1 introduction to american masculinities1男性气质简介

MasculinitiesinAmericanMediaProf.BeateNeumeierUniversityofCologneneumeier@uni-koeln.de

TeachingandResearch:GenderStudies,PostcolonialStudies,MediaStudiesTheaterandPerformance,FilmansTelevision

GenderInn

(GenderStudiesdatabase)GenderForum

(e-Journal)

CourseOutlineMonday,July1813:30-15:00–15:20-16.50CowboysandSoldiers•1IntroductiontoAmericanMasculinities•2FromStageCoachtoIngloriousBasterdsTuesday,July1913:30-15:00–15:20-16.50AgentsandDetectives•3RebeccaandTheMalteseFalcon•4FromGoldFingertoSpectre2Presentations:MasculinityinTheMalteseFalconMasculinityinSpectreWednesday,July2013:30-15:00–15:20-16.50InvestigatorsandGangsters•5FromBasicInstincttoTheSilenceoftheLambs•6ShutterIslandandInception2Presentations:MasculinityinTheSilenceoftheLambsMasculinityinInception

Thursday,July2113:30-15:00–15:20-16.50TelevisionHeroes?•7BreakingBadandTheSopranos•8DexterandHannibal2Presentations:MasculinityinTheSopranosMasculinityinHannibalMonday,July2513:30-15:00–15:20-16.50SuperheroesandScienceFiction•9Supermen(Superman/Batman)andFallingSkies•10FromIamLegendtoAvatar2Presentations:MasculinityQuestionnaireFemininityQuestionnaire(Designaquestionnaireof30questions;conductinterviews;providepptdocumentation)Tuesday,July2613:30-15:00–15:20-16.50TheRomanticHero•11FromGonewiththeWindtoTitanic•12FromSexandtheCitytoTheVampireDiaries2Presentations:In-classdebateontoday’sfilmsandTVseries(Developinitialstatementsfollowedbydebateaboutopposingtheses)Wednesday,July2713:30-15:00–15:20-16.50ComedicMasculinities•13FromAdam’sRibtoMr.andMrs.Smith•14FromTheWeddingCrasherstoRushHour2Presentations:Creativecollaborativework(suchasmontageofvideoclips,useofadvertising)Creativecollaborativework(suchasshortfiction,shortplay)Thursday,July2813:30-15:00–15:20-16.50AlternativeMasculinities•15FromTwoandaHalfMentoTheBigBangTheory•16QueerasFolkandLookingExam:MultiplechoiceandshortanswersGrade

Exam(multiplechoice/shortanswers) 60%

Presentation(incl.writeuporpptsubmission) 40% IntroductionDiscussionQuestions:Whatismasculinity?Howdowedeterminemasculinity?Whatmakessomeonemaleorfemale?Masculineorfeminine?2.Whatis“gender”?Howdowedeterminegender?Whatis“sex”?Howdowedeterminesex?3.Arethere“nationalcharacteristics”ofgender?Whodeterminesthem?4.Whatisthesignificanceofthemedia(movies,televisedseries)fortheconstructionofgenderandthenation?DefiningAmericanMasculinity/iesImagesExamplesGenderandtheNationAmericanCultureIndustry(Hollywood)BenedictAndersonBenedictAnderson,ImaginedCommunities.ReflectionsontheOriginandSpreadofNationalism(1983,2006)BenedictAnderson(*1936Kunming,China–2015Batu,Indonesia)CornellUniversityProfofInternationalStudies,Government&AsianStudiesNationalityasformallyuniversal(likegender),butparticularReasonsfortheriseofnationalismNation-nessasculturalartefact(48)“Itisanimaginedpoliticalcommunity–andimagedasbothinherentlylimitedandsovereign“(49)

