new Vision of Masculinity
- This is a preview of the essay.
To view the full text you must login!
Cooper Thompson, in his article "A new Vision of Masculinity", discusses the stereotypical definition of masculinity. He demonstrates that there are good qualities in both male and female; he insists that boys should learn both qualities and combine them properly to from "new masculinity."
Thompson opens the article with his experience in a suburban high school as a guest speaker. In the class discussion, he learns that the most degrading insult for boys is being called a "fag," because the word "fag" explains that he does not have masculine qualities. He indicates that high school students associate masculinity with "stereotypic definition of strength"(77). Yet, he shows that this strength is only a limited definition of strength because this strength is based on dominance by disgracing inferior people. Thompson supports his notion by inserting the introduction "Reweaving the Web of Life" by Pam McAllister.
The author depicts the traditional definitions of masculinity and problems with that. "Traditional definitions of masculinity include attributes such as independence, pride, resiliency, self-control, and physical strength."(78) Sometimes masculinity is related to violence; violence became the tool maintaining their masculinity among boys...