Dr. Michael Kimmel: Cool Sociological Human

by Laura Bowman

Laura Bowman with Dr. Kimmel

I first heard about Dr. Michael Kimmel around the beginning of the fall semester last year. I had just moved back to my hometown to go to Illinois State University after going to SLU for a year, and as long as we are being honest, I was in a rather odd place. I was very glad to be back with my old friends, but at the same time there were (and still are) people that I wasn’t sure how I was going to navigate the rest of my collegiate years without seeing on a regular basis.

So in my state of dissatisfaction with college in general, I discovered Dr. Kimmel. I caught him on the Today Show doing publicity for his newest book, Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men, an exploration of the “guy” culture of American males ages 16 to 26. Dr. Kimmel, a sociologist at the University of New York Stony Brook, is one of the leading experts on men and masculinity today. He somehow managed to take everything I ever felt about the college dudes and bros surrounding me and explain it all in a delightfully intelligent manner (without the exasperated sighs and angry grunts that usually frequent my conversations on the subject).

Dr. Kimmel outlines three factors that allows guy culture to thrive; the cultures of entitlement, silence, and protection. His basic theory is that not too long ago, in a not too far away land, white males were entitled to pretty much anything. They got the houses they wanted, the good jobs, and all the goodies that come along with it (that means you, ladies!). But in today’s world, these white men now have to compete with both women and minorities for the very same things they believed were theirs without having to try too hard. As it turns out, these men are not too happy about that, and unfortunately, our society is structured in such a way that rewards and expects negative behaviors. Gay baiting, bullying, and sexism are seen as non-issues due to “boys will be boys” attitudes and the unrealistic and ridiculous “Guy Code” (“boy’s don’t cry,” “bros before hos,” “it’s better to be mad than sad,” “size matters,” etc.) that is to be adhered to at all costs. Men stay in Guyland because it is safe. Since “masculinity is largely a ‘homosocial’ experience: preformed for, and judge by, other men,” living in Guyland helps to ensure that you will not become a victim of it.

As I am writing this, I feel like I am not giving his work the justice it deserves. It is brilliantly complex in that it is able to show us how “guy” culture fosters rampant homophobia, normalizes predatory sex and party rape, and does not foster the skills necessary to become a responsible adult. A “boys will be boys” attitude helps no one, “if we shrug our collective shoulders…we do them [the boys] a great disservice. We abandon boys to be half-man. They will never grow up to be the kind of men they are capable of becoming.”

Somehow, Dr. Kimmel manages to both depress me about the state of masculinity in this country and give me hope. He doesn’t believe that Guyland has to conquer the world. Everyone has the ability to help fight it—by basically calling it what it is, B.S. (which I know is way easier said than done). While I think I get the guys, dudes, and bros much better now, there are still many questions that are yet to be answered. Like why do they insist on spitting all of time? The quad is a veritable minefield of loogies when it hasn’t rained for a few days. I guess there are some things I may never know (at least until Kimmel publishes another book.)

For more information on Guyland visit http://www.guyland.net

Laura is a sophomore at Illinois State University studying apparel merchandising and French. She enjoys dancing badly to good music, reading books of all kinds, and riding her bicycle. Doorknocker earrings and the Ronettes bring her lots of joy.