Hegemonic masculinity is usually defined as autonomy, independence, leadership---that which women are not supposed to possess nor aspire to. Gender is in and of itself an act of excluding women from humanity and agency, drawing a boundary between those who possess and those who are possessed.
This is something I struggle with. I appreciate that men want models of how to be.
But when we try to populate “positive masculinity” with traits — strong, smart, kind — they are all equally available to women.
Masculinity and femininity are empty concepts, absent gender hierarchy.
Amanda Marcotte
The thing about the left needing a positive vision for masculinity to counter the right is … they don’t have one either. Their whole thing is “don’t be a woman” as arbitrarily defined by whatever they consider feminine. Apparently some people find this admirable and wish to imitate it
