Men and feminism
Encyclopedia
The relationship between men and feminism
has been complex and intricate. Men have taken part in significant cultural and political responses to feminism in each 'wave' of the movement. Such responses have been varied, with some more sympathetic or critical than others, depending on the individual man and the social context of the time. One popular taxonomy has been offered by Michael Kimmel, who classifies men's responses as falling into the categories antifeminist, masculist/masculinist, and pro-feminist, each largely differing in their view of masculinity. Kimmel himself falls in his profeminist category. Male discourses on the position of women in society date back to Classical Greece
, including Plato's Republic and Aristophanes' Lysistrata
.
The masculist position advocates campaigns for men's rights
. One masculinist position, associated with the Mythopoetic movement and author Robert Bly
, criticizes "emasculation of men by feminism", and argues for intrinsic differences in the sexes. Masculism in general, however, is the male counterpart to feminism, and seeks to redress social issues facing men and boys. A further discussion of various masculist positions on feminism may be found on the masculism
page.
Early pro-feminist discourses have their roots in the philosophies of the Renaissance and the Enlightenment. In the 19th century, first wave
feminists and abolitionists found common ground as they worked in order to promote the rights of women and slaves, respectively.
championed women's education. Liberals, such as the utilitarian
Jeremy Bentham
, demanded equal rights for women in every sense, as people increasingly came to believe that women were treated unfairly under the law.
In the 19th century, there was also an awareness of women's struggle. In 1866, John Stuart Mill
(author of “The Subjection of Women
”) presented a women’s petition to the British parliament and supported an amendment to the 1867 Reform Bill
. Although his efforts were concentrated on the problems of married women, this is a realistic acknowledgment that marriage for Victorian women was predicated upon a sacrifice of liberty, rights, and property. His involvement in the women's movement stemmed from his long standing friendship with Harriet Taylor, who he eventually married. The British legal historian, Sir Henry Maine criticised the inevitability of patriarchy in his Ancient Law (1861)
’ play Lysistrata
, women engage in a sex strike to bring about the end of the Peloponnesian war
. Similarly, in The Republic, Plato
suggests an ‘ideal’ state in which women would receive equal education and opportunities to participate in activities of the state, at least within the guardian class. Although both Lysistrata and The Republic present problems within contemporary feminist readings, they demonstrate the beginnings of men’s concern with women’s issues.
During the Renaissance
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa
wrote La Supériorité du sexe feminin (Superiority of the female sex). Throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the majority of pro-feminist authors emerged from France, including Denis Diderot
, Paul Henri d’Holbach, and Charles Louis de Montesquieu. Montesquieu introduced female characters, like Roxana in Persian Letters, who subverted patriarchal systems, and represented his arguments against despotism.
, Charles Lenox Remond
, Nathanial P. Rodgers, and Henry Stanton
, all elected to sit silently with the women.
One argument against female participation, both at the World Anti-Slavery Convention, and commonly in the nineteenth century, was the suggestion that women were ill-constituted to assume male responsibilities. Pro-feminist Thomas Wentworth Higginson
argued against this, stating:
During the end of the 19th century, Greenwich Village radicals attempted to institute feminist ideals into their lives by adopting new kinds of relationships with women. They embraced believed feminist objectives, like women’s sexual autonomy and access to birth control
.
movement began in the early 1970s as consciousness-raising groups to help men free themselves from the limits of sex roles. Proponents of men’s liberation argued that male bonding is a mechanism to conform men’s identities to a single sense of masculinity, which reinforces patriarchy. In lieu of such bonding, the men’s liberation movement called for open acknowledgment of the costs of masculinity: men’s entrapment in their fixed role as the breadwinner of the nuclear family and the taboo against men expressing emotions. Most significantly, this movement made it acceptable for men to be open about their emotions while maintaining their masculinity.
The distinction between gender and biological sex originated during the men's liberation movement. The previously accepted link between the biological male sex and the social construction of masculinity was seen by scholars as a limitation on men’s collaboration with the feminist movement. This sharply contrasted with sex role theory which viewed gender as something determined by biological differences between the sexes. Other key elements of the men's liberation movement were the ideas that genders are relational and each cannot exist without the other, and that gender as a whole is a social construction and not a biological imperative. Thus, second-wave profeminist writers were able to explore the interactions between social practices and institutions, and ideas of gender.
paid increased attention to issues of sexuality, particularly the relationship between homosexual men and hegemonic masculinity
. This shift led to more cooperation between the men's liberation
and Gay Liberation
movements. In part this cooperation arose because masculinity was then understood to be a social construction, and as a response to the universalization of ‘men’ seen in previous men’s movements. This allowed for the men’s liberation movement to analyze the conditions under which society becomes less tolerant of homosexuality.
Profeminist writers have identified several hypotheses for explaining the origin of homophobia
. These hypotheses rely on the idea that gender is a binary system where deviation from either gender norm is viewed as socially unacceptable. Such a system is argued to lead to heterosexism
, as a way of preserving the binary division.
