Stereotypes In The Australian Identity By Isaiah Ainsley

Australia is one of the worst countries for having pointless and prefabricated ideas of "Aussiness" that basically has no real relation to our true ‘culture’ or the way in which we really see ourselves. We, however, reach for these stereotypes when trying to find some expression of our Australian identity. However, sometimes these representations and ideas of national identity have not depicted the way the rest of the nation sees it. Deep inside the ‘reality’ of texts today background shows another side that can be often overlooked. These can be found the film, Red Dog. And the movie, The Castle. in the book, Harp in the South.

In their research, they found that many researchers in the field of men’s studies presumed a complete separation from women that they did not even take them into consideration and only “analyzing masculinity by looking only at men and relations among men” (Connell 837). Many of the arguments on the idea of masculinity are over who in the world actually represents hegemonic masculinity. The two competing concepts that they present are whether societies use a fixed type of masculinity or that a society reverts to whatever type of man is dominant at a particular time and place. They agree that the ambiguity of what it means to be masculine, is important because it allows researchers to identify the mechanisms of hegemony more easily. They point to how regions develop models of masculine conduct which are spread by the media and celebrated by the state (838). Connell and Messerschmidt use the example of the USSR’s celebration of the Stakhanovite industrial worker, named for the coal miner Aleksandr Stakhanov who in 1935 hewed a world record 102 tons of coal in a single day, triggering a scramble by other workers to beat the record. The reality of it is that the claimed feats of Stakhanov did not acknowledge the contributions of his coworkers in his record setting day of work. In the final section of their paper Connell and Messerschmidt lay out how they believe that the idea of

Current Prime Minister of Australia, Malcolm Turnbull says, “Our national identity is defined by a common commitment to Australian civic values of democracy, the rule of law, respect for the rights of individual men and women, a healthy scepticism for authority and a deep intuitive sense of a fair go.” With the recent rise of motion picture, Australian film creators have implemented in stereotypes that convey national identity in the quest to answer, “What does it mean to be Australian?”

“A group of People without knowledge of their history, origin or culture, are like a tree without roots” by Marcus Garvey. A TREE WITHOUT ROOTS EVENTUALLY DIES, DOES THIS MEAN THAT AUSTRALIA DYNG. (Marcus Garvey, 1938)

In “Before Manliness Lost Its Virtue” (2017), David Brooks (a New York Times Op-Ed columnist) claims that we are living in a “crisis of masculinity” (15). David Brooks backs up his claim by comparing and contrasting manliness of the men in the White House (the “”I don’t care what you think” manliness” [2] and the “the look-at-me-I-can-curse manliness”[2] ) to men in ancient Greece (“real men defended or served their city”[6] the “The manly man… risks death and criticism.”[8] and “They are constantly picking fights”[9].) to the ideal man (“The magnanimous leader… uses his traits… to create a just political order.”[11]).

Australia, also know as the ‘Land Down Under’, is a unique and diverse country, with varying landscapes, climate, and culture. However there are so many false stereotypes about

"It's the politics of fear and division and, Ms Hanson, you are incredibly good at it."

“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.

Starting in the 19th century, men had an increasing pressure to prove their masculinity. In order to support themselves and their families, American men’s desire to prove masculinity came at the cost of minorities, women, and even man’s own personal happiness. This restlessness of being a

Do we have an identity? What does it mean to be Australia? We are unique, we have thousands of species of native animals and plants and we are proud of it. Australia is multicultural and extremely diverse, with new census data revealing that immigration programs have brought around 6 million people from over 150 countries to Australia since 1945. Australia is not only multicultural but also multiracial, this can be seen in the nation’s food, lifestyles, cultures and religions. Australia’s sporting prowess is also an extremely important part of the Australian identity. The two texts that will be analysed in the speech are, Crocodile Dundee and MLA’s “You’ll Never Lamb Alone” Advert. Peter Faiman’s Crocodile Dundee (1986) is a false and misleading representation of Australia, as it over exaggerates the Australian identity and the typical

The concept of manliness came about through participation in sports, hunting, and other various activities, which allowed men to develop the skills necessary to run the empire. By the 1870s, there was a lower rate of middle class British men who did not marry, but chose to venture out into the empire, which allowed for the spread of British masculinity. For example, Sir Horatio Herbert Kitchener—a prime example of British hypermasculinity—was permeant bachelor who served the empire and England during the Second Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902) and World War I. Accordingly, some cultural historians believe that between 1870 and 1914, “the imperatives of empire celebrated a militaristic and robust hypermasculinity, which found its apotheosis in the homosocial world the boy’s adventure story.” This version of masculinity developed within the British school system, but it was essentially shattered after the Great War when men felt the need to return to the home and become far more domesticated.

In order to fully understand a more in depth evaluation of both why and how men conform to this social phenomenon, one must know how hegemonic masculinity is defined. This term was made popular by Connell’s work Gender and Power which critiqued the male social role and how hegemonic masculinity has developed (Connell 830). Scholars agree that hegemonic masculinity is characterized by “being emotionally detached and

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.

Masculinity and femininity are unescapeable. We are taught how to be masculine or feminine from birth but for men, the highest form of masculinity achievable is hegemonic masculinity. In this essay, I will define hegemonic masculinity, discuss how it perpetuates homophobia by restricting the way men interact with one another and by the use of the word fag, and how it perpetuates gender inequality through the expectations of violence, no emotions, and being breadwinners.

Aphra Behn presents us with an extensive parody in her novel Oroonoko: a complete slave narrative, depicting the enslavement of both man and woman. She uses historical fact as well as semi-anthropologically accurate setting to reveal the truth in her words. Historically speaking, women were slaves for centuries before the white man enslaved the black man. Women were bartered and sold into marriage, abuses and forced to work under the watchful eyes of her husband. Aphra Behn demonstrates this though Imoinda’s character development, or lack thereof. The fact that this is considered a “historically” accurate text validates the reality of the issue