Raising REAL Boys!
In Search of New Pinocchios
Huh?
It may not be a concept you’re familiar with, but you’re seeing it all over in culture today:
In politicians, rather than debating issues, call their opponents “women.”
In Christian denominations banning women from leadership roles because women are inferior to men.
In many, not all, facets of the manosphere focused on grievance, strength, and self-worth based on the devaluing of women.
Hegemonic Masculinity suggests that the keys to being a REAL man are emotional suppression, aggression, grievance, domination of women, competitiveness, and power.
Note: Nothing wrong with being competitive. Competition, at its best, brings out our best.
Nothing wrong with power, either. It all depends on how the power is used. (With great power comes great responsibility.)
But Hegemonic Masculinity abuses power for selfish gain and uses competition to stamp out those considered to be weak or in the way.
It’s all about posing. Performance. Strutting.
It’s insecurity dressed up as REAL Manhood.
It’s all form with no substance.
It’s the Emperor with no clothes on.
Or, as Pinocchio discovered, Pleasure Island turns boys into jackasses.
And it’s leaving our young men empty. And lost.
The story of Pinocchio (the Disney movie version) offers our boys a vision of manhood that is good, noble, and substantive.
Pinocchio becomes REAL when he embraces truth, bravery, and unselfishness.
That’s where real power comes from.
That’s the stuff of REAL manhood.
That’s the kind of masculinity that will assist in rebuilding, refining, and redeeming our culture.
That’s the kind of REAL manhood that will set our boys up to thrive and flourish as men.
How about we forge those character qualities into our boys and show them what REAL manhood looks like!
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Check out this review of my latest Toby Baxter book—The Adventures of Toby Baxter-Book 5: The Revenge of the RiverHome Rootabeggas:
Tim Wright delivers another wildly imaginative, laugh-out-loud adventure in The Adventures of Toby Baxter: Revenge of the RiverHome Rootabeggas. Blending fantasy, humor, heart, and middle-school realism, this fifth installment in the Toby Baxter series is an exciting journey that will keep young readers turning pages while also encouraging them to think deeply about anger, hope, friendship, and resilience.
One of the greatest strengths of this series is the way Tim Wright respects the intelligence and emotional world of middle-grade readers. Toby is relatable, funny, awkward, brave, and wonderfully human. Whether he’s navigating first love, dealing with frustration, or battling strange magical creatures from RiverHome, readers will recognize pieces of themselves in Toby’s journey.