Making Sense of Increasing Physical Touch in Australian Men's Friendships
A Feminist Poststructuralist Dialogue with Inclusive Masculinity Theory
in Journal of Bodies, Sexualities, and MasculinitiesSearch for other papers by Brittany Ralph in
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Abstract
The increasing incidence of platonic hugging and kissing among men has sparked considerable debate in scholarly literature, particularly surrounding Eric Anderson's articulation of inclusive masculinity theory (IMT). Aiming to move productively beyond Anderson's critics, we propose a feminist poststructuralist reframing of IMT that emphasizes the discursive dynamics underpinning men's uptake of “feminized” practices. Drawing on data from interviews with 14 pairs of fathers and sons living in Australia, we conceptualize their increasing engagement in platonic physical intimacy with other men as an assertion of queer-inclusion discourse and contestation of masculinist discourse that is neither linear nor necessarily consistent. Ultimately, we argue this approach allows scholars to retain some of Anderson's key theoretical contentions, while better accounting for change, continuity, and contradiction in men's gender practice.
Contributor Notes
Brittany Ralph is Lecturer in Sociology at the School of Law and Social Justice, University of Liverpool, United Kingdom. Her research interests include men's friendships, online misogyny, and gender-based violence. Through this body of work, she seeks to make both empirical and theoretical contributions to debates about the prospect for socio-positive change in masculinities. Her book, Destabilising Masculinism: Men's Friendship and Social Change was published by Palgrave Macmillan in late 2023. ORCID:
Steven Roberts is a Professor of Education and Social Justice in the School of Education, Culture and Society at Monash University. His research interests revolve around the intersections of masculinities, youth, social class, and “risky” social practice. His books include Young Working-Class Men in Transition (Routledge, 2018) and Gender, Masculinity and Video Gaming (with Marcus Maloney and Tim Graham; Palgrave 2019). ORCID: