The Flight from the Feminine and Femmephobia in the Critical Study of Men and Masculinities
In: Journal of FemininitiesSearch for other papers by Jonathan A. Allan in
Current site
Google Scholar
Abstract
In this article, I reflect on the role and importance of femininity in theories of masculinity. Indeed, I suggest there is an ongoing method that demands the “flight from the feminine” within the field of masculinities itself. Recent theoretical innovations in the field have sought to (re)appropriate the feminine and make it masculine. Thus, when men do care work, they are doing “caring masculinity,” for example. Throughout the field, I not only document a commitment to masculinity but also, and importantly, femmephobia. This essay, therefore, thinks carefully, critically, and provocatively about how femmephobia is deployed, why it is, and what it means for the field of masculinity studies, as well as the field’s near-complete exclusion of male femininity. I argue that if the field is feminist, as it so often contends, it must engage with femme theory, femininity, and account for its own femmephobia.
Purchase
Buy instant access (PDF download and unlimited online access):
Institutional Login
Log in with Open Athens, Shibboleth, or your institutional credentials
Personal login
Log in with your brill.com account
-
Aguilar, J. (2017). Pegging and the Heterosexualization of Anal Sex: An Analysis of Savage Love Advice. Queer Studies in Media & Popular Culture, 2(3), pp. 275–292.
-
Ahmed, S. (2014). Wilful Subjects. Durham: Duke University Press.
-
Ahmed, S. (2017). Living a Feminist Life. Durham: Duke University Press.
-
Ahmed, S. (2023). The Feminist Killjoy Handbook: The Radical Potential of Getting in the Way. New York: Seal Press.
-
Allan, Jonathan A. (2016). Reading from Behind: A Cultural Analysis of the Anus. University of Regina Press.
-
Allan, J.A. (2022). Against typologies: Affect and masculinity studies. In: The Routledge companion to gender and affect. Routledge, pp. 43–54.
-
Allan, J.A. (2023). “Husbands Are Pregnant, Too”: Caring Masculinities in Pregnancy Books for Men. The Journal of Men’s Studies, 31(2), pp. 282–302.
-
Allan, J.A. (2024). Condoms Break. Birth Control Fails.” Heroes in the Procreative Realm and Jessica Scott’s “Anything for You. Journal of Popular Romance Studies.
-
Allan, J.A., Herron, R.V., Ahmadu, M.E., Waddell, C., and Roger, K. (2021). ‘I Never Wanted My Children to See Their Father the Way I’ve Seen Mine’: Caring Masculinities and Fathering on the Prairies. norma, 16(1), pp. 23–37.
-
Anderson, E. (2009). Inclusive Masculinity Theory: The Changing Nature of Masculinities. Routledge,.
-
Anderson, E., and McCormack, M. (2015). Cuddling and Spooning: Heteromasculinity and Homosocial Tactility Among Student-athletes. Men and masculinities, 18(2), pp. 214–230.
-
Arana, J., et al. (2018). Profeminist Men Respond to Allegations about Michael Kimmel. Voice Male. https://voicemalemagazine.org/profeminist-men-respond-toallegations-about-michael-kimmel/.
-
Bakhtin, M. (1984). Rabelais and His World. Trans. Hélène Iswolsky. Indiana University Press.
-
Barthes, R. (2005). The Neutral: Lecture Course at the Collège de France (1977–1978). Trans. Rosalind E. Krauss and Denis Hollier. Columbia University Press.
-
Beasley, C. (2005). Gender and Sexuality: Critical Theories, Critical Thinkers. Sage.
-
Berggren, K. (2014). Sticky Masculinity: Post-structuralism, Phenomenology and Subjectivity in Critical Studies on Men. Men and masculinities, 17(3), pp. 231–252.
-
Berkowitz, D., Windsor, E.J., and Han, C.W. eds. (2023). Male Femininities. NYU Press.
-
Bhabha, H.K. (1988). The Commitment to Theory. Formations, 5(1), pp. 5–23.
-
Bhabha, H.K. (1990). “The Third Space.” In: J. Rutherford ed., Identity, Community, Culture, Difference. London: Lawrence and Wishart, pp. 207–221.
-
Bridges, T. (2019). The Costs of Exclusionary Practices in Masculinities Studies. Men and Masculinities, 22(1), pp. 16–33.
-
Bridges, T., and Pascoe, C.J. (2014). Hybrid Masculinities: New Directions in the Sociology of Men and Masculinities. Sociology Compass, 8(3), pp. 246–258.
-
Bridges, T., and Pascoe, C.J. (2018). On the Elasticity of Gender Hegemony: Why Hybrid Masculinities Fail to Undermine Gender and Sexual Inequality. In: J.W. Messerschmidt, M.A. Messner, R. Connell, and P.Y. Martin, eds., Gender Reckonings. New York University Press, pp. 254–274.
