Hegemonic masculinity
Also called: Masculinity · Topic: Gender, Religion and Caste in Politics · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
Hegemonic masculinity is the idea of the "ideal man" that a society respects most. "Hegemonic" means dominant, accepted by most people as normal. The sociologist R.W. Connell made the term popular. This ideal man is usually strong, in control, the earner and willing to fight, and he does not show weakness. Few men fully match it, but the ideal still gives men power over women. It also ranks men who do not fit it, such as gentler men or transgender persons, below other men. It matters because it shows that gender roles come from society, not from biology.
Example
In the Tamil film Dorothy (2026), set in rural Madurai in the 1990s, fighting roosters and rams stand for male aggression. The same rooster is also the mount of Bahuchara Mata, a goddess linked to transgender communities. This double meaning shows that the "tough man" image is made by culture. In everyday life, the same ideal shows in the sexual division of labour. Men claim public work and politics, while women's housework goes unnoticed.
Don't confuse with
- Patriarchy: the whole social system in which men dominate women. Hegemonic masculinity is the ideal of manhood that keeps this system going, and it also ranks men above other men.
- Gender division: the unequal roles that society gives to men and women. Hegemonic masculinity is about which kind of man society respects most.