. Their founding is seen by some as an attempt to instill traditional masculinity and male bonding in its members.
Where anti-feminists strive to revoke women's rights, masculinists seek to further men's rights. In fact, some masculinists claim that men have been hurt by feminist advances, and that they should empower themselves by revitalizing their masculinity. This argument was also echoed in religious circles with the Muscular Christianity
movement. The Mythopoetic movement is frequently associated with Robert Bly
.
Mythopoets claim to be concerned with what they see as harmful effects that the modernization of American society has had on men. They argue that as America became industrialized, men were forced from the home and into factories, thereby leaving boys with only female role models. The most prominent effects of this lack of guidance were the destruction of nurturing bonds between men and the limitation of emotional expression by men. Mythopoets strove to counter this by reclaiming emotional power from women. Much Mythopoetic literature takes the form of nostalgic longing for a time when deep masculinity was more accessible.
A founding mythopoet is poet Robert Bly
. Bly’s work includes “Iron John: A Book About Men
” in which he recounts a myth of a young prince’s quest for maturity. In Iron John, Bly argues that, although there are several powerful male characters, most men identify with the weak young prince, and that this identification demonstrates that men do not possess the power and control ascribed to them by feminists. This conception of gender dynamics is representative of the mythopoetic perspective.
view propagates restrictive gender standards. Profeminists suggest that instead of constantly working to demonstrate how men are not women, men who truly wish to eradicate hegemonic
gender standards must ally themselves with the feminist movement. Some profeminist writers see the Mythopoets' essentialist views as the expression of an emotionally-rooted anti-intellectual stance, intended to defend the movement against honest criticism from external sources.
Additionally, some profeminist scholars find much of the Mythopoetic retreats as racist misrepresentations of some aspects of Native American
culture. This Mythopoetic selective viewing extends beyond Native American cultural appropriation to the mythologies of other cultures as well. The Mythopoetic call for male-centric “Zeus Power,” for example, ignores Zeus’ appearances in mythology as an incestuous rapist. Profeminists claim that by identifying themselves with these incomplete images, Mythopoets ignore the circumstances in which these cultural values evolved, and creates an unrealistic and idealized 'history' toward which its members strive.
Another perspective advanced by several feminist writers is that the mythopoetic movement was a publicity stunt to revive the career of Robert Bly
. This view is based on Bly’s earlier fame as a peace activist during the Vietnam War, when he advocated that men embrace their 'feminine' qualities.
The campaign has generally had the most success achieving legal reform in family law, particularly regarding child custody. Activists argue that the American judicial system discriminates against fathers in child custody hearings since mothers are typically viewed as the main caregivers. They claimed that the economic burden of the breadwinner role has made it more difficult for men to take part in child rearing, and that court decisions rarely account for this obstacle.
Some organizations, such as the National Coalition of Free Men
, have made efforts to examine how sex discrimination affects men. For instance, this group argues that custody rights in favor of women discriminate against men because they are based on the belief that women are naturally more nurturing and better caregivers than men. Also, in the belief that women are somehow less culpable than men, women receive gentler treatment by the justice system for the same crimes that men have committed. Thus, groups such as NCFM promote awareness, resources, support, and openings for discussion for these issues.
Profeminist scholars claim that men's anxiety surrounding divorce rights stems from an unprecedented feeling of entitlement. In the case of custody laws, profeminist supporters claim that men do not take an active role in the lives of their children until their rights are threatened by the courts. Men’s rights groups are generally seen as effective in providing self-help, emotional support, and legal advice for divorced men. However, they have also been viewed by some profeminist scholars as providing antifeminist fuel for conservative backlash against the struggle for equal rights between the genders.
(author of “The Subjection of Women
”), presented a women’s petition to the British parliament and supported an amendment to the 1867 Reform Bill. Others have lobbied and campaigned against feminism. Today, academics like Michael Flood
, Michael Messner
, and Michael Kimmel are involved with men's studies
and pro-feminist.
There is debate over whether or not men can be feminists. While some scholars argue that men cannot be feminists because of the intrinsic differences between the sexes, others argue that men’s identification with the feminist movement is necessary for furthering the feminist causes. A number of feminist writers maintain that identifying as a feminist is the strongest stand men can take in the struggle against sexism against women. They have argued that men should be allowed, or even encouraged, to participate in the feminist movement. Other female feminists argue that men cannot be feminists simply because they are not women. They claim that men are granted inherent privileges that prevent them from identifying with feminist struggles and thus make it impossible for them to identify with feminists.
A common idea supporting men’s inclusion as ‘feminists’ is that excluding men from the feminist movement labels it as solely a female task, which scholars argue is sexist in itself. They assert that until men share equal responsibility for struggling to end sexism against women, the feminist movement will reflect the very sexist contradiction it wishes to eradicate. The term ‘profeminist’ occupies the middle ground in this semantic debate, because it offers a degree of closeness to feminism without co-opting the term. Also, the prefix ‘pro’ characterizes the term as more proactive and positive. There has been some debate regarding the use of the hyphen (identifying as a ‘pro-feminist’ as opposed to a profeminist) claiming that it distances the term too much from feminism proper. Nonetheless, 'profeminist' seems to be the term of choice at this time.
