Men’s Fear of Femininity: Discussing the Media’s Perceptions of Masculinity with College Men

From early childhood into adulthood, young people are constantly bombarded with media advertisements showing them what behaviors are and are not socially acceptable. Advertisers push negative gender norms into the homes, residence halls, bars, and fraternity houses of our college men. Take into consideration the highly controversial Dr. Pepper 10 commercial, which presents its product in a hyper-masculine way. This commercial gives a stereotypical view of what it means to be a man. Thankfully, with some negatively stereotyped commercials, there are also positive ones that exist. Guinness, a popular beer company, recently released a heartwarming commercial with positive role models of masculinity. One way or another, both commercials address the fear of femininity many young men face today. This blog post serves to provide higher education professionals a way to confront negative male gender norms with a group of young men.

            Davis, LaPrad, and Dixon (2011) promote the use of men’s groups on college campuses to educate young men about male gender norms. The important keys to this chapter are education and communication in a group setting. Although presenting the Dr. Pepper and Guinness commercials on an individual basis may be helpful in talking about masculinity, confronting this issue via media might be more effective within a men’s group. The authors claim “the men’s group movement has been an attempt to provide the space for men to reflect on socially prescribed roles and help men reach a healthier, self-authored identity” (Davis, LaPrad, & Dixon, 2011, p. 152). This setting allows young men to talk about what they observe in the two commercials; at the same time, higher education professionals can educate them about masculinities. According to the authors, a great way to spark conversations “about hegemonic masculinity is to use commercials, television shows, and popular movies to illustrate how messages about gender are sold” (Davis et al., 2011, p. 155).

            Davis (2004) states, “using entertainment media to deconstruct powerful sex-role messages is an ideal method for promoting learning about gender identity development” (Davis, 2004, p. 50). Although Davis focuses on this learning in a classroom setting, I believe his methods could apply to something like a men’s group meeting. By showing the different ideas of masculinities presented in the Dr. Pepper and Guinness advertisements, perhaps student affairs professionals can explain society’s influence on young men, which often reinforces negative gender norms. Davis (2004) encourages educators to have their students critique the media, such as our commercials, in order to become “a critical consumer of potentially dysfunctional messages” (Davis, 2004, p. 52). In order to demonstrate this idea, I have critiqued and compared the Dr. Pepper and Guinness commercials in regards to their presentations of femininity.

            The main difference of these two commercials is how they each portray men’s fear of femininity. Kimmel and Davis (2011) give a brief overview of O’Neil’s gender role conflict, which basically states that people learn from society how to act based on their gender. They claim that “at the heart of men’s conflict is the fear of femininity” (Kimmel & Davis, 2011, p. 7). According to this fear, anything that may appear to be a feminine act lessens a man’s masculinity. To be a part of the male gender, men cannot show emotions or compassion and must act tough and strong (Kimmel & Davis, 2011). Kimmel and Davis (2011) stress that any sign of weakness makes men seem less ‘manly.’ By watching these commercials in men’s groups, higher education professionals can show college men how the fear or acceptance of femininity play out in each commercial.

            The Dr. Pepper 10 commercial takes place in a stereotypical action adventure movie.^[1] The characters are dressed in army fatigues, have ridiculously large laser guns, flaunt their strong muscles, and yell at the audience in their deep overpowering voices. The main character directs his dialogue to women. After asking them if they are enjoying the movie, the character assumes the female audience is unimpressed. He claims that “this is our movie,” meaning a movie for men (Jakthelombax mar, 2011). He then goes on to say that Dr. Pepper 10 is a man’s drink—even with its fewer “manly calories… It’s what guys want” (Jakthelombax mar, 2011). After a few more explosions, the commercial ends with the sentence, “Dr. Pepper 10, it’s not for women” (Jakthelombax mar, 2011).

[Insert Video #1 link here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zza3GqEL5B0]

            The main takeaway from this commercial is the constant fear of femininity. According to the Dr. Pepper 10 commercial, men that drink Diet Dr. Pepper are more ‘manly’ than those who abstain. The overuse of violence in this commercial assumes all young men are obsessed with trucks, guns, and big explosions. According to societal gender norms, all these things are the farthest from feminine. Through violent acts men step away from the feminine and towards the masculine. It is upsetting that advertisers believe the only way to get men to buy their product is by constantly reaffirming it is not a “lady drink” (Jakthelombax mar, 2011). At every turn of this commercial, there is reassurance that Dr. Pepper 10 is not a feminine drink. This commercial reinforces the fear of femininity in two ways. First, the commercial exploits violent acts and images. Second, it promotes the beverage as ‘manly’ or not for women.

