For homework tonight, read Michael Chabon's essay, "Faking It" (343-346 in The Writer's Presence). Then answer the following prompt:
How does Chabon challenge the American notion of masculinity? (To start with, think about what it means to be "masculine" in America.) How does this essay work as a parody (an imitative work created to mock or comment on a particular subject by means of humorous exaggeration)? Provide examples to support your opinion and claims.
Chabon challenges the American notion of masculinity by making "a promise to (himself) not to pretend to knowledge (he) did not possess, not to claim authority (he)plainly lacked, not to hide (his) doubts and uncertainties, (his) setbacks and regrets, from (his children.)" This promise is contrary to the typical stereotype of what a "man" is in America. I also believe that as much of Chaban wants to follow this promise he has made, it is clear through his examples that as a father and husband he has a desire to be this man he mocks. This is shown through his efforts of putting up the towel racks, and his radical decision to drive home in a blizzard; both of which he displayed false notions of confidence, security, and knowledge.
ReplyDeleteThis essay works as a parody because of the mocking, exaggerated descriptions of what it means to be a "man." Chaban describes the essential element of being a man as "flooding everyone around you in a great radiant arc of bullshit." This seems absurd and drastic but then when you think of a male figure in your life you are hit with the sudden realization that this is factual. Chaban also makes this truth evident by describing his fathers efforts of putting together a barbecue grill and "disdaining the directions sheet." Then "at last when (he) betrayed (his father)," even his mother was shocked. This points out the universal acceptance of male ignorance and dominance. I also thought it was comical as he explained the stereotypical things men do such as refusing to stop and ask for directions, and knowing how to use every tool under the sun.
In Chaban's essay "Faking It", he mocks the american definition of a man and attitude a man should have. Chaban makes it sound shameful to fullfil this image of a man and pretend to know what your talking about and claim the knowledge you do not posess. Chaban recals experiences with his father when his father expressed this type of ignorance and the shock shown by his mother when he "betrayed" his father showing how excepted this ignorance is in our society. He gives multiple examples from asking for directions to claiming to know every tool necessary to be called a proper man.Chaban makes a promise to himself to not fullfil this image and stay true and honest to both his whife and children.
ReplyDeleteThis could be concidered a parody by the fact that although Chaban makes these acts of a man seem unecessary and shameful he himself seems to look at them as irresistable. He shows when he decides to drive through a blizzard that although he had no idea what he was doing it almost seemed necessary to not let his wife or kids see this as his role as a man to make them feel comfortable and confident in him. Once his wife begins bragging on his ability to make the drive, he thinks about informing her on his uncertainty but excepts the praise instead and reveal the act of pretending to be irresistable even for a male as himself who looks down on the act so strongly.
"There is also the more subtle damage that is done repeatedly to boys who grow up learning from their fathers and the men around them the tragic lesson that failure is not a human constant but a kind of aberration of gender, a flaw in a man, to be concealed. " I think this is a very true quote from the story. I notice this all the time with other dudes. Loosing seems to not be an option for most bros because it means being downgraded by other men. Stoping and asking directions is something no man will do because he wants to think he knows the land and how to do everything.
ReplyDeleteGrowing up, we are taught to act like our fathers, therefore, they are required to be good role models and act accordingly.
Chaban believes that “the trick of being a man is to give the appearance of keeping your head when, deep inside, the truest part of you is crying out, Oh s@#t”. This means that men act as if they know exactly what they are doing at all times, even though deep inside they know they are screwed. This gives men a sense of power and makes others, especially women, respect and admire them. Chaban does not want to display this image that men give off. He gives an example of his father putting a grill together completely upside down and backwards all because he was too stubborn to look at the manual. He then goes on to make a promise that he will not act in this foolish way.
ReplyDeleteThis essay is a parody because as he goes on in his essay, he recalls times when he, himself acted foolishly by not waiting out a blizzard and not knowing how to use his power tools but doing it anyways. He realizes that it is natural for men to act in this dominant way. Everyone wants to be looked at as a handyman who can do the dirty work, when really they have no idea what they are doing. All they want to do is look like a role model for their kids or impress a certain woman in their life. Men want to have a sense of power over others, so it is their natural instinct to act in this masculine way.
In this story Chaban makes it seem like it is a bad thing to be a man for instance in the very first page he said he doesn’t want to be a man that pretends to know what he is talking about when in all actuality he has no clue about. He also wants to be this man that he doesn’t want to be or that he makes fun of as a husband and father so he is somewhat hypocritical. He gives many examples from asking for directions to claiming to know every tool necessary to be called a real man.
