Hegemonic Masculinity

Abstract

This book is theoretical, in which the relevant parts of sociological and anthropological specialist literature on football and social processes were synthetically summarized. I focused only on the theories that were relevant to me, excluding popular literature dealing with the strategic-tactical connections of soccer as a physical game, the bibliography presenting the practice of the physical training and nutrition of the body, as well as the rich storehouse of related psychological and pedagogical writings and that of the literature referring to the economic and financial, marketing and promotion component of the issue. The biographical books of famous football players are not discussed, either. In the introductory part the sociological literature of football is delineated, making reference to the themes and questions raised, explanatory models, paradigmatic viewpoints, which characterize the „sociology of football”, as a specialized branch with a scientific status, recognized as such by the academic field. In fact, the possible taxonomy, the possible spectrum of the questions raised is examined. By a small detour the social role of sports, and the connections between the mass media and sports, particularly football are discussed, and references are provided on how soccer can indeed be a social issue. Football is seen as a rite, a postmodern deep play as a legitimacy and political-manipulative instrument, about the phenomena of violence, hooliganism and the ultras, about the relationship between soccer and criminality, inequality, racism, anti-Semitism, or masculinity, identity and modernization. We primarily relied on English language, mostly British and American specialized literature, as the largest part of the specialist literature was produced there. (This reflects well the English origins of modern age football, “they invented it” and spread it across the globe. Then they were the ones to write the most about it).

So, the Sociology of Football is an encompassing synthesis of the sociology of football; it also contains illustrations and talkative examples from Romanian football and changing social reality.

On this first level, I have presented the literature on the following issues: violence in football as the most prominent topic in the sociology of football; the role of football as a producer of identity, collective consciousness, and as laic ritual of postmodern society; the relationship between soccer and masculinity. In this last respect, I argue that highly mediated star players can define patterns of normative masculinity as sex symbols and as integral parts of a culture of celebrity. Thus, the way media presents football in general and players in particular, characterizing them and describing their expectations, is in fact the method they build normative patterns of masculinity strongly and closely related to national character. It relates to the way an imagined community looks on itself: it represents outer (aesthetics, the way it looks like) and inner (moral, the way it behaves) characteristics, the here and now of valid characters of masculinity, traits blend with qualities of national ones. I have also looked at the symbiotic relation between football and political power, since power structures football (playing style, economic, political, and logistic conditions, legitimate goals football may express and institute). However, soccer feeds back on politics, shapes to a certain extent the behaviour of political elites (for example legitimizes certain decisions, raises questions, or represents a context in which certain problems can be formulated). The relation between football and media is another important subject treated here: football is highly mediated and has become a TV show on its own, the practice of football, and the logic of media institutions are closely related. Media “produce” football because it needs football and thus football can be perceived as a commoditized popular culture product. In the current era of global media, entertainment industry produces this good.

Male Psychology Conference 2015
University College London 26th &27th June
http://www.malepsychology.org.uk/index.html

The theory of hegemonic masculinity has gained a lot of traction as an explanation for a number of male behaviours, including  higher rates of suicide, absence of health promoting behaviour, reluctance to seek medical attention and so on. In order  to throw into relief the situation of men in Western culture, gender relations will be explored in peasant foraging and hunter gatherer societies.

This paper outlines a theory explaining why the provider role is important to boys in the development of their masculine identity. The family is a primary site for identity formation, and boys appear to be more badly affected by growing up in non-intact families than girls. Female identity is more marked by biological transitions (e.g. pregnancy), and gives mothers a more central role within the family than fathers. Thus the male role within the family – the provider role-needs to be socially and culturally constructed. Where the father is absent and the role is devalued, transition from boyhood to manhood is made difficult, and masculinity may be problematized as 'hegemonic', 'toxic', and 'hyper'. Solutions from traditional cultures are discussed.

