What does it mean to be a man? To many people, it means engaging in physically demanding activities, such as playing sports or manual labor. Just the word "masculine" conjures up images of action movies, explosions, and fearless heroes whose ability to make jokes in dangerous situations borders on sociopathy. But by definition alone, "masculine" simply means "of or like men or boys; male." "Machismo," on the other hand, is defines as "overly virile; domineering." Throughout our lives, society teaches us that "machismo" and "masculinity" are one and the same. This idea could not be further from the truth. While a man may show qualities of machismo, they are not required to be considered masculine. This brings us back to the beginning: What does it mean to be a man? I believe that what makes a man a man is adherence to principles.
In her essay "Why Men Don't Last: Self-Destruction as a Way of Life," Natalie Angier examines the reasons why men have a shorter average life span than women, and why more men than women die every year. One of these reasons is that "men are natural risk-takers, given to showy displays of bravado, aggression and daring . . ." (Angier 372). According to Linda Chamberlain, a psychologist who specializes in treating compulsive gambling, "[m]en . . . like the feeling of being a player, and taking on a struggle with the house to show that they can overcome the odds and beat the system" (qtd. in Angier 372). Chamberlain also explains that male gamblers often exhibit the aforementioned risk-taking behavior. The "traditional image" of manhood appears to be little more than a violation of common sense. The purpose for this behavior is often to attract a mate, and in the past, it would have served a m...
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.... To quote Thomas Jefferson, "In matters of principle, stand like a rock."
A man can choose not to take unnecessary risks. He can openly express his emotions. He can ask for help when he thinks he needs it. He can do all of these things, and they will not make him any less masculine. His occupation, tastes, and sexual orientation are irrelevant. So long as he adheres to the principles he sets for himself, he is a man.
Works Cited
Angier, Natalie. "Why Men Don't Last: Self-Destruction as a Way of Life." The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. 10th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2008. Print
Goodlad, Lauren. "Why We Love 'Mad Men.'" Muller. 517-21.
Muller, Gilbert H., ed. The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines. 11th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2011. Print
Rodriguez, Richard. "Family Values." Muller. 321-27.
When someone is thinking of a man, what do they think? Strong? Brave? That’s what most people think; in reality that is a very false image. In “Bros Before Hos: The Guy Code,” Michael Kimmel, talks about what it means to be a man and what it takes to be a man in today’s world. Men are pressured into what they “should” be. If they don’t follow certain unwritten rules, which include: not asking for directions, not giving up, not showing fear, or any signs of emotional weakness, such as tears; they are considered less than a man, a wimp. A real man must be aggressive and brave, he must defend his territory: status, family, possessions. Men blindly follow the Guy Code, they believe in order to fit in, they must comply and be part of the pack.
The concept of masculinity is considered as the qualities and characteristics of a man, typical what is appropriate to a man. In this article, A Community Psychology of Men and Masculinity: Historical and Conceptual Review, The author Eric S. Mankowski and Kenneth I. Maton, analyze four main themes: "Men as gendered beings, the privilege and damage of being a masculine man, men as a privileged group, and men’s power and subjective powerlessness. The second and fourth themes are described as
The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines. 8th edition, Ed. &. Gilbert H. Muller, b. 1875. New York: McGraw Hill, 2003. 305-308.
All over the world Masculinity has many different cultural definitions. Depending where someone is from, and what they were brought up to believe, defines what the term “masculinity” entails. Different Social institutions all over the United States, such as the military, sports, clubs, and fraternities, have been constructing their interpretation of masculinity. One major social institution that is active in thousands of Universities across the United States is campus fraternities. Campus fraternities create their own sense of masculinity by generating certain requirements and characteristics a man must hold in order to represent them as a part of their fraternity.
6th ed. of the book. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, 2011. Print. The.
Ed. Larry Madaras and James M. Sorelle. 14th Edition. The. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2011.
While we tend to look at the world in a gendered fashion, there are differences in what’s considered masculine and feminine. In addition to varying from person to person, the concepts of masculinity and femininity also vary across time periods, across different cultures, and even across the span of an individual’s life. Kimmel pluralizes these terms to “acknowledge that masculinity and femininity mean different things to different groups of people at different times” (Kimmel; 10). He goes on further to reference sociologist R. W. Connell’s explanation of hegemonic masculinity, which states that it is “constructed in relation to various subordinated masculinities as well as in relation to women” (Kimmel; 10). In an article by Connell, he describes
Masculinity is described as possession of attributes considered typical of a man. Hegemonic masculinity is a form of masculine character with cultural idealism and emphasis that connects masculinity to competitiveness, toughness, and women subordination. Masculinity hegemonic is the enforcement of male dominion over a society. Masculine ideology dates back to the time of agrarian and the industrial revolution in Europe when survival compelled men to leave their homesteads to work in industries to earn a living for their families while women remained at home to take care of family affairs (Good and Sherrod 210). Women did not work in industries then because industrial labor was considered too physical beyond their capacity. This led to definition of roles which placated the position of men in a society while condemning women as mere subordinates who cannot do without men. The critics of gender stereotypes in America describe the following five hegemonic features of masculinity: frontiersman ship, heterosexuality, occupational achievement, familial patriarchy, and physical force and control (Trujillo 4). The advent of the 20th century led to sweeping changes in American masculinity.
Spiceland, David, Jim Sepe, and Mark NelsonGlobal Edition. New York: McGraw Hill, 2012. 258-264. Print.
The topics that Joe Ehrmann uses as framework for his Building Men for Others program are quite intriguing and make you really question masculinity. The first topic, rejecting false masculinity, can be interpreted a few different ways. In the book, it states: “As young boys, we’re told to be men, or to act like men” soon followed with “we’ve got all these parents say ‘be a man’ to boys that have no concept of what that means. I completely agree with the statement of Joe Ehrmann and often question the definition of ‘being a man’. Many boys and men will reject the idea of a man being anything other than being big and strong or having power.
Different from female and male which can describe animals, femininity and masculinity are personal and human. That is femininity refers to qualities and behaviors associated with women and girls and masculinity is manly character, it specifically describes men. Femininity has traditionally included features such as gentleness, patience and kindness. On the contrary, men?s chief qualities are strength, courage and violence.
...apons, men can easily kill each other off, but that is acting out of society's rules, which are set for the maintenance of order within a civilization. This can result in negative feelings such as unhappiness and anxiety for men, however. It evidently shows that bottling up one's instincts and drives is self-destructing, but going out and killing or sexually assaulting anybody is also very destructive. It is an ongoing internal battle.
Renzetti, C. M., Curran, D. J., & Maier, S. L. (2012). Women, men, and society. Boston: Pearson.
They have to live up to societies expectations, which states that men are able to be providers (breadwinners). Furthermore, due to the biological advantage of being able to bear children, women are automatically viewed as women, however; men must prove their “manhood”. Men are also termed as being “macho” which entails a complex variety of attitudes, expectations and performances (Wilson 1969). As in the case of Puerto Rico, men are socialized from childhood to be aggressive and even the use of male is interchangeable with the word “macho”. The male has to express himself with caution so as not to be perceived as feminine or weak, for example he should not cry or become emotional. At times, being unemployed or unable to provide for his family, cause males to feel “less than a man” and their self esteem and worth is threatened. A mans ability to financially secure his family, display his sexual prowess, pass on his family names wins him respect and proves his manhood. According to (Wilson 1969) male morality becomes the center of a rational system of value and their virility is manifested in their sexual activities and
Theroux, Paul. "Being a Man." The McGraw -Hill Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines 8th edition. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. Boston: Mc-Graw-Hill, 2003.