The Man

In our society there are specific ways a man should act accordingly to his fellow peers. Society portrays men as strong, independent, wealthy, intelligent, strong willed, and especially confident. Usually these characteristics would be freeing and empowering, but instead, they've become more restrictive and harmful. They bind all men under this one catagory which forces them down a specific path whether or not they want to follow it or not. When one man does stray from this path, or is unable to live up to the standards of men, they are stripped of their title as "man."

When I was at the doctors office the other day, I happened to peruse through Mens Health. I just remember reading a snippit of one of the articles that said "live up to be a true man," and then it continued on to discuss workouts, money, and women. A clear theme through all of these articles no matter how much they vary is subject was the need for the man to dominate it. The man had to "own" the money, the man had to "own" the workout, the man had to "own" the woman. Of course in the magazine it talked about how men should please and amuse the women, but in the end it came full circle to being able to get what men want. This society view of man's need to dominate its task is ridiculous.

For instance, Prom is coming up right? The Masculinity complex is right there. The guys are supposed to pay for everything, provide for everything, and even plan everything. When we talked about letting the girls paying for a little of it, I heard "be a man and pay." Since when does being a man involve money? Society portrays these men as these providors and protectors. One who cares and protects his family from any harm whether it be physical or financial. This physical image of men as being these ripped brad pitts in fight club is really beginning to tear down upon some men's self esteem. Women might think they are they only ones affected by public advertising but as sensuality increase popularity in mainstream culture, men's physique becomes targeted. If a man can't live up to these standards they are considered weak and insignificant.

Men can't be considered weak or submissive. They must stand their ground whether or not they think they have any. That's what society imposes on men. I remember once walking down the hallway at Newsome High when I witnessed two guys violently punching each other. They slammed each other into lockers and the ground quickly became bloody. After cops came and pulled them apart, I remember walking away and hearing, "he looked at me" when asked why'd they fight. What's more crazy was two days later those two guys were perfectly fine with each other. No hard feelings, nothing. They didn't fight because they had a grudge between one another, they fought to showcase their testosterone levels to their peers. They only wanted to show society that they weren't weak. The fight meant nothing to them, but the social recognition at the present time of the fight which identified them as men dictated the outcome. Unfortunetly if one decides not to fight, they aren't labled a man, stripping them away from their identity. With a lose of identity it usually results in a outburst of violence to regain recognition from society. When will we ever learn?