Male Gaze or Female Gaze? The 21st Century Corset

As the ideal of a “powerful woman” becomes increasingly monolithic — demanding toughness, economic independence, and distance from the domestic sphere — it risks becoming another edifice. In this piece, I juxtapose drooling male faces against side-eyeing female faces. The former evokes sexualization under the male gaze, while the latter reflects societal disdain toward women with conventionally feminine traits. The beaded words “you have to be caring and attractive but also strong and independent” expose the paradoxical standards coming from both genders. The shape of the corset symbolizes the repressive nature of both gazes.

This work invites reflection on how feminism has helped us discard the literal corset, yet reduced, performative interpretations can create a new mental “corset” that continues to restrain women’s autonomy.