From: Natalie
Men are supposed to dress and behave in a particular manner to be a
"real man." There are specific colors men and boys are supposed to like
and wear, such as blues, reds, greens, and black. They like sports,
video games, tools, and cars. Men should not have long hair and are
supposed to act tuff, be strong, and not show many emotions. These are
all social schemes we have created in society through our education
systems, parenting ways, and in the media. In his documentary Tough
Guise, Jackson Katz brings all these issues to light: "If men step out
of this expectation, they are seen as soft and not real men" (Katz).
In my photo, I have my model, James, sitting on the couch, holding a
cat, and reading a novel. My model has his long hair in pigtails, a
hairstyle only girls are "allowed" to wear. The hair takes away from his
"manhood" because society considers it more of a feminine style. He is
also wearing a purple hoodie, not a boy color. James is reading a famous
romantic novel. Society would view him as a nerd for reading a book and
gay for reading a romantic story because "only girls read romantic
novels." Reading a romantic book is not a typical hobby for a "real" or
tough man. The most significant symbolism I have put into my photo is
the cat sleeping behind him. I added my cat to the picture to show how
James would be portrayed in a movie or society as a pussy because of his
hair, hobbies, and outfit choice. Jackson Katz sheds light on how in
movies, certain characters get called names like gay, fag, and pussy
because they are dressed, act, or like to do (Katz). Society views these
items as diminishing his manhood because they do not fit into the
regular social norms. We have created this idea that men are supposed to
be "associated with strength and power" when men should be able to act
with "warmth and nurturance" without it ruining how they are viewed
(Rudman). In reality, these ideas are unable to reduce him to be less of
a man.
Cited Work
Katz, Jackson. Tough Guise 2. 12 Jan. 2013.
Rudman, Laurie A., et al. “The Two Cultures of Childhood,” The
Psychology of Gender: How Power and Intimacy Shape Gender Relations. The
Gilford Press, 2015, 59-63
1 comment:
Hello, Natalie
I love your photo idea, it was very creative and excellently created. The camera angle you chose for the photo shows how in society a man expressing his femininity is looked down upon. The camera angle that is taken looking down at your model James shows that he has less power and is looked down upon by society, this is talked about in Girl Culture photo essay by Lauren Greenfield. Another aspect of the photo that Lauren Greenfield discusses that is represented in your photo is “taking up space”, the book in your photo takes up a majority of the image. The book is pink, symbolizing that he is opening up to feminine stereotypes. In our society it is very uncommon for a man to exhibit femininity. This is due to the tough guise, in the film Jackson Katz talks about how growing up as a male we are exposed to a lot of movies and media that makes men sex driven, violent, tough, to show no emotion, to be strong and if they are not they are a failure. An excellent movie that shows this is Grand Torino, in the movie an older male influence shows a young man “how to be a real man”. In your photo your model is portrayed the opposite as the young man was instructed to be and all young men are instructed to be in our society. I also like how you included the symbolism of the cat as James would be compared to Grand Torino and be called a “pussy”.
-Branden Mcguire
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