Guyland

Jens Jeters
3/12/12
Ms. Paez
Soci 101 M/W “Guyland” Michael Kimmel investigates “Guyland” where young boys socially interact as “guys”. Michael shows how these young men are stuck between youth and adulthood. As a sociologist at State University of New York of Stony Brook, Michael has perfected his specialty in gender studies. Born in 1951, Michael has published dozens of gender articles and books known in the sociology community. As a spokesperson for the “National Organization for Men Against Sexim (NOMAS), he has lectured over 200 colleges and universities” (stony brook). Guyland was published in 2008 and I will discuss the main points of “who these guys are”, “the babes in Guyland” then conclude why guys socially interact this way. Exactly who are these boy’s representing Guyland? “Males between 16 and 26 that number well over 22 million- more than 15 percent of the total male population in the United States” (Kimmel, 254). The range of 16 to 26 is what is called the “guy” age. These are the white, middle class, college bound young men that strive after all the Playboy and Muscle Fitness magazines. “Young men typically enter Guyland before they turn 16, and then begin to leave in the mid to late 20’s” (Kimmel, 255). Michael calls this being stuck in between adolescence and adulthood. The gap of their life is where they reside in Guyland. Where it is thought to that it is just “boys being boys”. All of this can be peer influenced, the pressures of wanting to top someone else record in anything. How many girls can one guy get in a night, how many shots of liquor can you handle in one setting? The “Guy-Code” is the peer influenced actions between one guy and another. Maybe even the whole group of boys who share traits and attitudes. If you were to see a “guys” room or dorm in Guyland it would consist of posters of naked women, empty liquor bottles, maybe even some marijuana of wanting to be cool. They can take temporary vacations from Guyland, spending time with family, coaches or a female friend. How can we forget the girls in Guyland? “Girls are fun and sexy, as long as they respect the centrality of the guys’ commitment of the band of brothers” (Kimmel, 259). Girls can be with the guys as long as they can “hang”, or in other words if they can keep up with their fast pace. These can be the girls that have some knowledge about sports, and not feel uncomfortable when bashing about sex. Michael refers to Guyland of not having any girls, but when present they are allowed in. “Bros before Hos” is the phrase that the guy will always fetch when someone lets a girl come between their commitment. No girl will come between the band of brothers in Guyland. As much as Guyland is a place for the inner adolescent man, “Guyland is shrinking enormously” (Kimmel, 259). Everything is becoming Co-Ed for school and sports. Girls are becoming more so “guys” in college with the binge drinking and party life. In a world where their title is fading, where girls are “everywhere they want to be” (Kimmel, 260) creating problems for the young white men in Guyland. They are too the point that the “Band of Brothers” is never more so needing.

Some key concepts of “Guyland” were adolescence and masculinity. In that period of extended adolescence, young men tend to avoid the tasks of growing up or even starting their life-long career’s. Hoffman believes that the expression “boys will be boys” is outdated and an unsafe way to deal with the social interaction of these young boys today. There has to come a point where “we must intervene if we want our boys to become men and not just ‘guys’” (Hoffman). The title can be misleading, and thought to be more focused on the college campus culture. Not so much of the 16 to 26 age gap with all white males- accordingly to Hoffman. Engberg emphasized his review on the book Guyland, “is an undefined time span between adolescence and adulthood." These young men are exhilarated in the period of extended adolescence, in what he calls “The Peter Pan” mind set. Of all the fundamental factors girls, kids, jobs, and teachers that the guys could not have been hassled by. With Kimmel conveying hundreds of interviews across the country, lecturing at hundreds of colleges, he is satisfied with the social gender book, Guyland. As we look back on who these “guys” are, and how women are invading Guyland with the Co-Ed campuses. This can be good, and bad for the guys in Guyland. These young men can continue to explore the surroundings with their Band of the Brothers, and essentially party their faces off in college. There can be a point to where the parents and teachers intervene. Guyland can have its potentially accidents, for instance, Frat pledges dying from initiations. Having this book can potentially help parents or teachers who deal with this on a daily basis. Learning to interact and benefit the social interactions of the “guy”.

Works Cited
Engberg, G. (2008). Guyland: The perilous world where boys become men. The Booklist, 105(2), 6-6. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/235630590?accountid=38295
Guyland: The perilous world where boys become men. (2010). Psychiatric Services, 61(2), 208. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/213088441?accountid=38295
Kimmel, Michael S., 2008. Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men. New York: Harper.

1. Do you see as this book a benefit for the parents, teachers and acquaintances that deal with these “guys” daily? 2. Is the book labeling the inner college life of a young man? Yes or No and explain.

Cited: Engberg, G. (2008). Guyland: The perilous world where boys become men. The Booklist, 105(2), 6-6. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/235630590?accountid=38295 Guyland: The perilous world where boys become men. (2010). Psychiatric Services, 61(2), 208. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/213088441?accountid=38295 Kimmel, Michael S., 2008. Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men. New York: Harper. 1. Do you see as this book a benefit for the parents, teachers and acquaintances that deal with these “guys” daily? 2. Is the book labeling the inner college life of a young man? Yes or No and explain.