Women are typically supposed to be better at planning, cooperation and synthesising information, listening and nurturing. If this is, in general, correct then what qualities are essentially masculine?
Thoughtful men are asking themselves what their role now is in a world (a Western world, anyway) in which gender is cessing to matter so much, and equality seems to be the emerging result of social change. If this is the case, and we are becoming different but equal, what are the desirable masculine values in 2015? Risk taking? Look at the banking crisis. Stoicism? Too much like emotional illiteracy and poor communication skills. Decisiveness? Women can be decisive, too, if you let them (some sensibly let their men decide for the sake of peace)
Modern ideas about masculinity were developed in the 19th Century by educator Thomas Arnold, who promoted notions of masculine self-denial and piety that shaped the men of the British middle and upper classes in the 19th century, and then spread around the Western world. The Muscular Christianity movement, which associated masculinity with sport,was thought up by Charles Kingsley and the reviewer TC Sandars, and suited the age of colonialism and Western expansionism. Modern men are probably unaware that a more gentle, subtle ,and humane ethos preceded this reshaping of the role of their gender. Shakespeare’s charismatic but vacillating heroes (Hamlet, Anthony, Prospero), for instance, are set off against limited, militaristic counterparts (Fortinbras, Caesar, Antonio) to counter the cult of the nationalist, warrior hero that was encouraged by Protestantism. (The Christian religion has a long history of promoting male dominance (read about the early Christian church!).
The revolt by feminists against the “little woman” image created in Victorian times has left men with a growing hunger for a debate among men as to what stance they should take.
(inspired by “How to be a Man”, by Ricard Benson, Prospect Magazine, Dec 2014).
In order to make this post not too long I will return to the Epicurean answer tomorrow.
Posted by Owen Bell:
I can’t comment on this article without sounding sexist, but anyway here
goes:
Men are less likely than women to engage in wishful thinking.
Men are less likely to believe in something because they want to, whereas
women tend to believe in whatever they perceive as the most just outcome,
regardless of the likelihood of that actually being the case.
Men are less ‘spiritual’ than women; spirituality and religion are not the
same but they are closely linked.
Women tend to conform to society more than men, as society penalises women
who are different; this is why early socialist movements were overwhelmingly
male.
Similarly, men are more likely to be rebellious and individualistic. It is
why most of our greatest politicians and heroes have been men, but also most
of our villains.
Women are easier to indoctrinate than men; they are more likely to believe
what you tell them because they are more trusting. Although there are many
exceptions to this, the general rule remains.
Women are naturally skeptical of change, including changing the establish
religious/moral order. This is why much of the opposition to feminism has
come from women.
In the case of modern Britain, the reason why women are more religious than
men is because women have it tougher. They need to believe in something
‘more’ to get them through everyday life. This is why the poor are more
religious than the rich, the uneducated more religious than the educated,
and the old more religious than the young (they need something to confront
death with.) All of these groups, to an extent, have it tougher, and cannot
confront the idea of this life being the only thing that is real.