-
Butler, J. (2024). Who’s Afraid of Gender? Knopf Canada.
-
Carian, E.K., and Sobotka, T.C. (2018). Playing the Trump Card: Masculinity Threat and the US 2016 Presidential Election. Socius, 4, p. 2378023117740699.
-
Collins, P.H., and Bilge, S. (2020). Intersectionality. John Wiley and Sons.
-
Connell, R. (2012). Gender, Health and Theory: Conceptualizing the Issue, in Local and World Perspective. Social Science & Medicine, 74(11), pp. 1675–1683.
-
Crenshaw, K. (1989). Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex: A Black Feminist Critique of Antidiscrimination Doctrine, Feminist Theory and Antiracist Politics. University of Chicago Legal Forum, 1, pp. 139–167.
-
Crenshaw, K. (1991). Mapping the Margins: Intersectionality, Identity Politics, and Violence Against Women of Color. Stanford Law Review, 43(6), pp. 1241–1299.
-
Dahl, U. (2012). Turning Like a Femme: Figuring Critical Femininity Studies. nora-Nordic Journal of Feminist and Gender Research, 20(1), pp. 57–64.
-
Dean, T. (2009). Unlimited Intimacy: Reflections on the Subculture of Barebacking. University of Chicago Press, 2009.
-
De Boise, S. (2015). I’m Not Homophobic, “I’ve Got Gay Friends” Evaluating the Validity of Inclusive Masculinity. Men and masculinities, 18(3), pp. 318–339.
-
Demetriou, D.Z. (2001). Connell’s Concept of Hegemonic Masculinity: A Critique. Theory and Society, 30(3), pp. 337–361.
-
Diefendorf, S. (2015). After the Wedding Night: Sexual Abstinence and Masculinities over the Life Course. Gender & Society, 29(5), pp. 647–669.
-
Diefendorf, S., and Bridges, T. (2020a). On the Enduring Relationship between Masculinity and Homophobia. Sexualities, 23(7), pp. 1264–1284.
-
Diefendorf, S., and Bridges, T. (2020b). On the Enduring Relationship between Masculinity and Homophobia: Reply to McCormack. Sexualities, 23(7), pp. 1299–1309.
-
Drummond, M. (2010). The Natural: An Autoethnography of a Masculinized Body in Sport. Men and Masculinities, 12(3), pp. 374–389.
-
Elliott, K. (2016). Caring Masculinities: Theorizing an Emerging Concept. Men and Masculinities, 19(3), pp. 240–259.
-
Enloe, C. (2017). The Big Push: Exposing and Challenging the Persistence of Patriarchy. University of California Press, 2017.
-
Faustino, M.J. (2020). “It’s Time to Ease Your Fears—and Your Sphincter”: Gender and Power in Contemporary Media Discourses of Heterosexual anal Sex. Gender Issues, 37(3), pp. 241–260.
-
Firnhaber, J., Greenwood, R.M., and Quayle, M. (2019). Continuity in the Face of Change: Identifying Three Strategies for Constructing Stable Masculinity in Liminality. British Journal of Social Psychology, 58(2), pp. 435–451.
-
Flood, M., and Ertel, D.A. (2020). Concluding Critical Commentary: Men’s Experiences as Agents of Feminist Change. Masculine Power and Gender Equality: Masculinities as Change Agents, pp. 181–199.
-
Fowler, S.L., and Geers, A.L. (2017). Does Trait Masculinity Relate to Expressing Toughness? The Effects of Masculinity Threat and Self-affirmation in College Men. Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 18(2), pp. 176–186.
-
Friedman, R.C. (1988). Male Homosexuality: A Contemporary Psychoanalytic Perspective. New Haven: Yale University Press.
-
Gallop, J. (1997). Feminist Accused of Sexual Harassment. Duke University Press.
-
Gallop, J. (2002). Anecdotal Theory. Duke University Press.
-
Gallop, J. (2003). Living with his Camera. Duke University Press.
-
Garlick, S. (2016). The Nature of Masculinity: Critical Theory, New Materialisms, and Technologies of Embodiment. UBC Press.
-
Glick, P., Gangl, C., Gibb, S., Klumpner, S., and Weinberg, E. (2007). Defensive Reactions to Masculinity Threat: More Negative Affect Toward Effeminate (But not Masculine) Gay Men. Sex Roles, 57, pp. 55–59.
-
Greenebaum, J., and Dexter, B. (2018). Vegan Men and Hybrid Masculinity. Journal of Gender Studies, 27(6), pp. 637–648.
-
Grzanka, P.R. (2020). From Buzzword to Critical Psychology: An Invitation to Take Intersectionality Seriously. Women & Therapy, 43(3–4), pp. 244–261.
