Tough Guise 2 – Violence, Manhood & American Culture

From the website: “

In this highly anticipated update of the influential and widely acclaimed Tough Guise, pioneering anti-violence educator and cultural theorist Jackson Katz argues that the ongoing epidemic of men’s violence in America is rooted in our inability as a society to move beyond outmoded ideals of manhood. In a sweeping analysis that cuts across racial, ethnic, and class lines, Katz examines mass shootings, day-to-day gun violence, violence against women, bullying, gay-bashing, and American militarism against the backdrop of a culture that has normalized violent and regressive forms of masculinity in the face of challenges to traditional male power and authority.

Along the way, the film provides a stunning look at the violent, sexist, and homophobic messages boys and young men routinely receive from virtually every corner of the culture, from television, movies, video games, and advertising to pornography, the sports culture, and US political culture. Tough Guise 2 stands to empower a new generation of young men — and women — to challenge the myth that being a real man means putting up a false front and engaging in violent and self-destructive behavior.”

For this week’s discussion, please answer the following questions in numbered paragraphs. 

1. Describe your 3 biggest take-aways from the film. Where you can, related these to references from your text. (In three short paragraphs)

2. Use one of the three sociological theories (structural functionalism, conflict, and symbolic interactionism) to analyze one of your answers from question 1. Your theoretical analysis should be based on your readings on gender and on crime.