The Divide of American Masculinity in The Recession

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2010-07-15/news/bs-ed-masculinity-yarrow-20100715_1_masculinity-gender-roles-inequality

Andrew L. Yarrow's 2010 article, "American masculinity's split personality", explores the ways in which the Great Recession has shaken the very foundations of manhood and caused a significant divide in how masculinity can be measured for different men. One aspect of contemporary masculinity is what Yarrow describes as "corporate masculinity", based largely on a "soft power conveyed by money, prestige and education and their corollaries in grooming, clothing and elan". The men that fall into this category tend to be upper-middle class to rich men, well educated, well mannered and in well paid jobs. Their masculinity is measured by these attributes.

On the other hand, the working class, poor and lower-middle class males that were affected most by the recent economic downturn have a sense of masculinity defined by their situation, an angry and typically austere identity of maleness driven by defiance. Yarrow notes that these ""angry white man" losers of Bruce Springsteen ballads often react with a politically conservative hypermasculinity, replete with authoritarian and homophobic streaks."

The recession's effect on these two distinct groups of men is defined by what they stand to lose from a time of financial difficulty. Most of the corporate or "metrosexual" men have only their investments, hair color and attractive partners to lose, whereas all too many other American men, mostly those of the angry working class, have been losing their jobs, their homes, their families, their status and their identities. Therefore, the masculinity of each group is defined by their success in retaining these facets of their life, the differences of which are glaringly apparent.

Another effect of the recession on American masculinity is the changing role of women: "In 2007, 22 percent of husbands had wives who earned more than they did, compared with just 4 percent in 1970. The current recession has only exacerbated this trend, as male unemployment in June was 25 percent higher than it was for women, and the number of married households in which only women work rose by 2 percentage points between 2007 and 2009, the Labor Department reports." These figures clearly show how the role of men and classic ideas of masculinity have changed over the years and most notably during the recession. The archetypal American man is expected to work, earn money and provide for his family. However, over the years and especially during the recession, this has proved to be difficult for many American men and thus masculinity has had to evolve with the times, causing the divide in American masculinity that we see today.