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Guyland 1st (first) Edition Text Only (2000)

by Michael S. Kimmel(Favorite Author)

3.65 of 5 Votes: 5

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review 1: I’m all over the place about this book. I learned some things, but overall it lacked focus and many of the quotes seemed contrived.I thought the intro was all over the map and the promotional quotes on the back didn’t really describe the content of the book. As for the chapters, the author brings up important topics which are for the most part well organized. But as soon as he gets on a subject he throws out an extreme quote to back up what he’s saying and then uses sweeping generalizations to wrap up his points. I think the topics in the book are very important and need to be brought to people’s attention, but as far as pop psych/soc books go, it was heavy on the “pop.” The thing that got me was the quotes. They were so extreme they made the people seem like c... morearicatures. I understand having extreme points, but sprinkle in some middle of the road ones to give your ideas more depth rather than a super generality. Maybe I’m just used to reading dull sociology books that are a bit more subtle. Like I said, the issues are important. I am keeping this book for some references and it’s a okay place to start, but I will need to search a little more for a good men’s studies book. Also, I gave this a neutral star rating because I did skip chapters 4,5, and 6. Not that the topics aren’t important, my research just doesn’t rest as strongly in those areas. I will likely return to the book and read them later.
review 2: I liked this book quite a lot. I think it is both useful and necessary. In light of that, I think that it could have been better than it was. It could have stretched itself. There were also some things that I found to be problematic. For example, Kimmel asserts that all girls' hazing serves to uphold the male hierarchy, with the implication that it all involves such things as performing mock fellatio on a boy while ignoring the fact that girls have their own separate Girlland as much as guys have Guyland, and that while girls may have to live in Guyland, not everything they do is directly related to it. Related to this, I took issue with such ideas as girls wearing jeans denoting their participation in "guyification." In a few instances, as well, Kimmel gives some patently wrong information, such as when he asserts that boys are more likely than girls to be depressed. In fact, there were several places where he made statements about psychology but didn't really seem to understand what he was asserting. For example, in regard to psychopathic shooter Eric Harris, he says, "if Harris was indeed so deranged, then it begs the question of why no one in the entire school ever seems to have noticed." This betrays a fundamental misunderstanding of what psychopathy entails. I don't expect everyone to be well-versed in the intricacies of psychology, but if you are going to make your points using it, then please understand it first. On a larger scale, though, Kimmel does a great job of considering and explaining the context in which guys live and how societal constructs of masculinity create and sustain most of the abhorrent behaviors we condemn. It is a societal and cultural issue, not just a guy issue. But in that regard, too, Kimmel could have done a better job, could have stretched himself a bit more. In one section, he gives detailed suggestions of what we can do to confront and change Guyland...but only one. Every other section lacks this crucial part. It is fine and dandy to say that Guyland is not a great place for our boys to become men and that we have to burst the bubbles of entitlement, silence, and protection, but then tell me what we are supposed to do about it. When Kimmel says that we need to foster resilience in our boys and teach them how to intervene when activities like hazing and sexual harassment occur, he needs to elaborate and tell us his ideas for how to do that. This book is so important. Not all guys are the entitled, angry manboys that Kimmel is talking about, but the culture of Guyland caters to those types in particular and so all guys (and girls) ultimately end up having to exist and navigate within it. Given that, it could not be more crucial that we understand that culture. But I would have really loved the author to stretch himself more, to explore many of the ideas that he left hanging, to give us an idea of how we should go about addressing Guyland in our everyday lives, with the guys that we know and love. less

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