AccordingtoAnderson,"therevolutionaryvernacularizingthrustofcapitalism"wascentraltothecreationofimaginedcommunities,asthemassmechanicalreproductionofprintedworksunitedpeoplethatwouldotherwisehavefounditdifficulttoimaginethemselvesaspartofthesamecommunity,mainlybecauseofextremelinguisticdifferences.Withtheadventoftheprintingpress,languagesbecamemorestableandcertaindialectsbecame"languagesofpower.(Wiki)Therefore,forAnderson,theriseofprinttechnologywasessentialtocreatethe“deephorizontalcomradeship”thatdespiteitssociallyconstructedorigins,wasalsogenuineanddeepseated,explainingwhynationalismcandrivepeopletofight,die,andkillfortheircountries.Multi-ethnicempiresAndersonalsostudiedhowthe19thcenturyEuropeandynastiesthatrepresentedretentionofpoweroverhugepolyglotdomains,underwentnaturalizationatthesametimeastheydevelopedprogramsofofficialnationalisminaprocessthathecalledthe"willedmergerofnationanddynasticempire.“(WiKi)“Themembersofeventhesmallestnationwillneverknowmostoftheirfellow-members...yetinthemindsofeachlivestheimageoftheircommunion.“(49)“Communitiesaretobedistinguishednotbythetheirfalsity/genuineness,butbythestyleinwhichtheyareimagined.“(6)Nationalismasaboundedimaginary“Itisimaginedasacommunity,becauseregardlessoftheactualinequalityandexploitationthatmayprevailineach,thenationisalwaysconceivedasadeep,horizontalcomradeship.Ultimatelyitisthisfraternitythatmakesitpossible...forsomanymillionsofpeople,...willinglytodieforsuchlimitedimaginings.“(50)MassmediaandNationalism:Usvs.ThemMediacommunicationasfastestwayofconstructingnationalidentities(time/space)MediacommunicationasmostcomprehensivewayofconstructingnationalidentitiesandacollectivememoryTheImpactoftheMedia“Ithinkmostofusfeelthattheculturalchoiceswemake,thebooksweread,theTVwewatch,themovieswegoto,themusicwelistento,thatthesechoicesarenotonlydeeplypersonalchoices,buttheresultsofthosechoicesareveryconstitutiveofourself,ofwhoweare.Myuniquenessasanindividual,mysenseofmyuniquenessasanindividualderivesalotfromtheculturalchoicesthatI'vemade,whatIthinkabout,howIshapemyfeelingsandemotionsthroughselectingwhatIread,watchandsoon.“(JohnFiske,Interview2000)JohnFiske(*1939):PowerPlays,PowerWorks(1993)UnderstandingPopularCulture(1989)ReadingthePopular(1989)TelevisionCulture(1987)1)Socialandpoliticalchangeoccursmostsustainablyinthesuperstructuralsphere,amongbeliefsystemsandwithinconditionsofidentityformation;2)Identityformationissubjecttowhatcodesandmeaningsareavailableinculturalcirculation,beitthroughmedia,education,politics,orthepopular;and3)Culturalmessagescanbecollectedandthenassessed,ormapped,amongothercoherentbeliefsystemsforthepurposeofstrategicintervention.“HenceFiske’s‚literacyofmediaaesthetics‘maybethoughtaboutascriticalevaluationoftheartificeandstrategiesofdiscursivecirculation.Foradiscoursetosustain,itmustberecognizedamongasocialfield.Andasocialfieldisalwaysembeddedwithinfuture-directedpoliticalstrugglesoverperspective,belief,andmaterialrelations.

Researchinto“discourses”includesevaluationofhowgroups,industries,andindividualsdevelopandinterpretcoherentcodesofframedperspective.Sinceinformationiscodedbymethodsofproductionwhileinflectedwithconditionsofinterpretation,developingtacticsforpoliticalinterventionrequiressophisticatedliteracyofculturalinstitutionalpractices.“GenderasDiscursiveField:

HistoricalPerspectivesTheFightagainst„BiologyisDestiny“(VirginiaWoolf1920s-)GenderasaCulturalConstruct(SimonedeBeauvoir1950s-)TheSex/GenderSystem(JudithButler1990s-)GenderPerformativityMasculinityStudies(W.R.Connellmid-1990s-)LGBT-StudiesQueerStudiesSimonedeBeauvoir,TheSecondSex,1949Forthe“self”todefineitself,itneedsan“other”todefineitselfagainstBeauvoircomestotheconclusionthatwomanisthe“other”inrelationtotheman,whoinhabitstheroleofthe“self”;theresultofthisisanunequalrelationshipinwhichwomentakesecondplaceMostfamousstatement:“Oneisnotborn,butratheres,awoman”femininityisnotaninherenttrait,butsomethingthatistaught/learnedthroughsocialinstitutionsOneesawomanthroughlearningtoassumeapassiveroleoppositeman‘sactiveroleJudithButler,GenderTrouble,1990