ReplyDeleteThis essay can be seen as a parody because of the fact that the way that we see the man to be in today’s world is now being seen as a joke or being a fool that no person wants to be and it is looked as shameful or a disgrace to be so ignorant. A way that this is a parody also is that he is hypocritical, he doesn’t want to be the ignorant man that he talks about but being in the husband role or father role he wants to always be the one that they can look to for guidance whether he knows what he is doing or not.
In "faking It" by Micheal Chaban he says that "This is an essential element of the business of being a man: to flood everyone around you in a great radiant arc of bullshit, one whose source and object of greatest intensity is yourself." Which in America i beleive is not true, because a "radiant arc of bullshit" is just another term for lieing. Masculinity for everyone is different, for some it may mean being strong and indepentdent and for others it could mean the oppisite. Chaban discusses a few examples on how the men in his life try to show there masculinity by "knowing" how to put something together without looking at the directions, just because they are men. Like his father and the grill, this a good example of the differences in what his mother and father thought about the directions and his dads ability to assemble the grill without them. I beleive that masculinity in America is defined as being a strong independent person who knows how to do manly things, hunting, fishing, automechanic work, and etc.
ReplyDeleteIn the story Michael Chaban is stating all your typical "man things." Such as "mens refusel to ask for directions." He points out that men like to be challenged and to accomplish things with out the need assistance from anyone. It is more of a pride and ego boost for males. Also to show that he is capable on his own aka being independent. By building the towel hook, he refused to admit that he messed up or built it wrong. For some reason that just messes with men, yes litttle stuff like that will mess with a man. When he means by "challenging" your fellow "man hood", he wants you to ask for help, even tho it will drive you insane. Also to addmiting that you have failed "the towels are still hanging from the rack in the bathroom. And I fully expect, at any moment, in the dead at night, to hear a telltale clatter on the tiles."
ReplyDeleteMichael chaban in Faking it challenges the act of being a man. For example in the story being a man to his father is putting a stove toghter without reading the directions to Chaban he thinks its alright to read the directions thats what their there for. Also asking for directions his dad believes to be an unmanly thing to do but to Chaban he sort of challenges it. The story makes a good point it talks about a true fact saying men think they know what there doing but in all actuality they are completely in a hole and have no clue how to get out of it. For example if there lost they feel its better to be lost for 3 to 4 hours rather then 5 minutes just by asking for directions. The parody is he wants to be a respectable father to his family not some morone who kind of just wings everything hoping he can get through it eventually. The story also jokes about the typical man in a humorous way stating how they dont really know till there completely screwed which is sorta comical because its also a known fact about most males if you think about it we wing it hoping for the best sometimes
ReplyDeleteChaban is a man who sees other men as someone who thinks they know it all and will play tough when really they know that they may be wrong, like when he says his father built the grill comepletly wrong. He does not want to be this fake image who is hiding behind his emotions and not show how he feels and admit that he may sometimes be wrong like when the power tools that he did not know how to use but did any ways. He also points out that men do not want to be told what to do because most feel as if they already know.
ReplyDeleteMichael Chabon uses parody to describe the normal way most men handle projects, directions, or anything else that requires specific details. The story was about a man having to hang a towel holder. He had all the tools that he needed and said he sort of knew how to operate them as well. He was “faking” that he had things under control. He learned to fake it by his father and made comment that most men did the same. Chabon ended the story but talking about driving his family through a snow storm. He was over his head but his wife and kids were not concerned about his ability at all. He got his family through the snow storm and his wife told him that she had all the confidence in the world. He acted like he did too but confessed that he was surprised in his success and that he was still waiting for the towel bar that he installed to fall.
ReplyDeleteMichael Chabon states in the story Faking It how men are stubborn and and would rather get lost then stop and ask for directions. He tells a story of how once his father refuses to look at a manual and accidently builds a grill upside down and useless. Men are like this because they want that sense of control and power and of course we cant let women take control. Even though half the time we are clueless we do it anyways and then find our way out. Michael Chabon gives an example of how he refused to wait out a blizzard and decides to rent a truck and drive around the mountain he states that he didnt know where he was goin half the time but he didnt say a single word. Later when the arrived at the destination his wife congraulates him and he is reliefed.
ReplyDeleteIt is a parody because hes makin fun of the ignoracy of men and how unneccesary it is.
I agree with Chabon's interpretation of men in "Faking It". Men always will want the most power especially when women are around. We try to impress on things we know nothing about or how to do. This parody is true with most guys who act in this way for acting as if they can do anything and know how to do everything. It's something that every guy wants to have because we all want to be the "most" powerful man. Chabon describes situations where men act like they know what they're doing when really they have no idea what is going on and hope that whatever they are doing with turn out the right way. We all know this is true because we all do the same thing, we don't like people knowing we're weak in anything. It shows other people like children and women the power and respect that they can do anything and keep their head up even when they know deep down they are screwed. I do think Chabon explained the roles of a lot of men but many men are not like that.
