Unpacking toxic masculinity
The issue of toxic masculinity has been one of the most overlooked issues within issues of gender inequality. Though in the last couple years Millennials and Gen Z have decided to resurface the issue, there is still a lot of progress yet to be done. For starters, the issue of toxic masculinity seems to lie within, you guessed it, men. Though, sure, there are women who follow the outdated morals behind toxic masculinity, it is men who have kept these outdated beliefs alive throughout centuries. We live in a society where it is expected of men to retain their emotions, endure physical and psychological pain, and maintain a strictly masculine physique. In fact, in Proving Manhood by Timothy Beneke, Beneke states “American men take pride in handling alcohol like a man—getting sick or drunk, becoming in-competent, too easily can threaten one’s manhood. Boys and even men feel superior to women and other men through their greater capacity to handle ‘grossness’: unpleasant sounds and smells, insects and rodents, dirt, and so on.". Since when do men getting alcohol poisoning become a measure of a “great man”? Yet, whenever a young, successful, independent young paints his fingernails it is considered utterly disappointing, and is considered a disgrace to masculinity? The true mark of a great man and even his manhood, should be his character and ability to overstep toxic masculinity, and only men truly comfortable with their masculinity are able to experiment with nail polish, wearing pastel colors, wearing jewelry, or even treating women as equals. Though I know the issue of toxic masculinity is an issue throughout the globe, and it differs within each culture, I do personally find it to be rather more intense in the U.S ... For example, Eric Anderson shares an interesting statistic in his piece Adolescent Masculinity In An Age of Decreased Homohysteria. Anderson reports “In other research on 16-year-old boys in the UK (Anderson, Adams & Rivers, 2012), colleagues and I show that 40% of the heterosexual youths studied have kissed another male friend on the lips.” later also stating that “ Regardless of how one theorizes these findings, the data is compelling: not only do boys bond over talk of cars, girls, sports, and video games; but they now also bond over disclosing secrets to one another and supporting each other emotionally (Anderson, 2011c); shopping together and dressing in softer more metrosexual ways (Pompper, 2010); accepting sexual minorities (Keleher & Smith, 2012)...”. Reading Anderson’s reports completely stunned me. That sort of male behavior is completely unheard of for the most part in the U.S., especially amongst male teens. Instead, male teens will complement their male friend’s outfit and have the need to add on “no homo” in “fear” of appearing less masculine if they show any sort of admiration or caring towards another man. I am sitting here trying to come up with a logical explanation as to why U.S. men have this sort of approach to masculinity or “lack thereof”. Besides the obvious fact that our country has forever shunned minorities, there is the root to every problem. Yet what started all this? The Romans themselves freely would express their brotherly love, and that was over 2,000 years ago. Yet here we are today.
Like all the other issues we are faced with in today’s age, it is difficult to pinpoint a solution to this issue, besides solely bringing awareness to the issue. I personally think it will take a whole generation to be able to really bring the change we want to see in our society. The best we (Gen Z) can do now, is to raise our future children with new morals and norms. Most importantly, raise sons to respect all other genders, sexualities, and forms of self expression.
Anderson, Eric. Adolescent Masculinity In An Age of Decreased Homohysteria. The Meaning of Difference, seventh edition, 2016, pp. 492-497. UNM Learn, https://platform.virdocs.com/r/s/0/doc/553769/sp/180858863/mi/575303735?menu=table-of-contents
Beneke, Timothy. Proving Manhood. The Meaning of Difference, seventh edition, 2016, pp. 267-271. UNM Learn, https://platform.virdocs.com/r/s/0/doc/553769/sp/180858636/mi/575303750?cfi=%2F4%2F4&menu=table-of-contents
