The Real Man

A Real Man Men around the world are constantly kept in line, on what exactly a man is expected to be. This is policed through everyday living and society has zero tolerance for margin of error. However, this can have a great deal of psychological issues towards young boys as they go through this traumatic transition at a young age. Consistently ridiculed, and forced to behave certain ways preventing them from appearing feminine. The guidance stems from close relatives, peers, and even sports team directors such as coaches. “Boy’s don’t Cry, Take it like a Man, Size Matters, Nice Guys Finish Last” (Kimmel pg.609 Rereading America.) These are common phrases used by society (mostly men) to assist in guiding all men down a road of masculine behavior. It tells you what is and isn’t acceptable behavior for a man. You don’t cry because you appear weak, if you are small framed you are feminine like a girl; if you are too nice you will get taken advantage of. If you stray away from this outline you are labeled feminine or even to some extremes a “faggot.” This form of “The Guy Code” has become extremely prominent in today’s society because it declares a basic set of rules for all men to follow. “The Guy Code, a collection of attitudes, values, and traits that together composes what it means to be a man” (Kimmel pg.610 Rereading America.) “Boys learn that their connection to their mother with emasculate them, so they learn to push away from their mothers. It’s what turns those expressive five year olds into, sullen, withdrawn and despondent nine year olds” (Kimmel pg.615 Rereading America.) This transition between ages were we see children severely stray away from their mothers comes from activities such as school where children are constantly mimicking what they see. Such as dad’s telling there son’s not to be “sissy’s” or watching their older siblings become aggressive. These actions mold the youth into a senseless, deformed version of masculinity, even