In Masculinities, R.W. Connell asserts that a change in the meaning of masculinity occurs when society is in crisis. Whatever results are made out of the situation, I wonder if there is on-going shift in the meaning of masculinities, or at least of a masculinity. As Connell points out, masculinities are actually intertwined with the other frameworks of social structure. How about morality? Morality, it seems, is closely related to the meaning of at least a couple of masculinities, especially those that deal with what men ought to do, for example. What I have in mind are whistle-blowing and ratting; however, the latter seems to have more a negative connotation.
On the one hand, a lot of people historically seem to have believed that they should not "rat" on someone of their association, for it was seen betraying, cowardly, and humiliating. On the other hand, as we find movies such as the Informant and the Whistleblower, such an act seems nowadays to be considered just, brave, and admirable. Whether or not which view is just is left for an individual choice, the question here is: what is a crisis that caused all this? Obviously, I will not investigate this further now, but thought it was interesting.
No comments:
Post a Comment