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--- fraser_state_of_the_field:the_history_of_masculinities [2026/01/16 05:21] – khamilt3
+++ fraser_state_of_the_field:the_history_of_masculinities [2026/01/17 00:33] (current) – nrutkows
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 Similarly, While masculinity and gender vary across cultures, colonialism overrode native ideals of masculinity and demonized what they deemed to be inferior forms of masculinity. Thus, colonized cultures ideals of masculinity then conformed to the colonizers ideals of masculinity. This can make it difficult to study the pre-colonized native ideas of gender as they were not the prevailing ones.(Katherine Hamilton)
+Fraser discusses how studying what masculinity looked like in a specific historical context allows for better understanding of who would hold the most power based on the constraints of the time. It easy to acknowledge to that exemplified masculinity allows us to not only see who would benefit the most, but also who did not and how they did not. (Hannah Covin)
+Fraser's article does a good job of showing the intersectionality that is present in power dynamics that are related to gender. Especially in the descriptions of how African American men had to contend with a white male exemplified version of masculinity. (Hannah Covin)
+Fraser's article examines masculinity as a historically contingent and performed identity shaped by power relations rather than a natural or universal norm. By analyzing subfields such as disability, transgender, and Indigenous masculinities, the author shows how masculinity can be redefined through experiences like injury, marginalization, or colonialism. (Caitlyn Edwards)
+A key focus of Frase’s work is how institutions such as the military enforce specific performances of masculinity, revealing that manhood is actively constructed and regulated. This perspective challenges the idea of masculinity as a default identity by highlighting its dependence on historical and social context. (Caitlyn Edwards)
+Fraser explains the origins of the now-common term "hegemonic masculinity," which was first used by sociologist Raewyn Connell around 1995. Connell drew on Antonio Gramsci's concept of hegemony, meaning a "superstructure" that helped keep wealthy people in power, and applied the term to gender theory. As Connell described it, hegemonic masculinity delineates the singular and specific form of masculinity that a certain culture values above other forms. Importantly, this highly valued form of masculinity is not a fixed thing across time and place. (Noah Rutkowski)
+At the end of Fraser's piece, three emerging subfields to the history of masculinities are introduced, which focus on the masculinities tied to disability, transgender people, and indigenous people. Each of these categories fall under what Fraser previously discussed as "marginalized masculinities." Fraser notes that trans men historically and continually sought to conform to the hegemonic ideal of masculinity in order to "pass" and be socially accepted, therefore challenging the common assumption that all trans people across time have acted as "rebels" who defy any and all gender norms. (Noah Rutkowski)