Be a man! : males in modern society / Peter N. Stearns

Peter N. Stearns

"The revolution in gender roles and functions in the past three decades has made us acutely aware of the historical dimensions to masculine image and performance. The time is ripe for a history of men which begins to sort out the biological, psychological and cultural components in our perception of man and in man's perception of himself. Stearns examines the particular Western conception of maleness which modified the heritage of biological and prehistorical man with its own peculiar combination of cultural influences derived from Classical, Judeo-Christian and Germanic models. By the early modern period, maleness had come to be understood in terms of property, patriachal authority and physical courage. This traditional, preindustrial definition of maleness underwent decisive change and challenge in the nineteenth century with rapid industrialization and the panoply of cultural shifts which imposed new and less stable gender criteria on men. In this century, increased stress has been brought to bear on male identity and the old imperative, "Be a man!", has lost its clear meaning... Stearns sifts through the historical legacy of male roles and models in order to grasp fully the antecedents of today's conflicts and confusions."