Boys Will Be Boys — Until Sexism Becomes Uncool
Posted on August 22, 2008
Filed Under News, The Daily Prereq | By Jessica Gross
The College Guy (homo universitus) is an interesting specimen. Free of parental rule, he exhibits his masculinity by scorning intellect, binge drinking and hooking up with girls. Michael Kimmel, a sociologist at SUNY Stony Brook, calls the modern college boys’ culture Guyland. In an interview with Inside Higher Ed about his new book, Kimmel discusses what Guyland is, exactly, and why it supplanted the land of men (or, college males acting like grown-ups).
A generation ago, 20-year-olds were considered adults. Now, guys and girls have an extra decade to be irresponsible — we’re not expected to settle down until around 30. In college, Kimmel says, this period takes the form of a guy-centric culture.
The “Guy Code” to which men are pressured to conform, is defiantly anti-PC, dismissively anti-intellectual, and derisively sexist. “Bros Before Hos” is the motto of Guyland.
But there’s hope. Kimmel points to frats that don’t haze newbies, alcohol intervention policies, and programs that teach college students to act responsibly as signs of progress. Boys will be boys only as long as chauvinism is cool.
Comments
Leave a Reply