, and supporting its survivors. Anti-violence activists work in shelters for battered women, counseling survivors, rehabilitating perpetrators and spreading awareness of the issue. Many male activists support these anti-violence campaigns on two strong fronts: first, that violence against women concerns all people, regardless of gender; and secondly, that more attention should be paid to the social environments that produce perpetrators. Activists have also analyzed the cultural factors that contribute to violence against women.
The White Ribbon Campaign was founded in response to the École Polytechnique Massacre
in Montreal
, Quebec
, Canada
. The movement aims to spread awareness about the issue of violence against women by educating men about the problem.
activism in American campaigns is still uncommon, some men have proved valuable allies in their positions in shelters, support groups, and rape response teams. Some male activists claim that their efforts are met with mistrust and anger. Much literature about male anti-rape activists involves men experiencing epiphanies
about the emotional and psychological impact rape inflicts on its victims. Scholars typically claim that in order to end rape and violence against women, men must become aware of these issues, otherwise there is no hope for stopping rape.
In addition to the struggles men face as a part of their work with anti-rape activism, many men that choose to speak out against rape report social costs, specifically that they are viewed as ‘not masculine.’ Men's deviation from hegemonic masculinity
can lead to exclusion by their male peers. Male activists claim that unless masculinity can be redefined to include both caring for women and being vulnerable to emotional issues such as rape, men will continue to avoid taking action against rape.
. As with some areas of feminism, pro-feminists may also believe that pornography reduces women and teenage girls to sex objects.
. While scholars argue that most academic disciplines, except women’s studies, can be considered “men’s studies” because they claim that the content of the curriculum consists of primarily male subjects, masculinity scholars assert that men’s studies specifically analyzes men’s gendered experiences. Central to men’s studies is the understanding that “gender” does not mean “female,” the same way “race” does not mean “black.” Men’s studies are typically interdisciplinary, and incorporate the feminist conception that “the personal is political.” Masculinity scholars strive to contribute to the existing dialogue about gender created through women’s studies.
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
has been complex and intricate. Men have taken part in significant cultural and political responses to feminism in each 'wave' of the movement. Such responses have been varied, with some more sympathetic or critical than others, depending on the individual man and the social context of the time. One popular taxonomy has been offered by Michael Kimmel, who classifies men's responses as falling into the categories antifeminist, masculist/masculinist, and pro-feminist, each largely differing in their view of masculinity. Kimmel himself falls in his profeminist category. Male discourses on the position of women in society date back to Classical Greece
Classical Greece
Classical Greece was a 200 year period in Greek culture lasting from the 5th through 4th centuries BC. This classical period had a powerful influence on the Roman Empire and greatly influenced the foundation of Western civilizations. Much of modern Western politics, artistic thought, such as...
, including Plato's Republic and Aristophanes' Lysistrata
Lysistrata
Lysistrata is one of eleven surviving plays written by Aristophanes. Originally performed in classical Athens in 411 BC, it is a comic account of one woman's extraordinary mission to end The Peloponnesian War...
.
The masculist position advocates campaigns for men's rights
Men's rights
Men's rights is an umbrella term, encompassing the political rights, entitlements, and freedoms given or denied to males within a nation or culture....
. One masculinist position, associated with the Mythopoetic movement and author Robert Bly
Robert Bly
Robert Bly is an American poet, author, activist and leader of the Mythopoetic Men's Movement.-Life:Bly was born in Lac qui Parle County, Minnesota, to Jacob and Alice Bly, who were of Norwegian ancestry. Following graduation from high school in 1944, he enlisted in the United States Navy, serving...
, criticizes "emasculation of men by feminism", and argues for intrinsic differences in the sexes. Masculism in general, however, is the male counterpart to feminism, and seeks to redress social issues facing men and boys. A further discussion of various masculist positions on feminism may be found on the masculism
Masculism
Masculism may refer to political, cultural, and economic movements aimed at establishing and defending political, economic, and social rights and participation in society for men and boys. These rights include legal issues, such as those of conscription, child custody, alimony, and equal pay for...
page.
Early pro-feminist discourses have their roots in the philosophies of the Renaissance and the Enlightenment. In the 19th century, first wave
First wave
First wave can refer to:*First Wave , a TV Show that aired from 1998 to 2001 on the Sci-Fi Channel.* "First Wave", an episode of the TV Show Total Recall 2070...
feminists and abolitionists found common ground as they worked in order to promote the rights of women and slaves, respectively.
History
The 18th century saw male philosophers attracted to issues of human rights, and men such as the Marquis de CondorcetMarquis de Condorcet
Marie Jean Antoine Nicolas de Caritat, marquis de Condorcet , known as Nicolas de Condorcet, was a French philosopher, mathematician, and early political scientist whose Condorcet method in voting tally selects the candidate who would beat each of the other candidates in a run-off election...
championed women's education. Liberals, such as the utilitarian
Utilitarianism
Utilitarianism is an ethical theory holding that the proper course of action is the one that maximizes the overall "happiness", by whatever means necessary. It is thus a form of consequentialism, meaning that the moral worth of an action is determined only by its resulting outcome, and that one can...
