Dads in the Media: Devolution of the American Man
Remember when the ideal American man was rugged, tough, handsome, intelligent, courageous, and confident? No? Me neither. That’s because for the last forty or fifty years the image of the American man has been deteriorated by a media obsessed with political correctness and equality. So much so that they have allowed the pendulum to swing too far in the opposite direction, creating a series of leading “men” who possess qualities far opposite from what the ideal used to be. Apparently, I’m not the only one that thinks dads in the media are portrayed this way.
Sitcom Dads
Think of the current list of hit television sitcoms. It’s tough to come up with one with a strong, male lead character. TV Dads are usually portrayed as weak, goofy, and totally out of touch. Dads and husbands are frequently run over by stronger, beautiful, intelligent women who for some unknown reason chose the goofball as their spouse. I guess it just isn’t politically correct to portray a husband and father leading his family, parenting his children, and making a successful career. When sitcom dads aren’t running into walls, getting fired from their jobs, or burning something in the kitchen, they are portrayed as skirt-chasing ogres who lack any loyalty to their wives. Conversely, the show Desperate Housewives, which features at least one housewife and one divorcee known for their proclivity to sleep around, is wildly popular. Go figure.
Movie Dads
Movies aren’t much better. Many of today’s leading men look more like yesterday’s leading women. I remember back when Leonardo DiCaprio was the “hunk” of the time. To qualify for “hunk” status you should probably weigh more than 150 pounds and not make a habit of tossing your blonde locks out from in front of your eyes when you read lines. Then again, my favorite actors growing up were Stallone, Bruce Willis and Harrison Ford. These guys were a “man’s man.” They liked violence, pretty girls and an occasional drink, and they didn’t apologize for it.
Male Beauty Products
The other day I stopped in a Bath and Body Works store with my wife, despite the immediate threat of an asthma attack. I noticed an entire shelf devoted to “Male Beauty Products” stocked with skin softeners and wrinkle cream. Are you kidding me? Where’s the Lava soap and aftershave? That’s all we need to get clean and smell good. Who buys this stuff, anyway? A local spa is currently running a radio advertisement in which they cite a statistic that something like 30% of people receiving “anti-aging” treatments are men. Huh? When real men start to get wrinkles they just grow a beard. When real men start losing some hair they just shave it close. And speaking of spa treatments, when our nails grow too long we’ll just bite ‘em or clip ‘em, thank you very much!
Real Men Do Have a Soft Side
There are couple things that can still get to a real man, but we’ll never refer to it as showing our “feminine side.” It’s just part of being a man, and a devoted husband and father. My kids are pretty good at tugging on my heartstrings, and I’ve never felt pain like seeing one of them get hurt, or lying in bed sick. It’s one of the few times I feel completely helpless. I also have a soft spot for animals, and Mother Nature’s beauty. Perhaps I inherited that from my grandfather, who in his retirement has become quite the shutterbug snapping up beautiful nature photographs. You probably wouldn’t guess just a few decades before he retired a colonel from the United States Marine Corp. He is the strongest man I’ve ever known, and the most gentle, too – Hollywood should take a clue.
