Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men

Michael Kimmel
HarperCollins Publishers (2008)
ISBN 9780060831349
Reviewed by Carol Hoyer, PhD, for Reader Views (12/08)

 

Michael Kimmel has written an extraordinary account of why young men today do not grow up as they did in past generations. Through his interviews with hundreds of young men ages sixteen to twenty-six, Kimmel gives us the inside scoop on why young men are marching a different path today. For them, the responsibility of work, marriage and responsibility is a something that will come later on.

What is interesting is the chapter on Culture of Protection. It’s a guy thing apparently. An example is a group of young men lured a mentally-challenged girl into a basement with the intent to have sex with her. Two of the young men didn’t want to participate so they left. However, they did not tell anyone what was happening even though they knew it was wrong. Parents also have a tendency to gloss over activities they know are harmful to their sons or someone else. Dads are proud of their sons for showing their “maleness.” Is this what we have become? Just because you’re a guy it’s okay to harm others, take what doesn’t belong to you and then act like it never happened?

Throughout the book, “Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men,” the author, Michael Kimmel, addresses subjects such as: sex, marriage and work. He provides much insight into what is going on in the minds of young men today. His interviews with many young men stun the reader. As a Psychologist I thought I had a pretty good understanding of the younger generation today- boy was I surprised! It makes me look at my own 30-year-old son, who sadly is still stuck in Guyland.

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