Through Ways of Seeing: Malèna

When we consider the subject in terms of gender and gender norms, being a woman appears as a phenomenon that we can classify and give meaning to within relation to men, that we do not need to think about, and that has always existed and will always exist as a category that has taken place in all of our lives as the superior somehow. As John Berger mentions in his book "Ways Of Seeing," throughout history, in paintings, in social settings, in politics, and nearly in every aspect of life, men gaze, while women are exposed in a certain way to that gaze.

But why?

To address this issue, the article will take a closer look at the movie "Malèna" with as few spoilers as possible.

Throughout the film, it is seen that Malèna is portrayed as a dazzling center of attention for other men, found very attractive by them. In this context, Malèna can be described as a beautiful woman who is not around her husband due to his military duty and is pushed into loneliness due to her father believing the rumors about her and moving away from her. Although it can be inferred from her behavior and actions that she does not like this attention and is disturbed by it, in this movie, told from the eyes of a boy, it is seen that Malèna is found responsible and guilty for other men's desire for her, no matter what she does, and even after the bad treatment she is subjected to is her fault.

Towards the end, when things get more complicated, Malèna's transformation and acceptance of the attention around her, and her presence in the city square with her head held high rather than walking with her eyes on the ground, brings the audience together with this iconic scene that we have all come across and seen at some point.

The dynamics of Malèna, who is seen as a threat and disliked by the other women of the city throughout the film, with other female characters during the changes she undergoes, can be considered as an essential factor that shows how the male gaze perspective operates on all of us in social life, regardless of gender.

The fact that we, as the audience, did not know what Malèna was thinking throughout the film. Watching her from afar did not prevent us from empathizing with her and the feelings that she probably went through because of the approaches she was exposed to in her daily life. The shooting method and cinematography of the film can easily be considered as a visualization of the situation in which women exist by being seen through the male eye, which also refers to what John Berger talked about in his book Ways of Seeing:

"Men look at women, women watch themselves being looked at; A woman thus turns herself into an object - an object of vision, a sight."

For those who are interested, a section from the video series in which John Berger explains his book Ways of Seeing: https://youtu.be/5jTUebm73IY?si=str_DV4jIkQXZaDN