            In contrast, Guinness presents an uncharacteristically heartfelt beer commercial.^[2] Viewers would not know they are watching a beer commercial until the last few seconds of the commercial. The first scene begins in the middle of a fierce, yet good-hearted wheelchair basketball game. The young men in the wheelchairs are shown crashing into one another and falling to the ground, while yelling encouragements at teammates. As the game ends, all the men but one get out of their wheelchairs and leave the gym together. This simple commercial has little to no dialogue between characters, rather there is a man voicing-over with these simple words: “Dedication, loyalty…friendship” (Guinness, 2013). The commercial ends with the young men all gathered in a bar drinking Guinness, while the voiceover continues, “the choices we make reveal the true nature of our character” (Guinness, 2013).

[Insert Video #2 link here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Au8Y98Rgxbk]

            As opposed to the Dr. Pepper commercial, the Guinness advertisement seems to reject traditional hegemonic views of masculinity because the characters embrace weaknesses and emotions. It shows young men that being disabled is not a form of weakness, while emphasizing the fact that young men should not be discouraged by feeling weak or helpless. The young men that are not disabled accept their friend’s disability, and the weakness his disability produces by playing basketball in wheelchairs. Even though there is a sense of competitiveness, this quality is not presented in a negative light. Essentially, the commercial promotes an emotional connection between close male friends, feelings usually reserved for women. Although playing basketball and going for beers promote a distinct form of masculinity, the characters of this commercial also show emotional connection with one another. This connection is never explicitly stated, but silently understood. The most important part of this commercial is the statement, “The choices we make reveal the true nature of our character” (Guinness, 2013). This message encourages young men to be better than society’s strictly enforced gendered roles.

            With these critiques in mind, student affairs professionals can present these two commercials to young men and gauge how they feel masculinity was displayed in each. Engaging in conversation about the differences between these two commercials can show young

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^[1] It must be noted that this commercial attempts to get men drinking diet soda drinks, which could be better for their health. Regardless, I think the ulterior message gets lost in the overbearing nature of the characters and the situation.

^[2] It must be noted that the act of playing basketball and drinking beer depicts a specific type of masculinity, but I believe the message behind this commercial is stronger than the generalized masculinity. This commercial is not perfect, but compared to the Dr. Pepper commercial could be a better model for young men in the long run. 

References

Davis, T. (2004). Using entertainment media to inform student affairs teaching and practice

            related to sex and gender. New Directions for Student Services, 2004, 49-59.          Doi: 10.1002/ss.141

Davis, T., LaPrad, J., & Dixon, S. (2011). Masculinities reviewed and reinterpreted: Using a         critical approach to working with men in groups. In J. A. Laker, & T. Davis (Eds.),        Masculinities in higher education: Theoretical and practical considerations (pp. 147-            160). New York, NY: Routledge.

Guinness. (2013, September 9). Guinness basketball commercial [video file]. Available from

            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Au8Y98Rgxbk

Kimmel, M. S., & Davis, T. (2011). Mapping guyland in college. In J. A. Laker & T. Davis           (Eds.), Masculinities in higher education: Theoretical and practical considerations (pp.      3-15). New York, NY: Routledge.

Jakthelombax mar. (2011, November 30). Dr Pepper TEN action commercial [video file].            Available from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zza3GqEL5B0

Marie Elena Castellano is currently a first-year graduate student in the University of Maine’s Higher Education Program. She graduated from the Catholic University of America in May 2013 with a BA in History. She serves as the Graduate Assistant for the Higher Education Program at UMaine. In this position, she assists with program recruitment and faculty research.You can connect with Marie Elena on Twitter @lenacast91

Role Modeling In College Males

Lebron James, Drew Brees, and Sidney Crosby; what do these males have in common? We could answer this with the simple statement that they are all incredible athletes; but are they more than superstars?  What if Batman and Superman were added to this question?

Athletes are becoming modern-day superheroes.  They redefine impossible with blazing speed and incredible strength.  These professionals link communities together allowing individuals of different races and socioeconomic statuses to share a common interest.  Sports are popular for males of all ages. They are a source of primetime entertainment.  Watching athletes nail a three-pointer or hit the game winning home run bring males excitement.  Talking about sports allows males to signify their manhood (Kimmel, 2008).  They allow males to show passion, love, and heartbreak. Most importantly, athletics give males a chance to exit the real world; similar to cinemas during the Great Depression. No matter how tough times are, sports can take individuals minds off of the obstacles they are facing and give them relief from reality.  Most importantly, professional athletes become role models for children.  Adolescent males strive to be just like their favorite athletes.  They will eat specific brands of cereal to because their favorite player is advertising it on television.  Children practice celebration dances so they can use them at their next game. Males are mimicking athletes hoping to one day be a superhero.

