[TruePolitics]

For a long time I've aimed to make myself more masculine. I admire men of great strength like Hercules, Rambo, Conan the Barbarian, etc. They're badasses who don't take shit from anybody. I'm not sure if I've got the exact right idea on what masculinity is, but I feel like I've done a fairly good job. You can be the judge. Here are some things that I do that I feel make me pretty masculine:

1. I like lifting weights
2. I'm a hard worker
3. I openly express my rage when I'm angry
4. I don't let anyone tell me what to do
5. I never let women take advantage of me
6. I know what I want from women and I am able to get it
7. I listen to a lot of heavy metal
8. I'm not afraid to get into a fight
9. I'm not afraid to walk around in the woods at night
10. I can scare coyotes
11. I like action movies
12. I like guns, weapons, violence, and blood

What do you feel defines masculinity? Am I on the right track or am I missing something?

[Unperson-K]

If you have to ask whether you are an alpha male, then generally you aren't one.

I love the fact that the three men you idolise are all fictional characters.

You don't like being told what to do but the life plan you have enacted is essentially slavish admiration of a gender stereotype and not a particularly good stereotype at that.

To be honest, I think you would be better off making a plan about how to grow up and become a well rounded human being rather than a one dimensional caricature based on a notion of masculinity formed over a century ago.

[Beren]

Am I on the right track or am I missing something?

It seems you're missing intelligence, creativity, patience, generosity, tenderness, real self-confidence, etc. If you consider Rambo and Conan role models, then you must be on the wrong track.

Are you trolling, btw.?

[TruePolitics]

Alright it seems I need to make a few clarifications here.

Firstly, I do think of myself as masculine. The qualities I have described are what I personally consider to be masculinity. I'm curious as to what YOUR definition of masculinity is. If you think my characteristics are not masculine, then tell me what you think is?

Also Hercules was not a fictional character.

[Unperson-K]

Alright it seems I need to make a few clarifications here.

Firstly, I do think of myself as masculine. The qualities I have described are what I personally consider to be masculinity. I'm curious as to what YOUR definition of masculinity is. If you think my characteristics are not masculine, then tell me what you think is?

Also Hercules was not a fictional character.

Are you serious? Hercules is a mythical character from Mediterranean antiquity.

The characteristics are not inherently masculine. For instance, one can like metal and be neither an alpha male nor indeed a male at all. One can scare away coyotes without being a male - you just need to be a bear or Ben Stiller.

[Godstud]

Masculinity is about being
-self-confident
-being sensitive(but not weepy)
-strong(mental fortitude); physical strength is handy, but not necessary unless you work in a job requiring it
-decisive
-honest
-courageous(not being afraid of what others might think of you)
-intelligent
-imaginative
-self-sufficient
-kind
-generous
-forgiving(revenge is for lesser men)


Hercules was a Greek Mythological hero
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heracles

[The Clockwork Rat]

Godstud, how would your concept of masculinity differ from that of femininity? Surely all you have listed would be admirable in any person of any sex/gender?

[Smertios]

Okay, if you need us to assure you of your masculinity, then you definitely aren't certain about it

1. I like lifting weights

Everybody does...

2. I'm a hard worker

That has nothing to do with masculinity at all...

3. I openly express my rage when I'm angry

Everybody does, that is a normal human characteristic...

4. I don't let anyone tell me what to do

Then you fail to obey hierarchies, which is not a very masculine trait, since it is normally associated with teenage anarchists.

5. I never let women take advantage of me

You must be missing a lot of action in bed

6. I know what I want from women and I am able to get it

Okay, this is pretty much the only masculine trait you listed there...

7. I listen to a lot of heavy metal

Real men prefer classical rock

8. I'm not afraid to get into a fight

I doubt that...

9. I'm not afraid to walk around in the woods at night

If you mean safe woods, that is good. If you mean woods in which someone is raped every night, that is not manly. It is just stupid...

10. I can scare coyotes

Me too, that is what guns are there for

11. I like action movies

Many alpha males hate them...

12. I like guns, weapons, violence, and blood

All human beings like that. It is part of the human nature.

What do you feel defines masculinity? Am I on the right track or am I missing something?

If you wanna feel more masculine, my suggestion is this: be confident and go for a girl when you want her. That is pretty much the only thing that defines whether you are manly or not: your ability to attract females. And girls are only interested in average-to-good-looking men who are confident enough not to back down...

[Godstud]

Godstud, how would your concept of masculinity differ from that of femininity? Surely all you have listed would be admirable in any person of any sex/gender?

That's also true.

Ok, here it is!

Masculine
2. having qualities traditionally ascribed to men, as strength and boldness.

5. the masculine gender.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/masculinity

There ya go! It's just that simple!

Oh, and you might want to be male.

[Stormsmith]

The man I admired the most made decency seem easy and fashionable. He was well read, well mannered, clever and clear minded, had a good sense of humour, took things in his stride and was devoted to his family. He was also in the military and saw battle.