AccordingtoButler,sexorgenderarenotnatural/biologicalfacts,butaculturalperformanceThisperformanceofcomplementarymaleandfemalegenderrolesisrootedinthesystemofcompulsoryheterosexualityweliveinThereisno“natural“genderbehavior,onlythebehaviorwehavelearnedandwhichwereproduce“(...)genealogyinvestigatesthepoliticalstakesindesignatingasanoriginandcausethoseidentitycategoriesthatareinfacttheeffectsofinstitution,practices,discourseswithmultipleanddiffusepointsoforigin“(xxxi)Butlersetsoutto“trouble”categoriesofgender.ThoughsheagreeswithBeauvoironthesocialconstructionofgender,shedepartsfromherassertioninacrucialpoint:“ForBeauvoir,genderis‘constructed,’butimpliedinherformulationisanagent,acogito,whosomehowtakesonorappropriatesthatgenderandcould,inprinciple,takeonsomeothergender.IsgenderasvariableandvolitionalasBeauvoir’saccountseemstosuggest?Can‘construction’insuchacasebereducedtoaformofchoice?Beauvoirisclearthatone‘es’awoman,butalwaysunderaculturalcompulsiontoeone.Andclearly,thecompulsiondoesnotcomefrom‘sex’.Thereisnothinginheraccountthatguaranteesthatthe‘one’whoesawomanisnecessarilyfemale.”(Butler,Judith.GenderTrouble.NewYork:Routledge,2007.Page11.)

Beauvoirdoesnotquestionthebodyonwhichtheculturalideasofgenderareinscribed.Butler,ontheotherhand,questionsthisstatusofthebody.“(…)’thebody’appearsasapassivemediumonwhichculturalmeaningsareinscribed(…).Bodiescannotbesaidtohaveasignifiableexistencepriortothemarkoftheirgender;thequestionthenemerges:Towhatextentdoesthebodycomeintobeinginandthroughthemark(s)ofgender?”(12)

AgainstNaturalisation“‘Sex’isanidealconstructwhichisforciblymaterializedthroughtime.Itisnotasimplefactorstaticconditionofabody,butaprocesswherebyregulatorynormsmaterialize‘sex’andachievethismaterializationthroughaforciblereiterationofthosenorms.”(p.2f.)Sex/Gender:AlwaysAlready“Ifgenderisthesocialconstructionofsex,andifthereisnoaccesstothis‘sex’exceptbymeansofconstruction,thenitappearsnotonlythatsexisabsorbedbygender,butthatsexessomethinglikeafiction,perhapsafantasy,retroactivelyinstalledataprelinguisticlevel.”(p.5)(Un)DoingGenderGenderPerformativity“isalwaysareiterationofanormorasetofnorms,(…)totheextentthatitacquiresanact-likestatusinthepresent,itconcealsordissimulatestheconventionsofwhichitisarepetition.”(p.12)GenderStudiesTodayDiversityoffields:MasculinityStudies:thestudyofconstructionsandrepresentationsofmasculinityQueerTheory:thestudyof(de)constructionsofsexualityandsexualorientationTransgenderStudies:thestudyofconstructionsandrepresentationsofnon-normativesexes/gendersMasculinityStudiesEmergenceinthemid-tolate1990sStartingpoint:the“crisisofmasculinity”broughtforthby2ndwavefeminism(In)Visibility:Thenormas“unmarked”,incontrasttothedeviationfromthenorm“Crisis”anditantvisibility:investigationintotheconstructionsofmasculinityPointsofinterest:representationsinthepast;changingrepresentationsinrelationtowomen’smovement;possibilitiesfornegotiationofa“newmasculinity”asaresultofthemovetowardsgenderequality(cf.BrentonJ.Malin,AmericanMasculinityunderClinton,2005)AmericanMasculinityStudies“TheriseofmasculinityinAmericanculturalstudies…hascometooperatewithinatwo-pronged“crisistheory”ofAmericanmasculinity:oneisrootedinanewhistoriographyofAmericanmasculinitythatlocatesinstabilityatthebaseofallmasculineidentitiesconstructedwithinAmericanmatrices;thesecondisderivedfromJudithButler’sinfluentialtheoreticalaccountofgenderasalwaysperformativeandcontingent[...].”(Traister.“AcademicViagra:TheRiseofAmericanMasculinityStudies,”AmericanQuarterly52:2(2000):274-304,276)History“ThehistoryofAmericanmenasmen[…]collectivelywritesitselfasanactualhistoryofAmericanmasculinityascrisis.”(287)“Americanmasculinityemerges…astroubled,distracted,counterfeit,constructed,masked,performative,flaccid,domestic,tender,andfeelingful.”(284)R.W.Connell,Masculinities19954patternsofmasculinityinthecurrentWesterngenderorder:HegemonySubordinationComplicityMarginalizationHegemonicMasculinityHegemonicmasculinityis„theconfigurationofgenderpracticewhichembodiesthecurrentlyacceptedanswertotheproblemofthelegitimacyofpatriarchy,whichguarantees...thedominantpositionofmenandthesubordinationofwomen.“(Connell)Hegemonicmasculinity[…]involvesaspecificstrategyforthesubordinationofwomen.[…]Itisexclusive,anxiety-provoking,internallyandhierarchicallydifferentiated,brutal,andviolent.Itispseudo-natural,tough,con