Taking Care of Men: Sexual Politics in the Public Mind

by Anthony McMahon

Overview

This book sets out to determine how much of the hype about the sensitive, post-feminist "new man" is based on fact, and why such images have proliferated in the media. McMahon focuses on the pivotal issue of men's relationship to the daily work of caring for people, revealing much confusion about the extent and the interpretation of change. Using statistical data, interview transcripts and media analysis, McMahon draws insightful distinctions between pleasure and performance, assistance and responsibility, consumption and production.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521588201
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	08/13/1999
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	6.06(w) x 9.02(h) x 0.63(d)

Table of Contents

Introduction; 1. Changing Men?; Part I. The Interests of Men: 2. Having a wife: the division of labour and male right; 3. Producing men: the labour of love; Part II. The Revolving Door: 4. Stalled rhetoric: the optimistic will; 5. It's on the agenda: optimism about images; 6. The new father: the masculine new man; Part III. The Blocked Door: 7. Blocked door theory: misrecognising resistance; 8. The separated, defensive male: psychologizing sexual politics; 9. Conclusion: looking after men.

Editorial Reviews

"The author knows full well that his findings will not be popular with many pop psychologists and bestseller writers. He challenges the ideological foundation of modern romantic heterosexual marriage, in which all aspects life are equitably shared. There is much to ponder here, no matter what predilections one carries on this complex issue." Marshall Fishwick, Times

"McMahon offers an illuminating presentation of feminist materialism... The intellectual provocations are rich and the inspirations for profound debate and further study profuse." Choice

"Anthony McMahon's Taking Care of Men is an important book. As he notes in his conclusion: 'After 20 or more years of being 'on the agenda', the sexual-poltical issue of the division of domestic labour is still largely a matter for praivate struggle and private despair'(206). He invites us to make is a public political issue instead." Meg Luxton, CJS Online

From the Publisher