Abstract
Masculinity is not a thing but a history. Actions, bodies, styles, texts, images, publics, and politics compose this history. One does not “possess” masculinity, in the sense of having a penis, a gun, or a rugged leather jacket. Instead, one acts masculine, and this acting involves negotiation of a complex set of signs. The often-voiced commands to walk, talk, act, and take it “like a man” make clear that masculinity does not reside in a male body but instead in a series of performative gestures and public presentations. Being “like a man” has little to do with possession and everything to do with performance.1
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Notes
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© 2011 Daniel Worden
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Worden, D. (2011). Introduction. In: Masculine Style. Global Masculinities. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230337992_1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230337992_1
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