Masculinity In Robert Jensen's The High Cost Of Manliness

Gender rules the world in mainstream America whether we like it or not. As we look through our gender glasses we see gender on an individual level that we also categorize. In the movie “Tough Guise 2- Violence, Manhood & American culture” we see some of the oldest perspectives know in gender; femininity and masculinity. When we talk about masculinity in America today we theorize that violence that happens more often than we like, from mass shootings or crime in general, including rape and murders in the real world and in the virtual thrill world of videogames and movies we find a parallel connection of masculinity as violent. Even though an overwhelming majority of violence is committed by men and boys we as americans rarely connect gender as a major key in violence. But when we lay out the plane lines about culture of violence were almost always hinting that it is a masculine trait that is a taught behavior. The modern society has conjured up the idea of the ideal man, that showing emotions is wrong but one must be charming, seeming smartish but more of an attitude of control showing that manhood has a hierarchy. Weakening the not so tough guy, society giving them labels to show they are outside of the gender binary. Giving american men the natural behavior to want to produce a manhood that is harsh but welcomed We see this want cultivated in today's pop culture from movies to tv shows that have hypermasculinized the idea of the ideal man being a womanizer on sexual conquest leading men in the real world to feel lonely because they can't meet the ideals men's quota.

Survival is a pivotal condition that can reveal many different insights within the modern human condition through its revealing near death experiences. These kinds of experiences transformed the main survivalists in James Dickey’s novel, Deliverance. Dickey sets the arena for survival in a forest that is inhabited by murderous men who are in pursuit of the four main characters. These four businessmen men decided to take a canoe trip to temporarily get a break from their jobs, only to encounter death, pain, and most importantly survival. These conditions test each characters instincts, especially Ed, who is responsible for bringing the rest of the surviving men back to safety. This environment forces the men to make many decisions that often leave the men in a state of hopelessness and desperation. Through these traits they exhibit and situations they encounter, their masculinity is constantly being tested which can reveal their deeper insights and logic. Through

The author of this article is Robert Jensen. He is a journalist professor at the University of Texas at Austin. Jensen’s writing and teaching focus on interrogating power structures of race and gender. He also wrote and published The End of Masculinity; therefore this is a topic that he feels really strongly about. Jensen first published the article “The High Cost of Manliness” to argue for an end to the conception of manliness.

Aaron Devor discusses the patriarchally-expected gender roles of today’s society. He delves into the discussion of femininity versus masculinity. Society associates femininity with weakness, whilst associating masculinity with greatness.

History has repeatedly given men privilege due to their physical advantages; yet it is these same advantages that have developed into “rules” or expectations that all men should conform to in order to prove their manhood. Michael Kimmel’s essay, “‘Bros Before Hos': The Guy Code” outlines the “rules” where men are expected to never show any emotions, be brave, act knowledgeable, be risk takers, be in control, act reliable, and be competitive, otherwise they would be showing weakness which is analogous to women. It is humiliating that men associate weakness with women; they should focus on the potential of the individual rather than their gender. Most insults toward men attack their masculinity because society finds it shameful for men to be

Research claims that the term ‘masculinity’ can offer insight into men’s social identity as it “consist of those behaviors, languages and practices, existing in specific cultural and organizational locations which are commonly associated with males…” (Itulua-Abumere, 2013 pg.1). Despite this, there are societal and personal definitions of what it means to be masculine and how masculinities can be performed, however, most men aspire towards ‘hegemonic masculinity’ (Carrigan et al., 2004; Connell and Messerschmidt, 2005). The concept hegemonic masculinity explains society’s ideology of what it is to be a real man (i.e. being a breadwinner, tough, dominant and violent), and advises against behaviours that would make males appear unmanly and feminine

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.

There is a lot of pressure on men in society to be manly; however, what exactly does it mean to be manly? Though many people have different opinions, a lot of them conclude that a man has to be strong and somewhat emotionless to be considered a man. This assumption can lead to Toxic Masculinity, which is “A false idea that men are expected to be as manly as possible” (The Hard, Adrenaline-Soaked Truth About 'Toxic Masculinity, 2017). Men are forced to face these assumptions not only from those around him, but also from people he might see in Media. Media reinforces Toxic Masculinity which in turn causes men to belittle women. The types of media that encourage Toxic Masculinity are Television, Music, and Social Media.

Both articles relate to this concept in explaining how society and culture have created a patriarchic society in which the dominant gender is male. Gender affects how we think of ourselves due to the social expectations associated with being masculine or feminine, male or female. Society teaches us how to behave by having an establishing certain guidelines through gender roles. In other words, we are expected to follow a certain behavior due to our sex or gender. Males are expected to be leaders, tough, ambitious and proud while females are expected to be emotional, sensitive and affectionate patient, and

If someone asked you what it means to be a man, what would you say? Would you give an example of a person you think is manly like William Wallace? Or would give definitions like strong, courageous, loving, and adventurous? There are countless examples of what people think it means to be a man. God specifically created a man to be manly. But, what does it mean to be a true man? This is the critical question many men ask themselves today. If they don’t know what it means to be a man, how can men truly live? Now, we shall explore the realms of masculinity and discover the secrets of men.

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Stereotyping is not something that only happens with women; men are meant to fit a certain standard, and those who fail to do this are the target of insults. “Be a man,” “suck it up,” and “don’t cry” are only a few phrases handpicked from a plentiful selection of ego-damaging constructions built into today's society, aimed at boys and men. Reinforcing rhetoric that feminizes emotional expression and masculinizes violence has the power to stunt empathy, drive dominance, and connect respect with fear. Boys are born loving creatures, but at a very young age they are taught the traits, diminutive language, and mindset that aligns them with society’s concept of what it means to be a man. If a man is not like this, then essentially, he is not a true

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. One way in which Kaufman does this is through his presentation of the role of masculinity.

The growing rift in today’s polarized political and socio-economic climates beg the question: when did this estrangement begin? Similar to the polarization of the political and socio-economic climates, the polarization between gender values has likewise always been an object of study for scientists. The ideas of gender specific behaviors and attributes have been around for a long time, but the ideas of where they belong are hardly agreed upon. Rhoda Jordan, a spiritual mentor, writer, and actress, speaks of a harmony between values that reside in each person, regardless of gender. In order to have a world that is inclusive and available for all, Jordan argues through the article “The Problem With Masculinity” that this distinction breeds hostility

Masculinity refers to the qualities, personality traits and roles that are associated with the male gender. In the 21st century, there has been a movement, a drive in the more socially aware sections of the world to equalize or balance out masculinity and femininity. Feminism or, at least the main stream feminism aims to find equality for the females in social, political and economical fields. Even today, as we work forward to find a middle ground for the two genders, masculinity is seen as the superior quality that only men are privileged to have. Hence, main stream feminism is so focused on emancipating women by encouraging them to let go of the ‘weaker’ feminine qualities and roles and fit themselves in a Man’s world by embracing masculinity