The Cultural Constructs That Germaine Greer - 1176 Words

Dictionary.com defines the word masculine as having qualities traditionally ascribed to men, as strength and boldness (Dictionary.com). I chose a Paco Rabone Invictus Cologne advertisement from the December/January 2016 Maxim magazine because I felt it accurately reflected Dictionary.com s definition of masculine, and I also think it portrays the cultural constructs that Germaine Greer writes about in the last chapter of her book. According to Greer Maleness is the natural condition, the sex if you will, and masculinity is the cultural construct, the gender (728). Her essay focuses on discussing the possible force at work which shapes society’s concept of what is considered the masculine male. She concludes that cultural influences on males and/or females will â€Å"not only produce the masculine male but also how women fit into the groups, such as corporations, that were originally constructed by masculine males† (Jacobus, 728). The gender roles that are depicted by th e postures, expressions, and appearance of the models in this advertisement are a good example of the cultural constructs Greer believes are subtly taught to males and females from childhood on. The posture used by the models conveys modern day society’s quintessential perspective of how the ideal masculine and feminine form should appear. The male is standing tall and proud while showing off his trophy for all to see his achievement. Greer explains, â€Å"To be successful young men have to achieve a measure ofShow MoreRelatedGender And Male And Female1197 Words   |  5 Pagestowards understanding what makes up innate human traits, such as the distinction between sexes, applies directly to gender role theory, where it is analyzed and debated in various disciplines. From a firm feminist viewpoint, Germaine Greer asserts in â€Å"Masculinity† that the cultural influence of gender roles are socialized into the sexes while explaining how masculinity’s overbearing constitution creates a polarity between the sexes, thus determining females as lesser individuals within the given socialRead MoreGender And The Early Developmental Stages Of An Adolescent s Life 886 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"Gender† is a social construct that is developed solely by our society and the early developmental stages of an adolescent’s life. By introducing youths to the roles, behaviors, expectations and activities that correspond with males or females we give a clear guideline of what is accepted from a young male or female. An individual however can identify his or her gender based on their own system of beliefs without corresponding to their natural biological sex. Our lives are shaped by our true biologicalRead MoreGender Roles, Hair, Relationship Problems1526 Words   |  7 Pagesby our cultural image and expectations of females anything that fell outside of that was simply â€Å"wrong† and he had to fight it and â€Å"fix† the problem. Regarding child rearing author Germaine Greer in his article titled Masculinity provides a valid explanation for his irritability at not getting â€Å"his way.† Greer holds that our gender roles are inflicted on us at birth and we are raised accordingly so; â€Å" When the carer who thinks the child is a boy readily offers it food when it cries.† (Greer, 894)Read MoreDesdemona - Virtuous Woman or Modern Woman Challenging Oppressive Societal Values?989 Words   |  4 Pagesshe was killed in a domestic dispute. This reading constructs Desdemona in a way that relies on a traditional understanding of the Virgin Mary; pure, chaste and sacrificial, however an alternate interpretation places her more into the role of someone like Germaine Greer. Rather than being a helpless victim of male pride and jealousy a contradictory view constructs Desdemona as contributing to her own demise by challenging the oppressive cultural expectations of her day. †¢ Sexually fulfilled womanRead MoreWhat Makes An Effective Social Theory? Essay1465 Words   |  6 Pagesnecessarily inclusive and for feminisms case, of all types of woman, whether that is a transgender woman, a poor woman or a black woman or any combination of identifiers. There needs to be a realisation of what can be at stake for women of particular cultural belief systems. An example of trying to defy the constraints of monovalent recognition or essentialist identity politics, is the movement by LGBT people for the label â€Å"queer†. Queerness, originally was bought about to describe radical homosexualRead MoreHow Far Can It Be Argued That Popular Culture Is Ideological: a Discussion in Relation to Feminism2082 Words   |  9 PagesThe Marxist concept of ideology is used to express the way in which the dominant group in a society controls the norms and values of that society at the level of ideas. As they own and direct the production of popular cultural products the dominant group are able to present their ideas as both normal and natural and `so mystify the `real conditions of existence (Hall.1992.p348). In this way the group holding power exercises maximum control with the minimum of conflict. The general population