The Family Man

What struck me most about Carroll’s article entitled “Men’s Soaps” was the idea that blue-collar work is tied more closely than white-collar work is to the concept of masculinity in American culture. Today white-collar work is tied directly to money and success and therefore can be linked directly to the concept of the successful male. The article talks about mental labor as being more feminine than physical labor yet white collared work is considered powerful and dominant today.

This country has grown due to man’s physical labor so I can understand how blue collar work has come to emanate a sense of success based on the fact that many men worked long and hard to earn a living and provide for their families during times when women and children depended on men as bread winners. Blue-collar work is embedded in the American culture as admirable and encompasses the concept of success as it relates to fulfilling the American dream.  Shows like American Chopper as well as Cake Boss illustrate this concept of what it means to work hard through physical labor and create a successful business and at the same time show what it means to be a family man. I think this contradicts the stereotype of women playing the active roles in rearing children. Both Buddy, in Cake Boss, and Senior, in American Chopper, are shown both at work and in their family lives which goes to show the various roles men can play that deviate from tradition. This concept of a reality show enlightening the dynamic of a father and son relates a new sense of emotion that men are allowed to possess as well as showing the role and importance of a hands on father.      

Dirty Jobs in Masculinity

In Carroll's article the main discussion is on the idealism of the blue collar lifestyle. Carroll uses the example of American Chopper a show about supposedly blue collar men who make custom made motorcycles. Carroll argues that motorcycles, rebelliousness, blue collar jobs and patriotism are all linked. This show seems to be glorifying blue collar jobs when in fact that does not reflect what is going on in society, as blue collar jobs are at a downfall. The conundrum of the show itself is that these men are no long blue collar men, they have tons of money by custom making bikes for different companies and offering them advantageous product placement. This show may have begun invoking the blue collar worker and patriotism but in the end it only reflects the success of successful business men who are now celebrities.

This show exemplifies stereotypical masculinity by reflecting physical labor but in reality the blue collar images is being overrun by the white collar reality of the successful businessmen of the show. An example that reflects this ideal is Dirty Jobs. The host of the show finds the dirtiest jobs all over America and spends some time doing those jobs. In the show he seems to be reflecting white collar society by spending a day in their lives doing physical labor. This seems to reiterate typical masculinity by showing phsycial labor but the truth of the show is that the host is a celebrity who is making white collar wages. This makes the idea of the classic blue collar worker ineffective since the representations of it are done by white collar men. This changes the idea of masculinity by virtually destroying the image of the blue collar patriot and replacing it with the people who impersonate that masculinity on a white collar budget.

Paul Teutul on The Celebrity Apprentice

I think that Paul Teutul Sr.’s appearance on the most recent season of The Celebrity Apprentice is interesting to think about in terms of Carroll’s argument about the significance of American Chopper.  Carroll discusses the changing economic climate in the United States and what this has meant for the idea of masculine professions.  The move away from an economy centered on labor to one that is service oriented has also meant a disappearance of traditionally masculine jobs, or jobs that involve hard labor.  The characters of American Chopper represent a nostalgic view of these traditionally masculine professions.  The employees of Orange County Chopper make their money through manual labor; they get their hands dirty and craft motorcycles from scratch.  They are also big, tough looking men that are undeniably representative of the traditional ideal of masculinity.

            That is why it is interesting that Paul Teutul Sr. is now appearing on The Celebrity Apprentice, where the work that he has to perform is based more on intellect than manual labor.  Teutul’s move from American Chopper to The Celebrity Apprentice mirrors the shift from an economy focused on manual labor to one that is centered on service and is more dependent on intellect.  Depending on how he is portrayed on the show, his appearance could also demonstrate the incompatibility of the traditional ideas about masculinity in a service-oriented society.  If he is portrayed as a joke or gets eliminated early, it would show how a working class individual is unable to succeed in the current economy.  The traditional idea of masculinity being tough and labor-oriented, this would also show that the typical idea of “masculine” must change in order to be successful in today’s society.  Teutul’s appearance on The Celebrity Apprentice could potentially become symbolic of the necessary change of the ideas of masculinity in modern society.

Are American Chopper and Cake Boss kind of similar?

In Carroll’s paper on “Men’s Soaps,” there were a few point that really stuck out to me and a few point that got me trying to think of other possible examples. Carroll states that American Chopper creates a world of blue-collar workers who perform skilled labor. This labor is always understood to be male. When I read this section about the masculinity of skilled, blue-collar labor, I could not help but think of a particular episode of The Office. Michael Scott goes to have a “man meeting” in the warehouse because there is a “women in the workplace” meeting being held in the office. Throughout the series, the warehouse workers are portrayed as strong, blue-collar, and masculine. Michael gathers all of his male employees, goes to the warehouse, and begins his meeting. However, there is a woman, Madge, who works in the blue-collar warehouse who Michael overlooks. Having watched this episode just yesterday, it was a very clear parallel to me that blue-collar workers are generally assumed to be male and their work, masculine.

Another aspect that Carroll touched upon was the success of American Chopper and what it can be attributed to. She says that, while part of the show’s success is partly based in the current hype surrounding reality television, another aspect of the show’s popularity comes from “its presentation of men at work and its production of a masculine family melodrama” (Carroll, Men’s Soaps, pp 266). I am wondering how the popularity of American Chopper compares to the popularity of Cake Boss – a show that also presents men at work in a family atmosphere; however, one could argue that the type of work in Cake Boss is more stereotypically feminine. While both shows portray men at work alongside family drama, the two shows will probably never be categorized together because of the portrayal of more “masculine” work in one versus the more “feminine” work in the other.  If ratings for both shows are similar, I would be interested in who the audiences are for these shows? My guess is that more men watch American Chopper and more women watch Cake Boss.

