The Myth of Male Power

From this point on, the core dynamics of the Subject Story were largely set: protection, division, subjugation, conquest, patronage, duty; in a word, paternalism. We can recognise them from the Roman Empire to the British to the rise of Hitler, right through to the looming resurgence of the Subject Story in the form of the strongman leaders of the

They have different ways of setting boundaries and enforcing boundaries; exploring in nature; roughhousing; creating teachable moments; challenging the kids’ limits; using hangout time; and different attitudes toward teasing. Researchers have also documented dads’ greater tendencies to • walk a fine line between safety and risk-taking; • juggle the

Bank accounts are balancing while passions are fizzling out. Men are less macho while sex and violence continue to increase on TV and in the movies. Women are more in control of their economic destiny while they go in increasing numbers to therapists and doctors to cope with stress related dis-ease. Why is this happening?

Traditionally, the mythology of the self-made man had relied on the exploitation of women’s labor in their roles of wives, mothers, and sisters, as well as on a pejorative understanding of “the feminine.” Often the measure of a man’s success was calculated on the basis of his ability to out-earn his wife’s capacity for spending, a criterion for suc