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Masculinity: A Culturally Developed Disaster“The persistence of the expression ‘to make a man of [someone]’ is the best possible evidence of the deliberateness of the streamlining of the male person into the masculine man.” Germaine Greer irrefutably proves that masculinity is not woven into DNA but rather culturally determined from as early as infancy. When one has researched this topic, it becomes obvious that parental treatment, societal expectations [from other men in particular], and ancient tradition all play a crucial role in the instilment of masculinity into males.Germaine Greer’s essay, “Masculinity,” begins by highlighting points, made by David Skuse of the Institute of the Child Health and at the Wessex Regional Genetics Laboratory, designated to prove masculinity was genetic. Skuse examines individuals with Turner’s syndrome. “Researchers found that the single-X ‘girls’ displayed masculine characteristics in that they were insensitive, demanding and obtuse” (Greer 63). To refute this, it seems likely that the girls found to be “insensitive, demanding and obtuse” may have developed these “masculine” personality traits growing up, rather than being born with this unsavory personality. Greer states, “They usually grow up to be short in stature and infertile” (63). Personally, I’ve witnessed many girls, also short in stature, grow up to be insensitive entirely because society has been defecating on them throughout the entirety of their lives. Alike to masculinity, these traits found in the girls’ personalities were the result of cultural influences rather than being DNA based; the experiences an individual undergoes throughout their life define them.Equally important, Greer also mentions that the process of instilling masculinity into males begins when “…the carer who thinks a child a boy readily offers it food when it cries; the same carer, thinking a child a girl will allow it to cry longer and will soothe rather than feed it…mothers perceive boy babies as hungrier and as better feeders than girls” (64). Through this neglect girls must learn to learn to be patient and find subtle ways to get they want in life. As girls grow up, in high school for instance, loud girls are found “annoying” or to be “drama queens.” Boys, however, learn from their experiences as infants that making a fuss is, more often than not, the best way to get what they want. Boys see to be loud are intimidating and this earns them social prestige. A girl trying to intimidate is either “obnoxious” or someone whose sexual preferences are questioned.Greer then continues on to address the issue of “father-love versus mother-love” (65). Her beliefs conclude that a father’s love is conditional when it comes to their daughter whereas a mother’s love for her children, regardless of gender, is unconditional and praise is awarded without much cause. “…a girl’s first love affair (with her father) is inevitably a failure compared to a boy’s effortless conquest of his mother…the saddest, smelliest, most shambling male individual still imagines that women will find him attractive and is prepared to act on the assumption…he considers himself entitled to criticize any and all aspects of a woman’s appearance as harshly as any other male” (Greer 65). A lot of self-confidence can be gained from the opinions received from those of the opposite sex. The shyest most unsure girl could blossom overtime with a significant other telling her every day that she can do no wrong; so if girls are forced to start out from childhood, when personality identities are just beginning to form, having to work harder than their brothers to obtain praise, it becomes easy enough to picture why men may feel more self-righteous typically, in life, than the average woman.Furthermore, ancient traditions help to create masculinity in men. Greer writes, “The myth that feeds masculinity is that every boy should become a strong and resolute warrior capable of defending his women and children from attack by other males” (67). Centuries ago, men needed to hunt for their women. It was survival of the fittest and women are generally smaller and weaker. This tradition, although arguably irrelevant in today’s society, still lives on in males; a boy’s father teaches his son, who teaches his son that “chivalry” and “providing for your woman” is necessary. To me, chivalry is a given; it’s another word for common courtesy and expected manners. The average woman is courteous to men. The average woman helps bring in her share of the income in a marriage. The average woman is afforded extra protection provided by modern day technology. So why do men in today’s society still think they need to be “strong and resolute warriors?” This form of masculinity has been taught to men to be expected in society. Greer also mentions that men are almost solely responsible for carrying on the teaching of masculinity. “…women make boys out of babies. It is the men who make men out of boys…” (66). Greer proves this in explaining that young men are constantly competing with one another to be “more of a man.” For a man, I’ve seen that men often pick on the smaller men or more sensitive ones. So growing up in today’s society, where the average person desires to be in the “in crowd,” avoiding the teasing is essential. To do this, men must act like “better” or usually “older” men who’ve already had masculinity developed in their personalities. Men are taught throughout their lives that to avoid being taunted they mustn’t act womanly; in other words, they must act the way men have always acted: masculine.Imagine a world where overnight everyone forgot every past experience of their entire life. Imagine you still knew how to talk but didn’t retain one other memory. How would you act? Masculinity would be eradicated because a man would have no memory of being raised to be “masculine.” Every gesture a person makes or the words someone speaks are a product of their own history and how everyone around them has taught them to behave.Masculinity, undeniably culturally developed, will continue to last through the next generation as it always has. From the moment men are born, their parents instill masculinity into their personalities. Masculinity defines who they are as people. This masculinity, while it was taught through modern culture, may not be something that can be untaught. Ancient traditions cannot just be erased. Regardless of an individual’s DNA structure, without culture to define who you are, nothing could be certain in your mind. Physically, an individual wouldn’t change, but traits such as “masculinity” would not be possible without being culturally developed.(Word Count: 1,094) ................
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