Simon - Masculinity Discussion

- Traditional Masculinity, toxic is too strong of a term

- hegemonic masculinity: Rethinking the concept by Connel and Messerschmidt 

- hegemony = Marxist polcitical term = how power is enforced through cultural means 

- discussing toxic masculinity by calling on connel's hegemonic masculinity to explain what it is 

- emphasised femininity = women encouraging 'bad boy' behaviour

- 90s, masculinity in crisis, pop psychology authors were saying rise of feminism is ruining men

= look at hegemonic masculinity by ranal connell, 'gender and power' OR 'masculinities'
= hegemony and gender power relations

Peer Feedback on Proposal + TASK Consumerism

- Proposal is really strong, clear, strong links to theory

- Identified problems in society and looking to resolve and create positive social change, which is important in graphic design

- Possible outcomes are strong enough, seem a bit obvious 

- Books are multifaceted, which is a better option than posters, but should look out the box to find an outcome which heavily responds to the chosen audience 

- eg. curate an exhibition, an app, a video 

- What if it's not one book, but a monthly magazine that eg. celebrates femininity in men

- Toxic masculinity anthology (exhibition book)

eg. queer anthology of rage 

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TASK: Consumerism 

Key brands:

- ASOS 

- Urban Outfitters 

- Morrisons

- Walkers

- Adobe 

- Brunch 

- Trainline 

- Uber 

- Deliveroo 

- Resident Advisor 

Why it appeals to me

ASOS

= Sleek, easy to use app

= Has range of styles, provides discounts, easy to purchase with free next day delivery membership, free returns etc. 

= Not particularly expensive but provides quality clothing 

= Allows quick, easy purchases for new outfits 

= Has strong links to younger audience compared to other delivery services of fashion

=> Esteem 

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Social categorisation 

= easier to categorise difference between self and objects 

Social comparison 

= comparing ourselves with others what we learn from similarities and differences driven by a need to maintain and often increase self esteem 

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SOCIAL IDENTITY THEORY 

1. Symbolic interactionism 

= brands and products made into symbols 

2. Avoiding products with undesired meanings 

3. brand identity and minority influence

= deep rooted loyalty, those around us who influence our choices 

4. Identifying strongly 

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Self-discrepancy theory (Higgins 1987) 

1. Actual self 

2. Ideal self (aspire to be)

3. Ought self (way we think we should be, prevents us from doing things not in line with this)

Dittmar (2008) => disrepencies between these selves can lead to anxiety, low self esteem etc. 

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Commodity Fetishism 

= primitive belief godly powers can inhere in inanimate things (eg. totems) 

= Marx = once a serious, useful item is exchanged for money, it becomes fetishsised 

TO DO 

- 3 case studies related to theme of magazine positive masculinity 

- 3 questions/points of discussion for tutorial 

Proposal

Question should be open, not yes or no answer. 
= Qualitive question = perspectives and discussion 

How can graphic design communicate what toxic masculinity is and how it affects everyone? 
What is toxic masculinity and how does it impact people?

PROMPTS

What is your theme/subject?  = Toxic Masculinity

What does it mean? "Toxic masculinity is thus defined by adherence to traditional male gender roles that restrict the kinds of emotions allowable for boys and men to express, including social expectations that men seek to be dominant (the "alpha male") and limit their emotional range primarily to expressions of anger."

EXAMPLES
-interactions between men and women always has to be competitive and not cooperative.
-men can never truly understand women and that men and women can never just be friends.
-That REAL men need to be strong and that showing emotion is a sign of weakness... unless it’s anger, that is considered okay.
-The idea that men can never be victims of abuse and talking about it is shameful.
-The idea that REAL men always want sex and are ready for it at any time.
-The idea that violence is the answer to everything and that REAL men solve their problems through violence.
-The idea that men could never be single parents and that men shouldn’t be very interactive in their children’s learning and development and that men should always be the dominant one in the relationship or else he’s a “Cuck.”
-The idea that any interest in a range of things that are strictly considered feminine would be an emasculation of a guy.

Does your proposal have a working title?

Toxic Masculinity and its impact on men and women 

Is it named after your theme, do have a question in mind...

1. How can graphic design communicate what toxic masculinity is and how it affects everyone? 

2. What is toxic masculinity and how does it impact people?

Why are you drawn to your theme/subject? The impact of toxic masculinity on society is extensive and infinite. Whilst there is a lot of work and discussion surrounding feminism and change for women, there is minimal dialogue concerning how toxic masculinity affects men and therefore has a direct impact on women. There is both a psychological and a physical impact on men as a result of men conforming to the ideologies and values society places on them from childhood. Society would hugely benefit from prominent public discussion and radical change within this subject.