Jeremy Bentham
Jeremy Bentham
Jeremy Bentham was an English jurist, philosopher, and legal and social reformer. He became a leading theorist in Anglo-American philosophy of law, and a political radical whose ideas influenced the development of welfarism...
, demanded equal rights for women in every sense, as people increasingly came to believe that women were treated unfairly under the law.
In the 19th century, there was also an awareness of women's struggle. In 1866, John Stuart Mill
John Stuart Mill
John Stuart Mill was a British philosopher, economist and civil servant. An influential contributor to social theory, political theory, and political economy, his conception of liberty justified the freedom of the individual in opposition to unlimited state control. He was a proponent of...
(author of “The Subjection of Women
The Subjection of Women
The Subjection of Women is the title of an essay written by John Stuart Mill in 1869, possibly jointly with his wife Harriet Taylor Mill, stating an argument in favour of equality between the sexes...
”) presented a women’s petition to the British parliament and supported an amendment to the 1867 Reform Bill
Reform Act 1867
The Representation of the People Act 1867, 30 & 31 Vict. c. 102 was a piece of British legislation that enfranchised the urban male working class in England and Wales....
. Although his efforts were concentrated on the problems of married women, this is a realistic acknowledgment that marriage for Victorian women was predicated upon a sacrifice of liberty, rights, and property. His involvement in the women's movement stemmed from his long standing friendship with Harriet Taylor, who he eventually married. The British legal historian, Sir Henry Maine criticised the inevitability of patriarchy in his Ancient Law (1861)
Men's responses to feminism
Sociologist and scholar of men and masculinities Michael Kimmel divides male reactions to feminism into three categories: pro-feminist, anti-feminist, and masculinist.Pro-feminist history
In the Athenian comic poet AristophanesAristophanes
Aristophanes , son of Philippus, of the deme Cydathenaus, was a comic playwright of ancient Athens. Eleven of his forty plays survive virtually complete...
’ play Lysistrata
Lysistrata
Lysistrata is one of eleven surviving plays written by Aristophanes. Originally performed in classical Athens in 411 BC, it is a comic account of one woman's extraordinary mission to end The Peloponnesian War...
, women engage in a sex strike to bring about the end of the Peloponnesian war
Peloponnesian War
The Peloponnesian War, 431 to 404 BC, was an ancient Greek war fought by Athens and its empire against the Peloponnesian League led by Sparta. Historians have traditionally divided the war into three phases...
. Similarly, in The Republic, Plato
Plato
Plato , was a Classical Greek philosopher, mathematician, student of Socrates, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world. Along with his mentor, Socrates, and his student, Aristotle, Plato helped to lay the...
suggests an ‘ideal’ state in which women would receive equal education and opportunities to participate in activities of the state, at least within the guardian class. Although both Lysistrata and The Republic present problems within contemporary feminist readings, they demonstrate the beginnings of men’s concern with women’s issues.
During the Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim was a German magician, occult writer, theologian, astrologer, and alchemist.-Life:Agrippa was born in Cologne in 1486...
wrote La Supériorité du sexe feminin (Superiority of the female sex). Throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the majority of pro-feminist authors emerged from France, including Denis Diderot
Denis Diderot
Denis Diderot was a French philosopher, art critic, and writer. He was a prominent person during the Enlightenment and is best known for serving as co-founder and chief editor of and contributor to the Encyclopédie....
, Paul Henri d’Holbach, and Charles Louis de Montesquieu. Montesquieu introduced female characters, like Roxana in Persian Letters, who subverted patriarchal systems, and represented his arguments against despotism.
19th-century
In 1849, when women were refused the right to participate at the World Anti-Slavery Convention in London. Supporters of the women attending argued that it was hypocritical to forbid women and men from sitting together at this convention to end slavery; they cited similar segregationist arguments in America that were used to separate whites and blacks. When women were still denied to join in the proceedings, abolitionists William Lloyd GarrisonWilliam Lloyd Garrison
William Lloyd Garrison was a prominent American abolitionist, journalist, and social reformer. He is best known as the editor of the abolitionist newspaper The Liberator, and as one of the founders of the American Anti-Slavery Society, he promoted "immediate emancipation" of slaves in the United...
, Charles Lenox Remond
Charles Lenox Remond
Charles Lenox Remond was an American orator, abolitionist and military organizer during the American Civil War...
, Nathanial P. Rodgers, and Henry Stanton
Henry Stanton
Henry Brewster Stanton was a 19th century abolitionist and social reformer.-Biography:Stanton was born in Preston, Connecticut, the son of Joseph Stanton and Susan M. Brewster...
, all elected to sit silently with the women.
