AN EXPLORATION OF SHIFTS IN ‘ACCEPTED’ NOTIONS OF MASCULINITY IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY

OR

‘CAN I WALK IN HEELS…?’

Focus

Subtle and not so subtle shifts in gender expression and corresponding limits of social and cultural acceptance

Shifts of boundaries around tolerance and understanding of identity against a backdrop of a neo-liberal, consumer-driven culture where reinvention has become a norm (Buckingham: 2007, Bauman: 2007, Featherstone: 2007, Giddens: 1991).

Key terms/issues

Shifting gender expression – is there ‘liquidity’ in (modern) gender…?

Consumerism and ‘trade offs’ – the cost of being trans

Acceptance of diverse expressions

Normative forms and reinvention

Pop Icons - 30 years of an expanding spectrum…?

How much is too much? Some thoughts…

Masculinity arguably is expressed in more varied ways than before

BUT excessive femininity in males is seen as ‘on the margin’ and not central to ‘normal’ forms of social interaction on which identity is based

Media icons, however, do mediate or legitimise a certain experimentation with gender expression….

Science

Scientific research gives us some answers and more questions about gender and gender expression: Prenatal hormone activity and different-sexed brains is emerging

as research focus Impact in later life linked to gender expression and transition ‘I have a girl’s brain, so I will become a girl’. Notion of gender

‘correction’ or ‘confirmation’ Medico-social pathways

Media publicised cases support notion of gender ‘choice’ – simplistic, consumerist notion, often flawed

It may not actually be a choice

DSM 5 (2013) – ‘Gender Identity Disorder’ replaced by ‘Gender Dysphoria’.

Lifestyle and consumption – consuming lifestyles…?

Consumer habits and responses Mintel (2013) reports the male grooming product market is emerging as

one of the fastest growing niche areas

Simpson (1994 and 2002) argues that in a postmodern consumer society, metrosexuality has established itself as a 'social norm' that facilitates the consumption of an ever-growing number of consumer items aimed at male consumers.

The twenty-first century neo-liberal social response to metrosexuality is generally accepting and has facilitated a blurring of gender roles with a range of more fluid masculinities identities available to consume

BUT

A strong vein of traditional masculinity running through product use and male identity with male consumers selecting items that do not stray too far from tried and tested products (Mintel, 2011).

Metrosexuality

Mid 90s expression Focus on grooming and away from sexuality Identifies self as own love object Typified by excessive grooming, urban

location, presentation Identified as a lifestyle choice

Simpson (1994 and 2002)

Now giving way to ‘retrosexual’ – rugged, bearded (but still moisturised…).

Bauman and solidity to liquidity Contends that Post Modernity is liquid – constantly changing

and overthrowing established values and patterns

Where once people sacrificed choices for security (solidity), NOW we sacrifice security for choice. Shifting patterns of choice. Consumer choices….

Gender expression is arguably a choice linked to reinvention of self, whether driven by internal, personal or external, social factors.

Online domains rife with diverse expressions of self and identity

But gender expression still moderated by societal approval and acceptance…

Youth constructs

Youth relatively recent concept. Language driven – constructed (Buckingham,

2007) Terms like ‘Tweens’, ‘Generation X’ (and Y),

‘Kidults’ and ‘adultescents’ blur distinctions between child and adult and arguably serve marketing or consumerist purposes

‘Trans’ teen – new construct? Motives – Internal or external? Sensationalising?

Buckingham and comments

For young males, individual claims about identity need to be recognised by others – we need social validation of individual identities. Buckingham (2007, P 6)

Jenkins (in Buckingham) points to a fluidity of social identity – a social process reliant on interactions between self and others. “Selfhood is a social phenomenon”.

About identification not identity. Only if we are identified (and accepted) by others do we have an identity. Not sure about this….

Online domains and networking allow myriad social choices though….

Conflicting levels of acceptance – OK in one domain but not in another…?

Bauman’s liquidity…?

