Individual Expression and Societal Structures of Manipulation: The Conversation Surrounding Contemporary Feminism and Masculinity
We must be swift as the coursing river
with all the force of a great typhoon
with all the strength of a raging fire
mysterious as the dark side of the moon
Be a man!
By emphasizing the “raging fire” of the more ‘masculine’ gender and the mysterious nature of male emotions, this song lyric from the Disney movie Mulan emphasizes the viewpoint that the shielding of one’s feminine characteristics such as emotions is an effective method of attaining success in any aspect of society.
Great Advice, Mulan! After all, the societal structures of capitalism effectively engulf an individual’s ability to express oneself and create two drastically different ‘bubbles’ of what it means to be a man and a woman. Therefore, in order to achieve society-defined success and overall well-being, one must obviously conceal all feminine or emotional aspects of oneself and “be a man” (Mulan).
Although this issue seems, on the surface, to be that of the valid nature of femininity and masculinity, the larger conversation encompasses how the economic and social structures of capitalism encourage individuals to limit emotional expression in order to attain success and, ultimately by doing so, threaten their mental well-being. In this global conversation, there are various perspectives that disagree on the source of the state of the individual and whether the individual him or herself is directly involved in the unattractive state of their well-being. Furthermore, many perspectives emphasize emotional well-being and societal progress to an increase in the emotional intelligence and recognition of one’s feelings in both men and women.
SOURCE OF THE EMOTIONAL REPRESSION AND DEPRIVATION OF ONE’S WELL-BEING
I. Entangled in the Grasps of Societal Structures and Idea of Success
There is much debate as to whether the source of repressed individual identity and emotional success is the individual him or herself or the society that surrounds the individual. In the article “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All?” by Anne-Marie Slaughter, who “has taught at Princeton University and Harvard Law School and worked as the director of policy planning for the US State Department” the idea of economic and social structures of society being a barrier to individual success and a motivating factor of repressing individual emotional identity is emphasized (Slaughter 534). For example, Slaughter effectively furthers the claim of the capitalistic environment’s direct effect on an individual by emphasizing a personal realization of how being successful according to today’s economic and social standards and attaining well-being is dependent “almost entirely on what type of job [one has]” (539). It is evident that Slaughter regards the individual as powerless and largely directed by outside forces-such as the economic and social structures-to repress certain feminine or emotional characteristics in order to pursue greater success in any particular field.
II. Be a Man, Sis!
However, Slaughter’s view can be contrasted with that of Sheryl Sandberg, a Facebook Chief Operating Officer, who emphasizes in her TED talk that “when a woman starts thinking about having children, she doesn’t raise her hand anymore [and] she starts leaning back” (Slaughter 541). By portraying the relationship between the capitalistic market/work field and women, Slaughter displays Sandberg’s perspective that holds women accountable for their ultimate success and overall well-being. Furthermore, Slaughter emphasizes the dangers of being a woman, having emotions or feminine characteristics, and respecting time at home with loved ones in relation to its effects on an individual’s growth up the capitalistic ladder of success. Overall, there is much debate surrounding whether the decrease in emotional well-being and expression of one’s identity is due to the individual him or herself or instead due to the capitalistic economic and social structures of an individual’s surrounding that demand him or her to be emotionally insensitive and, ultimately, hurting overall well-being of the individual and progress of the society.
III. Rethinking the Definition of ‘Be a Man’
A glimpse of Sandberg’s perspective on how self-initiative can be linked to an individual’s success and improvement in mental well-being is evident in a recently produced short-film titled “We Believe: The Best Men Can Be” by Gillette: a popular brand of men’s razors on a global scale. For instance, Gillette effectively showcases the drastic difference between traditional views of how a man must act in a society versus the characteristics of emotional understanding and mutual respect (“We Believe: The Best Men Can Be”). Throughout the film, Gillette is voicing the claim that self-initiative and healthy emotional-awareness of oneself is an essential component of success and overall well-being of an individual and the surrounding community.
