Why men have turned to 'awful models of masculinity' and how to change it

Professor Scott Galloway and The Washington Post's Christine Emba discuss the ideas behind Emba's latest opinion piece 'Men are lost. Here's a map out of the wilderness.'


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Why men have turned to 'awful models of masculinity' and how to change it

#Masculinity #Opinion #MSNBC

[duanebidoux]

Well, I don't know about toxic masculinity, but Hawley sure gives a lot of information on what it means to be a toxic Senator.

[paulczubryt]

I'm 45, I'm single, and I play video games. Its one of my hobbies. I play them to escape the doldrums of my life. Want to know why boys and men play video games too much? Its because it makes us feel like we are actually accomplishing something. In the game we are accomplishing goals and acheivements, which provides dopamine hits. It feels like we are making some sort of a difference in that microcosm thar we are enveloped in. When we leave the game, we're back to the sad reality and loneliness that is life. We're back to feeling useless. On too of that, we feel that no one listens and no one cares.

[thegags]

The absolute last individuals young men should be looking up to for guidance are politicians.

[maargenbx]

I live in NYC and I was at a public bus stop recently where a bunch of boys from a nearby private school were also waiting for the bus. There were about 5 or 6 of them, about 14, 15 years old, some were white, some were black. They were goofing around until the bus came, then some of the boys got on the bus but the others were apparently just waiting with their friends but didn’t get on. The boys parted with calls of “bye, see you tomorrow, love you” that actually surprised me in a heartwarming way. I guess the surprise was due to the fact that I’m in my 40s and boys didn’t casually express love for each other when I was their age. I don’t know how commonplace it is today, but I hope it’s as usual as these boys made it seem. Is this anecdote relevant to a discussion of masculinity? I don’t know.

[emaarredondo-librarian]

Courage, independence and assertiveness are not virtues exclusive to the American man. They are merely human virtues. Plenty of those virtues everywhere.
Please do not mistake rudeness for assertiveness, and don't forget that gentlemanliness and politeness are also virtues.

[clayoreilly]

"a modern form of capitalism ..."? Frankly, I am not greatly impressed by where capitalism has brought us. It is a large part of the problem in my opinion. This winner-take-all model is not working well for anyone (other than the "winners") and is a losing model for men and women. Elon Musk is a "Winner"? Give me a break.

[pairashootpants]

I lost my father at 9yo and i can attest to the struggle young men have to discover what "being a man" meant. I can def say i was led down some problematic paths but i had to figure it out on my own. It wasnt until i met my wife and had our daughters that i truly learned how to be a positive masculine presence in my home. Unfortunately traditional groups like boy scouts have been marred by sa scandals and there really isnt a safe space for young men to learn these lessons.

[mstKGf]

I assure you, I do not need Josh Hawley giving me a blueprint of how to be a man. I do admire his running form on January 6, but...

[bongwelll]

As a 42 y/o male I feel like an obsolete piece of machinery. I struggle with a lot of things mentioned here and I feel like the world I was being prepared for doesn't exist anymore. I do have a good relationship though. 12 years and still in love. I think it's the value put to men is financial and in today's society where it's harder to carve out a living so you feel worthless. Musk, Hawley, and all these other douches would be the last people I'd look to for anything.

[TechWeLove]

Change the divorce laws. Until then, men don't want anything to do with society.

[mvvpro]

It sounds a bit weird to blame the left and politics for something that seems to be more about shortcomings in education and parenting to deal with a new reality that no longer promotes old fashioned male role models like on the Access Hollywood tape ("locker room talk").

[chrisrobinson]

It’s always the insecure who over compensate. The more you try to prove what a “man” you are, the more we can see how far from that you actually are.

[HawthorneHillNaturePreserve]

It’s comical to hear Hawley preach about masculinity 😂

[mommar]

Lets not miss the fact that some of this crisis is due to our horrible unsustainable economic system. Its not the whole picture, but its a part of it.

[TangiersIntrigue]

We can't also have this conversation without considering the material context of the world. Men are pessimistic and anxious about their ability to provide for themselves. The ability to perform the traditional gender role of provider hasn't been an option for most folks, yet men were taught that they need to be that person. The Ben Shapiros of the world talk about how men should be, but ignore how hard it is to buy a house, and sustain a family on a single income. Meanwhile, the grifters on the right sell men rage to appease their frustration, spend time and money to distract men from the issues that really impact our lives.

[KingBrandonm]

The problem is presuming that all masculinity is toxic. Toxic masculinity is a FORM of masculinity. Look to Terry Crews and Keanu Reeves for examples pf healthy masculinity. All teenage boys need to read Terry Crews' book, he used to be the definition of toxic masculinity, he'll be the first to admit it. He didn't realize that how he behaved was wrong because he thought that's how men should behave. It took him years to get to where he's at today

[SN-szkw]

Great idea about acknowledging the value of men without needing to denigrate women to do so. That has been much of my life experience & definitely feeds a lot of anti-male sentiment. To imply that women are everything men don’t want to be is profoundly disrespectful & can only incite anger.

[B_radicals]

Is it that hard to tell boys to be respectful and it's okay to communicate your emotions? No.

[ywtcc]

Honestly, I kind of feel like whenever I'm told to be masculine, or be a man, it's usually an excuse for some form of abuse.
Most masculinity tropes seem like sexist bullying, to be frank.
So, part of the problem isn't just models of masculinity, it's how we treat men.

[funkydanieluk]

It is fascinating how when ever the media have a debate on masculinity, they bring on mostly women to talk about it.