Thesis (M.A.)--Rowan University, 2008. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references.

‘Sexuality, Identity and the Clothed Male Body’ is a PhD by Published Work that draws together a collective body of work that deals specifically and significantly with the dressed male body. This thesis presents a case for the collection of publications included in the submission to be viewed as a coherent body of work which makes a contribution to knowledge in the fields of fashion studies and cultural studies, in which the works are situated. The body of work consists of two monographs - Don We Now Our Gay Apparel: Gay Men’s Dress in the Twentieth Century (Berg, 2000), and The Story of Men’s Underwear (Parkstone International Press, 2010) - and two chapters in edited books - ‘Butch Queens in Macho Drag: Gay Men, Dress and Subcultural Identity’ (2008) and ‘Hair and Male (Homo)Sexuality: Up-Top and Down Below’ (2008). Through an examination of the major themes addressed throughout the submitted body of work – sexuality, identity, subcultural formation, men’s dress and masculinities and clothes and the body - this thesis demonstrates that the published work contributes to knowledge through its two major foci. Firstly, the means by which gay men have utilised their dressed bodies as a situated and embodying practice to articulate identity, masculinity, and social and sexual interaction, and secondly an examination of men’s underwear’s specific function in the covering, exposing and representation of men’s bodies. These were, until recently, relatively neglected areas of fashion studies and dress history, and by explicitly bringing together these areas to present a comprehensive investigation this thesis serves to provide a new contribution to knowledge in these areas. Taking an interdisciplinary approach, that is common in both fashion studies and cultural studies, the specific combination of research methods that is employed throughout the body of work, has provided a unifying element that further enhances this contribution to knowledge.

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The paintings that comprise Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain: Hindsight in 2020 are the output of my research and artistic practice at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. These paintings make visible the complex experiences and misperceptions of men in contemporary society. My intent was to create paintings that bring light to some of the darker aspects of manhood and rework phobias about manhood and male homosexuality through self-deprecation. This reworking is accomplished through the integration of disparate ideas and images, including perception, location, and exteriority, into compositions wherein representation and portraiture (specifically self- portraiture) make visible particular psychological states and hidden impulses attributed to men: the torment of failure, or the desire for power and sex. Autobiography and confessions can become the best mirrors for deeper forms of self-discovery. One can be both aggressive and protected while remaining effective and hidden. The work, charming or terrifying as it may be, questions the democracies of viewership, privacy, censorship and interpersonal relationships that can exist within a multicultural society. These paintings represent my own understanding of manhood, identity and sexual orientation; the ways one shields oneself from others, develops modes of self-preservation and transcends life's inherent suffering.

UNIVERZITA KARLOVA V PRAZE FAKULTA HUMANITNÍCH STUDIÍ Katedra genderových studií Bc. Monika Skopalová Liga otevřených mužů: případová studie Diplomová práce Vedoucí práce: Ing. Petr Pavlík, Ph.D. Praha 2013 ABSTRACT This work is an attempt to contribute to the development of men's studies as a relevant academic field, which still does not have sufficient background in the Czech Republic. It captures work of the most visible so-called men's organization in CR - the League of Open Men (LOM). Qualitative content analysis based on feminist tradition includes data collected from interviews and thematic articles of LOM's representatives, and especially data from my own interview with Václav Šneberger, one of the organization's founders. The aim of analysis was to clarify ideological basis, values and theoretical concepts which LOM implicitly uses, to explore its relationship to feminist movement and so-called women's organizations, and also to find out its understanding of masculinity/ies and the way in which LOM discursively works with this concept of gender. The analysis revealed that although LOM presented itself as non-academic and non-gender organization which has no ideologies, theoretical basis or definitions and instructions in the "right manhood", it is more a purposeful strategy concealing the fact that...

