Modernity: Spectatorship, Power, and Knowledge

Seeing an image requires the analyzation of several different factors. The context that the image is being seen (objects surrounding it), the medium we are looking through (TV, picture frame, billboard, etc), and the environment we are in (quiet room, busy bus station, etc)--all of these
factors contribute to experience of the spectator. The context in which spectatorship can be viewed is an interactive, multi-model, and relational field. It is an all-encompassing field basically, wherein the looker's "gaze" is subject to analyzation. The way a male gazes is different from the way a female gazes. Or a kid from an adult. The way the image "speaks" to a viewer depends on so many variables, making it difficult to predict reaction. Gazing, in my opinion anyway, is different than looking. It seems to be imploring some sort of depth from an image. For instance, when a man gazes at a beautiful photo of a woman, he is fixed by her allure. Historically, males look at women. Women acting as the objects for entertainment and allurement. Recently, males are now switching places with females, taking on the role of model.

Images have power. Foucault understood the power of spectatorship. His theory of the panopticon emphasizes the human control that can be gained by an 'unseen spectator.' The modern day equivalent that is basically everywhere we go. Video survellience covers most of public America, watching us 24/7. "Foucault did not stay within the walls of the prison or the hospital however, and it important to complicate notions of surveillance. It is not really in fact about Big Brother! Foucault was concerned also to map how such panoptic intentions are radiated throughout society (Wikipedia)." The big brother factor (CCTV) can influence a massive group of people without ever having to intervene or physically punish and correct. It is the fear of being watched that prevents crime.

Gender and Gaze: