Of Masculinity

A new scientific study concluded that women are the dominant sex. Just kidding. That very feeling of fear you felt already suggests insecurityin your gender. Why should we care which is the dominant sex? We shouldn?t, but we do. Women are the feminine, covered in an amount ofmakeup that would make a clown look downright bare in comparison. Then there are us--men. Tough, rough, and stoic, we are the males, full of testosterone and masculinity. Yet, is this really the case in today's times? Was it ever the case?

In our modern world, we are seeing both men and women break the mold. Women are breaking free of traditional jobs, as are men. Now, it is not uncommon to see a male nurse and a female doctor. At another point in time, this would have been anathema. Yet, these women are praised for their brains and courage, while the male is all but executed. Why must things be this way? It's simple really. In a world where gender roles are being fused together with the soldering iron of a modern-day civil rights movement, males are becoming increasingly insecure in their roles as men. The traditional definition is the mainstay and the transition from classical to the modern is difficult. It?s not difficult to see why. Women were oppressed by their gender role, men empowered. Now, we are being billed as co-equals. This is a horse pill to swallow for some.

In her essay, "A Woman's Beauty: Put Down or Power Source?", Susan Sontag explores similar subject matter, albeit from the opposing viewpoint. The article was published in Vogue magazine, which is to males what the Quran would be to Catholics. In her essay, Sontag attempts to separate the ideas of beauty and femininity, which have become intertwined like the threads of a quilt. Sontag feels the oppression women experience is partly an inside job. "There should be a way," she states, 'of saving'. In a similar manner, strength andmasculinity must be rescued from the male. Like women, men face the same "damned if they do, damned if they don't" conflict.

There is also a significant amount of hypocrisy in all of this. The man is supposed to be the strong, stoic male. Yet, I ask one question?who wrote Romeo and Juliet? Why, it was a male. In music, the "sensitive, introspective, sentimental" singer-songwriter is regularly castigated by the "growling, aggressive" metal musician. Yet, this metal musician (and his musical predecessors) had a penchant for makeup and fashion. (Glam metal anyone?) The fact is, men do this to themselves. We are pressured by society's expectations of course, but we have internal pressure as well. We regularly question each other's sexual orientation, making jokes on a daily basis. We are all guilty of treason against our own sex.

The modern male, therefore, is caught in a tight-rope act between two extremes. To be sensitive or to be employed in a traditionally female position is to give up your masculinity. To be a stoic male is to refute the liberal world. Yet, society is thrilled by this pressure. Department stores that sell outdoor gear also have entire aisles devoted to the hair care products and overpowering deodorant sprays of males. It simply amounts to exorbitant amounts of capital. We are manipulated by the corporate scheme, but are not free from blame. We are nothing more than hypocrites. At the end of the day, the insecurities we face as males mean nothing. No matter what one may think of his gender, no matter what jokes he may make or be the subject of, he is still, as biology, dictates a male.