Öz
Bu çalışmada amacımız günün farklı saatlerinde yayınlanan televizyon programları aracılığı ile yaratılan iki farklı hegemonik erkekliğin kadınları ve erkekleri nasıl etkilediğini göstermektir. Gündüz kuşağı programlarında kadınlara sunulan erkeklik ile “prime time”da erkeklere sunulan erkekliklerin birbirinden farklılaştığını iddia ediyoruz. Bu iki erkekliğin birbirini öteleyerek toplumda farklı cinsiyetler için farklı erkeklik modelleri sunduğunu göstermeyi amaçlıyoruz. Prime timeda yayınlanan programlar, sanata duyarlı, kadınlarla rahat iletişim kuran, eğitimli, bakımlı, kibar erkeklik rollerini “doğru” erkeklik olarak tanımlayarak hegemonik erkekliği yeniden kurarlar. Öte yandan, gündüz kuşağında yayınlanan programlar, fiziksel bakımdan güçlü erkeğin aynı zamanda psikolojik bakımdan da dayanıklı, cesur ve erkeksi erkeklik rollerini “doğru” erkeklikler olarak sergiliyorlar. Çalışmada programdaki temel erkek karakterlerin özellikleri, farklı erkeklik temsilleri ve hegemonik erkekliğin, farklı erkeklik biçimleri üzerindeki tahakkümü ve kadınlar açısından etkileri incelenmiştir. Programların temel erkek karakteri arasında gerçekleşen ve araştırmanın temel kavramlarını oluşturan erkeklik temsilleriyle ilişkili olarak sahneler örnekleme dâhil edilmiştir. Bu programlar, ‘erkeklik performansları’, ‘kadın-erkek ilişkileri’ ve ‘idealize edilen erkeklik’ şeklinde kategoriler oluşturulmuştur. Gündüz kuşağında sunulan erkeklikler ile hegemonik erkeklik tipinde yaşanan değişime rağmen, Türkiye’de hala geleneksel erkeklik kalıplarının direnç içinde olduğunu ve bu değişimin ancak melez bir yapı ortaya çıkarttığını da iddia ediyoruz.
Anahtar Kelimeler: Gündüz kuşağı, prime time, hegemonik erkeklik, erkeklik performansları.

This paper deals with the representation of David as a "feminized Messiah" appearing in the image of the Shekhinah in Kabbalistic literature, and with the connections between femininity and heresy in Jewish messianic movements. In the course of this analysis, I focus on the development of the concept of David as "fourth leg of the Divine Chariot,” from the origins of Kabbalah (the Bahir, R. Asher Ben David, R. Jacob Bar-Sheshet) to Castille and beyond, in the Zohar and the Theosophical-Theurgical Kabbalah in 13th–14th Century (in texts written on the Iberian Peninsula), up to the portrayal of David as the Shekhinah in Lurianic Kabbalah and Sabbateanism. I claim that in the cases of David and Shabbatai Zevi, heresy indeed accompanies femininity. If the present order and its law are typically gendered as masculine, the threatening, disruptive forces that attempt to bring forth redemption are identified as feminine.

Insofar as gender is still so often equated with women alone, the move from Women in Development to Gender in Development has changed very little. Men as a human category have always been present, involved, consulted, obeyed and disobeyed in development work. Yet men as a gendered category in a feminist sense-involving unequal power relations between men and women and between men-have rarely been drawn into development programmes in any substantial way. This paper addresses conceptual and ...

Norway has based its security on aid from great military powers, and is therefore a useful site for examining the idea of complicit masculinities: a position that benefits from the current social order, and thus complying with dominant group interests and hegemonic ideals. This chapter illustrates how such a position led Norway to take an active part in Western interventionism, resulting in a military transformation that challenged national identity, the traditional hegemonic masculinity ideal and the established gender order. This caused a struggle over military identity. By examining this identity struggle the chapter contributes to the broader debates of masculinities, how they work, how they are linked to hierarchical social structures, and how military masculinity is challenged by women’s bodies.

