Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #469390 in Books
• Published on: 1994-05-12
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 396 pages

From Kirkus Reviews
A fascinating, accessible, and meticulous piece of scholarship, this study of changing conceptions of manhood breaks new ground in uncovering the internal struggles and shifting paradigms that have informed American men's understanding of themselves. Borrowing the innovative techniques of women's history and gender studies, Rotundo (History/Phillips Academy) shines a powerful light on the diaries, letters, and institutions of white, northern, middle-class men. From a Puritan society that conceived of men largely as ranked members of a community, America, he says, was transformed into a place where a man was an individual who created his own place and status. The qualities that were valued in a man were likewise transformed, from an ideal that called for the suppression of aggressive, competitive urges to an image of manliness that valued nothing more. While boys were once seen as separate from men--at times, more like females; later, as a host of antisocial impulses that need to be suppressed--by the end of the 19th century, men (with Theodore Roosevelt as paradigm) were seen as overgrown boys, their boyish impulses being their best part. Similarly, men's relation to women, while never abjuring the underlying framework of gender spheres, has repeatedly shifted to buttress men's superiority. Sexuality, too, Rotundo says, has changed profoundly, and not always in ways we would think: The 18th century lacked a true concept of homosexuality, allowing adult male friends to spend the night in each others' arms--an act inconceivable to most contemporary heterosexuals. While the slice of society Rotundo examines is narrow, what he reveals goes deep. A pioneering work. -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

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Customer Reviews

Excellent teaching book about men
I've used this book in my graduate seminar introducing students to the study of the social sciences, and they loved it. I've also used it in my 12th grade gender studies class, and its sections on boy culture and youthful romantic friendships helped students decide that the study of past lives was worthwhile.

A very good place to begin
To learn about the culture of manhood, a good place to begin is with a good, strong, well documented history. This is, indeed, a good place to begin. Positing male sociolization within a context that includes its affect on women and children and the family in general, Rotundo is able to place the history of work, virtue, romance and identity in a way that makes sense in terms of where we've been. Hopefully, this will give us a clear first step in terms of where we go from here. Any book that clarifies, from the very beginning, the difference between *gender* and *sex*, is a book that has a good chance of knowing what it is talking about.

"must" reading if you're interested in American manhood
I read this book because I am interested in pioneering a new "scouting" program for Christian young people. Rotundo's work has cut new ground; essentially there are few, if any, works available which have made the primary and secondary research connections made in his text. Because I have a greater understanding of previous manhood paradigms, I believe I will be better able to construct the pedogogical parameters of my program. Rotundo's text, incidently, should be read by feminists; it is likely they would develop a more sensitive approach to the objectives they would like to accomplish.