In Ways of Seeing, John Berger wrote, “Men act, women appear” (47). Although Berger was writing about depictions of women and men in film, his insights are helpful in thinking about normative gender constructions more broadly. Think about some other expressions in English like “breadwinner” and “bring home the bacon” that reinforce the notion that masculinity is about acting or doing, in particular when it comes to work.
The readings for this question focus on the construction of masculinity in relation to work and labor, either through men’s competition in the workplace to prove their status as “real men” as Berdahl et al. demonstrates or through demographic changes in global labor that force us to challenge and rethink gendered, raced, and classed perceptions of who does what kinds of work. In both cases, the changes in global social and economic networks have real effects on the construction of masculinities and normative gender expectations.
o According to the authors, in what ways does work become a site to challenge dominant forms of masculinity?
o In what ways are dominant forms of masculinity reinforced through work?
o Choose at least 3 quotes from the readings to illustrate your responses. Be sure to include parenthetical citations.
