Mikayla Mitchell
Professor M. Bogacka
ENG 101.0800
December 10, 2010.
There has become an increase in men who stay at home those of whom become caretakers of the children. As a result masculinity has been put into question due to “stay at home” dads, and men in feminine professions. Aren’t men viewed as being the breadwinners of the household? What type of man stays at home, while the women go out and work? A non-masculine one you might say. If a man is playing the mother role it can confuse the child, on which role they should play. At a certain age boys are taught to be masculine not do things that would make them look otherwise. But due to the unemployment rates and the men who are unwilling to take on a female career, the only choice left is to stay at home. Men who stay home are typically looked down upon and stereotyped because this isn’t following the traditional behavior of a man. If a man is the partner who stays home, they’re considered lazy or not being able to provide for their family. Or simply feminine, why would a man choose to stay at home. The movie Daddy Day Care and two articles “Fathering: Paradoxes, Contradictions, and Dilemmas” by Scott Coltrane and “Culture, History, and Sex: Anthropological Contributions to Conceptualizing Father Involvement by Barry S. Hewlett focuses on fatherhood and masculinity. I agree with Coltrane’s research that fathers have begun to participate more in their offspring lives. Fathers have stepped up their role as their caretakers. But people view that as not being masculine. As well as “The Glass Escalator: Hidden Advantages for Men in the “female” Professions” by Christine L. Williams. Where she explains how female profession tend to push men away who want to enter these fields.
The movie Daddy Day Care, starring Eddie Murphy and Jeff Garlin provides a good example, of how stay at home dads are not looked at as being masculine. After Murphy and Garlin are laid off, the wives of the two become the breadwinners while the men take over the household. However they open their own day care services and quite frankly the mothers of the children isn’t exactly happy with them being the caretakers. They look at men as not knowing what they’re doing. “Men are very distressed by these negative stereotypes, which tend to undermine their self esteem and to cause them to second guess their motivations for entering these fields (Williams 219)”. Which like in the movie the guys decided to go back to working to avoid the controversy? The negativity comes to a point where they don’t want to be in a female profession even though it’s still a job. The suspicions and allegations that they encounter can sometimes be too much to bear. And because their use to being the bread winners that type of “title” can make them feel masculine.
Men are constantly being discriminated against because of an occupation. Society hasn’t made it any easier for dads to feel masculine either. If a man wants to work as a preschool teacher or a nurse, he’s considered a pedophile or feminine. Putting this type of stereotype on a profession can cause a man self esteem to drop. The people who men meet outside of work as well are often the ones who give off the negative stereotypes. Christine L. Williams mentions how the suspicions that occur in the work place often cause men to alter their work behavior to prevent any charges against them. “Unlike women who enter traditionally male professions, men’s movement into these jobs is perceived by the “outside world” as a step down in status (Williams 220)”. It’s a step down because men are viewed as supposedly being hunters and constructors, something manly. Not a teacher or nurse. Men always seem to encounter the worst criticism from the public when they choose to enter female jobs.
Over the years men have become more involved with their families then before. According to Coltrane “The ideal father at mid-century was seen as a good provider who “set a good table, provided a decent home, paid the mortgage, bought the shoes, and kept his children warmly clothed.” The man was always seen as the one to provide for their family. However now a days since fathers are the ones who tend to stay home, mothers have taken that role. The mothers become the workers without having a choice. Now women are looked at as being equal. Although in our culture we look at things as being right, other cultures may see it as wrong. Hewlett mentions that Aka view placing an infant in a crib as the same room as the parent as neglect. They feel the infant should be held at all times. Also “Fulani believe that parental care has very little impact on the child until he or she reaches the age of reason (7-8 years old) (Hewlett 61)”. But in the US a father should be involved with the child from when it is conceived. Or well that’s how we portray it in the US.
Fathers have become more involved with childcare. Although it’s not traditional men behavior, shouldn’t we be happy they’re in their child lives. Also with the low employment rates that we have, men have no choice to seek into a female impression. So why downgrade their status? At least their working and fitting into the stereotype of a lazy man without a job.
Work Cited
Coltrane, Scott. “Fathering: Paradoxes, Contradictions and Dilemmas.” Men’s Lives. Ed.
Michael S. Kimmel and Michael A. Messner. New York: Allyn & Bacon., (2001): 432-449. Print.
Daddy’s Day Care. Dir. Steve Carr. Perf. Eddie Murphy and Jeff Garlin., 2003.
Hewlett, Barry S. “Culture, History, and Sex: Anthropological Contributions to Conceptualizing
Father Involvement” Marriage & Family Review and FATHERHOOD: Research Interventions and Policies. (2000):59-73. Print
Williams, Christine L. “The Glass Escalator: Hidden Advantages for Men in The “Female”
Professions. Men’s Lives. Ed. Michael S. Kimmel and Michael A. Messner. New York: Allyn & Bacon., (2001): 211-224. Print
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