ACTIVITY NO.

1) Based on your previous experience, answer the following questions:

a) What are your different ideas on manhood/manliness?

Once you got the strong sense of identity you’ll have to start figuring out
what direction you should take in your life. Manhood for me isn’t related to the
amount of women you’ve slept with, it can’t be tape-measured by the size of
your biceps, and it surely isn’t defined by the number in your bank account. It’s
all about facing whatever responsibility they have, respecting women and
children and can depend on in times of need. I don’t believe real manhood is
defined by anything that can be found outside of you. It’s a combination of
character values (self-defined), clear direction in life (self-directed) and
autonomy (self-supported).

b) What is/are the dominant notion(s) of manhood/manliness? Why do you think

so?

Society created a deluded image in our modern youth of what a real man
should be like a man should be strong at all times, never show the softness in
themselves or their emotion, be aggressive and gets in fights, drink alcohol and
do drugs, big and muscular. I think it’s the ideas of today’s generation about men
because they were persuaded by the social media or the things they saw on
television. Moreover, it is the stereotype ideas of manhood ever since and as
years pass by, these things are slowly putting aside.

2) After reading the Reading text titled, Being a Man, answer the following questions:

a) What is the essay about? What is its thesis?

In the entire beginning of the essay, he goes on about how being a man is
such a downfall. Theroux states that being manly is to be stupid, be unfeeling,
obedient, soldierly, and stop thinking. Being manly in no way, you are expected
to ignore common etiquette and disrespect others, unless of course, you have a
very low grade idea of manliness. Most men are embarrassed to admit that they
do certain activities like going shopping or hanging out with their mom, because
that might inflict with them being a man. The last third of the essay is spent
addressing the struggles of being a male writer while writing (during the 1980’s)
wasn’t perceived as a manly profession unless you yourself are able to prove it
otherwise by performing outlandish tasks for the general public to approve of.

b) How did Paul Theroux develop the essay’s thesis?

He describes his intense dislike of being a man. He explains, in his

opinion, society's view of manliness and what it means to "be a man."
 Throughout the essay, Theroux tries to lure his audience over to his side, to
understanding his disgust for the modern world's "insulting" idea of masculinity.

c) What do you think is the purpose of the writer?

Theroux writes about the rigid expectations placed on men by society to

conform to a narrow, inflexible definition of “manliness” that stifles men’s true
selves and instead forces them into beAing restricted by society’s definition of
masculinity that forces them to belittle their own intelligence or exaggerate their
perceived masculinity through physical outlets out of fear of appearing too weak
or “soft”. Theroux argues that even in the post-feminism period in which he
writes his essay, men, in particular younger boys and teenagers are forced into
this rigid and narrow definition of what being a man is supposed to be.

d) Go back to your annotation. What are the words that you found difficult to
understand?
The words I can’t recognize at first comprehend were:
 Coquette
 Grotesque
 Treacherous
 Prutanical
 Philistine

So I needed to check my dictionary to uncover and understand those

words.

e) Are there concepts and/or reference mentioned in the text that you are not
familiar with? What are those?

Well, honestly most of the references mentioned were unfamiliar to me

because I don’t have any resources of that.

f) Based on the language and style of the writer, who do you think is the target
audience of this essay?

The audience is anyone interested because he wants to show how society

views men. He believes our world's idea of manliness is an insult, something to
be ashamed of. He argues that men are conformed to this masculine mold at the
very beginnings of development and are forced to shut themselves into this
disrespectful, unintelligent, insensitive role. He relates this gender stereotype,
which men feel obligated to live by, to the same way women feel obligated to be
the stereotypical feminine woman

About the content

a) Why does Theroux dislike being a man?

 Paul is very upset with how society makes the whole idea of manhood in
America. He has an angry tone throughout his essay and uses certain diction to
show his argument. He is definitely against the whole how a man should be
manly type thing. Paul just wants the men and women to be equal and to be able
to do “women like” things like be a writer without being called anything less than
a man. He thinks it is pretty stupid how men are supposed to only do sports and
can’t think for themselves and not be alone.

b) Based on his different definitions, what is his concept of being a man?

Theroux thinks “the whole idea of manhood in America is pitiful”. It

makes the reader see how hard it is to be a man, and all the stereotypes there
are about men that make them be who they are. He states this when he says
that “Man means ‘manly’”, by this he means that the expression “Be a man!”,
means “be stupid, be unfeeling, obedient, soldierly, and stop thinking.

c) Does your concept of manhood/manliness discussed in the warm-up activity

match to Theroux concept of manhood? What accounts for the similarities and
differences? What/ who has influenced your definition of the concept?