And speaking of audiences, the article quotes Clark Bunting saying, “We have some of the most affluent audience in the history of the network…” (pp 266). Maybe it is because the material for the last section of class is fresh in my mind, but I immediately thought, “I’d like to see that audience analysis!” I wonder who exactly is watching this show? How are they taking it in? Does it affect them in any way? Are there particular reasons – some which Carroll shed some light on (patriotism, crisis of masculinity) – that people watch the show?

Are Mad Men like shows only successful with male leads?

Mad Men is one of my favorite shows and I know how widely popular it is, however before reading this article I had never noticed the story line trend that it was following and how it can be found in many other popular tv shows. I think it is interesting that the public wants to see men fall from their supposed "high horses" in order to confront the realities of the world and come to terms with their lives. Towards the end of the article the author alludes to the idea that women can only be successful leading roles if they are comedies, she points to the success of shows such as 30 Rock, Parks and Recreation and The Sarah Silverman Show. Although I do agree that sometimes female leads are more successful in comedies, I do believe there are still successful shows out there that have strong leading female roles. 

For some reason I keep thinking of the crime/cop/murder dramas that have a strong woman as the leading character and the first one that comes to mind are the shows Body of Proof . (Here is a link to watch the show if anyone is interested in checking it out body of proof .) I think this show is a good demonstration of a powerful leading female characters. I would argue that in Body of Proof they are following the similar trend with the main character fighting to come to terms with the harsh realities of their lives in order to find happiness. The main character in this show has lost her job as a neuro surgeon and is divorced with a strained relationship with her daughter. She has now become a head medical examiner and is repairing her relationship with her daughter. I think this type of story line is just as successful when there is a female lead character. However, I don't know what this means for women and men for that matter. Are shows only truly successful when they are constantly challenging the main characters as a means to make them struggle? 

Walking Dead: Zombies Aren't the Only Evil

Marcotte touched base, but did not fully describe, the show "The Walking Dead".  She had mentioned that this show also had its fair share of focusing on a man's problems with masculinity as a form of feminist text.  I do agree, and thought I should explain further some evidence to support that.
The main character, Rick, who is a sheriff, is a crucial character that portrays struggles with masculinity.  It is emphasized even more by Shane, Rick's partner on the police force.  While Rick works to keep the group not only alive, but together as a cohesive network, Shane is busy asserting his masculinity.  For example, when the young daughter of a group member goes missing, Rick encourages the group to search for her but Shane argues continuously about moving on and assuming she was dead rather than risk the group's safety during a search.  In this situation and throughout the show Rick displays dedication to truth, forgiveness and selflessness, while Shane expresses more care for survival, violence and independence.  Shane is, without much argument, the most hated character on the show because of his portrayal as an evil, hyper-masculine male, who ends up being sinister and detrimental to the group.  The fine line between survival and maintaining humanity is always a point of consideration in every episode of the current season of "The Walking Dead".  Rick, who strongly believes in a just and humane world, struggles to uphold a hyper-masculine image of himself.  Shane in turn sees Rick as an ineffective leader because of his lack of "manliness" and gumption.  In this clip Rick and Shane are arguing over whether or not to kill a young boy because of his affiliation with a potentially harmful group of hijackers.  At approx. 45sec in, Shane tells Rick that he doesn't think Rick can keep his family safe.  The clip demonstrates well what I was earlier trying to explain about how Shane thinks a leader should lead.  I could potentially go on and on about Rick, and a few other characters that show feminist text through their portrayal in the group.  Overall, I believe "The Walking Dead" is appealing in many of the same ways that "Mad Men" is because of how it portrays the harm that comes with hyper-masculinity.

He Just Needs the Right Broom

I am fascinated by the idea that masculinity exists as a foil to femininity and it is oftentimes portrayed in the media as such. Countless characters gain initial power and esteem based on masculine norms. The buff, stud of a man dressed in athletic gear with female arm candy are initially the character we “look up to” or see as some sort of authority. He is also the character that we expect to be brought down by his hyper-masculinity. Of course there are the easy examples of superhero flicks (of course phallo-centric) where the male, dominating hero encounters the limitations of the anaconda in pants and usually needs the sensibility of a woman to bring him back. It is so interesting that these are the images that sell; Mad Men is a show centered around and devoted to traditional masculine ideals and people eat it up! Of course, I love it to and I can watch it while recognizing the chauvinism, but how many people cannot or do no take the time to deconstruct it?

I want to focus on Hitch, I think Will Smith embodies masculinity in both his physical presence, but not in his relationship “techniques.” He is a male icon for nerdy guys that want to get laid or find love, but his “toxic masculinity” hinders him in his own romantic pursuits. He has been victimized by the same gender norms that he substantiates, because he cannot fulfill them when it comes to his own life. He almost sabotages his budding relationship, because he tries so hard to live up to his own scripted ideals of what a man is supposed to be in a relationship. The audience loves to watch him self-destruct using the same tenets that he has been brainwashing his clients with. Ironically, what he claims to be is almost a feminist ideal. He respects women and speaks about them lovingly, and yet he still takes on the knight in shining armor persona and expects to be the "one in charge" in many ways. No wonder people are up in arms about gender role portrayals in the media that affect men in the “real world;” male role models are limited to the body-builder on the Old Spice commercials, the guidos on Jersey Shore and the mixed messages of the romantic yet foolish, Hitch.