With an increasing need for role models in the world, athletes are becoming the answer to this problem; but should they be the answer?  As a male who was highly involved in new student orientation and club sports, I have noticed that there is an increasing popularity of male students labeling athletes as their primary role models.  It is a phenomenon that is intriguing to me. For young men, sports knowledge is essential; “If you are an informed citizen, you win the admiration and respect of your community” (Kimmel, 2008, p. 140).  Sports give students common ground and a code to live by (Kimmel, 2008).  The respect of a college male’s peers could be one of the reasons why athletes are studied and admired.  This trend could also be linked to the divorce rate and pre-marriage childbirth.  With these trends on the rise, athletes may be the most realistic role models in an adolescent male’s life.  Regardless of the cause, many college males seek empowerment from professional and college superstars.

Personally, I was guilty for 21 years labeling an athlete as a role model.  Through adolescence and the beginning years of emerging adulthood, my idol was Brett Favre.  My eyes were glued to the TV anytime he was on the football field.  I cheered him on for every touchdown and listened to every word he spoke during post-game press conferences as if he was speaking to me.   Favre’s impact on me went further than his dominance on the field; it was his ability to overcome adverse situations that stood out to me.  He would selflessly fight through the pain of a broken thumb or ankle and lead his team to victory.  The resilience Favre presented by throwing four touchdowns the day after his father died inspired me to become mentally stronger.   Favre was my role model, and I did not see any problems with that. However, it dawned on me the day Favre retired; who will inspire me now?   When I am in a rough patch, who will be the person to give me advice?  I could not call him, nor could I watch him in weekly press conferences.

This is one of the obstacles with males accepting professional athletes as primary role models; they are temporary.  Athletes can motivate you by their breathtaking performances or graceful press conferences, but will never be there to support students in everyday life.  “As student affairs professionals, we need to help these male students find role models that allow individuals to engage in intimate conversations” (T. Wells, personal communication, September 5, 2013).  College males need validation from upperclassmen, professional staff, or local successors in the institutional environment to give students quality direction and advice. Furthermore, it is why we need to find role models for males early into their higher educational experience.  Validation is most influential at the beginning of a student’s college experience (Evans, Forney, Guido, Patton, & Renn, 2010).  Focusing on the first-year experience will allow higher educational institutions to promote this movement.

            In reflection of my first year in college, I realize that the absence of a role model delayed my potential. I did not have anyone in the community that could give me advice on academics or allow me to share my emotions. For the first three years of college I did not have a role model. As a student who had a high grade point average and multiple national championships in powerlifting, it did not seem like a role model would have affected me. However, I had an Achilles heel; I had no clue what my occupation would be after college. Entering my first senior year, I changed my major eight times ranging from business to biology. At the time, I was planning to apply to physical therapy school, but I was still not confident in choosing that path.

            I survived three and a half years of college with Brett Favre as my primary role model but I did not develop emotionally nor did I have a clear future.  With graduation three semesters away, I applied to become an orientation leader for a final leadership opportunity. With that said, I realize I was fortunate because they only choose 35 students a year to be orientation leaders. It was here that I met the university’s orientation director, Paul.  He was different than any higher education professional I had ever met.  Paul noticed that I built a wall to hide my emotions.  Throughout the year, he challenged me to step outside of my comfort zone by participating in activities that would make me feel vulnerable.  Paul supported me through my academic struggles and comforted me after my own father’s death. In my fourth year of college, I finally received a role model. With Paul as my mentor, I grew more in three semesters than the first 7 combined.  Furthermore, I was confident in choosing student affairs as a career path.  

            This is why it is important to reach out to males in their first-year as a college student. Upperclassmen and student affairs professionals can penetrate emotional walls to allow first-year males to be comfortable with their personal identities.  We can build a foundation to help males adequately prepare for careers outside of college.  Also, forming close bonds with these students and professionals allow young males to have role models who are available to support and motivate them through their endeavors.  Most importantly, creating unique bonds with mentors will educate these young males on the importance of role modeling, thus motivating these young students to become role models when they become more experienced in college.  This will result in more available role models in a college institution.  Star athletes may be appropriate role models for young children but in emerging adulthood, upperclassmen and student affairs professionals can become superheroes for these young males.       

