In my Cross-Cultural Psychology class, we watched the 2015 documentary, "The Mask You Live In" which displays the harsh and widely unrecognized negative repercussions surrounding the way society defines what it means to "be a man." The documentary interviews various young men who have struggled and suffered greatly under these strict expectations and narrow perspective. It made me take a minute to reflect on what I think it means to be a man, and how I view males in my daily life.
This is a new perspective for me to take, as I am female and much of my gender advocacy has revolved around bringing equality and justice to women. It was eye-opening for me to realize that men suffer the same, if not worse pressures under the way our society defines masculinity.
Essentially, masculinity is associated with physical strength, athletic ability, and a lack of fear. These are merely individual traits that people of any gender can possess, along with many others to make up their unique composition, however, society has lumped them together solely to define a man. This distorted view creates the idea in the minds of boys, that if they do not possess the perfect combination of strength, athleticism, and bravery they are not men.
Being a man is so much more than performing well at a sport or being physically strong, but our society has become too engulfed in associating only these traits with males. This is extremely detrimental to the males who do not fit this narrow category, as well as girls who many possess some of these traits. This stigma surrounding what it means to "be a man" has led countless boys down the wrong path, to find themselves in less than ideal situations. The documentary highlights the real consequences behind the way our society looks at men and dehumanizes those who don't "fit." There is physical trauma, but the mental trauma is simply unbearable. Many of the men in the documentary found themselves in real trouble, mainly with the law in their desperate attempts to fit the ideal male mold.
The truth is, no one fits this mold. Each person, male or female is different, composed of a unique blend of characteristics and traits that make them who they are. These traits are to be celebrated and embraced rather than hidden and masked by a false exterior.
This documentary exposes the destructive way our society views masculinity, which brings awareness to the fact that it needs to change. I believe that there is more advocacy for the alteration of the definition of females in the media today, but we as a society should accept males into the effort. They deserve to express themselves in whatever way they please without being judged or bullied. Not only is #girlpower important, but also #boypower. Characteristics and traits are gender neutral; they can be applied to anyone in any combination and expressed just as strong. We should not have to live in a mask but be comfortable showing our real face to the world each day knowing we are fully accepted as such.
The documentary can be found on Netlflix or rented on Amazon. I have attached the trailer for any of you to watch, I promise it's worth your time!
