Greer’s Observation Of “Masculinity Run Riot”

It is agreeable to a significant measure that Greer’s sentiments on masculinity perceptions and apparent interpretations that the society makes of males is credible. The most agreeable part that particularly stands out coherently with the actual conditioning that the human society has had for ages is the psychological attention that the boy child gets from the mother. Perhaps the most critical stage at which the wrong masculinity thoughts are implanted into the brains of men is at the infancy stage where breastfeeding patterns are reportedly different between the girl and boy child. According to Greer (894), research conducted by Skuse found out that different treatment was subjected to the feeding infants was wired into the mothers’ routines such that boys got away with cries that appeared to be demanding for food. On the contrary, girls were allowed time to learn between cries and feeding which perhaps teaches them patience and less masculinity in their later life. “Mothers perceive boy babies as hungrier and as better feeders than girls; what this means is probably that they enjoy feeding their boy babies more than they enjoy feeding their girls, for whatever reason,” Greer (894).

The toughening that the boy eventually gets from the traditional masculine myths of how tough men ought to be further propels the boy to very high heights of virtual gender status preached by masculinity. It is clearly illustrated in Greer’s essay that boys learn the virtue of courage from the manner in which the mothers breastfeed them and later pay attention to them better than what fathers offer to their daughters. The female strength in sociability and intuition enables boys to have a better learning experience regarding their environment than what girls make of their learning from their fathers.

“Daughters will develop more self-confidence if their fathers are encouraging and appreciative of their efforts, but fathers seldom give such matters much attention and, if they do, usually demand objective verification of a daughter’s merit before giving encouragement.

The self-confidence of boys, on the other hand, is reinforced by mothers’ attention which is abundant and rarely conditional,” (Greer, 895)

By “masculinity run riot,” Greer (898) implies that the male fraternity under the masculinity perception regime in the society attacks those they feel inadequate to propel the tough roles that males ought to play. It follows that a regrouping occurs where soft males are isolated and made fun of due to the fact that they fall short of the masculine cult expectations. It is possible therefore that the majority of males who feel superior to others due to their heightened perceptions of being male exaggerate their roles. Modern societies depict a racial and gender differentiation to characterize masculinity (Adibisedeh et al, 3). In certain circumstances, there are super-males whose ego gets out of hand and is manifested by use various exploitative and violent treatment stunts on females and other males that they presume to be weaker. “The ultimate effect of the myth of masculinity is to generate anxiety in the vast majority of men who cannot live up to it. The cult of masculinity drives many a man who knows himself to be unaggressive and timid to opt out of conventional manhood altogether,” Greer (898). Being too masculine is not factual in the cult since even the most powerful men would also seek approval of their colleagues. According to Greer (897), Men do not only give orders; they also take orders. A masculine man’s attention is focused upon his role in the various groups to which he belongs and from which he gains verification of self-worth.”

Masculinity “run riot” would effeminize women in order to relate them to a weaker cultural hierarchy similar to the one occupied by females in the masculinity operated social order. In that sense, the humiliation endured is supposed to act as a wake-up call to the “weakly” males to fit into the masculine cult. Junior males playing the role of fetch it in the pool hall and restaurants would be effeminized according to the apparent hierarchy of dominance from other males. However, if there is a female in the group, she occupies the lowest hierarchy, always getting little say in a conversation among the males. On the other hand, the dominant male will want to attract her attention and finally win her (Greer, 898). With the use of effeminized, Greer makes the impression that the males who fall short of the masculine cult expectation is usually demoted and effectively occupies the least hierarchical position in the pecking order, as a female does in the masculine system. Many males land themselves into trouble for following these perceptions that are not a correct representation of balance in the human society (Jegelevicius, 1).

Works Cited

Adibisedeh Sara, Ang Jaymievieve, Che Austin, Cho Monique, Gandarilla Daniel, Hardisty Dave, Illangasekare Samantha, Kang Angela, Loya Becca & Ping Aik “Differences in Gender Perceptions across Race and Gender: A Web-based Survey,” 2001. Web. HYPERLINK “http://austinche.name/docs/gender.pdf” http://austinche.name/docs/gender.pdf (Accessed 3 June 2011)

Greer, Germaine, The whole woman. New York, NY: A. A. Knopf, 1999. Print

Jegelevicius, Linas “In a Man’s World, Perceptions of Masculinity Cause Many to Suffer,” last updated 27 April 2011. Web. HYPERLINK “http://www.baltictimes.com/news/articles/28577/” http://www.baltictimes.com/news/articles/28577/ (Accessed 3 June 2011)