Part of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, the film, “The Mask You Live In,” along with a short panel following, was held on Monday, April 28 in Seerley 115, hosted by the Women’s and Gender Studies Department along with Wellness and Recreation Services.
Societal ideals of masculinity are explored in the film. This documentary touches upon issues such as emotional expression as femininity, masculinity as stoicism and hyper aggression. The film makes it clear that each of these is taught to young boys as they grow into young men. The issues are portrayed through interviews, media references and statistics — many of which relate an inability to emotionally express oneself to a myriad of issues later on, such as violent outbursts and drug addiction.
The film begins. On the black screen, the quote appears, “He wears a mask and his face grows to fit it,” by George Orwell. The meaning is revealed as humans often wear their true feelings veiled behind metaphorical masks– masks of humor and happiness. Men, in particular, are forced to wear these masks every day, because showing emotion isn’t considered masculine. Men then grow to believe that they are incapable of emotional expression, according to the documentary.
During the panel, students expressed their concern over masculinity being defined in such a narrow way. For some, this film opened their eyes to an issue that has been around but remains relatively invisible.
“I don’t think people realize that we know girls can be treated badly but that issues for men aren’t as visible in the media,” said Megan Kennedy, sophomore family services major.
Panel members Mark Rowe-Barth, Associate Director of Student Wellness, Alan Heisterkamp, Interim Director of the Center for Educational Transformation and Michael Fleming, Associate Professor of Applied Human Sciences, made it clear that masculinity is much more than what society has reduced it to. They spoke of personal experiences struggling with these definitions growing up and now struggling to express what masculinity really is to those who still define it in the narrow terms of aggressiveness.
In the film, words like “sissy” or “wuss” are often used to describe boys who do not meet the aggressive criteria for masculinity at young ages. The stories revolved around trying to find masculinity and to be accepted by masculine peers. Some tried to gain acceptance through sports, others through gang membership and some through drugs.
In the end, many realized that the only way to find masculinity and acceptance was to accept the things they really liked.
