English Essay
Q3
Texts used : The Altar of the Family and At Seventeen
Traditionally, society views males as strong, aggressive, dominant and unemotional individuals while females play unimportant and demure roles within society. Sheila Morehead’s “At Seventeen” and Michael Wilding’s “The Altar of the Family” challenge this idea of masculinity and gender roles, “The Altar of the Family” especially does this as the protagonist of the short story is a young boy, David. David is constructed to challenge the stereotypes of masculinity and through this the author is able to push the message that being a man doesn’t mean you need to conform to these gender stereotypes and not conforming to the stereotypes doesn’t result in being a failure as a person. “At Seventeen” and “The altar of the family” are constructed to make you agree that being masculine doesn’t require conforming to male stereotypes. Both authors use characterisation, point of view, descriptive language and conflict to convey this opinion.
Characterisation in both texts help push the idea that manhood isn’t just about being strong, emotionless and almost robot like. David from The Altar of the Family completely flips masculinity on its head by being a “damn grown boy playing with dolls” this quote tells us that David is different than his normal male counterpart but also asks the reader the question of what defines manhood and if playing with dolls is a non-masculine thing for a male to do. David also is insulted
In discussing the many facets of masculinity among young men, one key issue has been the correlation it has with several developmental concerns. In Michael Kimmel’s 2008 publication “Bros Before Hos: The Guy Code”, he talks about how men believe manhood is really achieved. More specifically, he talks about “Guy Code”, the universal rulebook that all men must follow if they wish to remain in good standing among their fellow man. These rules are taught as early as their toddler years.
When one thinks about masculinity it is characteristically applied to males, and when it is applied to females it is not a complement. Both Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin and Beebo Brinker by Ann Bannon toy with the idea of masculinity. The only difference in the way they use masculinity is the bodies they chose to apply them to. Baldwin chooses to apply masculinity to the typical man, and Bannon applies to a female character. Baldwin applies masculinity to the character of David, and by doing this it causes David to match the ideals of heteronormativity.
“The Myth of the Alpha Male” by Scott Barry Kaufman highlights the historical distinction between the two types of men, ‘alpha’ and ‘beta,’ in order to debunk the ‘persistent myth’ between these dichotomies. Kaufman draws attentions to males and the male societal expectations in a way that challenges the male stereotypes in order to develop a commentary on the cultural paradigm and introduce the concept of the prestigious male. In this piece, Kaufman presents drastic ideas, challenging the two categories of perceived males, ‘alpha’ and ‘beta.’ This is done in order to draw attention to the societal expectations of males and highlight the stereotypes of males.
Today’s culture sees manhood as being strong, fighting and doing dangerous things, but this is not how it is portrayed in this movie. The theme of manhood is portrayed through the transformation that takes place in the life of Josh Birdwell, the oldest child of the Birdwell family. When we first meet the Birdwells, Josh is an ordinary Indiana young adult of the time period, picking on his younger brother and
The Holy Family by Mattia Preti depicts a man, woman, and baby. Throughout the painting, Preti utilizes color, illusion, and brushstrokes from an amalgam of artistic techniques to lead the viewer’s eye, and emphasize specific aspects. Color: Preti uses color to convey a variety of depictions within the painting. Through a limited palette of primary colors, Preti saturates the blue, red, and yellow to create a neutral color. Preti utilizes color to lead the viewer’s eye.
Over time, the thought patterns of many individuals mould to believe only one perception of what is morally acceptable— a perception that is completely faulty. The ideology of the male body and demeanor is only one of the many societal norms constructed by the media, and it alone can result in mental health fatalities, mass violence, or the mere elimination of self-identity whilst attempting to meet the ever-changing ideals of masculinity. The continuous and stereotypical depiction of masculinity in the media has idealized invulnerability, toughness and physical strength as the sole qualities of a ‘true man’. As a result, the complexity of masculinity is flattened, and immense pressures are placed on individuals to meet requirements that are entirely faulty. According to Katz, cultures, topics, and even genders are not one-dimensional; in order to fully comprehend the meaning the entirety of something, one must look at more than its representation in the media.
Boys to Men In the essay What Does “Boys Will Be Boys” Really Mean, the author Deborah Roffman explains how people perceive and classify boys to be extremely messy in their actions and continuously receive passes for their unacceptable behavior. In the essay How Boys Become Men, the statement “Boys Will Be Boys” expresses how the rules boys set for themselves in their childhood unintentionally effects the decisions they make in their adulthood. The two essays focus on different situations but they come together with the same opinion about men and boys; of whom they focus on the most. One essay focuses mainly on how boys behave and the reason why people classify them the way they do, whereas, the other essay focuses on the effects of how boys learn to behave a certain way and grows into adolescents with the same behavior.
Masculinity. It can be argued that no one word has undergone such a dramatic shift during the past century, as masculinity. In many ways J.D. Salinger’s groundbreaking novel, “The Catcher in the Rye”, and its main protagonist, Holden Caulfield, were both ahead of their time as they realized masculinity could not have a uniform definition. The reader is led on a journey by Holden, from fancy prep schools to the tough streets of New York City, all in the search for one thing: the meaning of masculinity. Holden’s search for identity culminates in his failure to conform to societal standards of masculinity, allowing Salinger to effectively question the need for such strict standards which seemingly only inhibit personal growth.
This act of defying social norms can be seen in the poem “Bedecked” by Victoria Redel, as she depicts her son breaking stereotypical gender norms in various ways. Similarly, in the poem “In Praise of My Young Husband” by Cathleen
Within the text Alter of the family the author Michael Wilding has written about a dad who thinks highly of his son and doesn’t want his son to be seen as feminine, which back when this was written, would have been seen as
Being a man today can be tough. The society a boy grows up in has a wide variety of ideals of what it is to be a man. A boy may see many contradictions of what it takes to be a man depending on the digital media he sees or the company he keeps. It can be difficult to make any sense out what it means to be a man. One avenue shows boys they can grow up to wear makeup and dress like women.
Throughout this sociological investigation, the notion of ’’masculinity’’ will be explored, examined and dissected as well as the concept and the idea of what it means to be a man in the eyes of an individual themselves as well as society as a whole. One may note that this investigation will intertwine and relate to the woks of Lorber (1996), Connell (1995) as well as various other pieces of academic literature and research. It is evident to note that further research has been done in the form of a one-on-one live interaction with a Mr Andrew James. This interview will explore the paradigms of what it means to be a man and what is considered to be masculine from the view point of a heterosexual male and thus illustrating the stereotypical thoughts that are associated with what a man ‘’should be.’’ Before one starts to explore to notion of masculinity and what is meant be the term man, one first needs to differentiate and find a distinction between the notion of sex and gender.
It is in one's power to decide whether or not to conform to society. Indeed both texts include many similarities and differences such as the stereotypical roles set on each gender, their search for individuality and their desired privileges. While approaching adulthood, many people encounter obstacles which lead their understanding to a fact that gender stereotypes do not only occur for women but, for men as well. The narrator in Boys and Girls discovers the societies’ views and expectations of her.
Through his psychoanalytic theory the writer respectfully expounds males identify with masculinity by not behaving as their female caretakers act. Mr. Carter based
David looked like a ferret. He was polite, a gentleman to a fault, I disliked him in seconds. Perpetually bored, often subdued, David gave the outward of appearance of a kind, older man. The truth was he had feminine qualities, the worst of them. He fought hard to mask them, but if he failed to get what he wanted, he gave away the secret.