Essay On Hegemonic Masculinity

The purposes of this essay it to not only focus on the concept of hegemonic masculinity, but make use of the concept to provide an explanation for gender violence in society. Violence against women in particular, has become a global problem due to the various forms that it takes place in such as verbal, sexual, emotional, physical and economic abuse (Boonzaier, 2006). Due to the severity of gender violence in society it is vital to determine the underlying cause.

What is masculinity? Answers may vary depending on who you may ask, C.J. Pascoe’s ethnography titled Dude, You’re A Fag: Masculinity and Sexuality in High School targets high school as being the important location where the term masculinity is asserted, defended and defined by the students who roam the halls of River High. High school is a difficult time for anyone, especially when we bring up the ideals of sexuality and gender identity, all topics which are explored in this ethnography. Pascoe spent around eighteen months of fieldwork in the racially diverse working middle-class River High School. Dude You’re A Fag sheds a new light on masculinity as a meaning as well as a set of social practices. C. J. Pascoe 's unconventional approach examines masculinity as not only a gendered process but also a sexual one. Pascoe demonstrates how the threat of the word fag becomes a disciplinary mechanism for regulating heterosexual as well as homosexual boys and how the "fag discourse" is as much tied to gender as it is to sexuality.

Back in 1987, Raewyn Connell coined the term hegemonic masculinity in a seminal text, Gender & Power. Hegemonic masculinity refers to the dominant form of masculinity that exists within a particular culture. Relative to this ever changing, idealized form of masculinity are different subordinated masculinities – those within a culture that do not live up to the so-called masculine gold standard. Put simply, there are “real men” and then there are all other men.

“Hegemonic masculinity is a particular clarity of masculinity to which others among them young and effeminate as well as home sexual men are subordinated” (Kimmel 119). For instance, in the film The Wedding Crashers there is a scene where John and Jeremy play football with William, Clearly, Sack lodge, and Clair and Clearly. Jeremy keeps getting knocked out by Sack, who is purposely hurting him to show that he is the Alpha man. He is demonstrating that he is strong and aggressive. Jeremy shows weakness, therefore John calls him a pussy because he is lacking on how men are supposed to be, meanwhile Sack shows traits of what a real man should act and look like. The film really concentrates on this particular concept throughout the film and it really discourages men into believing or thinking that they can act sensibly, however it promotes men to act tougher, more aggressive in order to be a man. Hegemonic masculinity is still very much common throughout society, and it has for many centuries, but as described previously society is changing it slowly proclaiming hope for men to withdraw from such a bizarre standards.

The paragon of modern American masculinity is a serpent beneath black water. What seems to be a trivial and inconsequential association on the surface, has profound and toxic influence on the mind, the world, and the self beneath. Because they have learned to repress themselves in the name of masculinity, men are less

the winning and holding of power and the formation (and destruction) of social groups in that process” (644) such that it is crucial that the ruling class establishes and maintains its domination. Moreover, it includes persuasion of a big part of the population, especially through the media and the organization of social institutions. Homophobia and heterosexuality form the foundation for hegemonic masculinity and all comprehension of its meaning is predicated “on the feminist insight that in general the relationship of men to women is oppressive” (644). Hegemonic masculinity is grounded in form of the hero and displayed through forms that deal with heroes, e.g., sagas, and westerns, in television, books, and movies (Connell qtd. in Donaldson 646). To define a specific form of masculinity as hegemonic, it is important to note that “its exaltation stabilizes a structure of dominance and oppression in the gender order as a whole” (Connell qtd. in Donaldson 646).

Hegemonic masculinity represent a structure of dominance and oppression in the gender order. This masculinity is socially and culturally endorsed by the society (as noted by Robyn and Wendy) and its granted men benefit in terms of public status and privileges. A fundamental elements of hegemonic masculinity is that women are subordinate to men. Though it is not all men that practice this, but they all benefit from it.

