The Role Of Masculinity In Present-Day Western Society

2. In the essay “Gender Treachery: Homophobia, Masculinity, and Threatened Identities” the terms ‘homophobia’ and ‘heterosexism’ are discussed. Hopkins contends that there is no distinct boundary between the two terms, but he outlines ways in which to distinguish the two terms. First,

In the United States of America and across the world, do not accept homosexuality. It is considered a sin. It is rejected among many cultures. In the Mexican culture, hegemonic masculinity: the way a man uses control and power over others, presents a series of roles, attitudes and traits that men need to follow to be considered a man in society. Some of these traits are physical strength, goal oriented, having control and being the breadwinner of the family. When a man in the Mexican culture shows signs of homoerotic desires, they are basically put into a subordinate position in regards to other men in that culture. “In Mexico men are socialized under strict gender norms, where what is considered “feminine” is rejected...” (Lorano-Verduzco2015). In Mexico, the word homophobia has been associated with hegemonic masculinity as it allows other men to be perceived as more manly or masculine than other men. As Lorano-Verduzco pointed out “Mexican men are more homophobic than women, and that traditional masculine traits are associated with higher levels of homophobia than traditional feminine traits”.

During the 1980’s indulging in homosexual activity was considered in crime, people were imprisoned when caught doing so. But in 2003 some parts of the United States, suspended the law, and made homosexuality legal, soon European countries such as Canada, Belgium, and Netherlands passed an act which approved of homosexual weddings (Bonvillain 2006). If one digs deeper into this issue, where these debatable, one can find that it roots back from religions. Most religion disapprove of homosexuality but in religions such as Hindu, for sexuality, scriptures of homosexual activity only stated that it was normal and natural, to be attracted to the same sex (Bonvillain 2006). But in today’s society the main issue is regarding the issue of males being attracted to each other, an example of this issue is ‘Homophobia of men’. Homosexuality is considered to be a cultural construct, which apart from the ‘lesbian identities’ gave rise to the ‘gay identities’ (Herek 1986). It is common for normal men, to avoid influencing with homosexual men, as they fear what the public might think of them being judged as not ‘masculine’, where as its more normal for woman to associate with lesbians or homosexual women, as they are not being judged by the rest of the females (Herek 1986). Studies showed, that the social construction of gay identities meant that there was something psychologically wrong with that person,

A culture that views heterosexuality as natural and superior reproduces inequality by prioritizing the rights and voices of heterosexual individuals. Ingraham views this as a product of heteronormativity, where ideas of heterosexuality are deeply embedded in all aspects of society, thus becoming the norm and the standard to which all individuals and sexualities are measured (2994:204). In a heteronormative society, gender and sexuality are understood as biologically acquired—men are naturally attracted to women and vice versa. Heteronormativity is embedded in institutions such as religion, family, government and the workplace (Bakehorn, 9/13/16). Because of an investment in heterosexuality, inequality is reproduced when homosexual

There are various perceptions of gay and lesbian couples that they represent a more egalitarian relationship. (Civettini 2015:1) However, when same-sex couples are observed there is still a tendency to believe that the relationship contains a masculine and feminine figure following the heterosexual model. So, it is necessary to address both how these couples deviate from society’s norms as gay individuals but might still be reproducing the same behaviors as heterosexual couples because the ideologies are so deeply rooted in social institutions. The stereotypical connotations of masculinity and femininity influence all aspects of American society and gender display relies heavily on meeting those given expectations. So, in the case of this article, the author Civettini views a connection between sex, gender, and sexual orientation when it comes to displaying

One of the key concepts detailed by Pringle (2007), is the idea of hegemonic masculinity, which was originally coined by Connell (1995). Connell suggest that the concepts of hegemony and masculinity have been intertwined, which has created a social form of a masculine ideal, developed around male dominance, power and patriarchy over groups who are deemed “weaker” such as women and homosexual men. Hegemonic masculinity is essentially a socially elite or desirable status, with which the “performance of ‘masculinity’” can be legitimately practised within society.

Essay 4 in The Matrix Reader “Masculinity as Homophobia” by Michael S. Kimmel explains the definition of manhood and how it has helped to create the concept of homophobia in a societal sense rather than a scientific one. Kimmel states that “Manhood is neither static nor timeless; it is historical,” and “…not the manifestation of an inner essence; it is socially constructed,” and “…does not bubble up to consciousness from our biological makeup; it is created in culture.” (pp.44) In today’s society, being a man has many stereotypes, and the legalization of gay marriage puts those stereotypes to test.

