Masculinity Is a Poisonous Antidote, And Men and Boys Are Paying the Price

Umaru Samai

The sociological work of literature "Paying for Masculinity" by Murray Knuttila focuses on the idea of masculine domination in our culture. Knuttila claims in this work that one must accept hegemonic masculinity to explain the predominance of male supremacy. Due to the enormous demands and expectations placed on men for so long, it seems like hegemonic masculinity is so obvious. Knuttila exemplifies how this kind of masculinity may be detrimental because it just causes problems and widens the gender gap. Knuttila meticulously divides this book into chapters that concentrate on certain subjects including infancy, economics, violence, and media, all of which significantly contribute to the case for abandoning hegemonic masculinity.

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I kindly ask that you ignore this review and instead focus on the harmful effects of toxic masculinity. This will be the subject of another article. Masculinity, the set of expectations our society has for men that ultimately harm both their lives and those of others, has been coming to the attention of academics and the public. The notions of masculinity cause men to lose out on elements of life that should be accessible to everyone, regardless of gender, by mandating that men must be powerful, have no feelings, and control women, such as emotional linking and cultivation. Toxic masculinity can, at its worst, promote violence.

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For the avoidance of doubt, "masculinity" in this sense refers to the cultural production of manhood rather than to the inherent qualities of men. When we discuss the negative impacts of toxic masculinity, we are not blaming men—rather, we are highlighting the unjust expectations that are placed on them. By defining roles that both genders are required to fulfil, patriarchy harms not only women but also men and utterly erases persons who identify as gender nonconforming.

So, how might a masculinity that isn't poisonous look? Because there is no intrinsic meaning to masculinity, you may define it or choose not to identify with it at all. Men may find it difficult to connect with other emotions because toxic masculinity forces them to express just one emotion: rage. Over time, this may cause men to become more aloof from others and hinder their ability to form deep bonds with their partners and children.

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One study published in the Social Psychological and Personality Science even discovered that repressing emotions might result in aggressiveness, which is not a good place to start when attempting to build wholesome relationships.

Theorizing that violence is the ideal way for men to demonstrate their strength and power, toxic masculinity prevents them from expressing their emotions in other ways and, as masculinity educator Siavash Zohoori points out, promotes violence.

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According to the American Psychological Association, men are less likely to seek mental health care than women. The conventional notions of what it means to be a male may be to blame for this. Take a moment to picture a tribal chief from Sierra Leone receiving therapy or medical attention. The curved edge of the needle piercing into your skin is not meant to make you weep since you are a man, right? The public perceives a man as "not man enough" when he sobs over a woman because he is a "dead man" with no strong feelings.

Professor Elizabeth Sharp of Texas Tech University remarked that toxic masculinity *" teaches men that their identity depends on their capacity to dominate women and that sexual assault and harassment are two frequent ways for men to do so."

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Using the term "girls" to refer to men perpetuates the idea that being feminine is a bad attribute, according to Tony Porter, who made this statement in one of his TED Talks. Porter believes that toxic masculinity instils in us the ideas that "men are in charge, which implies that women are not; that men lead, and you should just follow and do as we say; that men are superior and women are inferior; that men are strong and women are weak." Simply expressed, toxic masculinity promotes a society that denigrates women by identifying certain attributes with men and placing those traits above traits related to women. This society not only criticizes men for being "feminine," but also denigrates women for having such traits. Everyone is harmed by toxic patriarchal practices, just as in other areas.

Dear men, let's "take some time to ruminate over how patriarchal cultural stereotypes of men are busy killing us," as Jacques Jonker noted in his open letter to all men. Without even realizing it, we are actively harming each other. I've always been a strong believer that patriarchal societal preconceptions cause men's mental health to deteriorate and can ultimately lead to us committing suicide.