The Oppositional Gaze: Black Female Spectators

Gaze in critical theory refers to the acts of seeing and being seen. Within a hegemonic culture that hinges on racism and sexism, the concept of gaze and who is permitted (or perhaps, well positioned) to have one has been microcosmic of the relations of power which inform these notions. This is especially evident within film. Hollywood cinema has long since been identified as a space of knowledge production and dissemination, with a wide reach and huge power.