Argument Notes: Exploring Masculinities, Gender, and Society

This essay, titled "Argument Notes," examines the multifaceted concept of masculinities, focusing on hegemonic masculinity as defined by Connell's theory. It delves into the relationship between masculinity and hegemony, drawing upon Gramsci's theory to illustrate how dominant groups establish and maintain their influence through economic and political means, shaping societal norms and standards. The essay explores how hegemonic masculinity is institutionalized through media and schools, creating a gendered hierarchy where one form of masculinity is considered ideal. It analyzes the characteristics associated with hegemonic masculinity, including race, sexual orientation, and physical strength. Furthermore, the essay discusses how factors like age and class contribute to the construction of masculinity and how feminist perspectives, such as Judith Butler's, challenge these norms. The analysis also considers the impact of hegemonic masculinity on different communities, like the black community in sports and the marginalization of women, particularly older women and women of color, within a patriarchal society. The essay concludes by integrating these perspectives, highlighting the societal implications of hegemonic masculinity and the ways in which it shapes gender dynamics and social inequalities.

Running Head: ARGUMENT NOTES
Argument Notes
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author’s Note:

1ARGUMENT NOTES
Table of Contents
Summary....................................................................................................................................2
Integration..................................................................................................................................4
Reactions....................................................................................................................................5
References..................................................................................................................................6

2ARGUMENT NOTES
Summary
Masculinities and its various forms and shapes are being laid out in the articles named
“Hegemonic Masculinity’ where the concept of multiple masculinities is explained with the
help of Connell’s theory. The concept of hegemony and its relation to masculinity is based on
Antonia Gramsci’s theory of hegemony, which associates the difference and dominance of
classes due to the submission and active participation in acceptance of it by the subordinate
classes. It is explained by the use of economic and political influences by the dominant group
to influence and persuasive power of the one class to accept them as leaders or the normative
ideal of preference and standard. It proves that the win and the winning scale, both are
decided by the dominant class (Mandell, & Johnson, 2017). They are ones who accepted to
the measuring scale for others to win as well. The concept of dominant and subordinate class
is accepted by the institutionalization through the means of schools and mass media.
The established relationship of class dominance and class has been used as the
concept of how different forms of masculinities are results of the formation of the gendered
hierarchy. The argument of the division based on hegemony accepts one prominent form of
masculinity as the ideal version with which others are measured and is pointed out by
Christopher and Barbara as the living and thriving form of hegemony present in Western
society. The term Masculine or the terms characterized with masculinity starts with white
race recognition, then the normative standard of men denoting the sexual orientation that is
heterosexual and then physical strength signifying power accumulation (Mandell, & Johnson,
2017). The physical attributes related to power and strength with male and masculinity are
that they should be able-bodied which implies that to be an ideal and complete man physical
strength is one of the crucial components as to stay compliant heterosexual form of life, a
man needs to maintain sexual dominance and verity in life. Another factor that can be

3ARGUMENT NOTES
observed to be related to the hegemonic concept is that an ideal man is supposed to be the
breadwinner, youthful, and economically prosperous.
Christopher and Barbara, in their article, shows how the feminist writer Judith
Butler’s definition of gender as the assertion of sexual orientation through performance and
continuous practice (Mandell, & Johnson, 2017). It shows how hegemonic masculinity and
its concept are connected to the performance issue where a man has to compete and maintain
the physical attributes which align with the male characteristics in order to prove and secure
their status of manliness. Gender and race are two of the basic features which decide the
standard of the hegemonic scale a male has to perform. The class difference also plays a vital
role in the masculine definition of the ‘man’ image. One can see the difference in the
portrayal of masculinity among the white and the black community. The black community
and its assertion and involvement in sports was the result of the display of that one variable
where they were stringer their white counterparts. It was due to this the last decade saw a rise
in the presence of the black community in sports.
The article by Nancy and Ann shows the emergence of the wave of feminism, but
unfortunately, the condition and the variable and the agent involve dare again the same ones
as the previous fight against patriarchy (Mandell, & Johnson, 2017). The women themselves
are the agent of ageism or the age construct for which the older women are targeted. In the
case of hegemonic masculinities, the construct provides men with the avenue of being
established as the better and idealistic form of the variance, which means more options for
them to be admirable and recognized by the society as successful. However, the same
growing age becomes a means of liability and discrimination for women, the women who had
lived their entire life fighting for gender equality (Tong & Lintz, 2019). The difference in the
approach towards the variable of age in discriminating against women is again shown to have
been originated from the masculine hegemony hierarchy.

