Race and masculinities in the South African military
OUTPUT TYPE: Journal Article
PUBLICATION YEAR: 2010
TITLE AUTHOR(S): N.Mankayi
KEYWORDS: HETEROSEXUALITY, MASCULINITY, MEN, SEXUAL BEHAVIOUR, SOLDIERS
DEPARTMENT: Public Health, Societies and Belonging (HSC)
Print: HSRC Library: shelf number 6701
HANDLE: 20.500.11910/3915
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11910/3915
If you would like to obtain a copy of this Research Output, please contact Hanlie Baudin at researchoutputs@hsrc.ac.za.
Abstract
Generally, the military and masculinity are confirmed as harmonious and mutual. For many countries, military service assumes the status of initiation into manhood. In South Africa, for example, in the past, young white men were legally obliged to do military service. This emphasises the importance of focusing on white masculinities within the South African military in this article. Strong parallels with 10 African male soldiers who also underscored hegemonic masculinity are drawn. The construction of masculinity of young male soldiers is discussed historically and in the present context. Transcriptions of semi-structured interviews with soldiers drawn from a total of 14 participants were qualitatively analysed and are presented to illustrate the themes that emerged in the interviews. The findings suggest that the military encompasses masculine characteristics and defines soldiering as an embodiment of traditional male sex practices. This article concludes that military context and culture exaggerate and emphasise hegemonic masculinity and heterosexuality for male soldiers.-
Related Research Outputs:
- Male soldiers' constructions of masculinity, sexuality and sexual violence
- Cultural understanding of sexuality among a group of male soldiers: social constructionist approach
- Constructions of masculine sexuality, high risk sex and HIV/AIDS amongst young Xhosa men in South Africa
- Gender attitudes, sexual power, HIV risk: a model for understanding HIV risk behavior of South African men
- Masculinity, the body & power relations
- On sex, violence & being macho in the army: male soldiers and sexual violence
- Rethinking 'masculinities in transition' in South Africa considering the 'intersectionality' of race, class, and sexuality with gender
- Integrated strategies for combination HIV prevention: principles and examples for men who have sex with men in the Americas and heterosexual African populations
- The forgotten fifty percent: a review of sexual and reproductive health research and programs focused on boys and young men in Sub-Saharan Africa
- The fatherhood project: confronting issues of masculinity and sexuality
- Intimate partner violence as a factor associated with risky sexual behaviours and alcohol misuse among men
- Masculine bodies, feminine symbols: challenging gendered identities or compulsory femininity?
- Coital bleeding and HIV risks among men and women in Cape Town, South Africa
- HIV/AIDS risks among South African men who report sexually assaulting women
- Performing heteromasculinities in South African men's magazines
- Disclosure decisions and HIV transmission risk behaviour of HIV positive men who have sex with men (MSM) in Cape Town, South Africa
- Gender, power and resistance to change among two communities in the Western Cape, South Africa
- Stigma and discrimination experiences of HIV-positive men who have sex with men in Cape Town, South Africa
- Sugar daddies' and HIV: is it really about money, money, money?
- HIV testing and self-reported HIV status in South African men who have sex with men: results from a community-based survey