International Men’s Day is an annual international event celebrated on the 19th of November that focuses on men’s achievements, their contributions to the nation, society, community, family, marriage, and childcare. Started in 1992 on 7 February by Thomas Oaster, the broader and ultimate aim of the event is to promote basic humanitarian values.
Masculinity (also called manhood or manliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles associated with boys and men at large. Although masculinity is socially constructed, research indicates that some behaviors considered masculine are biologically imbibed.
Standards of manliness or masculinity vary across different cultures and time periods. Masculine qualities and roles are considered typical of, appropriate for, and expected of boys and men.
Yet both males and females can exhibit masculine traits and behavior. Those exhibiting both masculine and feminine characteristics are considered androgynous, and feminist philosophers have argued that gender ambiguity may even blur gender classification.
Yet the world is hell-bent on setting features and benchmarks for men who are constantly out there trying to ‘be a man’. But there’s definitely a lot of depth and variations to whatever the world expects out of them.
In an effort to dig out the best of what the world has missed accepting, this International Men’s Day, we asked a few people and curated some responses in regards to what it means to be a man or masculine. Here are some of them…
“Most men these days go to the gym to build muscles so as to appear masculine and attract females. What is the use of lifting 50 Kg weight unless you are using the strength for some good cause? Like, helping someone at a railway station or some old person to carry goods. Likewise, the way men treat women is all wrong. They should have faith in her and let her be free. Suppose someone’s sister or a girlfriend is going out on a trip, they shouldn’t stop them. Rather they should teach them precautionary steps and be a call away in time of need. That’s what masculinity is.”
– Abhishek Panda
“To me, it isn’t about having a beard, wearing certain clothes, or liking specific things. A man is someone who knows what he wants to do and makes an effort to come through.”
– Andrew Houston Vaughan (Quora)
“Never to support any gender discrimination. Always to be protective of the loved ones. Never to dominate anyone. To manage the domestic world equally with the professional one. To love with no conditions and terms.”
– Gourav Duttagupta
“I think men are quieter. Quiet in anger, quiet in love, quiet in confusion, and quiet in happiness. I can instantly think of many many exceptions to this, but most of the loudness and energy that comes from men seems to be a farce. When men are honest, they are quiet. I think they often don’t know how to explain their feelings or are scared to give them tangibility by speaking them, out of fear of some real or phantom retribution.”
– Casper Mason Candlewood (Quora)
“Masculinity is being real, being expressive, being kind and loving towards the things you care about, and of course by being respectful towards every being on earth. While we talk about this topic in 2020, the millennials very often mention the word “toxic” in front of masculinity and it is very much a reality. There are toxic definitions to the current version of what is considered to be masculine. Men and women together shall take this head-on and remove the word “toxic” and should set an example for the coming generations to learn that even men have feelings and it is okay to put them out in the open and not just suppress them inside while pretending to be all cool and jolly.”
– Punit Rajani
“The only really meaningful differences between the sexes, which don’t necessarily guarantee anything else, are biological ones. But biology is not destiny. Just because you have a penis or a womb doesn’t require you to behave in any particular way.”
– Ernest W. Adams (Quora)
“To me masculinity means treating everyone as equal, especially honoring the women and the ones younger to us. Raising the voice for everyone’s rights is being a man.”
– Vikas Pal Singh
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“I feel feminism is very needed in some areas, but I feel it’s so big now that men that need help are drowned out and cast aside. I know the MeToo movement is not popular, but at least it shed some light on men who are sexually assaulted. I’m not denying that women need empowerment, they do, but we need more programs to teach boys how to be a genuine gentleman and start giving credit to single fathers, stay-at-home dads, and men that are loyal to no end and put others before themselves. I think we need to recognize good masculinity and tune down on the extreme feminism.”
– Chelsea Thompson (Quora)
How do you define being a man or masculine? Let us know in the comments.