4ARGUMENT NOTES
The economic difference in the younger phase of their life can be seen as the base
where the women and their old age because of the facilities which they have access and the
facilities missing in their life. It can also be as being institutionalized among women where
they go to extreme means to keep themselves out of the age bracket, which will throw them
out of the race itself. This is again seen to be accelerated with the addition of another variable
of class in the equation (Tong & Lintz, 2019). Women belonging to lower classes and women
of color are seen to be the most affected part of gender. They are seen as the liability on the
government, and the age limit can be seen to be implemented and institutionalized with the
help of government facilities of pension.
Integration
In both, the article, the division among the gender is based on the acceptance of the
standard or normative measure, which is decided by the dominant class of people. One of the
most similar factors which are seen among the content of the article is the deviance in the
behavior of acceptance and rejection is based on the perceived notion of strength in the
individual. In the article ‘Understanding masculinities’ we see how men with disability are
not accepted as complete men, and they are the only one who comes close to Understanding
of the equality inflicted on women for their physical strength. The disability, which is, most
of the time, not the fault of the individual, makes them unfit to fit in the hegemonic position
establishing the fact that physical prowess of the man is of utmost importance, even more
than the color of the skin (Paechter, 2018). It is due to the patriarchal notion of the definition
of a man being a provider and caretaker of women, which is again according to the normative
behavior not accepted to be possible by men with any disability.

5ARGUMENT NOTES
Reactions
Christopher and Barbara’s discourse on Understanding Masculinities shows the
division among the masculine assertion of the different classes of the society, which shows
the working of two variables, which asserts the position in the hegemonic hierarchy (Krekula,
Nikander & Wilińska, 2018). Masculinity as performance, however, overlaps again as the
people who do not conform to the normative sexual orientation are shunned and exiled from
the division. It is the working of the same class, which forms the subordinates from among
them and treats women as the ‘others’ among them who go on to create a shunned
community (Hall, 2017). Their assertion through practice comes into play here, for they place
them below women as well as showing the negation of their strength and existence by placing
them below women. This can be seen as the establishment of dominance by the dominant
group to display their power in the society, and the same institutionalization medium of
schools and mass media is used to show the struggle to make sure that men remain faithful to
the normative construct.
Nancy and Ann’s article on the next revolution shows the workings of the government
in establishing women as a dependable variable on the government and the determination of
which is done based on age, namely- women aged below nineteen and those above sixty-five.
However, the same feminist movement during the radical days protested demanding pensions
(Comeaux, et al., 20170 The part of the article criticize which is confusing for the emphasis
should be on changing the outlook of the society and the government for viewing pension as
the payment of the unpaid social work done by the women in the role of caretaker.

6ARGUMENT NOTES
References
Comeaux, E., Griffin, W., Bachman, P., & Porter, J. (2017). NCAA Division I Athlete STEM
Graduates. Journal of Intercollegiate Sport, 10(1), 44-66.
Hall, S. (2017). Daubing the drudges of fury: Men, violence and the piety of the ‘hegemonic
masculinity’ thesis. In Crime, Criminal Justice and Masculinities (pp. 3-30).
Routledge.
Krekula, C., Nikander, P., & Wilińska, M. (2018). Multiple marginalizations based on age:
gendered ageism and beyond. In Contemporary perspectives on ageism (pp. 33-50).
Springer, Cham.
Mandell, N., & L. Johnson, J. (2017). Feminist Issues: Race, Class and Sexuality, 6th,
Mandell, Nancy & Johnson, Jennifer | Buy Online at Pearson. Retrieved 30 March
2020, from https://www.pearson.com.au/products/Mandell-Nancy-Johnson-Jennifer/
Feminist-Issues-Race-Class-and-Sexuality/9780133593662?R=9780133593662
Paechter, C. (2018, May). Rethinking the possibilities for hegemonic femininity: Exploring a
Gramscian framework. In Women's Studies International Forum (Vol. 68, pp. 121-
128). Pergamon.
Tong, R., & Lintz, H. (2019). A Feminist Analysis of the Abuse and Neglect of Elderly
Women. In Analyzing Violence Against Women (pp. 167-176). Springer, Cham.