On 13 January 2019, Gillette launched a short film on YouTube entitled We Believe as part of a campaign addressing negative behaviour among men that perpetuates toxic masculinity. However, the video was subject to a large backlash with over one million downvotes on YouTube and thousands of critical comments accusing Gillette of playing into the 'feminist agenda'. This paper examines the configuration of the backlash, specifically examining the networked properties, structure and key actors of the backlash represented in the comments below the YouTube video to understand how masculinities are (co)produced and reproduced in a post-#MeToo digital sphere. The analysis incorporates social network and thematic analyses of the comments posted under the Gillette YouTube video. The study contributes insight into the structure and configuration of a digitally networked backlash public and identifies how digital tactics are employed by a masculine public to achieve digital hegemony in the networked sphere.

2nd International Conference on Men and Masculinities
Transnational Masculinities and Relationalities
8-10 September 2016, İzmir Turkey
http://www.icsmizmir2016.org

Initiative for Critical Studies of Masculinities cordially invites proposals for the 2nd International Conference on Men and Masculinities to take place between 8th and 10th of September in İzmir, Turkey. The conference aims to discuss how different transnational processes and dynamics affect as well as transform theories, experiences, discussions, discourses and activism related to men and masculinities.

This article examines the construction and deconstruction of masculinity in the early Christian text the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs. At first glance this text’s focus on physical prowess, sexual desire and self-control seems to reinforce hegemonic masculinity. Yet, the way The Testaments suggest dealing with these desires and the way these desires manifest and influence men construct alternative forms of masculinity—all the while deconstructing hegemonic Greco-Roman masculinity. Ultimately, Joseph as the ‘good man’ embodies the construction of the perfect male, introducing many traditionally effeminate characteristics to the masculine ideal. The Testaments construct a variegated and nuanced masculinity to match their nuanced depiction of sexual desire and femininity. Building on their ‘supernatural’ anthropology, where the human is the place where physical and metaphysical interact, they bear witness to a form of early Christian masculinity that internalises and spiritualises masculinity.

Authors examine how interrogating hegemonic gender roles can enhance recruitment, training, and engagement practices for residence life staff in leadership positions. Under specific focus are issues of gendered expectations of the men as paraprofessional role, dynamics in supervision, recruitment and training of staff, and bystander intervention in the residential community.

Several researches by psychologists and sociologists have documented the lived experiences of many men who suffered neglect and insecurities related to contact with women and with fellow men, and how this, and other cagey masculinities, have driven them to become monsters, unhappy, and lacking in empathy. There is equally research evidence that links traditional notions of masculinity to early stress-related diseases, unhappiness, and violence in boys and men. Many men hide their feelings behind work, alcohol, drugs, sex, the applause of other people, accomplishments, and hobbies. But the truth is: Men need help.

Dominant narratives in international relations and security treat sexual violence in conflict as an exceptional form of gender-based violence, perpetrated primarily against women and girls. Due to underreporting and a programmatic bias of focusing only on women, the sexual violence experienced by men in many contemporary conflicts has been largely overlooked in both policy formation and academic analysis. This paper seeks to understand the occurrence of sexual violence against men and boys in armed conflict by positioning it within (and against) the current feminist discourse on wartime sexual violence. The perpetration of sexual violence against men and boys demonstrates the materiality of sexual violence in conflict and its instrumentality in providing economic, political, and social opportunity to men who would otherwise be marginalised in the formal global economy. This function is served regardless of the sex of the victim(s).

The transition from Qajar rule in Iran (c.1796–1925) to that of rule by the Pahlavi dynasty (1925–1979) set in motion a number of shifts in the political, social, and cultural realms. Focusing on masculinity in Iran, this book interweaves ideas and perceptions, laws, political movements, and men's practices to spotlight the role men as gendered subjects played in Iranian history. It shows how men under the reign of Reza Shah dressed, acted, spoke, and thought differently from their late Qajar period counterparts. Furthermore, it highlights how the notion of being a "proper Iranian man" changed over these decades. Demonstrating how an emerging elite of western-educated men constructed and promoted a new model of masculinity as part of their struggle for political, social, and cultural hegemony, Balslev shows how this new model reflects wider developments in Iranian society at the time including the rise of Iranian nationalism and the country's modernisation process.