THE NEW GENDER-GAP AND FINDING BALANCE
I. What’s the Cost of Living in the Bubble: Unaware and Detached from Reality? Simple, Just Your Soul and Well-being.
According to Slaughter, there is a “new gender-gap” emerging that shows drastic differences in well-being among women and men. For instance, when displaying that balance between work and family is beneficial to the collective group of men and women, Slaughter cites from a Palliative care giver that almost every male patient “missed their children’s youth and their partner’s companionship” (Slaughter 547). Furthermore, Slaughter addresses individuals who identify themselves as feminists and emphasizes that “the pioneer generation of feminists walled off their personal lives from their professional personas to ensure that they could never be discriminated against for a lack of commitment to their work” (Slaughter 545). Slaughter effectively uses logos to portray the general ideology of modern feminists and the identity these women are forced to embody because of economic and social stressors from the capitalistic workforce. Overall, Slaughter believes that well-being and the “pursuit of happiness” is a common theme to both genders and the modern-day structure of society proves to be a roadblock in the path to attaining such success. For example, Slaughter believes that “women can ‘have it all at the same time’ but not today, not with the way America’s economy and society are currently structured” (Slaughter 538). By emphasizing the role of today’s workforce on an individual’s state of well-being, Slaughter states her claim that the genuine source of limited happiness and satisfaction, and unattainable success is the current system of capitalism.
II. Umm…Did You Read the Job Description Before Applying?
Slaughter’s idea of aspiring to achieve internal balance in the face of societal barriers is refuted by the ideas emphasized in Senior Editor Richard Dorment’s article “Why Men Still Can’t Have It All.” For instance, by stating that “if [one] doesn’t want a high-pressure, high-power, high-paying job that forces [one] to make unacceptable sacrifices in the rest of your life, don’t take the job,” Dorment depicts how the individual is truly responsible for their state of distress or limited emotional expression (Dorment 574). However, even though Dorment puts the pressure on individuals to create their ideal state of well-being, he does acknowledge the presence of economic and social structures that encourage emotional insensitivity and create two personas of the human population. Strong and emotional. Man and woman. Competent and incompetent. Dorment’s word choice (“forces”) artistically shows the direct and active role that the current capitalistic society plays in determining an individual’s emotional expression and, ultimately, overall success in any aspect of society.
TO BURST OR NOT TO BURST: OVERALL CONVERSATION OF THE DYNAMIC OF CAPITALISM & SELF-IDENTIFICATION
Conventional wisdom has it that organization is key, and there is global conversation surrounding whether human beings are organized into two compartments-isolated into two bubbles-when it comes to the economic and social realms of our capitalistic society. There are many perspectives that voice their claims on the genuine source of an individual’s emotional insensitivity and repression of one’s authentic identity in the aims of pursuing success as it is defined by the community one lives in. Beyond this, other perspectives emphasize the dramatic effect that the capitalistic mentality is having on the well-being of individuals and the widening emotional gender-gap in our community. Moreover, these diverse perspectives voice varying claims regarding the true definition of success: the pursuit of happiness versus the pursuit of achievement in one’s own industry. However, a majority of these perspectives have hinted at or evidently emphasized the existence of the two economically and socially defined characteristics that one must symmetrically align with to ensure success in the workforce.
As the sun rises every morning and propels us towards the future and as the many perspectives in this global discussion of capitalism’s effect on an individual’s quality and experience of life come to the surface, the community we live in will acquire a broad understanding of this issue and how it pertains to the emotional well-being and overall success of an individual, society as a whole, and generations to come.
Works Cited
Dorment, Richard. “Why Men Still Can’t Have It All.” They Say I say, edited by Gerald Graff, Cathy Birkenstein, and Russel Durst, W. W. Norton & Company, 2018, pp. 555-575.
Mulan. Directed by Barry Cook and Tony Bancroft. Walt Disney Feature Animations, 1998.
Sandberg, Sheryl. “Why We Have Too Few Women Leaders.” uploaded by TED: Ideas Worth Spreading, December 2010, https://www.ted.com/talks/sheryl_sandberg_why_we_have_too_few_women_leaders.
Slaughter, Anne-Marie. “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All.” They Say I say, edited by Gerald Graff, Cathy Birkenstein, and Russel Durst, W. W. Norton & Company, 2018, pp. 534-554.
“We Believe: The Best Men Can Be | Gillette (Short Film).” YouTube, uploaded by Gillette, 13 January 2019,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koPmuEyP3a0.
Cosner Rhetoric 
