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20160708081250what_makes_a_man_a_man.pptxWhat Makes A Man, A Man?
SOC& 201 Social Problems
Bellevue College
Dr. Sara Sutler-Cohen
As you’ve likely guessed by now, the way in which we operate in the world socially and culturally is created and maintained by humans. This is also true for the way in which we create and maintain social problems in society.
Inside this cultural creation are our collective and individual sense(s) of self.
We eat culturally, sleep culturally, brush our teeth culturally, love culturally.
The way we parent our children, the music we listen to, and even whether and how much ketchup we put on French fries (and if we eat them, can’t stand them, or have never had them!) all has as much to do with geography as the social construction of what may or may not be “yummy.”
Who are you, really?
When it comes to gender and power, in the culture of the United States, masculinity rules.
It is the “yardstick” by which power and dominance is measured and it can “make or break” a man in the world.
In dominant U.S. culture, men are encouraged to wield physical power, and discouraged to show emotion.
As young as toddlers, we shape our boys and girls with color schemes, outfits, lessons, and future plans.
What makes a man, a Man?
In this short lecture piece, we’ll explore masculinity, and in your next discussion board exercise, your assignment will correspond with this one.
Men and Masculinity
One way for us to wrap our minds around this idea of masculinity is to talk about something Sociologists call, “Prosthetics of Masculinity” (Halberstam, 1998).
Prosthetics of Masculinity are exactly what they sound like they are! Tools with which to express gender.
They are tools that help us to deliver and receive social cues about who we think we are and who we want people to think we are.
What it looks like
A great way to see how important these Prosthetics (or tools) of Masculinity and Femininity are is to think about Drag.
You have likely all heard about Drag Queens (Ru Paul may come to mind) – men who dress and perform as women to over-the-top feminine extremes – but have you heard of Drag Kings?
Here is a video clip of Drag Kings of the UK.
Prosthetics: Everyone’s got them!
Drag Kings use Prosthetics of Masculinity to extremes the way that Drag Queens use Prosthetics of Femininity to extremes.
Now let’s see just exactly what these Prosthetics are!
We’ll use my favorite example of the quintessential man: JAMES BOND to demonstrate these tools.
Tools of the Trade
James Bond
What makes James Bond, James Bond?
We can list several things!
Guns
Women (and girls)
Martini, shaken not stirred
And Bond never gets drunk. His alcohol use is always in control
Cars
Gadgets
You (or your elders, depending on how old you are and where you grew up) might remember the cartoon, Inspector Gadget. He was funny simply because he could not handle the tools or prosthetics of masculinity. He had them, but bumbled every time. Plus – he never gave Penny credit!
Bond, cont’d
Swagger
Suits
“Accent”
Race – Bond is always White
Bravado
Answer to no one
Always gets his “man”
Commands a room
Quiet, but demanding
Everything always works
More Bond Toys
What this all comes down to is Power.
James Bond, the character, when stripped of his Prosthetics of Masculinity, is only…
James. James Bond needs “BOND” to be James Bond.
Without the tools, he is just a person, just a man.
So you can see how these things make up the way in which dominant culture perceives what is and is not a man.
So what?
No, of course it’s not real.
But then again, of course it is real.
Real is what we make it – because humans are capable of creative thoughts and imagination, we can shape our reality.
What makes masculinity powerful is the social construction of manhood.
A gun is only masculine because people have made it so.
Lipstick on a woman is only feminine because at some point this determined a sign of beauty.
But is it real?
We are left with several questions.
What would the world look like if these things meant nothing?
What do they look like on a woman?
How is a woman powerful?
This is always an interesting question. Many people assume that women can exercise power through sex. However, this theory is knocked out of the water when we realize that to wield that power, women must compromise intimacy. This is not power; in fact it’s subordination and oppression.
In the end…