-
Halberstam, J. (1998). Female Masculinity. Duke University Press, 1998.
-
Halberstam, J. (2012). Gaga Feminism: Sex, Gender, and the End of Normal. Beacon Press.
-
Hearn, J. (2000). Men,(pro) Feminism, Organizing and Organizations. lta, 3, pp. 350–372.
-
Hearn, J. (2008). The Personal is Work is Political is Theoretical: Continuities and Discontinuities in Women’s Studies,(pro) Feminism,“Men” and My Selves. nora—Nordic Journal of Feminist and Gender Research, 16(4), pp. 241–256.
-
Hearn, J. (2013). The Personal, the Political, the Theoretical: The Case of Men’s sexualities and Sexual Violences. In: Between Men and Feminism (rleFeminist Theory) Routledge, pp. 161–181.
-
Hearn, J. (2013). Methods and Methodologies in Critical Studies on Men and Masculinities. In Men, Masculinities and Methodologies. London: Palgrave Macmillan UK, pp. 26–38.
-
Hearn, Jeff. (2015). Men of the World: Genders, Globalizations, Transnational Times. Los Angeles: sage.
-
Hoskin, Rhea Ashley. Can Femme be Theory? Exploring the Epistemological and Methodological Possibilities of Femme. Journal of Lesbian Studies 25.1 (2021), pp. 1–17.
-
Hoskin, Rhea Ashley, and Karen L. Blair. Critical Femininities: a ‘New’ Approach to Gender Theory. Psychology & Sexuality 13.1 (2022), pp. 1–8.
-
Hultman, M., and Pulé, P.M. (2018). Ecological Masculinities: Theoretical Foundations and Practical Guidance. Routledge.
-
Hunter, S.C., Riggs, D.W., and Augoustinos, M. (2017). Hegemonic Masculinity Versus a Caring Masculinity: Implications for Understanding Primary Caregiving Fathers. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 11(3), pp. e12307.
-
Karioris, F.G. (2019). An Education in Sexuality and Sociality: Heteronormativity on Campus. Lanham: Lexington Books.
-
Karioris, F.G., and Allan, J.A. (2019). When Two Become One: Sexuality Studies and Critical Studies of Men and Masculinities. Journal of Gender Studies, 28(3), pp. 247–256.
-
Kimmel, Michael S. (1994). Masculinity as Homophobia: Fear, Shame, and Silence in the Construction of Gender Identity. Theorizing Masculinities. In: Harry Brod and Michael Kaufman, eds., Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, pp. 119–141.
-
Klein, M. (1964). Hate, Greed, and Aggression. In: M. Klein, and J. Riviere, eds., Love, Hate and Reparation, New York: Norton, pp. 3–56
-
Konopka, K., Rajchert, J., Dominiak-Kochanek, M., and Roszak, J. (2021). The Role of Masculinity Threat in Homonegativity and Transphobia. Journal of Homosexuality, 68(5), pp. 802–829.
-
Laplanche, J. (2000). The Other Within. Radical Philosophy, 102, pp. 31–41.
-
Leeder, G.F. (2024, June). Masculine, Independent, and “Not Acting”: Hegemonic Masculinity and Femmephobia within an Online Community of Queer Men. In: Sociological Forum 39(2), pp. 189–200.
-
Marar, Z. (2014). Intimacy. London: Routledge.
-
Mason, C.L. (2019). Buzzwords and Fuzzwords: Flattening Intersectionality in Canadian Aid. Canadian Foreign Policy Journal, 25(2), pp. 203–219.
-
McCormack, M. (2012). The Declining Significance of Homophobia: How Teenage Boys are Redefining Masculinity and Heterosexuality. Oxford University Press.
-
McCormack, M. (2020). On the Construction of an Artificial Paradox: A Critical Commentary on Diefendorf and Bridges’‘On the Enduring Relationship between Masculinity and Homophobia’. Sexualities, 23(7), pp. 1285–1298.
-
McCormack, M., and Anderson, E. (2014). Homohysteria: Definitions, Context and Intersectionality. Sex Roles, 71, pp. 152–158.
-
McMahon A. (1993). Male Readings of Feminist Theory: The Psychologization of Sexual Politics in the Masculinity Literature. Theory and Society, 22, pp. 675–695.
-
Messner, M.A. (2004). On Patriarchs and Losers: Rethinking Men’s Interests. Berkeley Journal of Sociology, 48, pp. 74–88.
-
Nobel, B. (2004). Masculinities without Men: Female Masculinity in Twentieth-Century Fictions. UBC Press.
-
O’Donnell, D. (2006). Social Acupuncture: A Guide to Suicide, Performance and Utopia. Coach House Books.
-
O’Neill, R. (2015). Whither Critical Masculinity Studies? Notes on Inclusive Masculinity Theory, Postfeminism, and Sexual Politics. Men and Masculinities, 18(1), pp. 100–120.
