Of Mixed Messages and Real Men
James Lileks on a subject that’s been very much on my mind lately.
It’s hilarious, really – the culture touts makeup for men and the concept of “boy beauty” as applied to Pete Frickin’ Wentz, and then wonders where the “real men” have gone. It’s like putting an atonal opera on the stereo, turning it up to 10 and wondering where all the music lovers went. It’s not that they vanished; it’s just that they don’t want to hang around with you anymore.
Yeah. It’s a wonder that any young man can grow up today anything but confused out of his mind. Every day he’s barraged my mixed messages, most of them mixed up on purpose. He should be a rugged man, but not too rugged. He should be sexy, but not too sexy because that’s threatening. He needs to know how to fix the plumbing under the sink and how to change a diaper one-handed. He shouldn’t feel frustrated that the things he’s hard-wired to do are being whipped out of him nearly from birth. He should sit quietly by while he’s portrayed as a lummox, a brute, an imbecile, or a slacker when he knows, deep in his heart, that no one else could be portrayed that way without cries of protest that would break God’s eardrums.
It’s a wonder that any “real men” exist these days at all. But they do. They’re just not out there getting their own reality shows, appearing with Oprah or Rachael Ray on their talk shows, or being photographed for the daily rags and celebrity TV shows. They’re out there, though. You just have to know where to look.
Oh, and Ms. Ray? If you ever want to do a “real man” show, I know where you can find one. And he can cook a really mean chili, too.
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Category: The Social Issues
Racheal Ray has a talk show?