As the world celebrates International Men’s Day on November 19, the occasion sets the stage for discussions that go beyond just celebrating men, talking about their mental health, or their contributions and achievements across the globe. With patriarchy in the backdrop, the most harm that is done due to most of the societal norms is largely directed towards the men in our society. One of the most glorified concepts that is almost always hidden in plain sight is the concept of toxic masculinity that impacts men themselves more than it will ever impact the women in the society.
Toxic Masculinity: Glorified Since Ages Having grown up in a society that glorifies toxic men, their dominating and overpowering behaviours, we have often witnessed toxic masculinity in the form of fictional characters, for instance, Ross Geller from the popular TV sitcom Friends and the violent character of Nate in the fan favourite series Euphoria or some of the most loved Bollywood characters like Kabir Singh; however, more often than not, we fail to recognise toxic masculinity in our real lives. In the 1990s and early 2000s, the phrase “toxic masculinity” was not well known. However, it has been widely used in conversations about males and gender since about 2015.
In the present day scenario, toxic masculinity has grown to become an avoidable subject. While even though it has been existing since the days that men used to go for battles, it has now surfaced as the root cause for most problematic.