Knitting Takes Balls: Masculinity and the Practice of Knitting

Abstract

Historically, the craft of knitting has been associated with femininity within the domestic sphere. However, knitting has experienced a revival within the past 15 years. This work examines how some men engage in the practice of knitting and how participation in a feminized activity affects re-negotiations of masculinity. Through an examination of R.W. Connell's theory of Hegemonic Masculinity and Eric Anderson's theory of Inclusive Masculinity, this piece explores the manner in which men are formulating new ways of performing their masculinities in environments of diminished homophobia.ii

Stitching masculinities, stitching stories: Men’s quiltmaking experiences 1970-2020

“…Hewitt (2010) interviewed eight men who knit for an undergraduate thesis, and she found high levels of bonding, bridging, and linking social capital were created when men knitted together and in public, and the well-being of men who knit was also enhanced. Morneau (2015) interviewed 15 men who knit, and two of her major findings were that homosocial bonds formed at men's knitting retreats, and the opinions of straight men about gay men changed as a result of the retreats, thus supporting inclusive masculinity (Anderson, 2009;Morneau, 2015). A doctoral dissertation by Avramsson (2016) investigated men's knitting in terms of a queer pedagogy and focused on "gendered desires, anxieties, and places where critical dissatisfactions with culture…”