9 research outputs found
Masculinity Meets Postmodernism: Theorizing the 'Man-Madeâ Man
Contemporary postmodern philosophers are upsetting the knowledge applecart by challenging the underpinnings of modem thought on a variety of fronts. Aerial views, those grand narratives (Lyotard, 1984) based on foundational âtruthsâ that do not exist in quite the way in which we have often assumed, provide for the consumption of a world located within and based upon notions of epistemological essentialism. Dichotomous underpinnings of individualism and structuralism continue to permeate and saturate representations of menâs lives, attempting to collapse and control the messiness as binary, while, at the same time, masking recycled theories of biological and social determinism. In the absence of âsituated knowledgeâ (Haraway, 1988) arising within local narratives, we have received a âman-madeâ theory-world of men that offers up a fixity; linear, bounded, dichotomized and disconnected. This paper grapples with some of Frankâs ideas about the relationship between the investigation of menâs lives and the resulting created knowledge which has helped shape our understandings of ourselves as men, our relation to others and the environment we inhabit daily.Les philosophes postmodemes contemporains brouillent les cartes en remettant en cause les fondements de la pensĂ©e moderne sur plusieurs plans. Les vues aĂ©riennes, ces grands rĂ©cits (Lyotard 1984) sâappuyant sur des « vĂ©ritĂ©s » fondamentales qui nâexistent pas exactement de la façon dont on lâa souvent supposĂ©, subviennent aux besoins de consommation dâun monde situĂ© Ă lâintĂ©rieur de notions en essentialisme Ă©pistĂ©mologique et basĂ© sur elles. Les fondements dichotomiques de lâindividualisme et du structuralisme continuent Ă imprĂ©gner et Ă saturer les reprĂ©sentations de la vie des hommes, dans une tentative de les tirer de la confusion et de les organiser en donnĂ©es binaires, tout en camouflant des thĂ©ories recyclĂ©es de dĂ©terminisme biologique et social. En lâabsence de « connaissances localisĂ©es » (Haraway 1988) surgissant dans les rĂ©cits locaux, nous avons hĂ©ritĂ© de construits thĂ©oriques sur lâhomme, faits par lâhomme, qui prĂ©sentent une fixitĂ©Â : linĂ©aires, figĂ©s, dichotomisĂ©s et dĂ©connectĂ©s. Cet article prĂ©sente quelques-unes des idĂ©es de lâauteur sur les rapports entre la recherche sur la vie des hommes et les connaissances qui en rĂ©sultent et qui ont contribuĂ© Ă amĂ©liorer la comprĂ©hension de lâĂȘtre en tant quâhomme, Ă forger les relations sociales et Ă permettre une meilleure comprĂ©hension de lâenvironnement dans lequel nous Ă©voluons quotidiennement
Searching for Support and Community: Experiences in a Gay Men's Psyhcoeducational Group
Support groups are a powerful tool that can assist gay men in dealing with isolation from other gay men, a lack of information about themselves and others as gay men, and the fear either of being identified or of self-identifying as gay. In this article, ten gay men speak about their experiences in a support/psychoeducational group.Les groupes de soutien constituent un outil puissant qui peut aider les gais Ă remĂ©dier Ă leur isolement vis-Ă -vis des autres hommes homosexuels d'une part et au manque de renseignements portant sur les hommes homosexuels et pouvant les intĂ©resser d'autre part. Ces groupes de soutien peuvent les aider Ă©galement Ă faire face Ă leur peur d'ĂȘtre identifiĂ©s ou de s'identifier comme gai. Dans cet article, dix hommes parlent de leur expĂ©rience dans un groupe de soutien psychopĂ©dagogique
Contradictions and tensions in the practice of masculinities in school: Interrogating embodiment and 'Good Buddy Talk'
Masculinity, and gender more broadly, has been theorised as a series of performative and discursive acts (Butler, 1990) which are constituted contextually and culturally. Not only are masculinities enacted differently across cultures, they are also performed differently within groups of the same culture, and by individuals