One argument against female participation, both at the World Anti-Slavery Convention, and commonly in the nineteenth century, was the suggestion that women were ill-constituted to assume male responsibilities. Pro-feminist Thomas Wentworth Higginson
Thomas Wentworth Higginson
Thomas Wentworth Higginson was an American Unitarian minister, author, abolitionist, and soldier. He was active in the American Abolitionism movement during the 1840s and 1850s, identifying himself with disunion and militant abolitionism...
argued against this, stating:
I do not see how any woman can avoid a thrill of indignation when she first opens her eyes to the fact that it is really contempt, not reverence, that has so long kept her sex from an equal share of legal, political, and educational rights…[a woman needs equal rights] not because she is man’s better half, but because she is his other half. She needs them, not as an angel, but as a fraction of humanity.
During the end of the 19th century, Greenwich Village radicals attempted to institute feminist ideals into their lives by adopting new kinds of relationships with women. They embraced believed feminist objectives, like women’s sexual autonomy and access to birth control
Birth control
Birth control is an umbrella term for several techniques and methods used to prevent fertilization or to interrupt pregnancy at various stages. Birth control techniques and methods include contraception , contragestion and abortion...
.
Contemporary
Today some men's profeminist groups include:- MAN for the ERA - Men Allied Nationally for the Equal Rights Amendment
- NOMAS - the National Organization for Men against Sexism
- RAVEN - Rape And Violence End Now in St. Louis
- MOVE - Men Overcoming Violence in San Francisco
Men's liberation movement
The men's liberationMen's liberation
The consciousness and philosophy of men's liberation is split into two factions. One is critical of the restraints which a patriarchal society imposes on men. This faction is informed by feminism. The other, critical of the restraints matriarchal society imposes on men, is informed by masculinism...
movement began in the early 1970s as consciousness-raising groups to help men free themselves from the limits of sex roles. Proponents of men’s liberation argued that male bonding is a mechanism to conform men’s identities to a single sense of masculinity, which reinforces patriarchy. In lieu of such bonding, the men’s liberation movement called for open acknowledgment of the costs of masculinity: men’s entrapment in their fixed role as the breadwinner of the nuclear family and the taboo against men expressing emotions. Most significantly, this movement made it acceptable for men to be open about their emotions while maintaining their masculinity.
The distinction between gender and biological sex originated during the men's liberation movement. The previously accepted link between the biological male sex and the social construction of masculinity was seen by scholars as a limitation on men’s collaboration with the feminist movement. This sharply contrasted with sex role theory which viewed gender as something determined by biological differences between the sexes. Other key elements of the men's liberation movement were the ideas that genders are relational and each cannot exist without the other, and that gender as a whole is a social construction and not a biological imperative. Thus, second-wave profeminist writers were able to explore the interactions between social practices and institutions, and ideas of gender.
Men's liberation's engagement with race
Racial differences have historically stratified the men’s liberation movement and such divisions still remain problematic today. Some profeminist scholars argue that racism within American society has emasculated non-white men. For example, black men are perceived to lack control over their innate sexual aggression. Within this ideological framework black men are presented as hyper-sexual to an animalistic degree; they therefore represent beasts, not men. Asian-Americans have been emasculated in an opposite way: they have been portrayed as desexualized, unattractive, small, wimpy, intelligent, and devious. (See: Stereotypes of Asian Men)Men's liberation's engagement with gay liberation
Second-wave pro-feminismPro-feminism
Pro-feminism refers to support of the cause of feminism without implying that the supporter is a member of the feminist movement. The term is most often used in reference to men who are actively supportive of feminism and of efforts to bring about gender equality...
paid increased attention to issues of sexuality, particularly the relationship between homosexual men and hegemonic masculinity
Hegemonic masculinity
In gender studies, hegemonic masculinity refers to the belief in the existence of a culturally normative ideal of male behavior. Hegemonic masculinity posits that society strongly encourages men to embody this kind of masculinity. Hegemonic masculinity is said to be marked by a tendency for the...
. This shift led to more cooperation between the men's liberation
Men's liberation
The consciousness and philosophy of men's liberation is split into two factions. One is critical of the restraints which a patriarchal society imposes on men. This faction is informed by feminism. The other, critical of the restraints matriarchal society imposes on men, is informed by masculinism...
and Gay Liberation
Gay Liberation
Gay liberation is the name used to describe the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender movement of the late 1960s and early to mid 1970s in North America, Western Europe, and Australia and New Zealand...
movements. In part this cooperation arose because masculinity was then understood to be a social construction, and as a response to the universalization of ‘men’ seen in previous men’s movements. This allowed for the men’s liberation movement to analyze the conditions under which society becomes less tolerant of homosexuality.
Profeminist writers have identified several hypotheses for explaining the origin of homophobia
Homophobia
Homophobia is a term used to refer to a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards lesbian, gay and in some cases bisexual, transgender people and behavior, although these are usually covered under other terms such as biphobia and transphobia. Definitions refer to irrational fear, with the...