References

Evans, N., Forney, D., Guido, F., Patton, L., & Renn, K. (2010). Student development in college: Theory, research, and practice. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Kimmel, M. (2008). Guyland: The perilous world where boys become men. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

Cameron Barrilleaux is a first-year student in the Student Development in Higher Education graduate program at the University of Maine where he is the GA for Leadership Development in the Campus Activities and Student Engagement Office.  He graduated from the University of Louisiana, Lafayette in May 2013.  You can engage Cameron on Twitter @CaminMe.

Small Town Choices: How Do We Convince Students that have the Academic Potential to Pursue a College Degree?

“What is the value of going to college?”  “Is another four years of school really worth the time and money?”  “Why don’t I just get a job after high school and start living my life?”  “But all my friends and family are here.”  “Some of my friends think it is not masculine to go to college.”  These are all thoughts and questions that went through my and my friends’ minds during our senior year in high school, as we were trying to figure out whether or not we should go to college.  At that time in our lives our minds were focused on the next big game and what we were going to do the next Friday night.  Coming from a small town in Maine it seemed as though that is all that mattered in the whole world.  In that environment everyone knows everything about everyone in the town. Everyone knew who was dating whom, who broke up with whom, and what notorious high school scandal was happening at that time.

At one time, my high school was very large and was nestled in a town that once boasted one of the largest shoe companies in the state of Maine.  During that time it was understood among all of the students in the high school that when you graduated, you would trade in your high school diploma for a position at the shoe shop.  A lot of my friends’ parents worked at the shoe shop and had actually graduated from my high school.  In this town that was the norm, but that all changed when the shoe shop closed its doors.

When the doors closed at the shoe shop everything seemed to change.  The town shrunk by a considerable amount, which ultimately made the high school shrink as well.  Now the students in my high school did not have a definitive answer of what they should do after they graduated.  This began to make myself and a lot of my friends question what it was that we should do when we graduated.  My family did not have much experience with going to college, but always instilled in me that I would be going no mater what.  I had the fortune of having a family that would support me through school and really pushed me into attending college.  A lot of my friends were not as lucky and because of that it seemed that they made college out to be a less masculine choice.  Their choice instead was to get a job right out of high school and that’s what many of them did.  They stayed with their “high school sweetheart” and kept the job that they had had all throughout high school.  

This is why some of my friends and I struggled with making the choice to go to college after we graduated.  We were all experiencing many different external forces, some good and some bad.  These forces were influencing the decisions that we would make for our future.  The friends that I had that were planning to stay in town were those that were the stereotypical rural town boys.  These guys worked on their trucks and rode their four-wheelers as much as possible yet were some of the smartest kids that I knew.  For a lot of them school came naturally.  They were brilliant students and only if they had applied themselves would have been able to attend any college that they would ever want.  For some reason though college was not appealing to them and during that time I really did not wonder why that was the case.  Looking back now I can slightly understand why that would have been the case.  They were experiencing negative external forces that seemed to be holding back their potential.

As a graduate student in Higher Education at the University of Maine, I now realize that these friends all experienced external forces that included; negative stereotypes towards attending college, low socioeconomic status pressures, pressure from significant others, and the feeling that they needed to help support their parents in some way, shape, or form. As Baxter Magolda (2009) suggests, following external formulas is a way that students can make decisions about who they are going to be, what they are going to accomplish in their lives, and in order to develop their own identity students must experience a period of crossroads in order to get to a self-authorship stage.  Yet for these students they were following these external formulas and at that point in their lives, not able to experience crossroads to make the decision to attend college.  This is not to say that these students did not experience self-authorship in their own way.  I am simply stating in their experience they eventually went through a crossroads and began to display self-authorship, but for them this was not in the college setting. Also, Brian D. Reed (2011) suggests that students that are of low socioeconomic status have lower educational aspirations and accept the fact that they will be a marginalized group within society.  These students that may have less contact with positive higher education role models do not want to aspire to attend a higher education institution.  So the question remains, how do we as higher education professionals convince students that have the potential to attend a higher education institution, make the choice to go to college after they graduate?

In my high school we had teachers and guidance counselors that would tell us that we needed to get out of this town and ultimately out of the state of Maine.  For some of my friends that was a very appealing concept and they felt as though in order to do well they would need to get out of here as fast as possible.  I think this is an interesting concept when advising students in what they should do after they graduate.  It makes students feel as though in order to be successful they must leave the state that they know and love.  However, for people that have deep roots to their family like myself, that seems like an option that is not worth the time and the money.  At that time these students want to attend a college where they can be far enough away to not have to go home every weekend, but close enough that they can if they really need to spend time with their family.

