Male Studies: A proposed curriculum: National Post (Canada)

hatekillpuke · 2010-04-15T04:56:30+00:00

I hope the program that's opening is more thoughtful and less arbitrarily oppositional than this article.

You'll see the same tendency in reports of coal mine disasters: "Miners" are trapped, "rescuers" race against time, "families"

All the labels used here are more descriptive than just saying "Men". "Miners" are trapped in a mine, if it said "men" one might wonder if they were workers in an active mine or just some dudes who wandered into an abandoned mine or what? "Rescuers" are attempting rescue, if it were just "men" one might wonder about the qualifications of those making such a critical attempt. "Families" are waiting for word because surely all the trapped miners have both women and men who would hopefully await word of their well being.

Men are what they do, women are who they are.

Comparing a mine collapse to a sexually motivated shooting spree is about as apples and oranges as you can get. In these situations we're talking about workers in a particular setting versus murder victims who were particularly targeted because of their sex. This is a valid topic for discussion, but this is a really awful comparison.

"Gendered Disparities in Media Discourse" as precisely the kind of subject that is likely to be studied in the discipline of Male Studies

I can see this in any Gender Studies program, really. But yes, the question of why it makes more sensational news to point out the sex of murder victims is a very good one to ask. I would argue that the view that women are less capable of defending themselves and therefore it is a more heinous crime to kill them allows this sort of reporting to sell more media. I would also point out that while a despicable practice media sources are going to use whatever language sells better, rather than which is most fair.

"The Titanic and Male Honour Codes in Western Civilization" would open up a fascinating discussion on values around the perceived worth of men's lives and women's lives.

I'll not argue against heroism in this case, surely sacrificing one's life so another may live is inarguably heroic. What I will take issue with is the author equating such sacrifice as result of the perceived worth of male versus female lives. I would say that this is more an example of women being seen as inherently less capable than men, that men can save themselves but women need men to save them. Also, views may have shifted a bit in the hundred years that have passed, a more current example would certainly help this discussion.

All in all, I'm glad to hear that there is a Male Studies program starting up somewhere. However, such a program should not discount existing research into Gender Studies out of hand nor set itself up as in opposition to existing Gender Studies programs. While I can't speak to the content of the program, I do hope that it strives to be less oppositional than the language in this article.

folktastic · 2010-04-15T05:39:05+00:00

Male Studies 101: 1. Suck on his dick. 2. Play with his balls. 3. Make him a sandwich. 4. Don't talk so much.

(guess we don't have too many Dave Chapelle fans here.)

Title	Male Studies: A proposed curriculum: National Post (Canada)
Author	DougDante
Upvotes	30
Comments	3
Date	April 15, 2010 2:35 AM UTC (14 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/MensRights
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/MensRights/comments/br2ub/male_studies_a_proposed_curriculum_national_post/
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