An Enquiry into the Duties of the Male Gender — Pt. 7

Conclusion

“I am glad you are here with me” — Return of the King, Tolkien

In the first essay of this series, I made the argument that masculinity, as it stands today, is reactive, it defines itself by what it’s not, in the subsequent essays I have argued for how this can be changed. The core problem with traditional understandings of masculinity is that they are proscriptive, restrictive and unchangeable. I hope I have offered an alternative view of how men can define themselves that is more interpretive, freeing and malleable. If you are just joining, here’s a summary:

Men across the wealthier nations are struggling. This is because the traditional ideals of masculinity have painted them into a corner. What are these ideals and what are the alternatives? The most immediately obvious is individualism and the isolation that follows, because traditional masculinity demands men do everything on their own. To change this we need to reach out to other people (and not just other men) like professionals or simply other people who are (and don’t just claim to be) well adjusted. We also need a wider array of influences, which leads us to our next point.

Men have had a leading role and controlling stake throughout the whole of history…