The Toxic War on Masculinity

“‘Why Can’t We Hate Men?’ asks a headline in The Washington Post. A trendy hashtag is #KillAllMen. Books are sold titled ‘I Hate Men’, ‘No Good Men’, and ‘Are Men Necessary’? How did an ideology arise that condemns masculinity as dangerous and destructive?”

These are the words on the Amazon website recommending Nancy Pearcey’s latest book, The Toxic War on Masculinity. I have a confession to make. I bought a copy myself when it came out in June 2023, but I have not finished reading it. I even bought a copy for my friend and author, Cindy McGarvie, who is a staunch defender of the male of the species.

I have read enough to know it is a brilliant book! But I have written two books myself in the last 12 months, which has soaked up any extra time. I plan to release the most recent book at the Men’s Leadership Summit, 9-11 August. (Come and find out.)

Many of my friends have reviewed The Toxic War on Masculinity in glowing terms. Bill Muehlenberg’s review of this breakthrough book is very much worth the read. My friend John Anderson has just released his review of the book, which you can find in abbreviated form below.

Check out John Anderson’s long-form full interview with Nancy Pearcey here. Please find below a four-minute version of their wide-ranging discussion called “Fatherhood is Actually Natural and Benefits Men“.

Men are important, especially as fathers. Children with absent fathers count for 63% of youth suicides, 90% of homeless and runaway children, 85% of children with behavioural disorders, 71% of high school dropouts, and 85% of imprisoned youths. And yet our culture seems to be at war with the very force it arguably needs more of — masculinity.

Ours is a culture that has fallen into a default mode of either denigrating manhood or promoting models of manhood that are seriously misguided. This becomes a big social problem. As Pearcey says, “When an educated culture routinely denigrates masculinity and manhood, then women will be perpetually stuck with boys, who have no incentive to mature or to honour their commitments.” [23]

How did our culture go from honouring men and manliness to constantly denigrating masculinity as toxic, and infantilising men? Pearcey explains how this came to be and what we can do to recapture a tradition of positive manliness…

The Industrial Revolution

The great shift in attitudes regarding men (and women) begins during the Industrial Revolution (IR), stretching from the 18th century and throughout the 20th century. Prior to the IR, work and family were integrated, with father figuring prominently in both…

With the IR, families were shifted off the land and came to make ends meet by one or two parents entering into factories to work for the 12-hour day, and later driving into cities from suburbs to work all day… Increasingly women were seen as the moral and spiritual centre of gravity, and men seen as those who needed civilizing and feminine spiritual leadership. Thus, the seeds for modern talk of “toxic masculinity” were sown.

The turn against men can be seen in shifting opinions over the decades.

Opinion on men over the years 1970 2005

“Men are basically kind and considerate” 65% 44%

“Men’s egos require that they put women down” 41% 58%

“All a man really wants from a date is to go to bed” 44% 71%

“All a man is really interested in is his career, not his family” 39% 56%

The way forward

Key to moving forward with families and manliness is to recreate “a workplace culture that values the family as much as it values professional achievement.” As Pearcey points out, research shows that more family-integrated men make for more productive workers… As Pearcey says, “It was the industrial economy that drove men out of the home; it could be the post-industrial economy, with its advanced technology, that will bring men back.” …

Commentary

The Toxic War on Masculinity is a rich and wide-ranging book, drawing on insights from history, literature, sociology, economics, philosophy, and the Bible. It is at once a very sympathetic book towards men but at the same time holds men to the highest standard – the example of Jesus himself.

Notwithstanding the explicitly Christian approach of the analysis, The Toxic War on Masculinity will be immensely illuminating for anyone, religious or not, who sincerely wishes to understand the origins of the present anti-male discourse in our culture, but also wants to understand alternative ways of thinking and practical paths to reclaim an integrated work-family life. Pearcey’s book is an excellent step towards reclaiming true manliness from purveyors of anti-masculine ideologies.