October 20, 2008
Jeff Becker
Analysis Paper
Analysis of the Male Body Image Controversy
Introduction:
No one argues that male body image has become prevalent in American society today. All one has to do is observe a magazine rack in a local grocery store and see the titles that pertain to how men should look and feel, like “Men’s Health,” and “Men’s Fitness.” Society demands that men focus on their appearance more than ever today. Harrison G. Pope, Jr., Katherine A. Phillips, and Robert Olivardia are doctors who have studied male body issues for years and are authors of the book, The Adonis Complex. These and other experts agree that body image issues have become as much of a concern for men in the last thirty years as women (Pope, Phillips, Olivardia 17). However, because of the recalcitrant nature of men in general and their fear of being labeled as feminine for talking about their feelings, these issues have remained on the back-burner for years. Experts agree that male body issues exist and are becoming more apparent every day. The controversy, therefore, comes from the causes of these issues. Some experts believe that feminism is to blame, others steroids, others the post-industrial nation and the death of the self-made man, and still others believe that the media should ultimately be held responsible for the negative feelings men have toward their bodies.
Male Body Image and Feminism:
The book, The Adonis Complex, and the study, “Competition and Male Body Image: Increased Drive for Muscularity Following Failure to a Female,” both postulate that male body issues stem from the hypothesis that women can now compete with men in the workforce. Women can now work in pretty much any field that in the past was almost exclusively male. Women can join the military, become police chiefs, or interview football players in the locker room. According to Pope et al, “women have increasingly approached parity with men in many aspects of life, leaving men with primarily their bodies as a defining source of masculinity” (48). Since men can no longer justify their masculinity through the work they do to earn a living, they use their bodies instead. Women can work and run companies; however, women cannot build muscle like men can. Men’s muscles are their way to ensure that they remain noticeably masculine. According Pope, Phillips, and Olivardia, this can become an emotional problem which they call “threatened masculinity,” in which men try to establish their maleness within a societal group yet feel like they cannot do so (23). Jennifer Mills and Sante D’Alfonso ran a study that concluded that after perceiving losing to a female, men felt worse about themselves and wanted to increase their musculature (514). This becomes an issue because men are not only in competition with women, men are in competition with other males. This leads to a drive to increase muscle beyond natural means, which leads us to the next argument.
Male Body Image and Steroids:
According to Pope et al, the drive for muscularity and negative male body image come mainly from the availability of steroids. Steroids allow men to bulk up to levels unattainable by natural means alone, and “it’s impossible to extremely lean and muscular with chemical assistance” (Pope et al 35). Steroids are easy to obtain through the black market and have very little short-term side effects, yet provide immediate and profound results (Pope et al 105). Society seems to be under the impression that steroid use is maybe reserved for professional wrestlers and not those regular guys working out in the gym. However, regular men do use steroids on a regular basis. It is estimated that 2 to 3 million men have used anabolic steroids (Pope et al 104). Steroid use, according to Pope, Phillips, and Olivardia, contributes to a condition called “muscle dysmorphia” (Pope et al 87). Muscle dysmorphia is a condition in which men become preoccupied with how their muscles look and feel that they are always too “small” regardless of their actual size.
Male Body Image and the Post-Industrial Nation:
Some experts argue that male body image issues have stemmed back farther than the feminist movement in the 1960’s. Lynne Luciano, author of Looking Good, argues that since America turned industrial, the nature of how men looked and perceived their looks changed. In the 19th century, for example, most men were self-employed and worked from their hands. A man’s work became the focal point of his masculinity, not his looks. To be concerned about one’s looks would be the hallmark of femininity, and anathema to men. However, when the nature of work moved from individual production to factory production, and then from factory production to corporations and the global marketplace, men and male body image shifted. Identity became based on others’ perceptions and not handiwork any longer. According to Luciano, “the fate of the white-collar employee depended on his ability to please others, forcing him to develop a whole new social character in which his personality and appearance mattered most”(40). Grooming became essential, and bald, fat, or old men, once considered desirable because of their expertise and character, were deemed undesirable because of their looks. Outward pleasantness replaced inward character and loyalty—traits no longer desired by mega-corporations all too willing to replace old men with fresh-faced young ones.
Male Body Image and the Media:
Blaming male body image issues on the media is a touchy subject, since no one can be sure what came first. Did people demand what they see on television, which obligingly supplies, or did the media dictate to men and women what they want? No one can be sure, but some experts do believe that the media at least perpetuates the ideas of male body image. Studies have been done that show the relationship between viewing media images and feelings of dissatisfaction. For example, Daniel Agliata and Stacey Tantleff-Dunn, in “The Impact of Media Exposure on Males’ Body Image,” conclude that men feel dissatisfied with their bodies after viewing media images of the ideal male body (16). Not only do media images play a role in how men feel about their bodies, but action toys as well. Like Barbie for girls, G.I. Joe for boys has increasingly grown more muscular over the years, to the point where if he were life-sized he would have a 36.5” waist, a 54.8” chest, and a 26.8” bicep(Pope, Olivardia, Gruber, Borowiecki 69). After they play with toys in elementary school, children graduate to more grown-up ventures like World Wrestling Entertainment, or the WWE, where wrestlers bulk up to girths unattainable by natural means alone(Pope et. al 45). Even if men do not play with toys or watch WWE, many magazines and movies exist that perpetuate male body image ideals that are simply unnatural without steroids (Pope et al 46).
Implications of Male Body Image: Winners and Losers
Many benefactors exist from men being insecure about their body image and wanting to enhance their muscularity. For examples, the dozens of magazines that line grocery store shelves, the hundreds of gyms with expensive memberships, the countless pricey supplements that promise to enhance musculature all promote insecurity to men and signal that the natural male form is just not good enough. One of the priciest benefactors of men’s insecurities is cosmetic surgeons. In 1996, men spent several million dollars and had 690,361 cosmetic procedures performed (Pope et al 31). Besides the countless millions spent on legal means to attain body satisfaction, men also spend thousands of dollars on anabolic steroids and other medications in order to improve their bodies.
Conclusion:
So what if men seem to overly care about their bodies? Health and fitness are important and necessary, but some men become so overwrought about the state of their bodies that their thoughts become obsessions, and they end up hurting themselves. No one can deny that men have become more focused on their bodies and they image they project on society. However, experts disagree on the causes of why this occurs. Some think the cause stems as far back as the industrial revolution; while others seem to think the problem comes from feminism or the abundance of steroids. No one can agree whether the media begets male body image concerns or simply perpetuates them. However, no expert can deny that male body image issues exist and cause problems for the men who fall prey to their insecurities.
Works Cited Page:
Agliata, Daniel, and Stacey Tantleff-Dunn. "The Impact of Media Exposure on
Males' Body Image." Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology 23.1 (2004):
7-22. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Community Coll. of Denver, CO. 20
Oct. 2008
Luciano, Lynne. Looking Good: Male Body Image in Modern America. New York: Hill
and Wang, 2001.
Mills, Jennifer S., and Sante R. D'alfonso. "Competition and Male Body Image:
Increased Drive for Muscularity Following Failure to a Female." Journal of
Social and Clinical Psychology 26.4 (2007): 505-518. Academic Search
Premier. EBSCO. Community Coll. of Denver, CO. 20 Oct. 2008
Pope, Harrison G., Jr., et al. "Evolving Ideals of Male Body Image as Seen
Through Action Toys." International Journal of Eating Disorders 26.1
(1999): 65-72. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Community Coll. of Denver,
CO. 20 Oct. 2008
Pope, Harrison G., Jr., Katharine A. Phillips, and Roberto Olivardia. The Adonis
Complex: The Secret Crisis of Male Body Obsession. New York: The Free
Press, 2000.
Weber, Brenda R. "What Makes the Man? Television Makeovers, Made-Over
Masculinity, and Male Body Image." International Journal of Men's Health
5.3 (2006): 287-306. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Community Coll. of
Denver, CO. 20 Oct. 2008
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