The notion of hegemonic masculinity has altered the field of gender studies and many academic arenas. An idea popularized by R.W. Connell, hegemonic masculinity has played an integral role in the emotional development of American men, articulating the impact that this societal construction has had on the concept of American masculinity. It is a contested topic, yet the impacts that it has in terms of sexuality, struggles for power and political leadership, and gender identities are valid (Connell 830). Although difficult to fully achieve, it acts as a guiding force for the stereotypically masculine. Hegemonic masculinity assumes the subordination of all other forms of masculinity, placing it at the top of the social hierarchy. At the same time, the idea of hegemonic masculinity has served as a bridge between the growing field of men’s’ studies and female studies (Connell 829). Several authors share the premise that men in American society conform to the standards of the social construct of hegemonic masculinity.

Why are men so sensitive when it comes to their masculinity? This question came to me when I began reading the introduction of this section on sex. I believe that men are pushed into a social stereotype just like women are. They are told how to act, when to cry, and when to be tough from a very young age. These traits are not only bestowed upon them by their parents, but by movies, music and government of the past and present.

In western patriarchal society, hegemonic masculinity is still a social norm. *****Heterosexuality and homophobia are the bedrock of hegemonic masculinity and any understanding of its nature and meaning is predicated on the feminist insight that in general the relationship of men to women is oppressive.****** To be important and respected, you must live up to the standards of being a “real man”. Within this culture, men are pressured into conforming to “manly” behavioural traits, and when they bare to “come out of the box”, they are forced back into it and ridiculed. Social constructionists believe that we become who we are, and are shaped by our environment. Moreover, they believe sex and gender are different, and often, gender is based on

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

In Connell’s original conception, hegemonic masculinity can be understood as ‘the pattern of practice that allowed men’s dominance over women’ (1987). Hegemonic masculinity is the exclusive masculinity of which only a few exhibit. The majority of men in fact experience complicit masculinity, allowing them to dominate in the patriarchal system in which it created. Connell (1987) believed it was this that created a social system, in which masculinity was dominant over femininity. Hegemonic masculinity was also dominant over other forms of masculinity experienced by men from various class, racial or sexual backgrounds. Throughout this essay, I first aim to explain hegemonic masculinity in its original concept, as this is vital when examining the studies and theorisations of masculinity that followed RW Connell’s original framework. This will lead to an analysis of its reformulation in 2005 and an explanation of how the values of the concept, that were retained have been demonstrated in studies of masculinities in various institutions. The critiques the concept faced will then be discussed in relation to its reformulation. Finally, the failure of Connell to underestimate the importance of different masculinities in his original conception will be examined. The use of different masculinities has highlighted the need for men to come away from behaviours such as violence and homophobia. It is in

Masculinity, a seemingly simple concept. Yet, when examined more closely, it is clear that masculinity is constantly changing in its definition as well as in its most basic essence. Throughout the years, one can see this evolution firsthand by looking back at the men who have been portrayed in popular media in the United States of America. From the suave Don Draper types of the 1950s to the more casual, educated, and easygoing men- with perfectly chiseled abs, of course- that are portrayed in media today, the difference is clear. This drastic, yet unsurprising, shift in ideals, as well as the exponential increase of media consumed every day, has led to a change in how “masculinity” is perceived, as well as how it is enforced by society in the modern day. Alarmingly, this trend has led to the birth of so-called “toxic masculinity”, a bastardization of the original ideas behind masculinity which has created an enormous, detrimental effect on society as a whole. As defined in the article The Difference Between Toxic Masculinity and Being a Man, toxic masculinity is “manhood as defined by violence, sex, status, and aggression. It’s the cultural ideal of manliness, where strength is everything… where sex and brutality are yardsticks by which men are measured,” (O’Malley) This is a clearly displayed truth, and it’s astounding to see how even from a young age boys are taught not to show emotions other than anger, conditioned to believe that being “like a girl” is the worst possible

In contemporary society, hegemonic masculinity is defined by physical strength and boldness, heterosexuality, economic independence, authority over women and other men, and an interest in sexual relationships. While most men do not embody all of these qualities, society supports hegemonic masculinity within all its institutions, including the educational institute, the religious institute and other institutes which form the ideological state apparatus.

Before we can look into this discourse, it is important to look at the dominant masculinities as femininities are built in relation to masculinities. Firstly, we look at the hegemonic masculinity. This particular masculinity is the dominant or ideal form of masculinity by which masculinities are judged (Connell, 1987). These constructed ideals of