'what does it mean to be a man?'

[Michelle420]

San Francisco, (April 19, 2010) — According to the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, testosterone is declining in American men at the alarming rate of one percent a year. But why? That’s what Casey Neistat and Oscar Boyson sought to uncover in their film “An Emasculating Truth.” Ultimately, the short film goes beyond this question to further the current dialogue about today’s definition of masculinity in light of changing gender roles. Boyson, the film’s producer and on camera emcee, came to some very personal conclusions about what it means to be a man today, turning the camera on himself and asking the question ‘what does it mean to be a man?’

“Masculinity isn’t something people think about often,” said Boyson. “Our goal was to find a cross-section of people and ask them, what does being a man mean to you? This is an issue where there isn’t much middle ground and we wanted to find out why.”

[ame=http://youtu.be/a3jUumdgPyw]An Emasculating Truth // The Official Trailer - YouTube[/ame]

Tough Guise: Violence, Media and the Crisis in Masculinity

The question that really comes out of this is 'why are boys behaving in this way?' 'Why is 90% of violence committed by boys and men?' It’s not just in these few places (like video games or movies) but it’s in what passes for normal culture. It is part of the normal training and conditioning and socializing of boys and men. That's a point that a lot of people don't want to hear, but if you look at the culture these kids are immersed in, violence is a normal, natural part, not just of the world, but of being masculine or being a male person in the world. It’s not just in these few places (like video games or movies) but it’s in what passes for normal culture. It is part of the normal training and conditioning and socializing of boys and men. That's a point that a lot of people don't want to hear, but if you look at the culture these kids are immersed in, violence is a normal, natural part, not just of the world, but of being masculine or being a male person in the world.
In this innovative and wide-ranging analysis, Jackson Katz argues that widespread violence in American society, including the tragic school shootings in Littleton, Colorado, Jonesboro, Arkansas, and elsewhere, needs to be understood as part of an ongoing crisis in masculinity.

Tough Guise: Violence, Media and the Crisis in Masculinity | Watch Free Documentary Online

[ame=http://youtu.be/Mmy2IHYq_y8]Tough Guise: Opening Montage - YouTube[/ame]

So how do you define "masculinity" , "manly" and is there such a thing as a "real man" if so what defines a real man?

 

[Steven_R]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R33IEQjI1l8]"Strong men also cry." - YouTube[/ame]

 

[DGS49]

Males are undeniably larger, stronger, and more massive than females.

Males are more inclined to aggressive behavior. This is not "culturaly determined," it is genetic. If you take a room full of three year olds and show them a pile of toys, the girls will go for the dolls and boys will go for the guns, weapons, and wheeled toy vehicles.

Part of the role of the culture in socializing boys is to find outlets that permit boys to harmlessly express their physicality and aggression, so that they don't do so in anti-social ways. Have you ever heard of "football"?

Warning to the first person who starts a post with, "I know a girl who..." or "I know a boy who..."

I am going to hunt you down and kill you for your sheer stupidity.

 

[Michelle420]

Males are undeniably larger, stronger, and more massive than females.

Males are more inclined to aggressive behavior. This is not "culturaly determined," it is genetic. If you take a room full of three year olds and show them a pile of toys, the girls will go for the dolls and boys will go for the guns, weapons, and wheeled toy vehicles.

Part of the role of the culture in socializing boys is to find outlets that permit boys to harmlessly express their physicality and aggression, so that they don't do so in anti-social ways. Have you ever heard of "football"?

Warning to the first person who starts a post with, "I know a girl who..." or "I know a boy who..."

I am going to hunt you down and kill you for your sheer stupidity.

Don't you think the media manipulates what toys boys or girls play with through bias marketing?

 

[Michelle420]

"Strong men also cry." - YouTube

 

[DGS49]

I think the media pushes counter-play; they try to show girls doing "boy-like" things and vice versa because so many of the creative movers and shakers are "sexually ambivalent" in their own personal lives (to put it mildly).

This is why we have so many cop (etc) shows portraying basically petite little girls beating up on 200 pound men. Only in a fantasy.

But even if you remove all of that, the little kids gravitate to type: boys are aggressive and destructive, girls are constructive and creative. There is nothing wrong or right with either one, it just becomes fucked up when we deny reality or try to fight it artificially.

Imagine you are incapacitated but conscious on the second floor of a burning house. Do you want to see a woman firefighter walk through that bedroom door? Will that make you thankful to know that your local fire department has a strong diversity program? My guess is you'd rather see a fireman.