Boys will be boys, and men will be women.

My friends Kyle, Tristan, and I discuss the subject of men and masculinity quite frequently. I believe that the quote goes from Fight Club, "we are a generation of men raised by women" really describes my generation. We are told to act gentler, kinder, and more reserved. To settle down, be quiet, and be sensitive. Not since the days of the Dandy have men been told more often to act more like, well, women.

A comedian, Mark Gungor, said something along the lines of "Really, if you ask most women to describe their ideal man, listen to them, they'll describe another woman!" saying things like, "You need to be more emotional. You need to be in touch with your feelings. You've got to go shopping!"

I don't think we need to go back to the days where women were second class citizens. Far from it. But I think somewhere along the road to gender equality and suffrage, it was thought that in order to achieve equality for the woman, the man needed to be brought down and made inferior. Masculinity has been made out to be something wrong, something that men need to rise above, or grow out of.

A friend of mine is going through a rough time right now. His girlfriend cannot accept that he likes masculine things, like guns, motorcycles, and such. She thinks of these things as juvenile and sophomoric, without realizing that he is just being who he is supposed to be, who he wants to be; he is being who and what he was made to be: a man.

As much as I don't like product plugs, over at Docker's, their ad campaign sums up so much. I'll repost the text here:

ONCE UPON A TIME, MEN WORE THE PANTS, AND WORE THEM WELL. WOMEN RARELY HAD TO OPEN DOORS
AND LITTLE OLD LADIES NEVER CROSSED THE STREET ALONE.
MEN TOOK CHARGE BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT THEY DID.
BUT SOMEWHERE ALONG THE WAY, THE WORLD DECIDED IT NO LONGER NEEDED MEN.
DISCO BY DISCO, LATTE BY FOAMY NON-FAT LATTE, MEN WERE STRIPPED OF THEIR KHAKIS AND
LEFT STRANDED ON THE ROAD BETWEEN BOYHOOD AND ANDROGYNY.
BUT TODAY, THERE ARE QUESTIONS OUR GENDERLESS SOCIETY HAS TO ANSWER FOR.
THE WORLD SITS IDLY BY AS CITIES CRUMBLE, CHILDREN MISBEHAVE AND THOSE LITTLE OLD LADIES REMAIN ON ONE SIDE OF THE STREET.
FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE BAD GUYS, WE NEED HEROES. WE NEED GROWN-UPS. WE NEED MEN TO PUT DOWN THE PLASTIC FORK, STEP AWAY FROM THE SALAD BAR AND UNTIE THE WORLD FROM THE TRACKS OF COMPLACENCY.
IT'S TIME TO GET YOUR HANDS DIRTY.
IT'S TIME TO ANSWER THE CALL OF MANHOOD.
IT'S TIME TO WEAR THE PANTS."

Susannah, over at Get the Big Idea, also posted on this.