• I don’t think I have the same idea with him as to what is his definition of
manhood. For me, a man, whatever happens or whatever circumstance may
he faced, he should have character values (self-defined), clear direction in life
(self-directed) and autonomy (self-supported).

In a stereotypical mind, his definition might be common but nowadays,

people have diverse implication and perception in one thing. What made me
consider my definition of manhood is I have been enclosed with various
individuals especially men and they made me apprehend what a man must be. I
have been living with 4 men under one roof for many years now and I can say
Theroux’s definition of manhood doesn’t concern to my family nor to any men
who discern their worth and essence in the world.

d) What do you think are the issue in Theroux’s definition of manhood?

Theroux states many times during the text how he feels about being a
man and Theroux says that American culture doesn’t do much for a man, that
men are “both a measure of insecurity and willingness to please”. Later, the
reader can see an emotional response when Theroux states that he takes it as a
“personal insult”, because for many years he found it impossible to admit to him
that he wanted to be a writer. He says this was his “guilty secret because being a
writer was incompatible with being a man”. Another emotional response the
reader can see in Being a Man by Paul Theroux, is when he states that the
expression “Be a man”, strikes him as “insultive and abusive”.
Reaction

In this essay, he describes his intense dislike of being a man. He explains, in his opinion,
society's view of manliness and what it means to "be a man." Throughout the essay, Theroux
tries to lure his audience over to his side, to understanding his disgust for the modern world's
"insulting" idea of masculinity.

Theroux's main argument is that he believes our world's idea of manliness is an insult,
something to be ashamed of. He argues that men are conformed to this masculine mold at the
very beginnings of development and are forced to shut themselves into this disrespectful,
unintelligent, insensitive role. He relates this gender stereotype, which men feel obligated to
live by, to the same way women feel obligated to be the stereotypical feminine woman.

He uses the appeal of logos by using personal experience, explaining how embarrassing it
was that his dream to be a writer, not something considered manlier. He uses reason for his
argument, saying that most men hate being a man. He also uses the appeal of ethos by being a
credible writer, having written four books and travelled as part of the Peace Corps. Last but not
least, he utilizes the appeal of pathos by getting the reader emotionally involved. As I
mentioned earlier, Theroux brings women into the picture and, in a way, unites the sexes
against these pre-conceived masculine and feminine stereotypes. It's as if he is saying, "No, I
don't like being a man because of these shoes I feel obligated to fill, and you women are in the
same boat!" He also mentions feeling personally insulted by society's view of masculinity which
invokes sympathy towards him.

Of these three appeals, it seemed as if he relied on pathos the most. I can understand
why. It worked. To me, this appeal seemed the most effective and persuasive. Throughout the
essay, I found myself feeling sorry for him; feeling sorry that that he didn't fit in, that he was
uncomfortable with pursuing his dream as a writer, and feeling sorry that he was so frustrated
with society.

Based on the fact that this essay is straight from one of Theroux's books, I believe his
audience consists of both men and women. Perhaps the purpose of this essay is to say, "Hey,
men, it's okay to not fit the mold. You're not alone." On the other hand, his objective could be
to share some insight with, and relate to, the opposite sex about the frustration of stereotypical
gender roles.

While reading, I found one main weakness within this essay. In my opinion, Theroux
sounded as if he was ranting the entire time, complaining and feeling sorry for himself because
he was different than the stereotypical masculine male. Instead of personally embracing his
differences, he complains about how society won't. This isn't even a logical or proven point. He
is now a writer, obviously socially accepted. We are in fact, reading his works in college English
class. Towards the end of the essay, I found myself disinterested and not wanting to continue
reading. In my opinion, too much negativity and self-pity can turn off an audience.

However, I also found much strength. He uses personal experiences and opinions. He talks
to his audience as if they are chatting over a cup of coffee at a cafe. Theroux uses logos, pathos,
and ethos to win over his audience; to get them to empathize with him. He is straightforward
and brings women into the picture. He implies the appreciation for natural friendships with
women, which is very likely to win over a female audience. He also speaks for men of all ages,
talking about how even young boys are taught to be "stupid, be unfeeling, obedient, soldierly,
and stop thinking."

I think some countries still follow this beliefs wherein man is powerful, man is all the
woman need to live as if they depend their lives on their man but in contrast, Philippines had
abolished this ideas because as we see nowadays, more women are now inclined to the things
only men can do before. For example, there are now construction workers, drivers, engineers,
doctors, lawyers and many more professions who give equal opportunity and chances to all
genders without discrimination as long as you do good and work diligently.