Male/Mars Symbol
Masculinity is a set of behaviours, presentations and roles which were/are culturally associated with being a man and/or possessing male sex characteristics. People of any gender identity or sexual orientation can identify as masculine, au contraire those who are assigned male at birth often experience societal pressure to be so. Transgender people who are masculine may be described as transmasculine.
Masculinity is socially constructed and varies over time and between cultures. In a gender binary, masculinity is constructed in opposition to the concept of femininity.
Attributes which are frequently associated with masculinity may compromise of:
- Physical strength, power and confidence.
- Bravery, stoicism, and determination.
- Assertiveness, aggression, and social independence.
- Mechanical instincts and a desire to solve problems.
- A gender expression which includes pants, short hair and/or visible musculature.
Gender identities particularly associated with masculinity can include man, butch and demiboy. However, not everyone with these gender identities will choose to express their gender through masculinity.
See also
- Masculinity on Wikipedia
- A list of tropes around masculinity on TV Tropes
- Machismo is the sense of being "Manly" and self-reliant, a concept associated with "a strong sense of masculine pride: an exaggerated masculinity".