Masculinity Defined and differences in Culture

Masculinity Defined and differences in Culture

Masculinity defined and the differences in culture
Historically, masculinity had a set characteristic that encompassed a man’s worth. Men were the head of the household, they held powerful job positions, and they led the country as presidents, governors and senators. Men definitely were held the dominant figures in society. However, when World War II occurred, there was a shift in the gender ideology of masculinity even though the definition of masculinity was never questioned before. Eric T. McLeod, author of “Selling Out: Consumer Culture and Commodification of the Male Body” states that there has always been a universal concept of masculinity.     He also argues that historically, after WWII, men had the need to perform “masculinity” even more so than they had to post war. Women became a threat to patriarchy when they replaced men at their jobs during the war. The term masculinity means “having qualities traditionally ascribed to men, as strength and boldness.”   This concept, however, is challenged by Espiritu as she states that not all men are created equal especially the Asian Americans. McLeod states that as times change, there is a greater need for men to show their masculinity in institutions like the workplace and at the home, however, Espiritu states that Asian American men cannot perform “masculinity” the way the average man can by attaining powerful job positions and showing their masculinity physically because of the limitation that is held upon minorities from discrimination.
One of the general statements that McLeod is stressing is that the ideals of masculinity have changed ever since World War II. Before the war, men were considered the “breadwinners”. There was once a conditioned establishment of a patriarchal society where men were known to be masculine because they were smart, strong, financially stable, and exhibited a great personality. Patriarchy is “a society or institution organized according to the principles or...