Fathers play a significant role in shaping family life. Yet Australian men’s transitions to fatherhood have been neglected in research and in antenatal support/education programs. Drawing on contemporary theories of masculinity, this article explores how a cohort of 25 first-time fathers in Tasmania, Australia, experienced 2 different father-only antenatal support/education groups. In particular, I was interested in how men negotiate masculinity and “involved fatherhood” in the context of these groups. I argue that the settings in which Tasmanian men are invited to prepare for fatherhood can be experienced in contradictory ways (e.g., pubs vs. hospitals or community centers). Strategies to better support men in the transition to fatherhood are offered in the concluding discussion.

This monograph analyzes how Nike and the athlete himself jointly commodified the public persona of LeBron James, with James cast in two normative narratives: (a) the Messiah and (b) hegemonic masculinity, stripping James of his Blackness and making him identifiable to a mainstream audience. The open-ended configuration of these narratives allows for ‘‘pivot points’’ in James’ life. Real-life developments fold into the construction of James, mitigating damage and shaping narratives in the process. New avenues of research in critical celebrity-branding analysis focus on areas such as the cross sections of endorsements and social media as well as the process of how mediated narratives normalize subjectivities.

The military is one of the most significant institutions for the construction of masculine identities, since it is socially, culturally, and historically perceived as a male organization that relies on dichotomous definitions of femininity and masculinity (Enloe, 1983, 2000 ; Sunindyo, 1998). Within the military, the most significant model of idealized masculinity is the combat soldier. The existing literature regards the image of the combat soldier as unitary and homogenous 1 and as reflecting hegemonic masculinity. This article challenges that assumption by deconstructing the image of the combat soldier and demonstrating that this image, in fact, varies. In analyzing the image of the combat soldier, previous studies relied mostly on studies of gender conducted in terms of men's versus women's roles, and examined the way in which hegemonic masculinity informs that image. This article argues that the gender category, although fundamental, is not sufficient for the study of the combat soldier's image, and that there are additional categories that come into play. Based on the intersectionality theory, it also argues that the image of the combat soldier is composed of an intertwining of gender and ethnicity. Alongside research on gender in the military, other studies have exposed the way in which the military uses the mechanisms of stratification, segregation and marginalization of particular ethnic groups (Enloe, 1980, 2000 ; Levy, 1998). To date, however, no studies have examined the combination of gender and ethnicity in the combat soldier's image. It is this author's main contention that these two lines of research are linked through the ethno-culture of the military formations that serve as the basis for constructing combat soldiers' ethnic masculinities. This study thus highlights the intersection between masculinity, organizational culture and ethnicity, and its importance in the study of group hierarchies, segregation mechanisms, processes of constructing military identities, and challenging hegemonic masculinity. The combat soldier's image is composed of diverse masculinities that are created from an intersection of masculinity and ethnicity. In the construction of these masculinities, ethnicity, or more specifically, ethnic organizational culture, serves as a means of creating an alternative legitimate image to hegemonic masculinity. The research focuses on two infantry brigades in the Israeli Defence Force (IDF). These two brigades, Golani and Paratroopers, were chosen for their similarity in training regime and military combat role, as well as for their cultural distinctiveness. The Golani Brigade is perceived as " Mizrahi, " which refers to

In a time when ‘if one was born a male, one became a soldier’, what does it mean to be a man who refuses to fight? This article uses Connell’s framework of ‘hegemonic masculinity’ to locate conscientious objectors’ male identities as a suppressed, subaltern manliness that deviated from the dominant norm of martial masculinity. It argues that despite rejecting many aspects of this norm, objectors nonetheless articulated their counter-hegemonic struggle in starkly militarised language, presenting themselves as heroes sacrificing their lives for the greater good. It suggests that in order to understand, rather than merely judge, this strategy, it is important to see masculinity not as a completely discrete field of struggle, but as one of many mutually constitutive structuring principles underpinning a social order that is arranged not merely along patriarchal lines, but along lines of nation and class. In turn, these other principles impose limits on the nature of and possibilities for counter-hegemonic struggle.