ReplyDeleteMen act as if they're always right, even when they're wrong. I know first hand because I have done this before. To us men this "pride" we have makes us look powerful to others and makes others respect us. In "Faking it", Michael Chaban explains that “the trick of being a man is to give the appearance of keeping your head when, deep inside, the truest part of you is crying out, Oh shit”. Chaban resents this truth because he doesn't want to become it. His father succumbed to this sense of "pride" and it greatly impacted Chaban's opinion of his father at an early age.
ReplyDeleteHowever Chaban's not perfect. He recalls instances in this story where he himself fell victim to this "pride" like when he refused to wait out the blizzard. Every man wants to be viewed as the world's most interesting man, but sadly Dos Equis has already found him. We're all trying to impress that certain someone who may be a colleague, a boss, a lover, or your child. If you admit you're not good at something, I bet you anything there's someone that is good at it that will help you get better. The message from that we should all get out of Chaban's parody is: admit your faults, improve on them, and move on.
Well Chabon explains to us that the version of American masculinity, basically human masculinity, is being stubborn and faking you know what you’re doing. If you don’t know what to do, you feign it, you act is if you know what you are doing, and fake you have the knowledge you have no idea of. This essay works as a parody that basically contradicts our idea of masculine. This essay says you can be a man and not know everything or be able to BS everything, you can be masculine by admitting you don't know everything, but still being able to learn, not be a douche bag about everything
ReplyDeleteWell the story describes about Chabon version of man does not makes sense. The version of a man in America is a person who is a complete prick. How can a man be a man if he is mean to other people? That literally makes no sense. I know that the essay is suppose to be a comedy or parody but still it could be offensive to some masculine male in America. This guy needs to watch what he writes.
ReplyDeleteChabon uses parody to describe the normal way most men handle Situations. The story was told in chabons peer of veiw about how stabborn a man could be.for example the towel rack he had all the tools that he needed and said he knew how to manage them as well. bascally he was faking that he had everything under control. He got these traits from watching his own dad in action and how he controal his situtaion.but chabon says all man knows how to fake it by their father.
ReplyDeleteMichael Chabon shows us what a typical guy is like. He has to figure things out by himself. The reason for that is because, to ask for help is to fail and lose some of your pride. Chabon mocks this idea because he shows the rediculouse side to this. By telling us what he is thinking in the story when he is putting up the towl rack. He is saying he is scared but refuses to say it because that would be to amite defeat and as Chabon shows with his father men do not do that. Which is rediculouse but that is how we are raised and to do so would to lose some man hood.
ReplyDeleteChabon writes this essay as a parody of American "Manliness". After seeing his father's attempt to assemble a grill without the instructions he makes a promise to never be like that. Despite this promise to himself he finds that he is drawn to the same actions. Whether it's driving through a storm or putting up a towel rack. Chabon's essay points out the silliness in pretending to do something you might not be good at, just to appear dominant or avoid appearing weak.
ReplyDeleteChabon gives the reader an example of how the American man should be. He has to do things by himself and learn from his mistakes, but also not let the mistakes concealed because it will lose respect in turn losing his confidence and pride. He also conceals in the story that he is scared while putting up the towl rack, but doesn't want to reveal this. By doing this he's basically trying to keep his pride and not be defeated by the obsticle.
ReplyDeleteChaban is a guy wanting to explain what it means to be a man. At first he talk about himself in 3rd person then later he reveals himself. He says that it is okay to admit when you are wrong and even though you are a man, you need to swallow your pride when you’re wrong. Today being a man could be totally different then it was 20 years ago. Today society is much more accepting of many different types of people. The essay mock the people who try so hard to be a “man’s man” to the best they can be even if it mean lying to themselves and trying to be good at everything when in fact they aren’t. for example, let’s say that a man is trying the grill some steak, because that’s what men do. If this man burns the steak his ego might overpower his frame of mind and fool him into thinking that the steak is good.
ReplyDeleteChabon challenges all things masculine in his novel “Faking It”. Most men brought up in America are expected to have the mentality of always knowing how to do things and always being in control. Chabon did not think this should be the case. He wanted to know why he should know how to put up a towel rack even though he had not done it before. He did not understand why men could not ask even if they were lost. It is because this is not the man that our culture has created. Chabon even came up with an example in his own life when he had to act like he could keep his cool when he thought that he could not. Everybody in the car was convinced they were safe except him when they drove to Idaho Falls. This is, for some reason, the expectation of all men.
ReplyDeleteIn the essay "Faking it", Chabon challenges masculinity. He shows us that men think they know everything and will act like they do despite knowing they are wrong. He also says men refuse to fail. even though we know that we are wrong we will not admit that they are wrong. The essay basically says that all men are stubborn and fake everything. the essay contradicts all of masculinity.
ReplyDelete