Burger = A burger.
Cheese burger = There is a version of a burger that has cheese. It’s not a statement that all burgers have cheese, but that 1 variation of a burger has cheese.
Masculinity = Masculinity
Toxic Masculinity = There is a version of masculinity that is toxic. It is not a statement that all masculinity is toxic, but that 1 variation of masculinity is toxic.
What part of masculinity isn’t toxic?
A huge, important amount.
It isn’t toxic to be confident, strong, assertive or loyal. It isn’t toxic to be physically active or to earn a solid living by working hard. It isn’t toxic to protect the people around you or to work with your hands or to feel proud of your accomplishments. These are all elements of traditional masculinity and they aren’t inherently bad.
It does no one any good to sit here and mock masculinity, as though it were something the people should ashamed of embracing. Should anyone feel pressured to adhere solely to masculine elements in their life? Of course not. That’s where toxic masculinity comes in. But that’s different from masculinity itself.
Don’t throw out the whole burger just because you don’t like the cheese.