Only one association football (soccer) player in history has declared his homosexuality during his professional active playing career. Before or since that player’s death in 1998,
no other professional footballer player has come out. The prohibitively traditional culture of association football is popularly regarded as being responsible for this. Fans habitually use homophobic epithets to abuse players. In recent years, England’s governing organizations have cautiously addressed this state of affairs, though ineffectually. The present study uses online methods to explore fans’ and industry professionals’ perspectives on gay players and the impact their failure to come out has had on the sport. The article, which is based on the responses of 3,500 participants, seeks to answer three questions: (1) Why do fans, who urge gay players to come out,use homophobic language to barrack players? (2) If gay players disclosed their sexual orientations publicly what effect would this have on them personally, on football culture generally and on conceptions of masculinity in sports? (3) What prevents gay football players coming out? The overwhelming majority (93%) of participants in the study oppose homophobia and explained the homophobic abuse as good-humored banter or, in their argot, “stick.” An unusual logic is employed to make this intelligible. Participants argue that an athlete’s ability to play football is the only criterion on which he is judged and his sexuality is of little consequence to their evaluations. Although few participants encourage forcible outing, the majority welcome openly gay players, whose impact would be transformative. Football clubs and agents are cited as the principal impediments to a more open and enlightened environment: participants argue that they pressure gay players to keep their sexuality hidden and so contribute to a culture of secrecy, which permits and perhaps commissions continued homophobic abuse. Participants speculate that the continued absence of openly gay players actually reproduces the apparent prejudices. One fan concludes, “The homophobia in football will remain for longer if no gay players come out."

Sociophonetic inquiry into sexuality and the voice has often focused on the perception of men's sexuality on the basis of disembodied voices. However, inconsistencies across these studies limit our ability to unit their findings into a cohesive model of gay-sounding speech. This paper focuses on variability among gay-sounding speakers by analyzing the voices of female-to-male transgender individuals, or trans men. Trans men who make use of testosterone typically experience a significant drop in vocal pitch, yet may maintain stylistic traits acquired while living in a female social role. An acoustic and perceptual analysis of trans and non-trans men's voices reveals that even as trans men may be perceived as gay-sounding, their sociolinguistic styles also differ from those of gay-sounding non-trans men. These findings support the notion that gay-sounding speech does not constitute a single phonetic style, but rather numerous deviations from the hegemonic norm.

From the late nineteenth century until the mid twentieth century, men of an emerging western-educated Iranian elite used knowledge, practices and objects originating from the West to reach and hold a hegemonic position in their society. This article traces the appropriation of western education, clothes and manners and explores how these became essential components of a new hegemonic masculinity in Iran.1 In so doing, it demonstrates the significance of these imports for constructing gendered social identifications, as well as the role of the Iranian state in enforcing such constructs. Knowledge, appearance and manners were not the only western imports to be appropriated by the new hegemonic masculinity. Modern perceptions of patriotism, new approaches to love and sexuality and different images of male beauty were all incorporated into this model. Education and appearance, however, were strongly associated with the debate on westernisation, and are therefore the focus here.

This article explores the history of masculinities in Iran and positions masculinity as central to understandings of nationalism, social distinction and modernisation. Masculinity studies are currently under-represented in historical scholarship on the Middle East. Despite the fact that historians of the Middle East have become more attentive to masculinity since the mid-1990s, recognising its importance as the indispensable second half of gender studies, very few publications to date have been dedicated to the history of Middle Eastern masculinities.2 These include Wilson Chacko Jacob's study of Effendi masculinity in Egypt and two interdisciplinary volumes on Islamic and Middle Eastern masculinities.3 In the field of Iranian history, Joanna de Groot called for the consideration of men as gendered subjects as early as 1996, and some steps have been taken in this direction during the last decade.4 Afsaneh Najmabadi has written on male sexuality and the disappearance of boy-loving in late-nineteenth-century Iran. Joanna de Groot considers the masculine gendering of Iranian nationalist discourse. Minoo Moallem incorporated some aspects of masculinity studies into her research on Islamic fundamentalism and patriarchy.5 Shahin Gerami also studies masculine identities in post-revolutionary Iran, but from a sociological perspective.6 This article focuses on the historical construction of Iranian masculine identities and draws on the theory of hegemonic masculinity as a primary perspective from which to survey changing power relations within Iranian society.

