Masculine Pursuits

Throughout the history of humanity, words such as virile, athletic, aggressive, and brave have been virtually synonymous with masculinity. The alpha male has been the stoic bastion of leadership, strength, and individualism that any boy would one day hope, nay, dream to attain. Even literary genius Camille Paglia once stated, "A woman simply is, but a man must become" (Camille 1). How times have changed. In his work, Jungle Fever, Pete Wells analyzes the King Kong re-makes and satirically relates the evolution of Kong from the original 1933 version as "an untamed alpha male within modern civilization," (Wells 68) to Peter Jackson's recent depiction as so "housebroken that he becomes a knuckle-dragging eunuch" (Wells 69). Unfortunately, the comparison does not end there. Wells masterfully parallels Kong's "maturation" with the contemporary media's depiction of today's man. In the new millennium, T.V. shows and movies alike render males as incompetent bumbling idiots, presenting "men in general, and husbands and fathers in particular, as objects of ridicule, pity, or even scorn," thus helping the media to successfully perpetuate stereotypes of their own design (Kane 1).

A subtle, yet powerful form of the media which establishes and molds gender roles consists of the many advertisements on T.V. and in magazines. Because these advertisements pervade Western culture, "gender representations [have become] one of advertisers' favorite means used to sell products" (Barthel 1988). These advertising agencies have become accustomed to designing campaigns that exploit gender identity, vying for the consumer's attention, tantalizing them with an image, and finally, selling these consumers the product. This prevalence of advertisements in America's society began a war between traditional masculinity and new-age ads. Instigated by chagrined feminists, women who for years were fed up with ads showing addle-brained housewives completely dependant on men, ad campaigns of helpless and hapless men were created. Gaining momentum, these anti- masculine ads have led to what many critics today call misandry, or hatred of males and the masculine. One such notable example is made by Verizon Wireless in a commercial for it's DSL service created by McGarry Bowen in New York: "The spot shows a computer-clueless father trying to help his Internet-savvy daughter with her homework online. Mom orders Dad to go wash the dog and leave their daughter alone; the girl flashes an exasperated look of contempt at him" (Kane 1). Most marketeers who present incompetent, silly male characters defend their campaigns, stating that "they provide a harmless comedic insight into the male mentality while also appealing to women" (Kane 1). Yet the recent, ever-growing, trend in many of these advertisements shows "men act[ing] like buffoons, ogling cars and women; are likened to dogs, especially in beer and pizza ads; and bungle every possible household task" (Kane 1).

This unhealthy image of men should have ceased with ads, yet the U.S. media empire mercilessly cashes in on the T.V. male as well. While "Feminism gave us decades of women who pondered what it means to be female--Mary Richards, Ally McBeal, Carrie Bradshaw; the lack of curiosity about what being a man means is practically T.V.'s definition of masculinity" (Poniewozik 1). One such show that undermines male core values is HBO's The Mind of the Married Man, which illustrates the life of a successful Chicago journalist as he fantasizes and cheats on his spouse, as well as squirms under domestic responsibility. While some men do have affairs in the real world, HBO's carefully picked, attention grabbing title stipulates that many, if not all, men experience such thoughts and carry out such actions, although in the real world many married men are happy with their lives.

One of the greatest threats posed to the masculine figure comes in the form of the sitcom dad as "The feminist era took us from Father Knows Best to Father Knows Nothing--buffoons like Home Improvement's Tim Taylor and Homer Simpson, whose lunkheaded maleness is their weakness" (Poniewozik 1). Other weak and degenerate father figures like these have also sprung up like weeds. Family Guy's Peter Griffin is an alcoholic and obese father who never pays attention to his kids. Malcolm in the Middle's Hal is a child trapped in an adult's body, a father who wears his emotions on his sleeve and is bossed around by his wife more than the children are.

With the wondrous array of negative stereotypes targeted at men, it seems very clear where the image of masculinity is heading in today's society. Paul Nathanson, who wrote "Spreading Misandry: The Teaching of Contempt for Men in Popular Culture"