Hegemonic Masculinity In Star Wars

Within Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and Saving Private Ryan, we are given two different examples of what it means to possess masculine tendencies. Depending on whom you ask, the definition of what it is to be masculine can vary. From what we have learned from Bird’s article, “Welcome to the Men’s Club: Homosociality and the Maintenance of Hegemonic Masculinity”, is that in order to be masculine, one must be able to be detached and possess a sense of independence (125). As for the article written by Schrock & Schwalbe, “Men, Masculinity, and Manhood Acts”, we are presented with the idea of gender roles. The article goes on to discuss how men have to act a certain way in order to be perceived as masculine (278). We are able to learn about the term ‘hegemonic masculinity’ from Bird. It is a concept presented as men being dominant in society over women

The movie takes place during World War II, when women were just starting to enter the work place. This is a very male dominant movie; most female characters are portrayed as mothers or typist who have very few lines. Women are also portrayed as love interest to the soldiers. Saving Private Ryan also follows some guidelines of Schrock’s & Schwalbe’s idea of masculinity. At this point in time only men were allowed to fight in war leaving women at home to do menial work. War is deemed a very male dominant field and a perfect example of a manhood act. One could say it is the epitome of manliness to go fight for ones country. According to Bird, one characteristic that would need to be prevalent to be considered masculine would be Emotional Detachment (122). In wartime this would be highly regarded as a rule, men are not to show their feelings. We are also shown some traits that would go against Bird’s characteristics, such as crying over the loss of a friend, or showing fear when in a dangerous