Diana Motta Morales- Supplemental Post #3

    While through our discussion on Friday on Arnold, I thought back to his image and what it meant to a man in film in the 80s. Thinking back to the terminator and what I knew about it. Arnold’s body translated all throughout the world, his body and personality shines through the screen. The body builder image and masculinity became a goal and was seen as not just the female gaze but the male gaze as well. Women wanted to be with someone like him, and men wanted to be him. The macho look and act was at its peak and came along as a heroic character who was not afraid of anything. 

Though surprisingly- I had never seen a Terminator movie before this week, I still had a sense of what the film was about. A hard-core masculine action movie that portrayed the idea behind a man saving the world. As the discussion on Friday moved along, we talked about how men's image shifted in film. Throughout the 90s it was clear to see that men began to follow a softer image and were family orientated. It's very interesting to witness the change and the reasons behind it. For example, Susan Jeffords argued that the shift was due to the social impacts of social rights movements and war stance.

The Women's Movement emphasized the need for men to understand women’s rights, thus the toxic masculinity was out of the picture. Alongside the women's movement, the Kennedy commencement opened the doors for men to show emotion and continue with its idea of soft men. Though I can see Jefford’s argument, I don't think social impacts are solely responsible for this shift.