-
Olson, I. (2023). “I’m Straight, Right?”: Submission, Pegging, and Coprophilia in Nina Hartley’s Fan Mail Archive. In: Binding and Unbinding Kink: Pain, Pleasure, and Empowerment in Theory and Practice. Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 49–71.
-
Pease, B. (2002) (Re)Constructing men’s interests. Men and Masculinities, 5, pp. 165–177.
-
Reeser, T.W. (2020). Concepts of masculinity and masculinity studies. In: Configuring Masculinity in Theory and Literary Practice. Brill, pp. 11–38.
-
Rice, C., Chandler, E., Rinaldi, J., Changfoot, N., Liddiard, K., Mykituk, R., and Mundel, I. (2017). Imagining Disability Futurities. Hypatia, 3(2), pp. 213–229.
-
Sedgwick, E.K. (1993). “How to Bring Your Kids Up Gay: The War on Effeminate Boys.” Tendencies. Duke University Press, pp. 154–164.
-
Sedgwick, E.K. (1995). “Gosh Boy George, You Must Be Awfully Secure in Your Masculinity!” In: Maurice Berger, Brian Wallis, and Simon Watson, eds., Constructing Masculinity, Routledge, pp. 11–20.
-
Silva, T. (2017). Bud-sex: Constructing Normative Masculinity Among Rural Straight Men that Have Sex with Men. Gender & Society, 31(1), pp. 51–73.
-
Silva, T.J., and Whaley, R.B. (2018). Bud-sex, Dude-sex, and Heteroflexible Men: The Relationship between Straight Identification and Social Attitudes in a Nationally Representative Sample of Men with Same-sex Attractions or Sexual Practices. Sociological Perspectives, 61(3), pp. 426–443.
-
Vescio, T.K., Schermerhorn, N.E., Gallegos, J.M., and Laubach, M.L. (2021). The Affective Consequences of Threats to Masculinity. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 97, pp. 104195.
-
Vytniorgu, R. (2024). Effeminate Belonging: Gender Nonconforming Experience and Gay Bottom Identities. Emerald.
-
Waling, A. (2019). Rethinking Masculinity Studies: Feminism, Masculinity, and Poststructural Accounts of Agency and Emotional Reflexivity. The Journal of Men’s Studies, 27(1), pp. 89–107.
-
Ward, J. (2008). Dude-sex: White Masculinities and Authentic Heterosexuality among Dudes who have Sex with Dudes. Sexualities, 11(4), pp. 414–434.
-
Whitmer, J.M. (2017). “A Progression and a Regression at the Same time”: Hybrid Masculinities and Entrepreneurial Selfhood. The Journal of Men’s Studies, 25(2), pp. 115–132.
-
Wignall, L., Scoats, R., Anderson, E., and Morales, L. (2020). A Qualitative Study of Heterosexual Men’s Attitudes toward and Practices of Receiving Anal Stimulation. Culture, Health & Sexuality, 22(6), pp. 675–689.
-
Wilkins, A.C. (2009). Masculinity Dilemmas: Sexuality and Intimacy Talk among Christians and Goths. Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, 34(2), pp. 343–368.
-
Winnicott, D.W. (1996). Playing and Reality. New York: Routledge.
-
Wolfman, Greg, Jeff Hearn, and Tray Yeadon-Lee. “Hollow Femininities: The Emerging Faces of Neoliberal Masculinities.” Norma 16.4 (2021), pp. 217–234.
-
Wunker, E. (2016). Notes from a Feminist Killjoy: Essays on Everyday Life. Toronto: BookThug, 2016.
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 588 | 588 | 246 |
| Full Text Views | 12 | 12 | 8 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 33 | 33 | 16 |
The Flight from the Feminine and Femmephobia in the Critical Study of Men and Masculinities
In: Journal of FemininitiesSearch for other papers by Jonathan A. Allan in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Abstract
In this article, I reflect on the role and importance of femininity in theories of masculinity. Indeed, I suggest there is an ongoing method that demands the “flight from the feminine” within the field of masculinities itself. Recent theoretical innovations in the field have sought to (re)appropriate the feminine and make it masculine. Thus, when men do care work, they are doing “caring masculinity,” for example. Throughout the field, I not only document a commitment to masculinity but also, and importantly, femmephobia. This essay, therefore, thinks carefully, critically, and provocatively about how femmephobia is deployed, why it is, and what it means for the field of masculinity studies, as well as the field’s near-complete exclusion of male femininity. I argue that if the field is feminist, as it so often contends, it must engage with femme theory, femininity, and account for its own femmephobia.
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 588 | 588 | 246 |
| Full Text Views | 12 | 12 | 8 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 33 | 33 | 16 |