance, in a Victoria's Secret add the viewer is most of the time a guy which is why the women are sometimes portrayed in sexual manners. This gives the man the idea of power and that the woman is less powerful than him. This could even go further as to say that the man owns the woman in the add. The male gaze objectifies the woman in the paintings and makes less of them than what they are. Its makes them an object only there is satisfy the man who is viewing them.

Bell Hooks describes Patriarchy as a political and social system that suggest that males are inherently superior to everyone and everything. The men are the leader of the house and they control most of the operations that take place. they are the breadwinners and the ones in charge. The women are the ones who under the men’s control at all times. They stay home and clean the house as well as take care of the kids and make sure everything's running smoothly. Bell Hook loves to play marbles and this illustrates the idea of the patriarchy because she couldn’t play with the kids in the street. She was a girl and it was out of place for a girl to play with things like marbles with guys. The idea of the nuclear family being the only successful type of family is the thing holding patriarchy up . The idea that men are the most important aspect of the family is setting all families back. Now challenging patriarchy is something that has been ongoing for countless generations, and it will take many more before it can finally be eliminated. This is essential for those of all gender identities. The most important aspect is going after families and what they teach their children. It is important that mothers and fathers sit with their children and educate them on the importance of acceptance and the idea of equality.