Gender is widely recognized as an important and useful lens for the study of International Relations. However, there are few books that specifically investigate masculinity/ies in relation to world politics.
Taking a feminist-inspired understanding of gender as its starting point, the book:
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explains that gender is both an asymmetrical binary and a hierarchy;
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shows how masculinization works via ‘nested hierarchies’ of domination and subordination;
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explores the imbrication of masculinities with the nation-state and great-power politics;
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develops an understanding of the arms trade with commercial processes of militarization.
Written in an accessible style, with suggestions for further reading, this book is an invaluable resource for students and teachers applying ‘the gender lens’ to global politics.
43 THREE Men, prison and aspirational masculinities Jennifer Sloan Introduction ‘Masculinities’ as a topic for analysis is now increasingly recognised in academic criminological literature. Yet, in the majority of cases the ‘masculinity’ in question is seen in a particularly negative light. Violence (Butler, 2007; Ellis, 2013; McCorkle, 1992; Monaghan, 2002; Winlow et al, 2001) and sexual harm (Hayes, 2014; Howe, 2008; Moolman, 2011) as demonstrations of masculinity are not new associations, and neither is the use of masculinity-in-association as an
‘Violence is the main language on the streets, violence is a way of communicating on the streets, it’s the way we send messages, it’s a way of getting respect, it’s a way of getting paid, it’s a way of surviving.’ (Jordan) Where there is protest masculinity – an exaggerated and aggressive form of masculinity performance expressed as a response to marginalization – there is also a vulnerable masculinity. They are two sides of the same coin. This was brought to the fore in the narratives throughout this book. Protest masculinity is constructed as a strategy
69 5 Masculinity and Childcare1 Introduction In gender studies, research on men and masculinities has been an important research field, and in family sociology the study of fathers is now an important area of focus. The aim of this chapter is to combine these two strands of research by focusing on fathering and the masculine content and performance in childcare. In doing so, we study a group of Norwegian men who availed themselves of parental leave before it was made father-specific. Fathers who stay at home on leave caring for a baby while the mother goes
misleading, in need of serious qualification. As long as class inequality is in the clutch of manly grievance, we are in no position to address it well. What first needs attention is that catchy feeling of endangered manhood, the sense that men of a certain sort are the oppressed class. For this, we need to answer with gender first. This chapter demonstrates what gender-first analysis can look like. It narrates ‘how we got here’ differently, through a ‘crisis’ of masculinity that essentially stole class to serve its own interests. As that hints, I do not abandon the
Ordinary young men’s experiences of gender I came to this research through my curiosity about young men of my generation and the supposed decline in manliness in contemporary China, and the exploratory process has generated both surprising and anticipated findings. If the crisis-of-masculinity discourse presumes that ‘men are responding in negative and destructive ways to insecurity about their “role” in society’ (Robinson et al, 2011 : 32; see also Scourfield and Drakeford, 2002 ), the young men indicate clear understandings of their male roles. Although
, the binary code that makes it mobile comes on to the horizon. Gender expedites New Populism. Strangely, the only factor that cuts across most variants is the one most minimized. Nearly everywhere it appears, New Populism is dominated by men and masculinities. The specific contours— which men, what kind of masculinity—vary widely by region. Constant across these differences, however, is a sense of manliness endangered. In different places, New Populism takes on aesthetics, atmospheres, and vitalities adapted to regional varieties of imperiled masculinity. What
men’s accounts of their experiences of establishing ‘romantic’ relationships. Drawing on Connell’s ( 1987 ; 2000 ; 2005 ) conceptualisation of masculinity, especially her concept of ‘hegemonic masculinity’, I explore the notions of masculinity experience and production at play in participants’ narratives. I analyse how participants’ ideas of what it means to be masculine have influenced the form and trajectories of their ‘romantic’ relationships, especially as they emphasise companionship, emotional connection(s), pleasure and (sexual) attraction/desire. I contend
’. Nonetheless, it is generally acknowledged that the transformation of the intimate realm due to competing sets of gender values has exerted a great impact on the everyday experiences of the younger generation. Although Chinese men are often seen as benefiting from existing gender dynamics, their actual experiences appear to be more nuanced and multifaceted. For example, dramatic socioeconomic development has made it more difficult for some men to perform culturally appreciated masculinity in their intimate life ( Farrer, 2014 ; Kam, 2015 ). Urban young men confront
discusses the participant’s reluctance to open up and the emotions evoked by this reluctance. The article argues that our mutual discomfort resulted from the participant’s desire to perform masculinity in ways that fit the Vietnamese hegemonic masculinity and from my inability to identify and engage with this desire during the interviews. By locating the participant’s engagement with hegemonic masculinity within the sociocultural context of contemporary Vietnam, and examining the resulting discomfort, the article demonstrates how applying a psychosocial approach to a
