6.2 How are masculinities performed in daily life?
6.2.3 Drinking and smoking
De Visser and Smith (2007, p.596) state that “drinking behaviour is influenced by a range of demographic, social and attitudinal variables. It is important to consider how individual, peer and cultural factors interact to influence men’s alcohol consumption”. Whether or not a man engages in social behaviours such as alcohol consumption or smoking has implications for his masculine identity. Therefore young men’s definition of drinking as being masculine and the importance of them being considered to be masculine may influence their drinking behaviour.
According to a UK study (Harnett, Thom, Herring, & Kelly, 2000), drinking is an important element of young men’s social lives and a taken as a measure of their masculinity.
Respondents in this study emphasized the importance of ‘keeping pace’ with peers when drinking (p.597).
The findings of the Harnett et al., (2000) study are echoed by the current study. Drinking is seen as an important social activity in measuring masculinity. Emphasis is made on the ability drink copious amounts of alcohol to gain respect amongst peers.
One of the participants in the current study emphasized that the amount of alcohol one can have is very important. He also noted that it wasn’t only about being able to keep up while drinking. Young men also had to keep the pace while smoking because if one fails to do so they will be ridiculed.
Young men it seems, are competitive within social spaces that encourage smoking and drinking. This allows them to rank their performances where the more they drink and smoke, the more highly they are regarded amongst their peers (Hinote & Webber, 2012). According to the participants in this study, young men who are able to consume large amounts of alcohol and smoke numerous ‘joints’ are seen as more masculine than other men while men
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who lack competence as drinkers or smokers will be ridiculed. Men who do not drink are subjected to ridicule and are seen as being non-masculine or as failing to achieve an acceptable masculinity.
Participants spoke about drinking as being a mechanism for socializing where the consumption of alcohol became part of an activity instead of being the main activity. Here, the domain of drinking exists without competitiveness, allowing one, as explained by the participants, “to be in that other state of mind”. This particular comment was made in connection with how the young men felt it was difficult to be a young man. This suggests that these young men feel that alcohol allows them to realise a masculinity that they would otherwise struggle to achieve. Those who do not achieve this masculinity would not be accepted socially by other young men. These young men feel a degree of social pressure around performing successful masculinity.
The above findings on drinking as a mechanism for socialising is similar to Sharon Bird’s (1996) work, where she states that “masculinities that are identified as “effeminate” are generally suppressed by men in homosocial settings so as to gain access to the exclusive
“men’s club” and achieve higher social ranking relative to other men”. In Bird’s (1996, p.121) words, “homosocial interaction, among heterosexual men, contributes to the maintenance of hegemonic masculinity norms by supporting meanings associated with identities that fit hegemonic ideals while suppressing meanings associated with non- hegemonic masculine identities”. It seems that social drinking plays a major role for young men in facilitating homosocial interaction and acceptance.
In this study, smoking was reportedly taken up due to peer pressure. When smoking is taken up by the participants, they are not initially aware of the risks involved. However as time goes by, participants become aware of the risks associated with smoking. Although participants in this study did not talk about health related risks such as cancer, they did speak about and admit to the addiction to nicotine. The main risk that emerged was that of nicotine addiction. Smoking cigarettes is also considered to be an important marker of adult masculinity for young boys.
Studies (Merline, O’Malley, Schulenberg, Bachman, & Johnston, 2004; Jefferis, Power, &
Manor, 2005), have found that excessive drinking among young men is a significant predictor of binge drinking in adulthood. Findings in the current study emphasized that young men are aware of the addictive nature of alcohol and tobacco, but it is not enough to inhibit their
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intake. Despite being aware of addiction to both alcohol and nicotine, participants felt that they are exempt from this because they are in control of how much alcohol and tobacco they consume. An important aspect of achieving a successful masculinity in this regard requires a young man to be in control of their actions, including those actions of smoking and drinking.
A young man who drinks and ‘passes out’ has failed to perform a successful masculinity.
Therefore in achieving an acceptable masculinity there is a delicate balance between risk taking, such as through alcohol consumption and control.
There is an interesting dialectic between using substances as a marker of masculinity, and the need to control substance use as another marker of masculinity. Self-control and discipline were highlighted as being essential when one smokes. The ability to stop smoking whenever necessary is important as it shows that one is not addicted and therefore controlled by the substance. Being in control is a key element of masculinity.
So far the findings of this study pertaining to participation in sports, attending gym, smoking and drinking highlight the importance of competition in the construction and maintenance of hegemonic masculinity. Successful masculinity according to the participants involves being good at and winning sports, gaining big muscles at the gym, being able to smoke many cigarettes and marijuana ‘joints’ and drinking copious amounts of alcohol. This finding is evident in work done by Bird (1996) on how homosociality maintains hegemonic masculinity.
Competitiveness, according to Gilligan (1982), is a meaning which is constructed and maintained through relationships with other men where simple individuality becomes competitive individuality. Competition in the male homosocial group supports an identity that depends on separation and distinction as opposed to likeness and co-operation. Messner (1992) elaborates that competition facilitates hierarchy in relationships while co-operation emphasises symmetry in relationships.
Smoking and drinking was mentioned by the Black participants and the Coloured participant but not by the White participants. Although one White participant mentioned that he has friends who drink, he also mentioned that he did not take a picture of them. This implied that he somehow looked down on the idea of drinking heavily. The black participants and the Coloured participant on the other hand held partaking in drinking in high regard and as an important activity amongst peers.
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