Masculinities in the Making

James W. Messerschmidt is professor of sociology and chair of the criminology department at the University of Southern Maine, where he also teaches in the women's and gender studies program. He is the author or coauthor of a number of books, including Masculinities and Crime and Gender, Heterosexuality, and Youth Violence.

• PrefaceHegemony and BeyondMasculinities as Structured ActionWimps: Sam and JerryGenderqueers: Jessie and MorganPresidents: Bush and ObamaConclusionsReferencesIndex

A leading figure in the interdisciplinary field of men's and masculinity studies, Messerschmidt takes a novel approach in theorizing on masculinity: he looks at its social construction over the life course. In chapters devoted to interviews with what he labels ‘wimps’ and ‘genderqueers’ and content analysis of presidential speeches by Barack Obama and George Bush, the author offers a poignant illustration of the relationship between personal life history and sex, gender, and sexuality construction. Messerschmidt has a long history with this topic, and he draws heavily on his own previously published work, with the result that in places the book seems like a unique form of meta-analysis. That said, he does so with an eye aimed squarely on developing a revised ‘structured action theory,’ one paying particular attention to the intersection of gender, sex, and sexuality in masculinity’s construction. Perhaps Messerschmidt's greatest contribution, however, is found in the conclusion of the book: he provides ten well-thought-out, clearly articulated suggestions for future research on masculinity. Scholars—especially those beginning their careers—will be well served by reading this section closely and heeding the author’s sage advice. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Graduate students, researchers, faculty.