Masculinity At Its Straightest Essay -- Gender Issues

The misguided perception of masculinity is the absence of anything remotely homosexual. In Michael Kimmels novel Guyland The Perilous World Where Boys Become men he discusses the contradictions of masculinity and what it takes to be seen as a real men. In American, middle class white society, manhood is more than beards and sleeping around with women, it is organism as far away from feminine as allowed. The most foreign idea to most would be to consider a gay man to be manly. This unfathomable idea is what spurs on homophobia and gives homosexuality a foul name. To be called a sissy or faggot is worse than being called a bogus or dick. Shaking a man of his masculinity and naming him a woman psychologically destroys a man. Guyland best describes this as, Homophobiathe fear that people might comprehend you as gayis the animating fear of American guys masculinity. Its what lies underneath the crazy, risk-taking behaviors practiced by boys of all ages, what drives the fear that former (a) guys will see you as weak, unmanly, frightened (Guyland 50). This kind of methodology has been growing for generations, seen mostly in high schools as young boys get physically tortured or beaten for cissy behavior. The lack of acceptance in culture is increasingly appalling for all age groups. It is a form of conformity of culture as psychologist Karen Franklin discusses Assaults on homosexuals and other individuals who deviate from sex role norms are viewed as a learned form of social control of deviance rather than a defensive repartee to personal threat ... in other words, through heterosexism, any male who refuses to accept the dominant cultures assignment of appropriate masculine behavior is labeled archaeozoic on as a sissy ... ...people from being considered masculine. All sexualities have the capability of masculinity, but just not all choose to follow the channel of aggression and strength.Works CitedFranklin, Karen. Inside the Mind of People Who Hate Gays. PBS. W GBH educational foundation, n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2011.Gay Men and Masculinity. MyOutSpirit. N.p., 19 Mar. 2006. Web. 10 Dec. 2011.Gay Teens Bear lodge of Homophobia. Lambda.org. American Society of Adolescent Psychiatry, 2011. Web. 11 Dec. 2011.Kimmell, Michael. Guyland The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men. New York City HarperCollins Publishers, 2008.Kimmell, Michael. Manhood in America. New York City Simon and Schuster, 1996. 284.Stevens, Tom. Fraternity Initiations - The Elephant Walk. emancipation Lion. N.p., 13 Jan. 2011. Web. 10 Dec. 2011.