Cinematic Symptoms of Masculinity in Transition: Memory, History and Mythology in Contemporary Film

Spinning, spooning and the seductions of flirtatious masculinity in contemporary politics

“…The old fictions of masculinity are no longer convincing, yet they continue to be reworked as different models compete culturally for hegemonic dominance within the different spheres of public life and within the popular imagination (Bainbridge and Yates, 2005). In Europe and the US, men continue to occupy positions of power on the political scene, yet their authority has diminished and this contradiction is perhaps illustrative of the tensions that underpin the crisis of masculinity more generally.…”

Fatherhood, UK political culture and the new politics

“…It has also emerged against the backdrop of a culture that is now widely held to be particularly 'feminized', in which ideas about fatherhood entail a specific focus on 'parenting ideals' grounded in emotional literacy. The adoption of 'feminized' values and a language of 'nurturing' is often evident in the personalized rhetoric of politicians such as Cameron and Clegg, a move that has arisen in public and popular discourse as a response to cultural and political changes associated with feminism, the emergence of 'therapy culture' (Richards and Brown, 2011;Yates, 2011) and changes associated with the alleged 'crisis of masculinity' (Bainbridge and Yates, 2005;Layton, 2011). Nevertheless, such a move contradicts the more reactionary stance implied by the recent call of the same politicians for the reconstitution of 'traditional' family values and the restoration of paternal family authority.…”

“…Constructions of patriarchal masculinity are not fixed but are subject to contestation and change as hierarchical definitions of masculinity compete for hegemonic dominance (Bainbridge and Yates, 2005). Given the inherent instabilities of masculinity as a psychosocial and cultural construction, one can argue that it is always 'in crisis' and that such contingencies were symbolized and made particularly visible in the 1990s, when the old fictions and entitlements of masculinity appeared to be less credible than previously, and the notion of 'masculinity in crisis' became widespread in academic research and popular culture (Bainbridge and Yates, 2005;Yates, 2007;Layton, 2011).…”

“…Given the inherent instabilities of masculinity as a psychosocial and cultural construction, one can argue that it is always 'in crisis' and that such contingencies were symbolized and made particularly visible in the 1990s, when the old fictions and entitlements of masculinity appeared to be less credible than previously, and the notion of 'masculinity in crisis' became widespread in academic research and popular culture (Bainbridge and Yates, 2005;Yates, 2007;Layton, 2011). As I discuss, the loss of such entitlements has been a recurring theme in popular discourses of fatherhood within popular and political culture over the past 15 years.…”

‘Video Replay: Families, films and fantasy’ as a transformational text: Commentary on Valerie Walkerdine's ‘Video Replay’

“…As Walkerdine argues, the key theme of Rocky II, and Mr. Cole's identification with it, is the active narrative of transformation. This theme -'masculinity in crisis' -has since been explored indepth by feminist scholars of media, film and cultural studies (Kirkham and Thumim, 1995;Bainbridge and Yates, 2005;Yates, 2007). Walkerdine shows us the limits of research that remains within a textual, theoretical framework and that ignores the interrelation of fantasy and the cultural context of lived, everyday experience.…”