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Does Society Condone Violence? And why are some forms of violence condemned while others are ignored or condoned? (Homework Assignment 6/3 & 6/4)




Violence.  Suddenly we find it all around us.  We see it in our stores, our parks, and our streets.
As we continue to learn about and discuss societal acceptance of some types of violence and yet not others, we find ourselves feeling uneasy, upset, heavy, depressed, and confined.

While violence may rage outside our doorstep, or down the street, or simply come into our homes through television, radio, or social media broadcasts, domestic violence creeps in silently.

Tony Porter, in his 2010 TED Talk, uses a mathematical equation to identify how thoughts may lead us to justify actions regarding violence.

Porter presents an equation which may lead to domestic violence.

Believing women are less valuable plus women are property plus objectifying women equals violence against women.

And if we recall Jackson Katz's video, he points out the phrase "violence against women" is a phrase which takes men out of the equation.

He speaks about how people make decisions to stay in or confront societal norms and the man box.

In his 2017 internet article, Mark Greene defines the max box as "the price we pay for raising boys in our dominant culture of masculinity."  The man box refers to the brutal enforcement of a narrowly defined set of traditional rules for being a man.  These rules are enforced through shaming and bullying as well as promises of rewards, the purpose of which is to reinforce conformation to dominant masculine culture.

First Rule of Man Box?  Don't show emotions.

 The man box refers to the brutal enforcement of a narrowly defined set of traditional rules for being a man. These rules are enforced through shaming and bullying, as well as promises of rewards, the purpose of which is to force conformity to our dominant culture of masculinity.
The number one rule of the man box? Don’t show your emotions.  The man box culture suppresses emotion, empathy and women's equality. Boys are told "Don't be a sissy, pussy or wimp."  Former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger coined the term "girly-men" in regard to political opponents.  
Man Up. Be a man.  Don't act like a girl.  Don't be Gay, or Queer or dozens of other slurs that cause men to suppress emotions. Locker room talk, sexualizing women, objectifying women are all ways men and boys are taught to act like "real men."


Please watch the following video (click here) Tony Porter: A Call to Men, which coined the phrase Man Box.

Then complete the following assignment regarding your feelings about the man box.  Click here for homework.

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