Manly Traditions: The Folk Roots of American Masculinities

Take this test. You think today's sensitive, caring man is: a myth, an oxymoron, or a moron. No matter whether you laugh at this bit of folk humor, its wide circulation bespeaks a modern predicament for American men. Men's "manly" traditions have been shaken in an age of "sensitivity." Some observers have even referred to a crisis of masculinity for a new generation of boys. In "Manly Traditions", established scholars in the fields of folklore, men's studies, and gender studies identify the folkloric roots of what it means to be a man in America. In a lively volume, they examine the traditions men inherit and adapt for their own purposes in contemporary life. Simon J. Bronner is a distinguished, University Professor of American Studies and Folklore at the Pennsylvania State University at Harrisburg.

He is the author of over a dozen books, including "Following Tradition: Folklore in the Discourse of American Culture"; "Grasping Things: Folk Material Culture and Mass Society in America"; "The Carver's Art: Crafting Meaning from Wood"; "Folk Nation: Folklore in The Creation of American Tradition"; "American Children's Folklore"; "Piled Higher and Deeper: The Folklore of Student Life"; "Old-Time Music Makers of New York State"; and "American Folklore Studies: An Intellectual History".