. These hypotheses rely on the idea that gender is a binary system where deviation from either gender norm is viewed as socially unacceptable. Such a system is argued to lead to heterosexism
Heterosexism
Heterosexism is a system of attitudes, bias, and discrimination in favor of opposite-sex sexuality and relationships. It can include the presumption that everyone is heterosexual or that opposite-sex attractions and relationships are the only norm and therefore superior...
, as a way of preserving the binary division.
Mythopoetic/Antifeminist Male response
Other men have reacted to feminist claims by refusing to engage them at all, instead seeking to re-establish a more traditional masculine ideal in order to preserve male dominance. This movement is associated with the formation of fraternal organizations such as the YMCAYMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
. Their founding is seen by some as an attempt to instill traditional masculinity and male bonding in its members.
Where anti-feminists strive to revoke women's rights, masculinists seek to further men's rights. In fact, some masculinists claim that men have been hurt by feminist advances, and that they should empower themselves by revitalizing their masculinity. This argument was also echoed in religious circles with the Muscular Christianity
Muscular Christianity
Muscular Christianity is a term for a movement originating during the Victorian era which stressed the need for energetic Christian activism in combination with an ideal of vigorous masculinity...
movement. The Mythopoetic movement is frequently associated with Robert Bly
Robert Bly
Robert Bly is an American poet, author, activist and leader of the Mythopoetic Men's Movement.-Life:Bly was born in Lac qui Parle County, Minnesota, to Jacob and Alice Bly, who were of Norwegian ancestry. Following graduation from high school in 1944, he enlisted in the United States Navy, serving...
.
Mythopoetic men's movement
The mythopoets crafted a masculinist response to feminism which began in America in the 1980s. The movement selectively used mythology and fairy tales to seek refuge from the perceived ‘feminization’ of modern society with an emphasis on ‘deep masculinity.’ Mythopoets held that all men inherently possessed a ‘deep masculinity’ that has been repressed by over-dominant mothers. In order to recover ‘deep masculinity,’ Mythopoets attended escapist retreats. During these retreats, men attempt to reconnect with nature through initiation rites and ceremonial behavior. Mythopoets often credit American Indians as prime examples of such customs, although the content of the retreats bears little resemblance to any actual American Indian practices.Mythopoets claim to be concerned with what they see as harmful effects that the modernization of American society has had on men. They argue that as America became industrialized, men were forced from the home and into factories, thereby leaving boys with only female role models. The most prominent effects of this lack of guidance were the destruction of nurturing bonds between men and the limitation of emotional expression by men. Mythopoets strove to counter this by reclaiming emotional power from women. Much Mythopoetic literature takes the form of nostalgic longing for a time when deep masculinity was more accessible.
A founding mythopoet is poet Robert Bly
Robert Bly
Robert Bly is an American poet, author, activist and leader of the Mythopoetic Men's Movement.-Life:Bly was born in Lac qui Parle County, Minnesota, to Jacob and Alice Bly, who were of Norwegian ancestry. Following graduation from high school in 1944, he enlisted in the United States Navy, serving...
. Bly’s work includes “Iron John: A Book About Men
Iron John: A Book About Men
Iron John: A Book About Men is a book by American poet Robert Bly published in 1990 by Addison-Wesley.It analyzes Iron John, a Brothers Grimm fairy tale, in Joseph Campbell fashion, to find lessons especially meaningful to men...
” in which he recounts a myth of a young prince’s quest for maturity. In Iron John, Bly argues that, although there are several powerful male characters, most men identify with the weak young prince, and that this identification demonstrates that men do not possess the power and control ascribed to them by feminists. This conception of gender dynamics is representative of the mythopoetic perspective.
Profeminist response to the mythopoetic men's movement
The profeminist men’s movement responded to the Mythopoetic movement in part by acknowledging the difficulties of contemporary masculinity. Profeminist writers sympathized with the Mythopoets’ claims that the economic and social isolation of modern American men affects the contemporary concept of masculinity. These writers understood the ways in which the increasing loss of economic autonomy made it more difficult for American men of the 20th century to satisfy their own definitions of masculinity. Many profeminist authors, however, argue that the Mythopoetic movement defines masculinity as essentially intrinsic to men and separate from women. These profeminist writers believe that this essentialistEssentialism
In philosophy, essentialism is the view that, for any specific kind of entity, there is a set of characteristics or properties all of which any entity of that kind must possess. Therefore all things can be precisely defined or described...
view propagates restrictive gender standards. Profeminists suggest that instead of constantly working to demonstrate how men are not women, men who truly wish to eradicate hegemonic
Hegemony
Hegemony is an indirect form of imperial dominance in which the hegemon rules sub-ordinate states by the implied means of power rather than direct military force. In Ancient Greece , hegemony denoted the politico–military dominance of a city-state over other city-states...
gender standards must ally themselves with the feminist movement. Some profeminist writers see the Mythopoets' essentialist views as the expression of an emotionally-rooted anti-intellectual stance, intended to defend the movement against honest criticism from external sources.
