There is a lot of talk about how men are changing. A few years ago the whole metrosexual term came about to define strait men who did things like waxing, tanning, dying their hair, etc which had otherwise been done predominantly (or maybe in a narrow minded view by popular culture) done by gay men. Some recent writings by Patrice have gotten me thinking about the nature of being a man and manliness. TV shows and sitcom's in particular are not usually kind to men. They have a fat sloppy guy with a mediocre job who somehow has a banging hot wife. Maybe that is just a good setup for a TV show and I am overthinking things. I cannot help but note that during the 60's and 70's in addition to breaking down the family one of the most notable things about the womens lib movement was that it essentially pushed lots of women to try to act like men and fill traditionally male jobs (talking more fire fighter, construction, etc then stock broker, CEO type stuff). While women should be able to vote and some other obvious common sense stuff some of these elements of the womens lib movement were just stupid. Saying that a woman is equal to a man is a whole different thing then saying she is the same as a man. You gal's aren't better or worse, just different. Men are bigger, faster and stronger than women. Of course the Bulgarian national women's powerlifting team is stronger than a high school mens chess club but if we compare random person on the street or athletes of comparable status the truth comes out. There is a reason that every honestly competitive sport segregates men and women. Anyway I am not sure how or why I just got side tracked.
In any case I think there are some definite traits of manliness. To me being self reliant is a big one. Of course we can't all do everything but being able to take care of the basic problems that come up in your lifestyle is probably realistic.
![[Most Recent Charts from www.kitco.com]](http://www.kitconet.com/charts/metals/gold/t24_au_en_usoz_4.gif)
![[Most Recent Charts from www.kitco.com]](http://www.kitconet.com/charts/metals/silver/t24_ag_en_usoz_4.gif)
Posts
8 comments:
How weird.....I was thinking about this same topic last week.
We watch "All In The Family" ( with Archie Bunker) a lot. I love to see the contrast in manliness between Archie and Michael (aka the Meat Head).
It seems like today's men have been brainwashed into believing that it's not cool to be manly (in a noble and honorable way). So sad to see....
Sam, not in the trailer park
Ryan, your post today is a bit disjointed.
You talk about the physical differences, which I'm not about to argue, but then you conclude with, "To me being self reliant is a big one. ... being able to take care of the basic problems that come up in your lifestyle is probably realistic. "
You've exited the realm of physical differences and entered the realm of traits-not-confined-to-gender. Self reliant, you want to talk self reliant? I make milk to feed my babies, that's pretty self reliant. Ovaries do not render me incapable of handling the basic problems in my life. Self reliance is a great HUMAN trait.
My biggest complaint about the direction the women's lib movement took us, is that they trivialized the work traditionally done by women. The work done in the informal sector, (traditionally by women,) is very important to our society. I'm talking about the child care, elder care, food storage, food preparation, volunteer work (poll monitors, new mother support, elementary school support, military family support) all of that stuff that doesn't get counted towards the GDP but makes this country a better place to live. They trivialized that work, and so now very few do it, and it's a HUGE part of the deterioration of our nation.
So, I'd argue that instead of blaming women for wanting an equal piece of the formal economy (paycheck work) you should be chastising men for not picking up more of the informal work. Both should be open for all and all should have the choice for where to put their time and energy, without being trivialized for doing 'women's work' or demonized for 'taking work from men.'
You and I think alike but I hope it doesn't bother you to be an outsider. I don't think many other people feel that way these days. Largely because younger people grew up with tv portraying thin, beautiful women who beat up hulking men with a few quick kicks. It doesn't work that way in reality, but how would they know? Same thing with advertisements. All the men in them are idiots for comic relief (unless, of course, they belong to a minority). The people who portray judges, lawyers, police, and other respected positions are all women now. Reality may set in if things keep going like they are with our debt problems. A good collapse might "explain things" to a lot of people who are currently laboring under some immense illusions about life.
"Manliness" is, to me, just a silly label that has different meanings to every person who uses it. Is the guy who can change his own oil more of a man than the guy who takes his car to Jiffy Lube? Is the guy who can cook a great dinner less of a man than the guy who can barely work a microwave? (Newsflash: Being able to cook, getting a face peel once in a while, or liking to be on the cutting edge of mens fashion doesnt make mean youre gay. Having sex with other men means youre gay.) I've met some gay men who were about as manly as you could imagine...former military, hunters and fishermen, motorcycle racers, etc. And I've met some guys who were straight as an arrow but couldn't tell you which end of a hammer contacts a nail.
Standing up for yourself, being a decent person, taking responsibility for yourself, looking out for others, and pulling your own weight are probably the characteristics I would associate with 'being a man' but when you think about it, those are the same characteristics I'd want to see in anyone....Y- or X-chromosome.
Keep in mind the book, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Naked_Communist, was written in 1958. If you carry some of the items through to implementation we arrive at the condition of the man you're discussing.
In our culture most men know something is 'wrong' and strive to be more manly. Look at the popular game genre of young men. Combat, Why? Because combat hardened men are one of the last bastions of manliness still accepted, although begrudgingly, in our society.
I'm thinking along the lines of Jennie's comment. The women's "lib" movement messed up traditional gender roles, which men and women naturally gravitate towards.
Of course, there is no disputing the fact that men have more physical strength than women. But, let me say this... I've worked since I was 16 years old. In my 17 years in the workforce, with several different employers, the women have ALWAYS out-worked the men. This was true even when I unloaded planes at FedEx. I worked with a guy named Roger at a factory who was an exception to this rule, but other than that, the women have always out-performed us men. It makes me wonder why they earn about 75 cents for every dollar that we do.
We wrote about this here:
http://northwest1524.blogspot.com/2011/03/passionate-carnivore.html
Post a Comment