In Michael Kimmel’s article, we are introduced thoroughly through the deep definition of masculinity, or as he would like to say, masculinities. He favorites pluralizing the term masculinity for that there is no complete and constant meaning of masculinity. Definitions of masculinity to him vary incredibly from different cultures to different timelines to different societies and even to different personal experiences oneself goes through time which is really supported in the documentary, “Man Enough? episode 4 #metoo”, as we explore the different masculinities each men in the documentary have gone through.
He also argues about how that gender changes as the situation changes, making institutions themselves being gendered. He states that each and every position has its own characteristics that the individual has to comply to. As in for example he mentions that to be in a job that takes a lot of time and devotion, like medicine, it is most likely to succeed in it being a man, since you will not pressured by pregnancy nor having responsibilities in your home because simply your wife will handle them for you while you focus on your job. This fact can lead for gender inequality between men and women because of the favorable condition of the job title that will be taken.
This idea is also presented in the documentary, “Man Enough? episode 4 #metoo”, when Scooter Braun, founder and CEO Sb productions, mentions that in the Hollywood industry, to be a successful male, you get to have fast cars, money and women as if they are also indeed objects like cars and money. Another example is they mention multiple times about women being harassed by men in high positions but not being heard enough because those men are fitting enough for those jobs, thus not even these big claims will shake them from being in their positions, continuing their lives as if nothing had happened.
As Michael Kimmel explained, if we started understanding how we do masculinities it will open up unimaginable possibilities for social change, which is one of the main ideas that the inspiring men in the documentary tried to do when each of them went through their stories and talked about their feelings and opinions to inspire others to do so too.
Lovers and Fighters | Section 22 