The media and the message Coverage rife. Plenty of trans people

present on chat shows, online and in news stories

No longer so sensational Focus less on ‘deviance’, more on

individual fulfilment – ‘good luck stories’. Emphasis on the journey – wherever it

leads Alice, Kristin and others arguably widen the

perceived spectrum of gender options

Employment

Connell (2005) and Connell and Messerschmidt (2005)

Greater social acceptance of fluid masculinities have allowed less subtle expressions of gender, including: Crossdressers, androgynes, transsexuals

Legislation mandates rights and good practice at work

Employers increasingly engage with LGBTQ forums to promote rights and acceptance

Fluid gender boundaries more accepted than before in the workplace

BUT, Connell (2010) argues that trans people are not redoing or doing ‘gender’, rather doing ‘transgender’.

Comment

Media coverage arguably raises sympathetic awareness. Fewer ridiculing headlines now

Is institutional support based on permanent change from one binary gender role – such as transsexualism

Or does it run to those who wish to present as different genders alternately?

‘I don’t think it is right to ask someone to choose a gender and stick with it….’. Police Diversity Action lead officer.

Employment

New legal rights to change gender Emphasis on permanent transition BUT Some organisations mandate free

gender expressions

HEIs can be good at this

Family

Reflections…

Permanence and predictability still form vital components of family life. Largely predicated on male/female binary model

Those diverging from traditional gendered identities are disadvantaged in terms of being understood and accepted

These families demonstrate a more egalitarian approach to gender roles and childcare and,

Notwithstanding strong criticism, are perhaps more reflective of the neo-liberal values evident in legislation and institutional policy

In summary, then…

More fluid forms of gender expression in 21st century

Masculinity as a 'sexed body' is still associated with the traditional traits of hegemonic masculinity

Some cultural resistance to a widespread ‘feminisation’ of men

Whilst hegemonic masculinity may no longer have cultural dominance it remains a social norm whereby all men are judged. Retrosexuality.

References

Bauman, Z. (2007). Consuming Life. Cambridge, Polity. Buckingham, D. (2007). Introducing Identity. Youth, Identity, and Digital

Media. D. Buckingham, The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation: 1-24.

Connell, R. W. (1992). "A Very Straight Gay: Masculinity, Homosexual Experience, and the Dynamics of Gender." American Sociology Review 57(6): 735 - 751.

Connell, R. W. and J. Messerschmidt (2005). "Hegemonic Masculinity: Rethinking the Concept." Gender & Society 19(6): 829 - 859.

Featherstone, M. (2007). Consumer Culture and Postmodernism. London, Sage.

Giddens, A. (1991). Modernity and Self-Identity: Self and Society in the Late Modern Age. Cambridge, Polity.

Mintel (2011). Men's Grooming and Shaving Products - UK - October 2011.

Mintel (2013). Men's Toiletries - UK - October 2013. Simpson, M. (15/11/1994). Here Come the Mirror Men. The Independent. Simpson, M. (22/07/2002). "Meet the Metrosexual." Retrieved

16/01/2010, from http://www.salon.com/ent/feature/2002/07/22/metrosexual/index2.html.

Raising gender profiles

Mainstreaming gender variance – towards normalisation…?

Real world examples of gender ‘choices’ Kristin Beck Ayla Holdom Dr Alice (Rick) Novic

Spectrum of presentation options – part time female to full transition

Media coverage usually present

Walking the walk – Kristin Beck 20 plus years as US Navy Seal Crossdressed in private all her life Transitioned immediately after retiring in 2011 Significant media attention – platform for supporting

trans community/issues SEAL colleagues mostly supportive and understanding

– person centred comments Published ‘Warrior Princess’ in 2013 with Dr Anne

Speckhard Promoting understanding and tolerance Media’s role…

Walking the walk - Dr Alice (Rick) Novic American psychiatrist (Harvard MD)

Negotiated with self and wife a right to exist as both male and female

Driven by internal, not external influences, not mediated or facilitated by the media

Published ‘Alice in Genderland’ but

limited online profile (in the UK)

Consuming a gender identity or simply living true…?

‘Normalising’ alternative gender expression…?

Ayla Holdom

RAF search and rescue pilot Transitioned in service Employer had pragmatic and supportive

attitude – ‘If you can do the job, fine…’ Enlightened approach