After watching the film "Tough Guise 2," one message resonated with me deeply: “But perhaps the most damaging thing this kind of thinking does is it blinds us to the fundamental role that cultural systems play in all of this," the film said. "This kind of thinking" refers to the "boys will be boys" mentality, which teaches society that boys are inherently aggressive and potentially problematic. Boys acting out is not a normal or acceptable thing, yet somehow it is both to most people. As the quote states, cultural systems reinforce the normalization of this attitude. That refers to parents, friends, family, school, church and media. I was recently talking to a male friend of mine and mentioned how sexist video games are. Sexism in video games is a blatant and obvious truth to me; however, it was met with silence and then opposition from my friend. He really didn't see sexism in video games. He sees the sexism in video games every day, yet somehow he doesn't see it at all. This is just one example of how the patriarchy's invisibility infiltrates people's minds and affects their ability to make fair judgments and observations. All of these institutions and cultural systems reinforce the idea that men are naturally aggressive and dominant beings, but would it be that way if we never thought of it like that? I argue that the entire notion of men being inherently anything is completely socially constructed. To dismantle this deeply rooted mindset will take diligent work, but through discussion, debate and education, the truth of manhood, and gender in general, can be shown to the public and make for a better world.
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