Research on Why Manhood Isn't a Birthright

People may view manhood as something automatically given to a male once he reaches adulthood. This stereotype should be disregarded as research shows that manhood is not a birthright. In prompt six’s article, researchers Jennifer K. Bosson and Joseph A. Vandello explore the foundation of manhood and the social interactions that comes with it. Research supports that manhood is something earned in society which men preserve through assertive actions.

The authors enforce that manhood is a trait earned. It is apparent to today’s society that manhood can be lost. The article refers to an experiment which gave fake everyday sayings to American people. They revolve around masculinity and femininity being attainable by any means. Both men and women understood the sayings revolving around masculinity than femininity. People understood more of the manhood sayings show that the belief of manhood being earned has been well established in society. In turn, the data emphasizes that manhood is a trait that men preserve. The trait makes men more defensive on preserving their identity as it may insult their honor. Manhood and honor are connected due to attributes that can be loss, insulting one’s pride.

Ultimately, how much manhood is affected by honor depends on the culture of the man. In a comparison study between Brazilian and American cultures on this topic referred by the article, participants from both groups were given relationship scenarios that were to be rated by how manly or honorable the husband is in the scenarios presented. Results show that the two cultures have different morals of manhood. The Brazilians found it more honorable than Americans that the husband hit the unfaithful wife. In contrast with the Brazilians, Americans said that manhood and honor did not change if the wife cheated. Variety of cultures that have a strict honor code like Brazilians correlate with the values of manhood.

Men who do not abide to the cultural standard of honor results in a loss of manhood. This is shown through an experiment that would harm one’s image. Men were asked to do tasks that were not manly like hair-braiding or rope-braiding. Next, they were given the choice to complete a puzzle or punch a bag. Men who braided hair punched the bag harder than the ones who braided rope. Manhood insecurity is shown from experiments so far by the impact of punches. Men punched harder after doing the hair braiding task due to worrying that people would look at them as not manly. This shows that manhood must be emphasized, so people would not forget that manhood in a person. The men punching the bag harder shows they were insecure on losing that manhood. Further evidence suggests that men are sensitive to losing their manhood.

An anxiety test was given after the tasks were done, and the results showed that people who did not punch the bag felt more threatened about their manhood than the ones who did. These results reflect on the fact that men must ensure that the image of manhood is preserved with due to the shame of not doing these aggressive actions. People may view a man who does not do aggressive actions not as manly because of the missed opportunity to do something masculine, in this case punching the bag. The subjects who did not punch the bag feel their manhood image tarnish. By only doing the non-masculine task, the subjects felt a loss of masculinity.

The idea of masculinity is earned connects to society through sports. Men are quick to being competitive in a sport to assert one’s dominance and manhood. This is apparent in high school football. Manhood was at a loss for the varsity team at my high school when they did not win any seasonal games. The students insulted their own team with slurs and stopped going to games. People could see the shame in the players and coaches after losing. Player would not try to affiliate themselves with the program by quitting or avoid talking about football. The varsity players’ experience correlates with the claim that a culture’s standard in honor connects with manhood. High school has this culture of honor through sports. Winning games for one’s school give a sense of manhood due to representing them.

High schools tend to have a prideful culture and winning gives this sense of social achievement for players because they are the reason for making their own school look good. This success gives a sense of manhood for the players. Since the players are losing, they are given a sense of shame due to not having the ability to win games for their school. This shame multiplies when they are confronted by students reminding them of their losses. In turn, this creates a loss of manhood.

The prompt article emphasized that manhood is earned through action and not given by birthright or appearance. My position on manhood is altered as the article address this point with thorough evidence such as the cultural studies and the anxiety test regarding masculinity which supports that manhood is not a birthright. Actions of a person emphasizes who they are and can be influenced. The studies reveal that men can be insecure about one’s manhood due to confounding factors in their environment or culture. It also addressed how manhood is preserved through aggressive actions which I and other men have done.