M.A. / The Nice Guy Paradox is a provocative perception that is commonly expressed within society and the mass media. According to this perception, nice guys are less successful in their relationships with women than other men. The Nice Guy Paradox causes much frustration and confusion for self-proclaimed nice guys. In addition, the implications of this perception may negatively influence the way in which men relate to women. For instance, the Nice Guy Paradox implies that if men want to be successful with women, they should not be nice guys. In the last 15 years, a few psychological studies have opted to focus on the Nice Guy Paradox. These studies are almost all quantitative in nature. In fact, a literature search only found one small qualitative study devoted to this topic. Most of the existing research on the Nice Guy Paradox attempts to answer the question “Do nice guys really finish last?” in the absence of exploratory research aimed at better understanding this perception. For this reason, most existing research on the Nice Guy Paradox can be argued to be somewhat presumptuous and its usefulness in trying to understand this phenomenon is questionable. In an attempt to compensate for the shortcomings of existing research on the Nice Guy Paradox, this study endeavors to capture the unique experience of this social phenomenon through the utilization of a phenomenological method of inquiry. In this way, this research attempts to yield a fresh and foundational understanding of the Nice Guy Paradox. Three female university students were sourced and interviewed for the purposes of this study. These participants had all had relationship experience, as well as experience of the Nice Guy Paradox at the time of the interviews. In order to obtain optimally rudimentary experiences of the Nice Guy Paradox, open-ended interviews were conducted. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and non-verbal cues were indicated where necessary. These transcriptions constitute the raw data of the study. They were analyzed using a specific phenomenological, stepwise method. The data analysis produced central themes that were discussed in relation to literature findings in order to consolidate their validity and to position the findings of this study in relation to existing theory and research. On the basis of these central themes, an essential structure of the participants’ experiences of the Nice Guy Paradox was synthesized. According to this structure, the nice guys referred to by the Nice Guy Paradox characteristically lack confidence, try too hard to please women and are submissive in relationships. These men are mistreated and rejected by women for the following reasons. Firstly, nice guys allow themselves to be mistreated because of their submissive tendencies. Secondly, relationships with these men are not challenging and exciting. Thirdly, women find nice guy characteristics irritating and frustrating. Fourthly, nice guys lack certain characteristics including dominance, strength, physical attractiveness, confidence, leadership and social status, which women find attractive. Also according to this structure, the Nice Guy Paradox applies more strongly to younger people than older people. In addition, niceness in isolation is a desirable trait in a man. However, the other nice guy characteristics are unattractive to women. This research holds value since it constitutes the first comprehensive phenomenological, insight-orientated study on the Nice Guy Paradox. On the basis of the new understanding that this study yields, recommendations with regard to practical application have been put forward. In addition, suggestions for future research have been provided.

Research has shown that meaning in life is a universal human need, regardless of cultural identity or education. This research study investigated how the encounter with prostate cancer impacted men's sense of well-being and what they considered meaningful in life. An interpretative phenomenological research design was used because of its descriptive nature and its focus on the individual's perspective. The sample included 6 men between the ages of 18 and 65 who had been out of treatment for 1 year. Participants completed essays about their perceptions and experiences over 3 periods of time: before diagnosis, during treatment, and as survivors. The analysis concentrated on exploring participants' perceptions; identifying themes, commonalities and discrepancies in the data; and drawing comparisons between participants' definitions for meaning in life with the meaning making model of Park and Folkman. Study results addressed issues including a lack of information about side effects and the depth of the mental and emotional toll taken not only on the patients but also on people around them. Social change implications include the importance of (a) educating men with prostate cancer about the mental and physical health challenges they may face as they undergo treatment; (b) encouraging them to reach out for support (including professional services) should they encounter psychological difficulties over the course of dealing with their illness; and, (c) providing them with opportunities to speak about the mental, emotional, physical, and relational challenges they have faced and may still be facing in their lives as a consequence of the disease and its associated treatments.

