Manhood In Hollywood From Bush To Bush
by David Greven /
2010 / English / PDF
6.8 MB Download
A struggle between narcissistic and masochistic modes of manhood
defined Hollywood masculinity in the period between the
presidencies of George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush. David
Greven's contention is that a profound shift in representation
occurred during the early 1990s when Hollywood was transformed by
an explosion of films that foregrounded non-normative gendered
identity and sexualities. In the years that have followed,
popular cinema has either emulated or evaded the representational
strategies of this era, especially in terms of gender and
sexuality.
A struggle between narcissistic and masochistic modes of manhood
defined Hollywood masculinity in the period between the
presidencies of George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush. David
Greven's contention is that a profound shift in representation
occurred during the early 1990s when Hollywood was transformed by
an explosion of films that foregrounded non-normative gendered
identity and sexualities. In the years that have followed,
popular cinema has either emulated or evaded the representational
strategies of this era, especially in terms of gender and
sexuality.
One major focus of this study is that, in a great deal of the
criticism in both the fields of film theory and queer theory,
masochism has been positively cast as a form of male sexuality
that resists the structures of normative power, while narcissism
has been negatively cast as either a regressive sexuality or the
bastion of white male privilege. Greven argues that narcissism is
a potentially radical mode of male sexuality that can defy
normative codes and categories of gender, whereas masochism, far
from being radical, has emerged as the default mode of a
traditional normative masculinity. This study combines approaches
from a variety of disciplines--psychoanalysis, queer theory,
American studies, men's studies, and film theory--as it offers
fresh readings of several important films of the past twenty
years, including
One major focus of this study is that, in a great deal of the
criticism in both the fields of film theory and queer theory,
masochism has been positively cast as a form of male sexuality
that resists the structures of normative power, while narcissism
has been negatively cast as either a regressive sexuality or the
bastion of white male privilege. Greven argues that narcissism is
a potentially radical mode of male sexuality that can defy
normative codes and categories of gender, whereas masochism, far
from being radical, has emerged as the default mode of a
traditional normative masculinity. This study combines approaches
from a variety of disciplines--psychoanalysis, queer theory,
American studies, men's studies, and film theory--as it offers
fresh readings of several important films of the past twenty
years, includingCasualties of War, The Silence of the
Lambs, Fight Club, The Passion of the Christ, Auto Focus
Casualties of War, The Silence of the
Lambs, Fight Club, The Passion of the Christ, Auto Focus,
and
,
andBrokeback Mountain
Brokeback Mountain.
.