In my conference proposal, I claimed that the topic of Iranian men and masculinities has been significantly understudied. My paper addressed the issue of the interplay between ethnicity and masculinity. I go on to explain that within Iranian culture, men are pressured by tradition and society for their masculinity. Masculinity like other kinds of social identity, is an ongoing construction between one’s self image and other perceptions of one. Due to different types of socio-cultural norms, it shapes how societies view what it means to be a man. Iranian men are shaped by religious and cultural beliefs.
Socially Unfit or Unfit Society?: Identifying Monstrosity in Medieval Scandinavian Literature by Ryan Kamkar is a journal article about the term “monster” and how it can define an individual who has an unusual or unacceptable behavior or appearance. With this definition, the word is used by society as a label to those who do not fit into its criteria of normalcy. However The question of what a monster truly is relies on the context of society. Ryan Kamkar goes on to explain that the term “monster” is subjective depending on the society to which it is being applied. He gives several examples from movies and other sources and as well of defining the term monster itself to help support his claim. “One great example of this phenomenon is illustrated in the Pixar film Monster’s Inc., which portrays a society wherein individuals whom humans would perceive as monsters are normalized and humans themselves are formidable.” Which in my paper I lacked, I made claims but did not support them with examples.
Mine and Ryan’s paper are both similar in the sense of describing societies expectations and what is acceptable. We live in a world where we do not want to stand out because that is considered wrong. We want people to accept us, but we cannot do that when we do not fit in. As I describe how gender idealized the male form through incorporations of character traits such as strength, aggression, assertiveness and the value of reason over emotion. By having such traits you are accepted into society’s gender expectations. While Iranian men are shaped by society for their toxic masculinity, Ryan goes on to describe how depending on different societies, each have their own perspective of what a monster is. This is similar because depending on different backgrounds and societies it manages to shape the qualities of what that norm includes. Such as how Iran culture norms and traditions and beliefs have shaped the qualities of what a man should have and what they must live up to.
Depending on society, one’s self image and identity may be influenced to fit into its criteria of normalcy. Ryan Kamkar did an excellent job trying to prove this claim by not only providing different examples of what he has proposed but also he opened up by demonstrating that this is a universal thing. As I focused on Iranian men specifically, I could as well described and explained where masculinity comes from and other examples outside of Iran to help deepen the claims I make along with using several different sources and examples to help my audience get a better understanding of what the term was and how it’s differently influenced depending on sexual identity, family life, as well as religious and cultural beliefs.
