Reflection IV

 

Reflection IV

In the article Context Masculinities: Media Consumption, Physical Education, and Youth Identities Brad Millington and Brian Wilson examine the role of media and physical education in developing the understanding and practice of gender in young males. Their study took place at a Vancouver high school where they focused on determining how interpretations of masculinity and performances of masculinity relate and how the youth's social status affects how interpretations and performances vary. The study provided mixed responses where the students seemed to criticize the muscular, aggressive, and hyper-heterosexual portrayal of masculinity created by the media, but at the same time, their actions supported these gender identities in physical education classes. 

Our male youth grow up watching razorblade ads where a shirtless, perfect-bodied male is shown shaving his face, or television shows where the lead male actors flaunt their flawless abs during their many shirtless scenes. Though this look is unrealistic for the average male and many acknowledge this, it is still intimidating, especially when many women are attracted to this type of look in their adolescence. As I've gotten older, I've noticed that many women are actually unattracted to this look, which is great news for males who do not have three hours a day to spend at the gym. 

I only took physical education in grade 9 and 10 because I had to. I was athletic and enjoyed sports, but I disliked the structure and atmosphere of the classes. One of the things that was obvious in my physical education classes was the tendency for males to use it as a chance to show off their masculinity. Some of the males who fit into the jock stereotype maintained this attitude outside of the physical education class at all times where many typically only maintained it when in large groups. For example, I avoided the group many labeled as the 'cool group' who sat together at lunch because of the general superior attitude of the group, especially amongst the athletic jock types. Many of them were my friends, but I avoided them when together as a large group because their attitudes changed in a way that it always felt like there was a competition with an unknown goal. The competitive nature seemed to marginalize others within physical education classes and in social circumstances as described above.  

Male students may be intimidated by the media portrayal of what masculinity means, but take advantage of the power it provides them when in physical education classes or in large groups. This power allows them to intimidate others in social situations where it is seen as acceptable. When outside of physical education classes or when in small groups, the competitive atmosphere usually seemed to reside as they adapted their identities to a different social environment. 

The media has a strong influence on our youth, but it seems that they are clever enough to understand the unrealistic portrayal of the average man. From my experiences, masculine performances within our youth provide a sense of power in certain social circumstances and even though the media portrays an unrealistic form of masculinity, our youth seem to reflect the representation in their own way.