Masculinity as Homophobia

Masculinity as Homophobia

Definitions

Masculinity

Defined as ‘the possession of qualities traditionally associated with men’. This is still largely seen as a quality or trait that men either possess or are without. However, masculinity should be looked at as an ever-changing relationship with oneself, ones peers, and ones environment. It is historical and should be viewed as a social construct, rather than a biological feature. This social construct has turned masculinity into about distancing from the feminine, or the repudiation of femininity. For in order to be masculine, one must be the opposite of feminine, according to social norms.

Phrases of Masculinity

According to psychologist Robert Brannon (1976) the definition of manhood is described in 4 phrases:
• “No Sissy Stuff!” Suggesting that males may never do anything that even remotely suggests femininity.
• “Be a Big Wheel.” Meaning masculinity is measured by power success, wealth and status.
• “Be a Sturdy Oak.” Masculinity depends on remaining calm and reliable in pressure situations, while holding your emotions in check. This extends to males not externally showing emotions whatsoever. “Boys don’t cry.”
• “Give ‘em Hell.” Males should exude a persona of manly daring and aggression, while taking risks.

Hypermasculinity

At its core Hypermasculinity is "an adoption of extreme machismo in males" . Media images and constant reinforcement of stereotypes continue to exaggerate a characteristic that fuels not only homophobia, but other forms of gendered violence that affect the society as a whole. Researcher Megan Vokey terms this exaggeration as something called "Hypermasculinity". It identifies four characteristics of violence: toughness as emotional control, violence as manly, danger as exciting and calloused behaviours towards women and sex as normal. Vokey correlates the violent aggressive behaviour present in men with these media reinforcements. Gender behaviours are thus viewed as something constantly enforced on people through advertisements, toys, TV shows, movies, and other forms of consumer culture. Homophobia thus becomes a "natural" response for many men as it strays away from the mainstream norm and due to its binary relationship with hypermasculine characteristics.

Homophobia

Homophobia is described as the irrational fear, hatred, aversion to or discrimination against people who are homosexual or are perceived to be homosexual. This is usually accompanied with the belief that heterosexuality is naturally the only ‘right’ option in terms of sexuality. These views were and often still are the beliefs of many religious groups, as homosexual behaviour is considered a sin and contradicts the word of god. In addition, up until 1980 homosexuality was considered a mental disorder in the eyes of many medical professionals. Homophobia is organized into 3 main subcategories:

Internalized Homophobia

Is shown as fear or hatred of homosexuality that exists within ones mind. Examples include:
• Making a determined effort to dress or act in such a way as to not appear to be homosexual
• Having low self-esteem because of concerns around being homosexual
• A homosexual man discriminating against another homosexual man for acting ‘too feminine’.

Interpersonal Homophobia

Homophobic speech and or actions of an individual towards others who are, or who are perceived to be lesbian, bisexual, gay, or transgendered. Examples include:
• Violence, physical harassment, name calling, anti-homosexual hate crimes
• Jokes that misrepresent or put down homosexuals, the suggestion that individuals should ‘understand’ when they are treated differently

Institutional Homophobia

The ways in which government, business, churches and other organizations discriminate against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and other homosexual individuals. Examples include:
• Policy or legislation that actively prevents same-sex couples from being able to adopt or marry
• Ignoring sexuality as a category on data collection sheets
• Being prevented from career opportunities or being fired from a job for being homosexual or perceived as homosexual
• Being prevented from taking a same-sex partner to a school dance or prom.

History

The beginning of masculinity and manhood is extremely difficult to date, as rituals and ceremonies for boys becoming ‘men’ have existed for many years. With this in mind, two models of manhood prevailed in the late 18th century. The first being the Genteel Patriarch, which derived its identity from landownership. This model of manhood entailed supervising his estate, while being refined, elegant, and a devoted father. Two examples of this would be George Washington or Thomas Jefferson. The second of the models was the Heroic Artisan, which was more focused on physical strength and republican virtue. This model was largely based around occupation as independent urban craftsmen or shopkeeper. The Heroic Artisan taught his son his craft, bringing him up as a apprentice in the same field of work as his father. These two ideals remained peacefully until the 1830s, which brought out a new model of manhood, Marketplace Manhood. This was the beginning of the businessman, a model driven on his own success in a capitalistic marketplace. The accumulation of wealth, power and status only drove him to be Restless, agitated and anxious. This competitiveness in his work only led to being an absentee landlord at home, and an absent father with his children. This model was based upon a male-only world in which the male pits himself against other men.

Masculinity as Homophobia

The basis behind this connection is not the fear of women, but the fear of being humiliated in front of other men, or being dominated by stronger men. Homophobia is the fear that other men will unmask us, emasculate us, reveal to us and the world that we do not measure up and aren’t real men. This relates to the 4 phrases of the definition of masculinity as described previously. This fear of being emasculated creates shame, this appears because of the recognition that we may not be as manly as we pretend. These factors lead to a vicious circle, as males avoid being emasculated and falsely prove their masculinity, the appearance of homophobia increases. This shame leads to silence, and it is these silences that keep other individuals believing that the things that are done to women, minorities and other groups are acceptable. This could be shown in situations such as sexist or racist jokes that go unchallenged, or the fact that often males behave differently in group settings as compared to partners who are alone with each other.