The good news is, I found one just like him to marry.

[Phyllis Stein]

= Masculinity. Gerard Butler pretty much sums it up. Notice his arm around Jeremy Piven's shoulder? He's very confident in his masculinity. He doesn't give a shit what people think

[The Clockwork Rat]

Ok, here it is!

Masculine
2. having qualities traditionally ascribed to men, as strength and boldness.

5. the masculine gender.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/masculinity

There ya go! It's just that simple!

Oh, and you might want to be male.

This says very little in fact. Some women are also admired as women for displaying those very same characteristics. Of course, you could take the route of saying that these women are not actually admired as women per se, but as women who display masculine characteristics. This would, however, open a whole new can of worms.

Does this mean that there are a set of characteristics which are admirable, but not distinct to men? In which case, they should hardly be called 'masculine'.

Or, are we attracted to the androgynous character of such women who display masculine attributes? This is hardly something many men would be willing to admit, since it would open up the possibility of being attracted to men who go in the opposite direction, that is, they become androgynous by displaying feminine attributes.

(I would ask the same of the women, but I'm more interested in what men think makes men men. )

[Sephardi]

I think this is a troll thread because of the traits listed, but I'll contribute anyways.

Masculinity: Growing up idolizing Arnold, Stallone, or Hulk Hogan. As a teenager, get involved in some type of physical activity or weight lifting to increase strength and confidence. Become both aware of different philosophies of life (especially anything that Hobbes wrote) and be a little nationalistic. Get over any kind of bullying or threat that was ever there, if any, by pure strength and confidence, to the point of many others respecting you as a man. Be the type of guy that somebody would call for help if something was going down. Develop your own "following" (people respecting you to the point of actually checking out books or music that you like because they think you have great taste and respect your opinion). ALWAYS FOLLOW "GUY CODE" and don't snitch on a friend especially to his girlfriend about something he might be doing. Have a sensitive side but it shouldn't really be shown too much. Don't show much emotion either way. Have a cause or different causes that you're passionate about. Learn to do things, whatever it may be, such as play instrument to be a well rounded person.

This pretty much covers it. This can also be applied to being a good Jew in my opinion.

[The Clockwork Rat]

One should grow up admiring men who would not look out of place on the cover of a gay porn magazine? These are men who swell and harden their bodies, then reduce their body fat until you can see veins pumping blood, and finally rub oil all over their skin - all to impress a male audience.

[Sephardi]

One should grow up admiring men who would not look out of place on the cover of a gay porn magazine? These are men who swell and harden their bodies, then reduce their body fat until you can see veins pumping blood, and finally rub oil all over their skin - all to impress a male audience. :eh?:

... When did I say that? Stallone is an actor who inspired many men to start working out. Hogan specifically told kids to train and eat properly. Arnold was an actor and considered pretty much a superhero. Yes, he was a champion bodybuilder, but that's not why we should admire him. He was the example of masculinity in most of his movies. Even though this is an act, it's good inspiration, and apparently he was an alpha male in life as well.

[The Clockwork Rat]

... When did I say that? Stallone is an actor who inspired many men to start working out. Hogan specifically told kids to train and eat properly. Arnold was an actor and considered pretty much a superhero. Yes, he was a champion bodybuilder, but that's not why we should admire him. He was the example of masculinity in most of his movies. Even though this is an act, it's good inspiration, and apparently he was an alpha male in life as well.

So they are masculine because they make other men also want to be phallicised for the collective male narcissism. This relies on somewhat circular logic, of course.

[Igor Antunov]

Masculinity is directly proportional to how long it's been since you have shaved + showered + how much dry crusty sweat is clinging to your hairy body. Add these up and you will get your masculinity figure, the higher, the more masculine you are.

This is why vagrants, soldiers, and bums are some of the most masculine men. You've got to live tough to be tough.

[Brother of Karl]

Masculinity is the yang energy. Make what you want of it.

Also, masculinity is obviously not the same as "maleness". Men just tend to have more masculine than feminine energy, and women have more "yin" energy.

[Twelve]

I think masculine men are males who are uncomplicated in their attraction for females. Some might argue that this is just conditioning and I would agree but conditioning occurs because we are different from one another gender-wise.

Men stop being naturally masculine when cultural conditions impose artificial behaviors on them.

[Holt]

Some might argue that this is just conditioning and I would agree but conditioning occurs because we are different from one another gender-wise.

Gender (as opposed to sex) is itself the product of societal conditioning, for better or worse. This analysis is about as meaningful as 'conditioning occurs because conditioning occurs'.

Men stop being naturally masculine when cultural conditions impose artificial behaviors on them.

Again this implies the naturalistic fallacy. The truth is that cultural conditions have always altered the way humans behave, whether they be hunter-gatherers, subsistence farmers or workers in an assembly line.