Also, as Arnett (2011) suggests the students that would make the choice to stay in my hometown may not have the opportunity to experience a phenomenon called emerging adulthood.  Simply put, these students would ultimately go from experiencing adolescence to experiencing a state of young adulthood.  That being said, they may miss the opportunity of experiencing the identity development that students in the college setting have in exploration, experimentation, and finally realizing just who exactly they would be in their adult life. 

Now there are many different TV shows and movies that may place college life in a negative light.  These include TV shows such as “Greek” (Piller & Segan, 2009) and “Glory Daze” (Becker & LeSieur, 2010), and movies such as “National Lampoon’s Animal House” (Reitman, Simmons & Landis, 1978), “American Pie Presents Beta House” (Border & Waller, 2007), and “Old School” (Medjuck, Goldberg, Reitman & Phillips, 2003). These TV shows and movies provide insight into the crazy life that college may inspire.  It seems as though because of these different media outlets, this may impact students in high school to make the choice to not attend college because it seems like a waste of time.  However, this could be farther from the point of what the college experience can be for students from rural towns. 

As a student from a rural town in Maine I can say that the experience that I had in my undergraduate career was both enlightening and fulfilling.  I gained insight into other cultures and backgrounds as well as learned a lot about who I am as a person.  I found long lasting friends that I would not have found if I did not attend a higher education institution.  A movie that really emulates the experience that one can find in college is “Monsters University” (Rae & Scanlon, 2013).  Although this creative Disney and Pixar movie is fun for all ages, it really touches upon how students at a higher education institution can find lifelong friends and really find out who they really are during their time in college.  This is the kind of experience that I wish my friends in high school who decided to go into the work force right after high school had had. 

As higher education and student affairs professionals, I think that it is our job to encourage students that have the academic potential in high school to pursue a degree from a higher education institution.  Not only for the academic opportunities, but also for the life-long experience that they will gain from being in an environment where they can establish their own identity.  Students in our high schools need to be encouraged to go to college and experience what Arnett (2011) suggests as emerging adulthood.  In order to do this we as higher education professionals should create and maintain programs with local high schools that provide positive insight about what the college experience truly entails.  These programs could be summer bridge programs that bring high school students to our college campuses and provide them with the opportunity to take classes towards their college degree while they are still in high school.

Finally, with a younger brother that is attending the same high school that I graduated from, I personally find it important to make sure that he and his friends understand the benefits of attending a higher education institution. I want them to realize that there is a way to be able to pursue and obtain a college degree while still being able to maintain those deep roots to a rural town, and the family that they may leave behind.  In order to break down the negative stereotypes of college we as higher education professionals should work personally with students from rural towns and provide them with the knowledge of what college life really entails through a fun and fulfilling high school developmental experience, so they too can have the opportunity to find life-long friends and establish their own identity for the rest of their lives.  

References:

Arnett, J. J. (2011).  Emerging adulthood: A theory of development from the late teens through

the twenties.  In M. Wilson (Ed.), ASHE reader on student development theory (2nd ed.,

pp 149-164).  Boston, MA: Pearson Publishing.

Baxter Magolda, M. B. (2009). The activity of meaning making: a holistic perspective on college

student development. In M. Wilson (Ed.), ASHE reader on student development theory

(2nd ed., pp 37-53). Boston, MA: Pearson Publishing.

Becker, W. & LeSieur, M. (Producers).(2010). Glory Daze. [Television Series]. Pasadena, CA:

TBS.

Border, W. K. (Producer). Waller, A. (Director). (2007). American Pie Presents Beta House.

[Motion Picture]. Toronto, ON. Universal Pictures.

Medjuck, J., Goldberg, D., Phillips, T., & Reitman I. (Producers). Phillips, T. (Director). (2003).

Old School. [Motion Picture]. Los Angeles, CA: The Montecito Picture Company.

Piller, S. & Segan L. (Producers) (2007). Greek. [Television Series]. Los Angeles, CA: Walt

Disney Studios Home Entertainment.

Rae, K. (Producer). Scanlon, D. (Director). (2013). Monsters University [Motion Picture]   Burbank, CA, and Emeryville, CA: Walt Disney Pictures. Pixar Animation Studios.

Reed, B. D. (2011). Socio-economic and work identity intersection with masculinity and college success. In J. Laker & T. Davis (Eds.), Masculinities in higher education: Theoretical and practical considerations. New York, NY: Routledge.

Reitman, I. & Simmons, M. (Producers), Landis, J. (Director). (1978). National Lampoon’s

Animal House [Motion Picture]. Eugene, OR: Universal Pictures.

Joshua L. Stanhope is a first year graduate student in the Student Development in Higher
Education program at the University of Maine. He also serves as the graduate assistant for New
Student Programs at UMaine.  You can connect with him on Twitter @jstanhope17