to Get into University The Toxicity of Toxic Masculinity

Toxic masculinity exists. There is no avoiding this fact, nor should there be, for it is an insidious and dangerous cultural standpoint that promotes rape culture, misogyny, negative mental health, homophobia and violence. This abhorrent ideology attacks the open discussion of mental health whilst promoting a sickening tolerance for abusive behaviour towards others. So, the question we must ask is how this toxic culture is still being perpetuated despite the knowledge of how damaging it is?

It was recorded in 2019 that suicide rates were the highest on record since 2002 with 6,507 suicides recorded at the end of 2018. Three quarters of these were men. Often cited as one of the leading reasons for this is the wrongful idea that men cannot discuss their emotions and mental health without appearing ‘less masculine’, that the very idea of having feelings means you are subject to ridicule by other men for appearing ‘weak’. Personified in the ‘comedic manly man’ meme, which says feelings are for women and homosexuals, this thinking is widely depicted across numerous websites and movements in support of this ideology. One of the most popular websites is called ‘Return of Kings’. From only a glance at their front page, the notion of toxic masculinity is thriving. Articles such as, ‘How to break through Beta male conditioning’ and ‘The pussification of Western society and how to overcome it’ espouse the ideas of denying feelings, asserting dominance and physical prowess as the true measure of a man. Another website, ‘The art of manliness’, contains articles giving advice on where to inflict the most damage with a punch, why every man should carry a knife and how owning more than three pairs of shoes is indicative of weakness. These websites also talk about the dangers of feminism and how to combat the rise of weak men who support it. For example, calling them ‘soy boys’, suggesting that not eating meat is a sign of poor masculinity (although their phrases are far more derogatory).

The ideology of toxic masculinity further extends into the physical nature of masculinity and how a man should look. The idea of the alpha male hunter, muscular, strong, able to wear a suit or flannel shirt and look powerful no matter what. With male body dysmorphia on the rise, according to statistics at least one in every ten male gym goers suffers, one must look to the perpetuation of this image of male body perfection and what damage it is doing. Up to one million young men are taking performance enhancing drugs including steroids or some form of growth enhancer. The overuse of steroids has been heavily linked to heart failure, kidney and liver disease as well as other medical concerns and has been prevalent in popular entertainment like professional wrestling where men are lauded on the perfection of their musculature and strength.

Further, we see a constant air of negative language around those who do not meet this ideal with phrases such as ‘The Dad Bod’, ‘Beta Cuck’ and so on. This tends to create an environment where men do not wish to express their feelings and feel as if they are less of ‘a man’ if they do, which can subsequently lead to a cycle of silence and inward emotional turmoil with very damaging outcomes. Both the NHS and the Mental Health Foundation highlight the importance of men talking about their feelings to promote a positive mental health.

For example, talking therapy is central to numerous mental health recovery programs. With toxic masculinity, the idea of talking about your feelings and the suggestion that even

having them is a weakness, this can be seen to contribute to the poor mental health of society.

However, if we look at the way in which much of this shaming is framed, we see an even darker aspect of this thinking. For example, where male weakness is spoken about as being feminine, homosexual and ‘beta’. Feminism is seen as either a joke or a vicious attack on men’s rights with men’s rights movements actively promoting a stand against the progression of many pro female groups. Splintering from men’s rights groups are a growing section of men belonging to ‘red pill’ organisations. Such organisations, for example, believe that women do not want emancipation or equality but are instead meant for subjugation and dominance. Posts on the Redpill Reddit forum openly discuss domestic abuse as simply part of a relationship and rape apologists are only outnumbered by the number of men who think rape simply does not exist.

In March 2018, Warwick university was rocked by the ‘Rape chat Scandal’ involving eleven male students. Some were penalised with a ban from university after their WhatsApp chat revealed a year and a half’s worth of rape threats and jokes about their close female friends. Phrases such as “it’s just banter” and “it’s how boys talk” can be seen to be indicative of toxic masculinity. Notably, where subjects such as rape, violence towards woman and misogyny are normalised. Two of these students were given ten-year bans which have been reduced to a year and are expected to return to university later this semester.

Toxic Masculinity is harmful in the extreme, almost dichotomic to how one would hope any culture should be. It supports the normalisation of violent misogyny and homophobia whilst suppressing healthy discussion over mental health and emotional development. It is an ideology that needs to be fought with tolerance, understanding and a refusal to allow it a place in our society, our halls of power and our homes.

Gareth Holmes