This study investigates the ideological implications of Real Men, a Korean reality show that portrays the experiences of celebrities who join the military as new conscripts. We situate the popularity of Real Men in the context of the changing gender geography of Korea. Through an analysis of the official Real Men online bulletin board, we explore how the male audience's discourses regarding the authentic military experience and ideal soldiers are related to their desire to restore hegemonic masculinity. Our findings suggest that Real Men became a vehicle that was used to demand women's appreciation of the difficult work of men in the military. A desire to be symbolically remunerated for military service involved the positioning of women as primary caregivers who fulfill traditional female roles. By calling for the restoration of traditional gender roles, the male viewers attempted to recover the hegemonic masculinity that they perceived to be under threat from changing gender relations.

As one of the first studies on Afghan Masculinities and Gender inequality, the overall purpose of this research is to achieve an in-depth understanding of different notions of being a man in Afghanistan and how they contribute to gender inequality. A multi-method approach employed both quantitative and qualitative techniques to assess four different provinces (Nangarhar, Takhar, Bamyan, and Kabul) that manifested degrees of both conservatism and openness regarding gender issues.

Results affirmed that being a man refers to social roles, behaviours, and meanings prescribed in a particular context. This perception is clearly shown in the shared opinion among all groups in the Focus Group Discussions (FGDs), for older men and women as well as for younger men and women. Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) in all provinces described that men should be considered the head of the household. A man has the responsibility to procreate, support, and protect the family and country. Afghan men are perceived to possess the qualities of being brave and honourable.

The majority of the respondents agreed that gender-based violence, although not right, is justifiable when women resist men's decisions. Most of the religious male key informants believed that Islamic rules permit beating a wife in case she is a "Nashiza" (rebellious/disobedient woman). The participants and informants in all provinces stated that women's responsibility is to manage their homes. Older respondents were more inclined to accept this norm compared to their younger counterparts. Moreover, data showed that female respondents with higher educational attainment had a lower inclination to agree with the norm that women should take care of domestic tasks. Higher educational attainment had little effect on Afghan men's responses.

This article draws on 3,500 responses from fans and professionals involved in association football (soccer) to an anonymous online survey posted from June 2010 to October 2010 regarding their views towards gay footballers. The overall findings are that, contrary to assumptions of homophobia, there is evidence of rapidly decreasing homophobia within the culture of football fandom.The results advance inclusive masculinity theory with 93 per cent of fans of all ages stating that there is no place for homophobia within football. Fans blame agents and clubs for the lack of openness and challenge football’s governing organizations to oppose the culture of secrecy surrounding gay players and to provide a more inclusive environment to support players who want to come out.

This book presents an innovative approach to gender, nationalism, and the relations between them, and analyses the broader social base of Hindu nationalist organisation to understand the growth of 'Hindutva', or Hindu nationalism, in India.

Arguing that Hindu nationalist thought and predilections emerge out of, and, in turn, feed, pre-existing gendered tendencies, the author presents the new concept of 'masculine hegemony', specifically Brahmanical masculine hegemony. The book offers a historical overview of the processes that converge in the making of the identity ‘Hindu’, in the making of the religion ‘Hinduism’, and in the shaping of the movement known as ‘Hindutva’. The impact of colonialism, social reform, and caste movements is explored, as is the role of key figures such as Mohandas Gandhi, Indira Gandhi, and Narendra Modi. The book sheds light on the close, yet uneasy, relations that Hindu nationalist thought and practice have with conceptions of 'modernity', 'development' and women's movements, and politics, and the future of Hindu nationalism in India.

A new approach to the study of Hindu nationalism, this book offers a theoretically innovative understanding of Indian history and socio-politics. It will be of interest to academics working in the field of Gender studies and Asian Studies, in particular South Asian history and politics.