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On Masculine Identity
Elisabeth Badinter(Author)
Columbia University Press
Published on 4. May 1995
Book
Hardback
274 pages
978-0-231-08434-5 (ISBN)
Description
What is a man? What is a real man? Is masculinity a biological given or an ideological construction? In this treatise, feminist philosopher Elisabeth Badinter seeks to define manhood at a time when sex-role distinctions have become increasingly ambiguous and age-old stereotypes about masculinity have been shattered. Drawing on biological examples, historical and sociological analyses, fiction and biography, Badinter offers a highly suggestive account of the new man which our century is in the process of inventing. Exploring the shifting inscriptions of male identity in the popular imagination, Badinter examines changing role models for masculine identity - from the cowboy of the 1950s to the Terminator of the 1990s. She suggests that men need new role models and that sufficient room needs to be left for the expression of male vulnerability, a psychic space that would accept attitudes and behaviours traditionally labelled "feminine." This new model, Badinter argues, may reduce the profound effects of homophobia and misogyny.
Reviews / Votes
"Examines masculinity from a historical and psychological perspective, lingering on how society's and men's attitudes toward homosexuality have changed over the years... The subject... is well researched and skillfully presented." -- New York Times Book ReviewMore details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Dimensions
Height: 156 mm
Width: 234 mm
Weight
580 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-231-08434-5 (9780231084345)
Copyright in bibliographic data is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or its licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Book
03/1997
Columbia University Press
€37.14
Article not available at the moment
Persons
ELISABETH BADINTER, internationally known feminist philosopher and historian, teaches at the Ecole Polytechnique in Paris. LYDIA DAVIS is the author of Almost No Memory.