The homosexual community is one of the most misunderstood and degraded cultures in today’s society. Homosexuals are usually the brunt of much of the misunderstanding and, as a result, have most of the unban legends and denigrating jokes that are found in modern tradition centered on themselves. Two legends stand out above many others; the myth of “Gerbiling”, which describe a supposed cruel and exotic practice of gay men, and “The Gay Roommate”, in which a gay man sexually assaults his heterosexual roommate in a college dorm. Both of these legends exemplify the fact that, through misunderstanding or fearing a culture, you can create horrible monsters out of average men.

3. How do rigid definitions of masculinity contribute to homophobia? -Rigid definitions of masculinity demand heterosexuality, and thus antigay slurs are a prime way that men degrade one another. In fact, homophobia affects men regardless of their sexual orientation, since it is used as both a put-down and a way to enforce strict adherence to hegemonic masculinity.

Americans live in a society that seems constantly plagued by various types of discrimination. For instance, ableism, classism, and sizeism are a few examples of the sorts of systematic discriminations that Americans face every day. However, as of late, one of the most prevalent forms that targets homosexual minorities is Heterosexist discrimination. Heterosexism is defined as the discrimination or prejudice against homosexuals (“Heterosexism”). In addition to being prejudiced and discriminatory, Heterosexism is more often than not paired with the idea that heterosexuality is the normal sexual orientation, and therefore superior.

Contemporary political activists, in an effort to delegitimize homophobic narratives that stigmatize the “gay” identity, have argued that same-sex attractions are an innate and biologically fixed component of one’s character. By emphasizing the immutability of sexual orientation, civil rights lawyers have established “gay” identifying individuals as a separate class of people worthy of protection from discrimination. This pervasive and politically expedient ideology, which has now become the prevailing cultural attitude within liberal circles, is reflected in commercially successful pop songs such as ‘Born This Way’. Yet the ubiquity of this essentialist understanding remains problematic. For one, the fixedness of sexuality is biologically

In addition, a historically misrecognition constructs homosexuality as the deviant. According to Fraser (1998: 141), misrecognition is a ‘status injury’, which marks certain identifications as the deviation from a normal condition. For example, from a heterosexist’s perspective, HIV is assumed as a disease that is diffused between gay men, which they have been targeted as the key group to prevent HIV (Rosengarten, 2009). Besides, gay men’s bodies are labelled as ‘virus carriers’, and it links with the norm of moral degeneracy. Indeed, to associate gay men with HIV carriers conveys an injustice of their status, which can be seen as the social patterns of evaluation and interpretation (Fraser, 1998: 143-144). Young (1990) uses homophobia as the

The social group of gay men in America remains one of the most debated in sociological and political discourse. Homosexuality has long been a neglected topic in social sciences but since 1970s, it has become a fruitful filed of research. Gay men in the US have long been an unprotected social group that being afraid of discrimination and violence preferred to live in the shadow. However, over the last decade, the life of gay men in the US has undergone the significant changes and it is important to trace the historical progression towards the current situation with the attitudes toward this group in society and the legal rights it has. The aim of this research is to study the social group of gay men in the US focusing on its history, the statistics of its population in the country, the privileges it has and the oppression it

Hypermasculinity has become such a toxin that it has begun to spread to women. It spread to women referred to as studs, they have been affected by the hypermasculinity around them to gain an upper ground in their environment. “Studs strategically construct and perform their masculinity in ways that shield them from sexism, racism, and homophobia both in and out of their black community.” (Lane-Steele, 480). Masculinity has become a weapon for these studs, making it so their are the “dominant” person. Although studs are homosexual and they are people who are oppressed they are oppressing others too. In the study done by Lane-Steele she finds that they

The realization of the homosexuality in the modern western world as a cultural, sexual and a social category has been a result of complex power relations that surround sexuality and gender. The acceptance of homosexuality in the society has met its fair share of resistance and skepticism. The view that homosexuality can be in the same league as heterosexual has led it to be viewed as a normal behavioral and moral standard (Gallagher & Baker, 2006). Inasmuch as the skeptics may not want to accept the existence of homosexuality studies show that the habit is rampant today with many gay people coming out in the open. Of interest is the political acceptance of homosexuality with passing gay rights so that it can be recognized by law. This move has given homosexuals the ability to engage in legal entities like marriage (Gallagher & Baker, 2006).