Additionally, some profeminist scholars find much of the Mythopoetic retreats as racist misrepresentations of some aspects of Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
culture. This Mythopoetic selective viewing extends beyond Native American cultural appropriation to the mythologies of other cultures as well. The Mythopoetic call for male-centric “Zeus Power,” for example, ignores Zeus’ appearances in mythology as an incestuous rapist. Profeminists claim that by identifying themselves with these incomplete images, Mythopoets ignore the circumstances in which these cultural values evolved, and creates an unrealistic and idealized 'history' toward which its members strive.
Another perspective advanced by several feminist writers is that the mythopoetic movement was a publicity stunt to revive the career of Robert Bly
Robert Bly
Robert Bly is an American poet, author, activist and leader of the Mythopoetic Men's Movement.-Life:Bly was born in Lac qui Parle County, Minnesota, to Jacob and Alice Bly, who were of Norwegian ancestry. Following graduation from high school in 1944, he enlisted in the United States Navy, serving...
. This view is based on Bly’s earlier fame as a peace activist during the Vietnam War, when he advocated that men embrace their 'feminine' qualities.
Antifeminist response
Opposition to feminism comes in many forms, either criticizing feminist ideology and practice or arguing that it be restrained.Men's rights
In the early 1980s, the men’s rights campaign emerged in America in response to the men’s liberation movement. A uniting principle was the belief that men's problem were awarded less attention that women's and that any previous oppression of women had turned, or were about to turn, into oppression of men. Men’s rights activists cited men's economic burden of the traditionally male breadwinner role, men's shorter average life expectancy, and inequalities favoring women in divorce issues, custody laws, and abortion rights as evidence of men’s suffering.The campaign has generally had the most success achieving legal reform in family law, particularly regarding child custody. Activists argue that the American judicial system discriminates against fathers in child custody hearings since mothers are typically viewed as the main caregivers. They claimed that the economic burden of the breadwinner role has made it more difficult for men to take part in child rearing, and that court decisions rarely account for this obstacle.
Some organizations, such as the National Coalition of Free Men
National Coalition of Free Men
The National Coalition for Men , formerly the National Coalition of Free Men, is a non-profit educational & civil rights organization which looks at the ways sex discrimination affects men and boys. The organization has sponsored conferences, adult education, demonstrations and lawsuits. NCFM is...
, have made efforts to examine how sex discrimination affects men. For instance, this group argues that custody rights in favor of women discriminate against men because they are based on the belief that women are naturally more nurturing and better caregivers than men. Also, in the belief that women are somehow less culpable than men, women receive gentler treatment by the justice system for the same crimes that men have committed. Thus, groups such as NCFM promote awareness, resources, support, and openings for discussion for these issues.
Profeminist responses to men’s rights
Many tenets of the men’s rights movement have been rejected by profeminists. Profeminists believe that the overarching social structure of what they see as patriarchy gives men power over women This is argued by pointing to problems with imbalanced economic and family structures, and exploitation of women. In examining women’s experiences in the workplace, profeminists claim that men retain clear advantages. Women typically earn less money for the same work, are more likely to be victims of sexual harassment, and earn fewer positions of power than men.Profeminist scholars claim that men's anxiety surrounding divorce rights stems from an unprecedented feeling of entitlement. In the case of custody laws, profeminist supporters claim that men do not take an active role in the lives of their children until their rights are threatened by the courts. Men’s rights groups are generally seen as effective in providing self-help, emotional support, and legal advice for divorced men. However, they have also been viewed by some profeminist scholars as providing antifeminist fuel for conservative backlash against the struggle for equal rights between the genders.
Male feminism
Historically a number of men have engaged with feminism. In 1866, John Stuart MillJohn Stuart Mill
John Stuart Mill was a British philosopher, economist and civil servant. An influential contributor to social theory, political theory, and political economy, his conception of liberty justified the freedom of the individual in opposition to unlimited state control. He was a proponent of...
(author of “The Subjection of Women
The Subjection of Women
The Subjection of Women is the title of an essay written by John Stuart Mill in 1869, possibly jointly with his wife Harriet Taylor Mill, stating an argument in favour of equality between the sexes...
”), presented a women’s petition to the British parliament and supported an amendment to the 1867 Reform Bill. Others have lobbied and campaigned against feminism. Today, academics like Michael Flood
Michael Flood
Michael G Flood is an Australian sociologist at the University of Wollongong. Flood gained his doctorate in gender and sexuality studies from the Australian National University...
, Michael Messner
Michael Messner
Michael Alan Messner is an American sociologist. His main areas of research are gender and the sociology of sports...
, and Michael Kimmel are involved with men's studies
Men's studies
Men's studies, sometimes called masculinity studies, is an interdisciplinary academic field devoted to topics concerning men, masculinity, gender, and politics...
and pro-feminist.
There is debate over whether or not men can be feminists. While some scholars argue that men cannot be feminists because of the intrinsic differences between the sexes, others argue that men’s identification with the feminist movement is necessary for furthering the feminist causes. A number of feminist writers maintain that identifying as a feminist is the strongest stand men can take in the struggle against sexism against women. They have argued that men should be allowed, or even encouraged, to participate in the feminist movement. Other female feminists argue that men cannot be feminists simply because they are not women. They claim that men are granted inherent privileges that prevent them from identifying with feminist struggles and thus make it impossible for them to identify with feminists.
