Tag: Masculinity

Violence and Masculinity in Cinema

The Indian cinema landscape is one that has seen massive evolution in terms of themes and contents over the years. It is globally recognized for its idiosyncrasies and manner of representations. Cinema has reflected what our human experiences are, and what our society has created and holds onto as ideals. But the art form itself is a vehicle of change, often bringing many issues into the limelight and generating public discourses. Cinema has great influential capacity and can reinforce or challenge many notions. Oscar Wilde said that “Life imitates art more than art imitates life”. This is often verifiably true. Heroes in movies often become the standards that youngsters aspire to be, and many have paid dearly for trying to do whatever possible to look like or be like a character they saw on screen.

A particularly interesting phenomenon in a lot of mainstream cinema is the violence portrayed in it. Anyone who has watched a couple popular movies will agree that this is not an isolated phenomenon, but something considered intrinsic to the storyline. We should also note that most of the scenes of violence are hugely exaggerated, even to the point of being comical. The hero seems to have inhuman powers and those around him, no matter how many in number will typically always fail in defending themselves, let alone in attacking him. The slow-motion editing and sound effects, the camera work as well as the dialogue all together create a certain kind of sensationalism which is to lead the audience into outbursts of applause. This prompts us to ask what part violence plays in the story and why do we have such portrayals of it.

First off, it is understood that these scenes are supposed to be praised and are to emphasize the heroic position of the character. While the villain may unleash such violence and prove that he is a worthy opponent, his capacities always fall short of the hero. And it is almost unheard of that a heroine, even if the movie is focused on her, engages in such violence to prove anything. The notion is not even considered. Violence becomes intertwined with an idea of masculinity, apparently best depicted through aggression and overpowering, even if it means destroying. We can also consider how this might be influenced by the stereotypical motif found in many stories of the West and the East, of the hero who saves the damsel in distress, often fighting many monsters to accomplish the task. Patriarchal ideas of men having to save women, and also having to ‘prove’ their masculinity through certain acts have contributed to these ideas. It is also worth remembering that these notions are detrimental to both women and men. Aggression becomes ‘natural’ for men and an overt representation of it in cinema is applauded. On the other hand, a woman who might even be angry for a legitimate reason is considered as ‘too-emotional’ or ‘hysterical’. These double standards are seen in cinema as well, engrained in our consciousness so well that we dare not question it.

The legitimacy afforded to violent heroes who consider their conquest of enemies and women as trophies influence a generation growing up seeking for acceptance. They look up to these people as heroes and without anyone to tell them otherwise, let themselves be controlled by their anger. This might be learnt at a young age, but it lasts for a lifetime. Is it any wonder then that domestic violence and abuse increases on a day to day basis, even in the homes of those considered well-educated? As long as we are praising heroes who are heroic by virtue of their beating up anyone who dares to cross them, even when the hero might be in the wrong, we are perpetuating the notion that violence is power. And power is also considered praise-worthy and something everyone should aspire to have. It is also a quest for power that affirms rape culture and rape jokes in the minds of many, and when violence is glorified on screen, it is bound to have its effects on the psyche. Perhaps it is time that we chose to look more closely at the various causes rather than the symptoms that plague us, and change the things we affirm and promote as something worth aspiring to in society.

Addressing Toxic Masculinity

 

“Sometimes people hear “toxic masculinity” and think the term is anti-men. It isn’t. It’s anti-telling- men -they-have-to-repress-emotions- and – be-dominant-alphas-to- be- considered – real-guys. It’s pro-men. Thinking, feeling, resilient, strong, awesome men.”

– Amanda Jette Knox

I am sure that if you’re an international K-pop fan, then you are no stranger to the knee-jerk reaction people have after they have begged you to show them the images and/or music videos or any K-Pop group. Most reactions generally revolve around “They look like women” or “They are too feminine” or “Why are they wearing make-up?” or the infamous “Are they gay?”.

This made me wonder, what exactly is it that causes such a reaction? What does it mean to be ‘man’ or to be something lesser than that? Are we, as a society, missing out on addressing the toxic masculinity that plagues the young minds?