<p> </p><p>The aim of this thesis is to examine men's attitudes towards literature, and how social norms affect their book reading, in order to contribute to the knowledge of why men's book reading is decreasing. This is realized through a discourse analysis of literature recommendations in men's lifestyle magazines.</p><p><em>Two magazines, </em><em><em>King of Sweden</em></em><em> and </em><em><em>Magazine Café</em></em><em>, </em><em>are examined </em><em>through critical discourse analysis. Theories of discourse are combined with theories of gender to explore how gender stereotypes affect men's reading habits.</em></p><p><em>The analysis shows that ideals of masculinity have a great influence on the book recommendations. Social norms, associated with gender, also seem to have significance to whether or not a book is considered suitable for men to read. These are, inter alia, norms of heterosexuality and violence. In addition to that, a homosocial structure is found in the magazines, regarding the authors of the recommended books. The majority of the authors are men, and women are rarely mentioned at all in the book recommendations. </em><em>Also, non-fiction books are much more frequent than fiction in the recommendations.</em><em> </em></p><p><em>Not much prior research has been done in the field. The research, that however has been done, correspond with the results of the analysis in this thesis. Therefore the conclusion is drawn that the results of the analysis show structures of social norms that are valid even outside the examined material. Knowledge of men's reading habits is concluded to be very important, in order to increase men's book reading.</em></p><p><em>This is a two years master's thesis in library and information science.</em></p>

The aim of this thesis is to examine men's attitudes towards literature, and how social norms affect their book reading, in order to contribute to the knowledge of why men's book reading is decreasing. This is realized through a discourse analysis of literature recommendations in men's lifestyle magazines. Two magazines, King of Sweden and Magazine Café, are examined through critical discourse analysis. Theories of discourse are combined with theories of gender to explore how gender stereotypes affect men's reading habits. The analysis shows that ideals of masculinity have a great influence on the book recommendations. Social norms, associated with gender, also seem to have significance to whether or not a book is considered suitable for men to read. These are, inter alia, norms of heterosexuality and violence. In addition to that, a homosocial structure is found in the magazines, regarding the authors of the recommended books. The majority of the authors are men, and women are rarely mentioned at all in the book recommendations. Also, non-fiction books are much more frequent than fiction in the recommendations. Not much prior research has been done in the field. The research, that however has been done, correspond with the results of the analysis in this thesis. Therefore the conclusion is drawn that the results of the analysis show structures of social norms that are valid even outside the examined material. Knowledge of men's reading habits is concluded to be very important, in order to increase men's book reading. This is a two years master's thesis in library and information science.

This thesis is an exploration of the classed and gendered trajectories that lead to 'revolving door' incarceration for a group of men from working class backgrounds. Considering that men commit most crime and, in the UK, account for over 95% of the prison population, there is relatively little scholarship that explores the links between masculinity and crime and almost a dearth of ethnographic enquiry into the links between the social construction of masculinities and incarceration. In response, this study, employing qualitative in-depth life history interviews with thirty male prisoners housed in an East Yorkshire prison, examines the cyclical interrelations between cultural representations of masculinity, place, schooling, employment, crime and incarceration. Influenced by Connell's theoretical framework, including the relational concept of protest masculinities, and by the Teesside School's work on transitions and alternative careers, the main aim of this research is to examine if, and to what extent, significant cultural and institutional spaces were complicit in the construction and maintenance of versions of protest masculinities. The study reveals that masculinities negotiated over interconnecting sites of deprived neighbourhoods, inadequate children's residential 'care' homes and failing schools better prepared most respondents to serve time in prison than to work in contemporary deindustrialised labour markets. Formative teenage years spent negotiating impoverished prison regimes and living up to extreme prison masculinities contributed to many of the respondents spending more time inside prison than 'on the out'. The thesis concludes with recommendations for policy approaches to better facilitate crucial sites, such as schools and prisons, undoing, rather than reinforcing, troubling gender performances for young boys and men like these respondents. Reducing rising male prison populations, mainly made up of men from deprived neighbourhoods, might be more effectively tackled through innovative, gender informed, policy, ensuring that institutional spaces of learning, 'care', punishment and rehabilitation work harder to open up more positive avenues to doing masculinity.