(Pixar animation on toxic masculinity in the work place)

How does it link to Graphic Design - your practice? How does it link to your personal interests? Graphic design is essential in creating campaigns that are visually interesting and catch people's attention in order to bring this topic to light and start a public discussion. This is spread across various disciplines, such as animation, print and digital, but most of the projects out there are directed towards male mental health. These are campaigns initiated by and designed for charities. There is yet to be a publication which presents this topic in a detailed, simple way for people to engage with and understand. Samaritans campaign with portraits by photographer Nadav Kandar

What is its historical context? 

Is this an old/new concept? How did it come about? Is it tied to specific eras/places/people?

ORIGIN "The concept was originally used by authors associated with the mythopoetic men's movement ( a body of self-help activities and therapeutic workshops and retreats for men undertaken by various organizations and authors in the United States from the early 1980s through the 1990s) such as Shepherd Bliss to contrast stereotypical notions of masculinity with a "real" or "deep" masculinity that they say men have lost touch with in modern society." 

Toxic masculine traits are characteristic of the unspoken code of behaviour among men in American prisons, where they exist in part as a response to the harsh conditions of prison life. 

PRESENT Popular and media discussions in the 2010s have used the term to refer to traditional and stereotypical norms of masculinity and manhood. According to the sociologist Michael Flood, these include "expectations that boys and men must be active, aggressive, tough, daring, and dominant".^[3]

Are there any particular case studies you would like to discuss?

Designers / design, events, political movements, places?

Are there specific texts you will be using to underpin your discussion?

Theories, cultural phenomena, writers, articles...? = if focussing on the design side of masculinity, The Masculinity of a Typefacehttps://designshack.net/articles/typography/leveraging-stereotypes-in-design-masculine-vs-feminine-typography/

= exhibition

Debate on masculinity and the term toxic masculinity: "John Stoltenberg, whose theories kind of epitomize the fears of paranoid conservatives and undercut the more tepid critiques of machismo made by my fellow SJWs. In the past, the prominent feminist scholar has openly equated the idea of “healthy masculinity” with the oxymoron of “healthy cancer.” This is because he sees manhood as an identity built entirely out of oppression." (https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/zmk3ej/all-masculinity-is-toxic) PEER FEEDBACK - use the design to break the male design stereotypes eg. use feminine type in print - where are female designers? - audience = if I want toxic men to pick it up, should it appeal to them? - outside entices these men into reading it and then it's about toxic masculinity - how does it impact different classes or groups of people in society? Is it an overall discussion or is it about the different types?
- look at colours within design = make most of essay about what male toxic is and then how does it impact society and then design. How can design be used to tackle toxic masculinity? briefly discussing toxic masculinity 1. what it is, how it impacts 2. what it is, how design can be used to battle it 3. what is it, and how do women reinforce it by accident WHERE IT COMES FROM There is a social side and visual side. Visual Side = Advertising, Media OUTCOME = for women = stop pursuing the bad boy (informs about toxic masculine figure) = for men = how to become a healthier, happier man (outside would entice men and inside would educate) ---------------------------------------------------------------

1. Write up your proposal using the prompts 250 words.

2. Propose 3 possible directions to take your design work.

1. Try to link your design ideas with the reading you have done - justify it.

The impact of toxic
masculinity on society is extensive and infinite. Whilst there is a lot of work
and discussion surrounding feminism and change for women, there is minimal
dialogue concerning how toxic masculinity affects men and therefore has a direct
impact on women. There is both a psychological and a physical impact on men as
a result of conforming to the ideologies and values society places on them from
childhood. Society would hugely benefit from prominent public discussion and
radical change within this subject. Projects that engage with the subject of
toxic masculinity are largely directed towards men’s mental health. These are
campaigns initiated by and designed for charities. There is yet to be a
publication which presents this topic in a detailed, simple way for people to
engage with and understand. This essay will discuss what toxic masculinity is,
within the sphere of differing perspectives, and aim to present both the social
and visual side of the topic, the later of which will present case studies on
toxic masculinity within the media and advertising.
POSSIBLE
OUTCOMES
AUDIENCES
= female audience = “stop pursuing the bad boy” (informs
about toxic masculine figure)
= male audience = “how to become a healthier, happier man”
(outside would entice men, eg. Football cover, whilst the inside would educate)
= both sexes = “toxic masculinity” (simple education and
inform purpose)
MEDIUM
= Print publication/zine = distributed in public areas for
public to pick up
= Posters = (men would look at it and would need to pick it
up), campaign to start discussion about it, would be a series of different points
concerning the topic
JUSITIFICATION = There are no campaigns or publication pieces which discuss
this issue

Triangluation and Making Connections

TRIANGULATION = "the combination of methodologies in the study of the same phenomenon" 

= describes how supporting evidence is used to form an argument 
eg. books, journals, documentaries, podcasts, images 
= important to use a range of sources and perspectives to show an understanding of the subject 

Ethical References
Is it okay to be happy? - Lucienne Roberts 
The Road to Hell 
The Only Way is Ethics - Tim Abrahams