Although, there have been some colloquies on it, most of them leave out the dialogue that Asian men are particularly hyper-emasculated in western culture (and also by minorities in western culture) which could also be a reason why people automatically react in this manner, besides already having discrimination towards appearances that don’t fit the extremes of femininity and masculinity. As for the people mouthing off about K-pop looking too “feminine”, it ends up bringing up the connotation that femininity is a bad thing somehow. It’s essential to understand that feminine and masculine traits are social constructs, so they change according to each culture.

What is toxic masculinity?

Toxic masculinity is those elements of our social definition of masculinity that have concrete negative impacts on men by promoting behaviours such as refusing medical treatment to appear strong, suppressing emotions that show vulnerability, and idolizing violence as a solution to problems.

These behaviours are enforced by other men (and society as a whole), by challenging the manhood of those who deviate from this behavior, while also teaching each other that manhood is something to be valued above all else. In addition, most of them wrestle with the perception of masculinity, which, in a feudal society like ours, is very conditional. Of course, women perpetrate violence too: they can be aggressive and brutal, particularly to other women. But undoubtedly, the culture that stokes such violence smacks of machismo. Manhood is not naturally given, but is a goal to be achieved. To be born a boy is a privilege but one that can be lost if one is not properly initiated into masculine practices.

What are the core features of this model of manhood?

First, aggression is natural and desirable in men. A ‘real’ man is eager to pick up a fight. If he does not, he is told to wear bangles on his wrist. Even the slightest intrusion in his physical, mental or social space is unacceptable. Second, men must be tough — muscular and unemotional; they must not be easily perturbed, must not grieve and cry. Part of what it means to be tough is to suppress empathy towards others, to be embarrassed by fear or any other vulnerability. Third, men must be ambitious and ruthless. Once they set a goal, it must be achieved regardless of consequences to others. Since winning is all-important, other men striving to achieve the same goal are rivals to be eliminated. Extreme competitiveness, on this model, is a classical male characteristic. Fourth, it does not behove men to consult others, negotiate with the weak, or settle for anything less than what they want. They take independent decisions that brook no questioning. As famously put by Amitabh Bachchan in one of his films, ‘Bas… keh diya na (Enough, I have said so).’

And if you don’ fill in these roles, then too bad, you’re deemed to be not ‘man enough’.

In most discourses, however, what isn’t properly addressed is that women perpetuate toxic masculinity too. There is an institutionalized aspect of masculine toxicity as culture that we recognize as true for men in general, but ignore being equally true among women, even many feminist women. Most people and groups do this to some extent, it’s hard to be fully self aware and self critical. We don’t always see the flaws in ourselves as readily as we see them in others. Part of feminism is recognizing the invisible structures that pull societal norms to be what they are. This is just an aspect of that and speaks to the idea that we really have to be the change we want to see in the world and it’s pretty naive to consider yourself or your group as “clean hands” in the matter just because you are aware of one piece of the puzzle.

So, what can be done to overcome this?

The first step would be, abandoning ‘just for men’ attitudes, and not doing it for the sake of getting women to like you. ‘Woke’ bros are just as problematic, so just live honestly and act respectfully towards everyone. Stand up for what’s right even when it’s hard and you’re a minority voice.

Just like we “make room” or “hold space” for voices that are actually impacted by the problems we see in our society it makes sense we should do the same to at least include men as valuable voices to addressing the “male toxicity” problem. Only they can speak their own truth.

Violence, misogyny, and no accountability are pillars of toxic masculinity. So, knock down those pillars daily. Embracing who you are and standing up for those who need it, you start to realize gender doesn’t have a place to shape our lives as rigidly as society tells us. Call it inner peace and confidence! You can embrace your personhood, just not things. You can embrace your own idea of a ‘masculine’ identity, just don’t be attached to the external.

“All of us have to recognize that being a man is first and foremost being a good human. That means being responsible, working hard, being kind, respectful, compassionate. If you’re confident about your strength, you don’t need to show me by putting somebody else down.”