Men, Masculinities and Difference 2400-OG-EN-MMD

Critical Studies on Men and Masculinities (CSMM) has been a rapidly growing area of research within gender and feminist studies over recent decades. CSMM are based on feminist theories and methodologies. This course aims to acquaint students with CSMM and show them how to analyse men as gendered individuals. Men’s gender is often invisible and consequently ignored in social research. Men’s experiences are seen as ungendered and universal, whereas men are as much gendered as women. They must follow particular gender roles and behave in line with societal expectations. This has enormous social consequences. Traditional models of masculinity are often connected with violence and risky behaviour; in these models, men are expected not to show emotional engagement and to be tough. The male identity is usually presented in contrast to the female identity. Yet, in times of women’s emancipation and changing gender roles, there is a need for critical reflection on prevailing masculinity models. The questions should be asked: are masculinity models changing? If yes, in which direction? If not, why not?
During this course, we will look more carefully at different aspects of men’s lives and masculinity models in contemporary social reality. We will try to answer the questions of how the male body is constructed in social processes, what consequences the dominant models of masculinity have on men’s health, why men are dying earlier than women, why they are more eager than women to engage in violence and risky behaviours and less eager to be involved parents and caregivers. Many questions can be answered without using biological explanations. Additionally, it should be remembered that men are different, and there are various models of masculinities. Masculinity intersects with various social dimensions; thus, we will analyse men and masculinities in the context of other social classes, races, ethnicities, ages, and sexualities.

Term 2024/25Z:

SCHEDULE
MEETING 1 (online, 45 minutes) – 8 October
Introduction to critical studies on men and masculinities (CSSM)

MEETING 2 – 15 October
Hegemonic masculinity theory. Race & ethnicity
R.W. Connell. 2005. Masculinities, Berkeley, Los Angeles: University of California Press, pp. 67-86 (Chapter 3).
Douglas Schrock and Michael Schwalbe. 2009. ‘Men, masculinity, and manhood acts’. Annual Review of Sociology, 35, pp. 277-295.
Student presentations: refugee men in Europe, boys of colour and education system

MEETING 3 – 29 October
Masculinities & sexualities. Inclusive masculinity theory
Eric Andreson. 2016. Inclusive Masculinity, In Exploring Masculinities. Identity, Inequality, Continuity and Change edited by C. J. Pascoe and Tristan Bridges, New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 178-187.
Jeffery P. Dennis. 2004. Heteronormativity, In Men and Masculinities. A Social, Cultural, and Historical Encyclopedia edited by Michael Kimmel and Amy Aronson, Santa Barbara, California: ABC CLIO, pp. 382-383. (Encyclopedia 1)
Student presentations: heterosexuality as an elastic category, homophobia in sport

MEETING 4 – 12 November
Caring masculinities & fatherhood
Readings:
Karla Elliott. 2015. ‘Caring Masculinities Theorizing an Emerging Concept’. Men and Masculinities, March: 1-20, doi:10.1177/1097184X15576203.
Katarzyna Suwada. 2017. Men, Fathering and the Gender Trap, Palgrave Macmillan, Chapter 5.
Student presentations: fathering of gay men, parental leaves for fathers

MEETING 5 – 26 November
Violence & risk behaviours. Toxic masculinities
Readings:
Katarzyna Wojnicka. 2015. ‘Men, Masculinities and Physical Violence in Contemporary Europe’, Studia Humanistyczne AGH, 14/2: 15-31.
Terry A. Kupers. 2005. ‘Toxic masculinity as a barrier to mental health treatment in prison’. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 61(6), 713–724. doi:10.1002/jclp.20105
Student presentations: how anti-violence campaign are created, violence against boys – victimisation of boys

MEETING 6 – 10 December
Men’s health & aging
Readings:
Will H. Courtenay. 2000. ‘Constructions of masculinity and their influence on men's well- being: A theory of gender and health’. Social Science and Medicine, 50: 1385-1401.
Murray Drummond. 2004. Age and Ageing, In International Encyclopedia of Men and Masculinities edited by Michael Flood, Judith Kegan Gardiner, Bob Pease and Keith Pringle, London and New York: Routledge, pp. 10-13. (Encyclopedia 2)
Student presentations: grandfathes, older men as carers

MEETING 7 – 7 January
Hybrid masculinities. Temporary transformations of masculinities
Readings:
Tristan Bridges & Pascoe, C.J. 2014. ‘Hybrid masculinities: New directions in the sociology of men and masculinities’. Sociology Compass, 8, 246–258. doi:10.1111/soc4.12134
Daniel B. Eisen & Liann Yamashita. 2019. ‘Borrowing from Femininity: The Caring Man, Hybrid Masculinities, and Maintaining Male Dominance’. Men and Masculinities 22 (5): 801-820, doi: 10.1177/1097184X17728552
Student presentations: young men – challenges in contemporary times, the concept of protective masculinity

MEETING 8 – 21 January
Masculinities & gender equality. Course summary
Readings:
Ruxton, Sandy. 2020. Men and gender equality: challenges and opportunities, available at: https://mmasc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Ruxton-Men-and-gender-equality-ICMEO-2020.pdf.
Student presentations: male celebrity feminists – are they good or bad?

