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Volume 71, Issue 117,
Friday, March 31, 2006
Opinion How much of what must one man have? Christian Ochoa
What makes "a man" besides a penis? We live in a nation where gender roles are so strictly defined that anything blurring the lines can be seen as obscene, almost repulsive. Society has set-in-stone tendencies that men must adhere to retain their "manly" status, lest they be pointed and laughed at behind their backs. Some of my colleagues and friends have made fun of me for my "being prepared" mentality and carrying an umbrella. Yes, it is a hassle to carry a 12-inch piece of plastic from Wal-Mart in Houston's fickle weather. But, in the end, I'm not the idiotic pretty boy with the spiky hair walking around with The Daily Cougar above their head. Being a vegetarian can be seen as another attack on masculinity. A "real" man only eats steak with A1 Bold and Spicy sauce. It seems that "real" men have a fascination with meat since many of them request that meat should be on their dinner plates. I guess that explains the growing popularity of the March 14 "holiday": Steak and BJ Day. Granted, vegetarians do miss out on delicious meats, but saving animals from slaughter is an honorable quest. Fashion and shopping is another tendency that my ever-so-manly friends believe is prissy action. Shopping at Old Navy, wearing pink shirts and carrying a man purse, which is apparently different from a messenger bag, have been marked as signs of being a "weakling." Where men buy their shirts and boxers is, by no means, a deciding factor on their state of masculinity. Sounds like my masculine friends are paying too close attention to the labels of jeans that some men wear. To those who say God doesn't have a sense of humor, don't you think it's funny that he gave men two heads? Usually, men, including myself, have the disadvantage of only thinking with one head at a time. Apparently, being a sexual conquistador is also a redeeming manly quality. It seems that the more cherries you pop, the closer you are to being "the man." Hopping from bed to bed like a bunny on steroids is a great way to make friends, and exposing your body to chlamydia and gonorrhea are goals that men should aim for. All of the previous tendencies and qualities have one thing in common: it's your choice. Men can choose to wear pink, carry an umbrella, eat their veggies and be a sexually reserved person. In the end, many men and women have labeled one factor ? a factor I believe isn't a choice ? as the ultimate factor in eliminating masculinity: homosexuality. To quote Garbage, it seems that the "queerest of the queer" are just women with detachable penises. Yes, there are some gay men who do perpetuate the stereotype of the gay. Some of them do over-groom and have eyebrows that seem like sharpie drawn lines ? some don't pray with their copy of ESPN The Magazine and follow sports with a passion; and some just are the complete antithesis of the athletic jerk who grills in the backyard with a sound of an engine roaring in the background. Perhaps those stereotypes that few constantly perpetuate have snuck into our minds and have warped our definition on what a man is. Regardless of whether some men prefer to purchase a $150 pair of new "used" jeans from Abercrombie and Fitch and have perfect skin, being gay should not be a reason to take away someone's masculinity. I guess for some, being a gay cowboy is the only way for homosexuals to retain their masculinity. A quality that many cultures value is being honorable. Regardless if your tastes, preferences and lifestyle stand on men carrying umbrellas, honor is a quality that all men must posses. Being courageous, having convictions, having strong moral and ethical principles, never backstabbing or two facing a friend: Only true men possess these qualities. It might be hard, but all those qualities, plus a penis, make a man, "a man." Ochoa, an opinion columnist for The Daily Cougar,
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