A common idea supporting men’s inclusion as ‘feminists’ is that excluding men from the feminist movement labels it as solely a female task, which scholars argue is sexist in itself. They assert that until men share equal responsibility for struggling to end sexism against women, the feminist movement will reflect the very sexist contradiction it wishes to eradicate. The term ‘profeminist’ occupies the middle ground in this semantic debate, because it offers a degree of closeness to feminism without co-opting the term. Also, the prefix ‘pro’ characterizes the term as more proactive and positive. There has been some debate regarding the use of the hyphen (identifying as a ‘pro-feminist’ as opposed to a profeminist) claiming that it distances the term too much from feminism proper. Nonetheless, 'profeminist' seems to be the term of choice at this time.
Men confronting violence against women
An area of feminist social work in which some pro-feminist men have participated is preventing violence against womenDomestic violence
Domestic violence, also known as domestic abuse, spousal abuse, battering, family violence, and intimate partner violence , is broadly defined as a pattern of abusive behaviors by one or both partners in an intimate relationship such as marriage, dating, family, or cohabitation...
, and supporting its survivors. Anti-violence activists work in shelters for battered women, counseling survivors, rehabilitating perpetrators and spreading awareness of the issue. Many male activists support these anti-violence campaigns on two strong fronts: first, that violence against women concerns all people, regardless of gender; and secondly, that more attention should be paid to the social environments that produce perpetrators. Activists have also analyzed the cultural factors that contribute to violence against women.
The White Ribbon Campaign was founded in response to the École Polytechnique Massacre
École Polytechnique massacre
The École Polytechnique Massacre, also known as the Montreal Massacre, was a hate crime perpetrated on December 6, 1989 at the École Polytechnique in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Twenty-five-year-old Gamil Rodrigue Liass Gharbi, who had changed his name to Marc Lépine, armed with a legally obtained...
in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The movement aims to spread awareness about the issue of violence against women by educating men about the problem.
Men confronting rape
Although men's participation in anti-rapeRape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
activism in American campaigns is still uncommon, some men have proved valuable allies in their positions in shelters, support groups, and rape response teams. Some male activists claim that their efforts are met with mistrust and anger. Much literature about male anti-rape activists involves men experiencing epiphanies
Epiphany (feeling)
An epiphany is the sudden realization or comprehension of the essence or meaning of something...
about the emotional and psychological impact rape inflicts on its victims. Scholars typically claim that in order to end rape and violence against women, men must become aware of these issues, otherwise there is no hope for stopping rape.
In addition to the struggles men face as a part of their work with anti-rape activism, many men that choose to speak out against rape report social costs, specifically that they are viewed as ‘not masculine.’ Men's deviation from hegemonic masculinity
Hegemonic masculinity
In gender studies, hegemonic masculinity refers to the belief in the existence of a culturally normative ideal of male behavior. Hegemonic masculinity posits that society strongly encourages men to embody this kind of masculinity. Hegemonic masculinity is said to be marked by a tendency for the...
can lead to exclusion by their male peers. Male activists claim that unless masculinity can be redefined to include both caring for women and being vulnerable to emotional issues such as rape, men will continue to avoid taking action against rape.
Men confronting pornography
Some pro-feminist scholars believe that the portrayal of sexuality in pornography has contributed to the rise of sexual violence, misogyny, and the perpetuation of inequality between the sexes. They suggest that the normalization of male-dominated, violent, and degrading sexual acts has led users of pornography to incorporate violence into their own lives. Pro-feminists may assert that these trends in pornography are reflected by increased acts of sexual violence; and also contribute to normalizing rape cultureRape culture
Rape culture is a term which originated in women's studies and feminist theory, describing a culture in which rape and sexual violence against women are common and in which prevalent attitudes, norms, practices, and media condone, normalize, excuse, or tolerate sexual violence against women...
. As with some areas of feminism, pro-feminists may also believe that pornography reduces women and teenage girls to sex objects.
Men’s studies
Masculinity scholars have seek to broaden the academic discourse of gender through men's studiesMen's studies
Men's studies, sometimes called masculinity studies, is an interdisciplinary academic field devoted to topics concerning men, masculinity, gender, and politics...
. While scholars argue that most academic disciplines, except women’s studies, can be considered “men’s studies” because they claim that the content of the curriculum consists of primarily male subjects, masculinity scholars assert that men’s studies specifically analyzes men’s gendered experiences. Central to men’s studies is the understanding that “gender” does not mean “female,” the same way “race” does not mean “black.” Men’s studies are typically interdisciplinary, and incorporate the feminist conception that “the personal is political.” Masculinity scholars strive to contribute to the existing dialogue about gender created through women’s studies.
See also
External links
Further reading
- Alan D. Berkowitz (ed.) Men and rape: theory, research, and prevention programs in higher education, issue 65 of New directions for student services, Jossey-Bass, 1994, ISBN 9780787999711.