Machismo and Homosexuality
Many studies on masculinity have often revealed how Machismo is embedded in the Latino culture within the United States. Machismo is defined as a strong sense of masculine pride as exhibited by Latino men. In the Latino culture, machismo is not only accepted, but always expected. In any study that investigates the Latino group, machismo is a subject that cannot be ignored.
In Latin American culture, machismo is seen as a behavior through which the Latino males exhibit an overbearing attitude to anyone in a position he sees as inferior to theirs, thereby demanding total respect and subservience. Even though Machismo has been defined with an extremely negative connotation, a macho can also be seen as a caring and responsible person within the traditional Latino culture. The negative connotations that have been attributed to Machismo are aggressiveness, womanizing, emotional insensitivity and physical strength.
Scholars have revealed that as a result of machismo, Latino men tend to distance themselves from homosexuals, who they perceive as a big threat to theory sexuality, physical dominance and personal safety.
This paper discusses Machismo among Latino Americans in the modern society and how it shapes the social constructs within which they live. It will discuss how machismo shapes gay men and how they build cultural capital in order to negotiate through life. The paper will also discuss the effects of machismo on marianismo, and how the rules
discusses the image of the ''Macho mans'' as an ideal for the American people. Throughout his
In Latin American culture, machismo is seen as a behavior through which the Latino males exhibit an overbearing attitude to anyone in a position he sees as inferior to theirs, thereby demanding total respect and subservience. Even though Machismo has been defined with an extremely negative connotation, a macho can also be seen as a caring and responsible person within the traditional Latino culture. The negative connotations that have been attributed to Machismo are aggressiveness, womanizing, emotional insensitivity and physical strength.
Masculine’s definition is stereotypically twisted. The myth and reality of the cowboy shaped today’s definition of masculinity because they have this high and strong structure they need to uphold. Masculinity is having the traditional acts as a man, such as being strong and secure. In today’s world man and women have two different mindsets. Even though we are all humans, our gender defines the way we should act due to how society makes it. The myth has affected males physically, emotionally and mentally. The idea is that they are supposed to act accordingly. In reality, everyone wants to grow up differently, so why would they be forced to act/be a certain way?
The United States is made up of an astounding assortment of people of all different types, boasting one of the most diverse populations compared to anywhere around the world. Of these different peoples, toxic masculinity affects each group differently, with an especially profound effect to be found when studying those who identify as Latin- or Hispanic-American. While attempting to homogenize the many unique and beautiful facets of various Latin and Hispanic cultures is a disservice, they tend to share many traits which can be simplified, including their ideas on gender roles. In many Hispanic cultures, there are strong gender roles and ideas about gender that are traditionally built into every aspect of the culture, especially in the form of “machismo”, or the Hispanic ideas of masculinity. In some cultures, “…women are supposedly submissive… men are characterized by verbal and bodily aggression… and sexual dominance,” (Cantú 150). When combined with the gendered expectations and stereotypes that are increasingly prevalent in American culture, young Hispanic-American boys are growing up with an overwhelming volume of standards being impressed upon them from all sides. This same phenomenon can be seen again in African-American communities and cultures, with the already painfully present standards of white American masculinity being taken to another level by a culture which serves to pile on an even stricter set of standards on to its men. As with the Latin American ideas of
Lopez, R. A. (2009, April 09). The other side of machismo. Retrieved November 18, 2017, from http://www.latinoopinion.com/category/cultural-traits/machismo/
Kai Ting (Phoebe) Yun Shannon R. Wooden and Ken Gillam, Pixar’s Boy Stories, Masculinity in a Postmodern Age Book Outline Rhetorical Outline of the Book Proposition: Critics, feminists, and parents need to view Pixar’s films and its representation of masculinity with more scrutiny because boys are experiencing a hardship identifying with their gender and shaping their identity given the epidemic outdated notion of masculinity while the postfeminist landscape of masculinity is changing. Goal: To raise the awareness of the need to reform the notion of masculinity.
Machismo is a rather popular Spanish word meaning strong or aggressive masculine pride. I know this word so well that we could basically move in together because I have seen it take life before my own eyes for years now by my no one else but my father. This word has brought pain and suffering to my mother and by doing so has also inevitably harmed me. This word has shown me the ugly and the mean. But, this word has also shown me what I am and what I will not be and for that, I am grateful.
