The Man Box Research Paper

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. According to Kimmel, these seemingly standard ways of thinking could lead to something much worse, and ultimately effect their development. He mentions in his article, “Since stakes are so enormous, young men take huge chances to prove their manhood, exposing

In my opinion the false masculinity concepts from 2003 stated in Season of Life are still alive and even worse. From a very young age, children have the wrong idea what it means to be a man and chances are they never will. There is so much pressure on young kids to compete and be better than others. Often, you are only compared to someone else and because of this, young men come to false conclusions about manhood. Over time, they believe that masculinity is about athletic ability, sexual conquest, and economic success. Now with the evolution of technology the false masculinity has gotten even worse.

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

Similar to Sapolsky, Katz argues that the media teaches men from a young age to be tough, aggressive, and not to show emotional vulnerability. This is what he calls the “tough guise” or the artificial definition of manhood that forces men to conform to society’s expectations by being “tough” and powerful and hiding their emotions. In the beginning of the film Katz shows interviews with various young males where he asks what it means to be a man, and all of them provide an answer referring to strength, such as “powerful,” “intimidating,” “strong,” and of course, “tough.” When asked what a male is called when they fail to live up to these expectations, the young men replied, “wuss,” “fag,” or “sissy.” Katz points out that this just one of numerous methods that society uses to contain young men in this “tough guise” box, using insults to drive them to perform the way they believe a man should. Multiple other places exist where young men learn these behaviors, such as community, school, and in their family; however, Katz argues that one of the most powerful influences is the country’s pervasive media. For example, as movies have progressed, men have grown larger as women grow smaller. Movies such as Rocky, Rambo, and even the Godfather show men as inherently violent, strong, and emotionally underdeveloped, and this becomes the ideal image for boys just as the beautiful, nurturing, thin woman becomes the ideal for girls. Similar to Sapolsky, Katz believes that in order to lessen violence, our society needs to show honest and diverse representations of males rather than blaming

Men have the standard to always have to act strong and brave. An example of this is also in Katz Code of Conduct, “Never admit fear. Ride the roller coaster, join the fistfight, do what you have to do. Asking for help is for sissies” (317). This means that boys have a standard of having to act manly or are always being told to man up. Also, men are always told that they shouldn’t show pain or ever cry because that shows weakness. Men are told to not rat on other people

In Robert Jensen’s article “The High Cost of Manliness”, he states that the idea of masculinity is a bad thing and they should get rid of it. This article debates on the common stereotypes of men, as he states:

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.

In a male-centric society, everything revolves around the predominant definition of maleness or manhood. It is what everything else hinges on. If the definition of manhood changed, everything else would change and paradoxically, it can only change when everything else changes. It will only change when the definition of manhood has to change for some reason.

The Mask You Live In begins with a George Orwell quote "He wears a mask and his face grows to fit it". The use of this quote in the documentary is to explain how men and young boys create a façade in which they live their lives behind. They put on a show for the world, while living behind this falsely created persona of happiness and security. The mask is the hard shell that young men are expected to face the world with. They are expected to show only their best selves and hide their insecurities and worries.

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

“Masculinity as Homophobia” an article by S. Kimmel, that talks about how men these days have the fear of being judged and ranked based on their manhood. There are some arguments that the Professor mentions and uses in his article that supports his argument and some experiences from other people 's perspective in life of men over the years.

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.

Every woman has her own responsibilities in society in which men are still considered the strongest. Although women’s lifes are more difficult than men’s life. A woman has to take care of her work, her personal life, her kids, and her husband. On the other side, men have to work and pay bills. In addition, men don 't have to cook, clean and be responsible for kids. This illustrates how men don 't have much responsibility but are still considered the strongest in society. Lastly, many womens are victimized by men, because of the way men treats women. I also feel that this is still happening until now because a lot of womens are still controlled by

I have seen “The Mask You Live In” documentary by director Jennifer Seibel Newsom. After I watched this movie, I can answer for all these questions: what does it mean to become a real man? Can boys cry? And do all fathers on the world can share their emotions to other people? Through the movie, I can image how boys and young men struggle to live with their true-life in American controversial of being a real man.

More often than not, society compels us to behave like genders we are not. For instance, when faced with challenges like finance, family issues and education, women are expected to be exceptionally strong. Likewise, when men are confronted with sensitive issues they are not expected to openly show their emotions like women. Some jobs description requires female