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Part One

This part of the course asks you to define hegemonic masculinity.  Though this is a definitions exercise, that hardly means this is a simple task.  

Using any ONE of the relatively short readings below, define hegemonic masculinity (note: you can read more than one text below, but you only need to really read one essay to get it). Do not worry about being wrong or right.  Just try it! Provide examples to bolster your definition.  

Here are your choices:

• Allan Johnson: “Patriarchy, The System: An It, Not a He, a Them, or an Us” (2008)
• Barry Deutsch: “The Male Privilege Checklist (2009)
• Paul Kivel: “The Act-Like-a-Man-Box” (2009)
• Kali Holloway: "Toxic Masculinity is Killing Men: The Roots of Male Trauma" (2015)
• Relando Thompkins-Jones: "Toxic Masculinity Is a Macro Social Work Issue" (2016)
• Suzannah Weiss: "6 Harmful Effects Of Toxic Masculinity" (2016)
• Alia Dastagir: "Men Pay a Steep Price When It Comes to Masculinity" (2017)
• Dave Zirin: "The Fragile, Toxic Masculinity of Donald Trump" (2017)

Part Two

Given the kind of work that you have done all semester, last session’s readings probably did not cause undue stress or challenge.  So let’s apply this concept rather than read more about it.  

For this day of class, choose a song, video, advertisement, or movie excerpt that is available at vimeo or youtube that you believe offers a glimpse into how hegemonic masculinity is sustained. Please don’t pick something random. Pick something that you actually liked (quiet as it’s kept) or that had a big impact on your, um, “friends.” 

​In writing (at least 200 words), do the following:

1. give the URL
2. tell the story of how/why you chose this piece… expect your classmates to read it!
3. explain how and why hegemonic masculinity exists in this artifact.

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Denise Pazmino's Video Picks​

Please watch Pazmino's video  picks for more definitions of hegemonic masculinities.

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