The state of man : images of men and fathers in the late 20th century

The power of the media lies in its ability to construct, change and recycle the narratives and the signs that are foundational to our culture. This paper examines the narratives and signs that represent men and in that representing, also stereotype, enclose and misrepresent men. Because many narratives and images of men are negative, then men and women, and the institutions of society and culture such as the law and the legislature, take for granted these negative images and narratives and build their cultural and legal frameworks based on negative images and narratives. Through arguing that these representations are generally inaccurate, this paper calls for a closer examination of the narratives and images that represent men, an acknowledgment of the power of these images and narratives in the cultural life of Western countries. It argues for a reassessment of the institutional structures that further misrepresent men and place men in disadvantaged positions when they come in contact with these institutional structures.