Total student workload

Contact hours with teacher: - participation in classes – 20 hrs - consultations – 2 hrs Self-study hours: - reading literature – 30 hrs - preparing presentation – 43 hrs Altogether: 100 hrs (4 ECTS)

Learning outcomes - knowledge

Student W1: has basic knowledge of terms and concepts used in critical studies on men and masculinities – K_W01 W2: has a basic knowledge about the relations between micro-, mezzo- and macrostructures in the context of gender relations, relations between different models of masculinities and other social dimensions such as: class, race, age, ethnicity, sexuality – K_W03 W3: is acquainted with different types of social bond characteristic for men of different social class, race, age, ethnicity, sexuality – K_W04 W4: possesses knowledge about gender order characteristic for the contemporary Western societies, knows about sources and functioning of dominant models of masculinity – K_W07

Learning outcomes - skills

Student U1: is able to identify and interpret men’s behaviours and how they are connected with prevailing masculinity models and gender order – K_U01 U2: is capable of indicating the links between different social processes and phenomena in the context of hierarchies of masculinity models and changing gender order – K_U03 U3: has a skill of diagnosing social problems in the context of theories about men and masculinities and can formulate recommendations for changing patriarchal order– K_U07

Learning outcomes - social competencies

Student K1: is open to new ideas and new ways of thinking about contemporary social reality – K_K07 K2: is eager to constantly broad his/her knowledge – K_K06

Teaching methods

Expository teaching methods: - participatory lecture - problem-base lecture - discussion Exploratory teaching methods: - classic problem-solving - brainstorming

Expository teaching methods

- participatory lecture
- discussion
- problem-based lecture

Exploratory teaching methods

- presentation of a paper
- brainstorming
- classic problem-solving

Type of course

elective course

Prerequisites

Student should be interested in the issue of gender roles, relations and power dynamics between men and women. Students who already participated in other courses in gender studies, feminist theories or sociology are highly welcomed.

Course coordinators

Katarzyna Suwada

Assessment criteria

1. Attendance
2. Student Presentation
3. Activity

Grades:
fail- less than 60%
satisfactory- 60-70%
satisfactory plus-70-75%
good – 75-80%
good plus- 80-90%
very good – 90-100%

Bibliography

Anderson, E. (2009a). Inclusive Masculinity: The Changing Nature of Masculinities. Abingdon: Taylor & Francis.
Anderson, E. (2009b). The Maintenance of Masculinity Among the Stakeholders of Sport. Sport Management Review, 12(1), 3–14.
Blankenhorn, D. (1996). Fatherless America: Confronting Our Most Urgent Social Problem. Harper Perennial.
Bly, R. (2004). Iron John: A Book About Men. Da Capo Press.
Carrigan, T., Connell, B., & Lee, J. (1985). Toward a new sociology of masculinity. Theory and Society, 14(5), 551–604.
Connell, R. (1987). Gender and power: society, the person, and sexual politics. Stanford University Press.
Connell, R. W. (2005). Masculinities (Second Edition.). Berkeley, California: University of California Press.
Connell, R. W., & Messerschmidt, J. (2005). Hegemonic Masculinity: Rethinking the Concept. Gender & Society, 19(6), 829–859.
Courtenay, W. (2002). A Global Perspective on the Field of Men’s Health: An Editorial. International Journal of Men’s Health, 1(1), 1.
Doucet, A. (2004). “It’s Almost Like I Have a Job, but I Don’t Get Paid”: Fathers at Home Reconfiguring Work, Care, and Masculinity. Fathering: A Journal of Theory, Research, and Practice about Men as Fathers, 2(3), 277–303.
European Commission. (2012). The Role of Men in Gender Equality - European Strategies and Insights. Vienna/Berlin/Gratz. Retrieved from http://ec.europa.eu/justice/gender-equality/files/gender_pay_gap/130424_final_report_role_of_men_en.pdf
Flood, M, (Ed.). (2007), International Encyclopedia of Men and Masculinities London ; New York: Routledge.
Hearn J. & K. Pringle, (Eds.). (2006), European Perspectives on Men and Masculinities. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Hearn, J. (2004). From Hegemonic Masculinity to the Hegemony of Men. Feminist Theory, 5(1), 49–72.
Hearn, J. (2015). Men of the World: Genders, Globalizations, Transnational Times. Sage, London, UK.
Katz, J. (2006). The macho paradox: why some men hurt women and how all men can help. Naperville, Ill: Sourcebooks, Inc.
Kimmel, M. S. (Ed.). (1995). The politics of manhood: profeminist men respond to the mythopoetic men’s movement (and the mythopoetic leaders answer). Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
Kimmel, M. S. & J. Hearn (Eds.). (2005), Handbook of Studies on Men and Masculinities, SAGE.
Lamb, M. E. (2000). The History of Research on Father Involvement. Marriage & Family Review, 29(2-3), 23–42.
Lamb, M. E. (2010). The Role of the Father in Child Development, 5th Edition, Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley.
Miller, T. (2011). Making Sense of Fatherhood. Gender, Caring and Work, New York: Cambridge University Press.
O’Brien, M., Brandth, B., & Kvande, E. (2007). Fathers, Work and Family Life. Community, Work & Family, 10(4), 375–386.
Suwada, K & L. Plantin. (2014). On Fatherhood, Masculinities and Family Policies: A Comparative Analysis of Poland and Sweden, Polish Sociological Review, (3), 509-524.
Suwada, K. (2015). Naturalisation of the Difference. The Experience of Fatherhood in Sweden and Poland, Studia Humanistyczne AGH, No 14(2), 141-155.
Titkow, A. (2010). Do Men Have Their Own Glass Ceiling? Polish Sociological Review, (172), 391–409.
Wojnicka, K. (2011). (Re)constructing Masculinity à la Polonaise. In E. Ruspini, J. Hearn, B. Pease, & K. Pringle (Eds.), Men and masculinities around the world: transforming men’s practices (Palgrave Macmillan., pp. 71–83). New York, NY.
Wojnicka, K. (2012). The Polish profeminist movement. GENDER Heft, 3, 25–40.

Additional information

Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system:

Description of 2400-OG-EN-MMD in USOSweb