“The men America left behind” depicts a great change in the way men are coping with radical change. As shifting demographics towards more feminine values occurs more “Masculine” men are being left behind and its their notion of their own masculinity that is getting in the way. As the job market also shifts to more pink collar jobs and men have to conform to these shifting norms of a more feminized work environment. A big factor is education it seems that less educated seem to be left behind far more than educated ones who can challenge their thoughts and beliefs with a new idea and way of thinking like, what does it mean to be a man? The less educated seem to perpetuate the idea of what a man should be. (This rings true in my personal experience as I’ve had people who work blue collar jobs who never went to college take a took at my hands and call them “Bitch Hands” for not being calloused enough for their liking). Like most ideas if their is no opposing side an echo chamber forms and the same ideas bounce off the walls and merely exacerbate the wrong ideas. This notion of masculinity is no different as men in general are stuck in this very primitive idea of who and what a man should be. There is hope though as therapy is a viable option for people who are willing to seek it out. Of course it is up to the person to make an effort and come out as having a problem before accepting help. Wong in the article explains that “men who are most in need of outreach are the least likely to attend workshops or talks”. Though, it would seem that education seems to be the best way out of the masculine hole that previous generation have dug for themselves it is difficult to teach it later in life. So efforts to teach it for free earlier in life at community centers and early education is essential.
Author: Nicholas Kirschman
The Many Faces of Shame
The Many Faces of Shame depicts how shame can be both a beneficial and a toxic emotion. Like any emotion if directed correctly it can guide us towards a healthy life. The analogy of the man and the horse starting out on a journey and go in any direction is a good depiction on how our lives need to have at least a guide or a means to an end. The emotion of shame grounds us in reality and checks our human ego that we are indeed not gods but mortal beings with physical bodies. According to Erik Erickson humans develop shame at an early age. The child needs a person to teach them the boundaries in society for them to learn. This is very important in the 2nd stage of development of Erikson. At the age of two, children become little explorers to the world. The children taste and touch objects to find out what they are. Which also leads children this age to be very harmful to themselves. At this age it is important to set the “shame boundaries” so to speak. Shame can manifest itself in many forms such as shyness, communicating, creativity, and the negative toxic shame. Shyness is a defensive mechanism that we can form when faced with unfamiliar settings. Not wanting to make a fool of one’s self by awkward communication or embarrassing communication people will stay limited to what they say. This stems back to Erikson’s 1st stage of development where one must have trust in someone before that lapse in communication can develop. Shame also can form the development of introspection that can manifest itself into a creative platform. As stated before not wanting to make a fool of oneself can limit us on creative means. Thinking that there is a right and wrong when it comes to art is very limited, as it is an expression of our inner selves. During recent years art has been pushed the boundaries in terms of the norms that had been previously seen. Finally, toxic shame forms into neurosis by making ourselves believe we are at fault or the world is. Trying to put blame and responsibility on ourselves or the world is a double edged sword. We are human after all and why it is easy to blame oneself that can form can change into victimhood rather quickly. On the flip side is can also lead to a sense of worthlessness. Another form of toxic shame is repression of certain emotions because the ones close to you never showed those specific emotions all too well. These repressed emotions will make you feel shame when you feel them which is toxic because as a human it is important to have the full range of emotion at your disposal. Once toxic shame engrains itself into us it is not easy to remove from our lives. The emotion of shame be made worse by our internal monologue, just thinking of shameful things when none have occurred can destroy our psyche. Knowing you are human and have the emotion of shame is important, but avoiding the pitfall that is toxic shame can be difficult. We as individuals hold the key to our own emotions but sometimes we lose them and it is important to regain control over them for a better life.
Introduction
My name is Nick Kirschman I’m a history major (Interesting I know)and a senior at Hunter. I grew up on Long Island and moved to the city after high school. My interest includes video games, reading manga, watching movies, and doing improv. I took this class because it was recommended to me and I look forward to learning more about the subject. I too am also a Futurama fan! so as a formal exit I will WOOP-WOOP-WOOP-WOOP-WOOP