Society faces an issue that is not usually addressed because it is seen as the norm in today’s American culture. It is the crisis of masculinity. The notion of how men should be portrayed is not usually identified as a problem; today’s society views men’s apathetic and exasperated exterior as the orthodox behavior of everyday life. Boys at a young age are taught by the popular culture that they need to be a “real man” - strong physically and emotionally. The mask many men put up is based on the extreme idea of masculinity that emphasizes toughness, physical strength and gaining the respect of others through violence or the explicit threat of it. This front is put up by men because they do not want to stray from what is accepted, for men who
Pascoe discusses how masculinity can function as a regulatory mechanism of gender in American adolescent boys. It has been found that the word ‘fag’ is not necessarily directed at a homosexual boy, but has taken on a new meaning in school age boys. It is being used as a disciplinary mechanism to police certain behaviors “out of fear of having the fag identity permanently” (Pascoe p.330). This kind of teasing and harassment can temporarily be place on any boy who shows signs of weakness or femininity. The high schoolers in the study told Pascoe that calling someone a fag was like telling them they were nothing or stupid (Pascoe p. 335). Boys could be called a fag for anything that he did that was opposite of masculine, even when it had nothing to do with his sexual preference. The fag discourse seemed to be just another way for the contest of masculinity to take
Yunior embodies the Latin American stereotypes of masculinity, el machismo, which Marysol Asencio discusses in her article “Machos and Sluts: Gender, Sexuality, and Violence among a Cohort of Puerto Rican Adolescents.” She summarizes machismo as the view that a man must dominate women, control women's sexuality through physical violence and verbal aggression, sexually attracting women, have the mastery of the home, protect their family and project feelings of unhappiness, anger, honor, respect and dignity. "Macho males may refuse to do anything they perceive to be feminine... They are assumed to have a stronger sexual "drive" than females and
The machismo expected of Latino men is exemplified by Santiago Nasar. Machismo men as stereotypically thought of as strong, rich, loud, and as womanizers. They are often associated with violence. Nasar would be a prime example of this because in his closet he has a “Mannlicher Schoenauer, 30-.06 rifle, a .300 Holland & Holland Magnum rifle, a .22 Hornet with a
The notion of hegemonic masculinity has altered the field of gender studies and many academic arenas. An idea popularized by R.W. Connell, hegemonic masculinity has played an integral role in the emotional development of American men, articulating the impact that this societal construction has had on the concept of American masculinity. It is a contested topic, yet the impacts that it has in terms of sexuality, struggles for power and political leadership, and gender identities are valid (Connell 830). Although difficult to fully achieve, it acts as a guiding force for the stereotypically masculine. Hegemonic masculinity assumes the subordination of all other forms of masculinity, placing it at the top of the social hierarchy. At the same time, the idea of hegemonic masculinity has served as a bridge between the growing field of men’s’ studies and female studies (Connell 829). Several authors share the premise that men in American society conform to the standards of the social construct of hegemonic masculinity.
There are different countries and cultures in the world. Sometimes when Americans view other cultures’ values the actual truth becomes distorted. In her article “Americanization is tough on the Macho,” Rose Del Castillo Guilbault examines the concept of macho from both the Hispanics and Americans perspective. The Hispanic view of macho embodies a man described by Guilbault as manly, responsible, hardworking, a patriarch and a person who expresses strength through silence. She describes her father as a man who “handled most menial task with pride.” In a patriarchal society such as Mexico, the man is regarded as the nucleus of the family. The man represents
When people think of the word machismo, they automatically associated with Hispanic men or of Hispanic origin. This could be because of the word it self-wich is of Latin origin, and macho means male in Spanish, but because of this all Hispanic men are wrongfully characterized with machismo. Most people think all Hispanics behave in this way, which is not true. This behavior is often seen in many Hispanic males, and like in most societies other men praise it, the main difference is that in Hispanic society this type of behavior has higher acceptance than in other societies. Even though this is true it is still wrong to
Gabriel Garcia Marquez's Chronicles of a Death Foretold shows how Machismo drives all male ambition. Machismo, in Latin American countries was derived from the word macho meaning an intense masculine pride. Machismo was first used in 1948, and was taken as a code of honour for men, rules that would make you considered macho. Respect and reputation are highly regarded as important traits in Machismo, and are the driving force of reason in the novel. (Add another sentence about the broadness of Machismo).