I'm doing a close study of the social and political commentary offered by a body of British films between 1990 and 2002, and i'm looking at the idea of how masculinity is in crisis. I'm also referencing the films 'Billy Elliot' and 'Brassed Off'....what are your views on this topic?
sharewell it depends on what your definition of masculinity is Some people feel that people like Don Juan represent masculinity which is probably prevailing in modern society. Others feel that chivalry is the basis of masculinity and those same people say that this is a dying art.
shareYou are on to something.
Read the Case Against Boys and several others. Or read Ken Wilber.
Well even though this was about two years ago now, I think I can offer some help. I'd like to know how your study went though, if you happen to still be around xxlauraxx-4.
One of the issues I actually had with The Full Monty was how it doesn't do enough to reflect the issues dealt with when it comes to father's rights. One thing it DID get across, however, was Gaz' realistic position as a father trying to take care of his son. A big problem, at least in the US, is that any non-custodial fathers who can't pay their child support payments is due to things like unemployment. Normally blue-collar workers hit by the recession or even having fallen ill or become injured and therefore have to put money towards recovery costs. And yet the US is quick to brand these men "deadbeats". One little-known fact you won't often hear in the US is that the majority of non-custodial fathers who can pay, do.
However, that's not the be-all and end-all of the issue. If the custodial parent does not allow visitation rights -- which can often happen considering family courts favour the mother -- the non-custodial parent may choose not to pay. The courts and police in these cases do practically nothing to assist the father but everything to help the mother, no matter which parent has custody. Alternatively, there are issues where fathers out of work or hit with bad luck can request a reduction in the amount of child support they have to pay but can take months to get a court date (and probably get denied anyway, having been branded with the "deadbeat" sticker that the media loves to label their non-custodial fathers with).
I think that's enough to be going on with but sites like glennsacks.com have more details on all things father's rights relates. Or if it's purely a media study, I highly recommend Spreading Misandry.
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"Just deal with your girlfriend's cheesy feet. She puts up with your cheesy face." - Jack Dee
b.s. family courts in a lot of states do not favor the mother or even the children...
in texas just last month there was a father who killed his three children whom he had court-enforced weekend custody over even after he was convicted of domestic battery/assault against the childrens' mother, but for whatever insane reason the court and the court-appt lawyer for the children never thought he would hurt the kids.
not saying all men do this... but you see and hear about murder suicides... it's a lot of men who go crazy when what they viewed as their property gets uppity.
i do think there's a crisis in male identity, but it has more to do w/ insufficient male role models and a sense of masculinity that has everything to do w/ negative traits that have a lot more to do w/ brutality.
b.s. family courts in a lot of states do not favor the mother or even the children...That describes any number of cases with the sexes reversed.
in texas just last month there was a father who killed his three children whom he had court-enforced weekend custody over even after he was convicted of domestic battery/assault against the childrens' mother, but for whatever insane reason the court and the court-appt lawyer for the children never thought he would hurt the kids.