While watching this movie, the issue of gender really jumped out to me. The people in this movie are handicapped, but they are still able to function. They play this sport called muderball. This was the first time I heard about this sport, and when I watched a game of muderball, I was amazed. This is a very athletic and physical sport. It is very intense and the players, even though the players are quadriplegics they were some of the most athletic people I have ever seen.
A question I thought about while watching this movie was, why does society say men have to behave a certain way, in order to be consider manly? Men are supposed to have no emotions, be tough, get in fights, drink, and wrestle. Some of the people in this movie were macho men, but there were some men who were the exact opposite. The men, who were the exact opposite of the macho men, broke the rules of society that culture has created for men. I am not sure if that means the men who show emotions and don’t like to fight or act tough are less manly. However, I know in society these men are teased by their peers. They are usually called homosexuals even if they are straight. An example of one character from this movie, Joe’s son is the exact opposite of Joe. Joe is very tough and a true macho man. He yelled and cursed regularly, and got into a lot of fights. His son, Robert, is very smart and calm. Robert was so smart he was put into advanced classes. Before Robert was put into the advanced classes, he was picked on by his fellow peers. They made fun of him because he was not the stereotypical macho man. People would classify him as a geek or a nerd. Robert was not good at physical sports; instead he played an instrument in the orchestra.
I am not sure why society stresses boys like Robert are not really boys. Society says these boys are girly, and society makes fun of people that are like him. While, society would look up to the people like Joe and think he is very manly. I think this is hard for boys who are like Robert. Society forces them to change and be manlier. It is placed in everyone’s mind, athletics are associated with manliness. Men are supposed to be really athletic and good at sports. While society says women are good at cooking and house work. That is the reason why I think men are obsessed with sport. Culture says that real men should be good at sports and are superior at sports. Since the people in this movie were quadriplegics, it was harder for society to accept them as men. Quadriplegics often receive sympathy from other people. However, they are fine and do not need others to feel sorry for them. I believe playing murderball allows the quadriplegics to gain back some of their manliness; some of the manliness they have lost since becoming a quadriplegic. Also, the quadriplegics increase their manliness by talking big throughout the whole movie. In one scene, a guy makes fun of someone who offered to help him get in his car at the grocery store. He answers back with, “I would not drive myself to the grocery if I could not get back in my car.” Even if they are in their wheelchair, the people in this video were not afraid to fight someone who was not a quadriplegic. The quadriplegics believed they could beat up anyone.
The scene where the men are talking about women’s boobs was an identity and culture moment. Culture says, men like women who have really big boobs. It is the feature men are supposedly mostly attracted to. While the men are sitting and talking to each other about women’s boobs, one of the men says he does not really care about big boobs. When the other men hear what his opinion on boobs is, they tease him. They tell him he is not a real man. I thought this was really interesting because he did not fit into what society says a real man should be or think. Therefore, he was made fun of by his peers.
I think it is interesting how society is drawn and entertained by scenes where people get hurt or teased. For example, the television show jackass reminded me of this movie. The show jackass is about people who are acting stupid and hurt themselves. I believe society likes to watch other people get teased. In the first place, I believe people tease each other to make themselves feel better. I am not sure how society has come to this place because I do not think it is good to be drawn to these scenes.
While watching this movie, I started to ponder how guys act and how they uphold their manliness. For example, it is hard for men to say I love you because they believe they are not supposed to show their emotions. I notice a difference when boys are hanging out with boys and when boys are hanging out with girls. When boys hang out with other boys, they all try to be very tough. If boys go to the movie theaters together, they will not sit next to each other. Instead they will take up a whole row because they sit at least a seat apart from each other. I have a friend whose boyfriend acts very differently when he is with her compared to when he is with his friends. When he is with her, he is so nice and sweet. However, when he is with his friend he will not be as sweet to her. He tries to uphold his manly image when he is in front of his friends. He tells her he loves her, but he would never say, “I love you” when he is with his friends. Also, the boys he hung out only mentioned his girlfriend, when they would ask him how far he has gotten with her. I thought this was horrible because society says, all boys should behave and think like this. Culture has had a big impact on boys and this is how they are all beginning to think and act. This is how you become cool and how you fit into society.
This movie allowed me to learn more about the hardships boys have to go through. I learned how much culture has shaped what boys think and believe. I was able to learn why some of my friends, who are boys, act they way they do. I am still confused about why is it good to be considered manly? I feel bad for the people like Robert who may not be good at sports, but are smart and good at viola. I am not sure what to tell people like him. I want them to continue being who they are but if they do that their peers will ridicule them. The image society has projected for men to follow has limited individuals from being their true self.
In addition to this, I thought about everything else we had learned from Identity and Culture Class. I thought how it was interesting how Charlie was able to cry quite often in front of everyone. Also, since society says that boys are not suppose to like each other, the relationship between Patrick and Brad was keep undercover. In contrast there was Tommy who played football and was on the football team, who was never teased because he was the typical manly man.
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