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'I sat back on my computer . . . with a bottle of whisky next to me': constructing 'cool' masculinity through 'effortless' achievement in secondary and higher education

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'I sat back on my computer . . . with a bottle of whisky next to me': constructing 'cool' masculinity through 'effortless' achievement in secondary and higher education. / Jackson, Carolyn; Dempster, Steven.
In: Journal of Gender Studies, Vol. 18, No. 4, 2009, p. 341-356.

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@article{2ffea89363964feeb1d172cf6e28d6d7,
title = "'I sat back on my computer . . . with a bottle of whisky next to me': constructing 'cool' masculinity through 'effortless' achievement in secondary and higher education",
abstract = "Recently Hodgetts has argued that: {\textquoteleft}To be a boy is to “succeed without trying”{\textquoteright}. Relatedly, other researchers have proposed that academic hard work is generally incompatible with {\textquoteleft}cool{\textquoteright} masculinities in many schools. In this article we draw upon theories about the construction of masculinities and UK data from two education contexts (secondary schools and higher education) to explore further the discourses that conflate effortless achievement with masculinity, and position study as {\textquoteleft}uncool{\textquoteright}. Locating our analyses principally within the framework of hegemonic masculinity, we explore the benefits and costs of the discourses – focusing especially upon the {\textquoteleft}effortless achievement{\textquoteright} discourse – to boys, men, girls and women.We argue that although the {\textquoteleft}uncool to work{\textquoteright} discourse was more dominant in schools than in higher education there was evidence of it in higher education. The effortless achievement discourse was dominant in both contexts and the associations with masculinity were very explicit in the higher education interview data. We explore why, when in the current educational climate there is so much emphasis on results rather than process, the valorisation of effortless achievement, and its association with masculinity, remain strong.",
keywords = "masculinities, effortless achievement , uncool to study , education",
author = "Carolyn Jackson and Steven Dempster",
year = "2009",
doi = "10.1080/09589230903260019",
language = "English",
volume = "18",
pages = "341--356",
journal = "Journal of Gender Studies",
issn = "0958-9236",
publisher = "Routledge",
number = "4",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - 'I sat back on my computer . . . with a bottle of whisky next to me'

T2 - constructing 'cool' masculinity through 'effortless' achievement in secondary and higher education

AU - Jackson, Carolyn

AU - Dempster, Steven

PY - 2009

Y1 - 2009

N2 - Recently Hodgetts has argued that: ‘To be a boy is to “succeed without trying”’. Relatedly, other researchers have proposed that academic hard work is generally incompatible with ‘cool’ masculinities in many schools. In this article we draw upon theories about the construction of masculinities and UK data from two education contexts (secondary schools and higher education) to explore further the discourses that conflate effortless achievement with masculinity, and position study as ‘uncool’. Locating our analyses principally within the framework of hegemonic masculinity, we explore the benefits and costs of the discourses – focusing especially upon the ‘effortless achievement’ discourse – to boys, men, girls and women.We argue that although the ‘uncool to work’ discourse was more dominant in schools than in higher education there was evidence of it in higher education. The effortless achievement discourse was dominant in both contexts and the associations with masculinity were very explicit in the higher education interview data. We explore why, when in the current educational climate there is so much emphasis on results rather than process, the valorisation of effortless achievement, and its association with masculinity, remain strong.

AB - Recently Hodgetts has argued that: ‘To be a boy is to “succeed without trying”’. Relatedly, other researchers have proposed that academic hard work is generally incompatible with ‘cool’ masculinities in many schools. In this article we draw upon theories about the construction of masculinities and UK data from two education contexts (secondary schools and higher education) to explore further the discourses that conflate effortless achievement with masculinity, and position study as ‘uncool’. Locating our analyses principally within the framework of hegemonic masculinity, we explore the benefits and costs of the discourses – focusing especially upon the ‘effortless achievement’ discourse – to boys, men, girls and women.We argue that although the ‘uncool to work’ discourse was more dominant in schools than in higher education there was evidence of it in higher education. The effortless achievement discourse was dominant in both contexts and the associations with masculinity were very explicit in the higher education interview data. We explore why, when in the current educational climate there is so much emphasis on results rather than process, the valorisation of effortless achievement, and its association with masculinity, remain strong.

KW - masculinities

KW - effortless achievement

KW - uncool to study

KW - education

U2 - 10.1080/09589230903260019

DO - 10.1080/09589230903260019

M3 - Journal article

VL - 18

SP - 341

EP - 356

JO - Journal of Gender Studies

JF - Journal of Gender Studies

SN - 0958-9236

IS - 4

ER -