EN 2010 Chapter 147-150: Being A Man- Theroux Notes
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The whole idea of manhood in america is pitiful, in my opinion. This version of masculinity is a little like having to wear an ill-fitting coat for one"s entire like (by contrast, i imagine femininity to be an oppressive sense of nakedness) (309) The expression "be a man!" strikes me as insulting and abusive. It means: be stupid, be unfeeling, obedient, soldierly and stop thinking (309) Manliness: it is a hideous and crippling lie; it not only insists on difference and connives at superiority, it is also by its very nature destructive emotionally damaging and socially harmful (309) Little girls are traditionally urged to please adults with a kind of coquettishness, while boys are enjoined to behave like monkeys towards each other (309) The nine-year-old coquette proceeds to become womanish in a subtle power game in which she learns to be sexually indispensible, socially decorative and always alert to a man"s sense of inadequacy (309)
