Marshall Bermans Ideology of Men in the Traditional European Social Structure - Essay Example

Running Head: EUROPEAN STUDIES European Studies Name Institution Date Introduction According to Marshall Berman, men in the traditional European social structure derived their feelings of personal identity from social roles which were ascribed. Two interesting literal works on the Sandman and Marquise provide a well portrayed context of the traditional European society, where the male character was a significantly important social figure whose role contributed to almost every single element of social life. Marshall Berman notion can be analyzed using the two tales in order to comprehensively understand whether men derived their feelings of personal identity from ascribed social roles. Foremost, it essential to evaluate the aspect of personal identity, Perry (2008) , outlines that in general each individual has a conviction or an invisible belief that they possess the attribute of personal identity. Perry describes personal identity as the emotional, behavioral, temperamental and mental attributes that can be used to display the uniqueness of a particular individual. Secondly it is also vital to evaluate the concept of ascribed social roles. George (2005) explains ascribed social roles as functions which occur by chance, an individual does not put any sort of efforts in order to acquire them basically the ascribed social role given linked to men in the traditional European society were based on the aspect of their gender. Leadership which is the practice of social influence, whereby one individual guides and motivates the rest of the group towards a accomplishing a certain goal, can be described as one of the ascribed social roles which influenced the personal identity of a man. The Marquise story centers the male character on aspects of leadership. Men are given the social role of leadership, for instance Marquise father was the commandant of Citadel in addition he was the leader of his family and made all decisions which were to be followed by his wife an children. For instance when the Russian troops attacked the castle, the commandant gave instructions to his family on the direction to take and the moves to make in order to evade the attackers. The Russian troops were also dominated by male leaders. Lewin etal (1939) argues that leadership is grounded on individual attributes which can be linked to the trait theory of leadership. The application of the trait theory of leadership was dominant in traditional European structures in previous centuries. Notable writings such as Hero Worship and Heroes (1942) written by authors such as Francis Galton, identified the skills, physical characteristics and talents that men possess as the core of leadership as a result men were socially ascribes as leaders. Most men during this period naturally took up the role of leadership as their personal identity a phenomenon that was characterized by them having social influence. The aspect of hegemonic masculinity which refers to the culturally normative believes about the idea of being a man was very much dominant in traditional European social structures (Guimond, 2008). The hegemonic masculinity ideology basically links the concept of masculinity on the notion that men should display features of courage, aggression and strength .Physical strength is perceived as the central source of male power. In the Sandman account, the narrator has a hideous mental picture that the Sandman who was Coppelius an old advocate, had features such as a big broad shoulder, a massive head and big cat eyes, which terrified the narrator greatly. The features of masculinity of the Sandman indicated his role of enhancing children to follow rules such going to bed on time. Marquise story on the other hand utilized the aspect of masculinity whereby men were perceived to be physically strong, aggressive and courageous. This gave men the social role of participating in war, as evident in the story line, the Russian force was basically composed of male solders. Perry (2008) links the aspect of personal identity to behavioral attitudes which make an individual to be unique. The social role of a man is created using their sexual identity. Within the European social structure, the man is perceived as having the role of an impregnator which gave him the significant role of a father. The father was perceived as a dignified individual who was to be accorded respect and even be feared. In both stories the male character is accorded the role of the father who is greatly respected. For instance the Marquise mother stressed on the importance of letting the Commandant know about their daughter pregnancy, pg 91 when she state’’ Nevertheless we should let your father know.’’ This particular statement highlights how significant the father was in matters that affected the family. Perry (2008) links the aspect of personal identity to emotional attitudes. The male emotional attitudes were expressed mostly towards the women as a result the male personal identity was derived from the social role of loving and protecting the woman. In the Sandman story the narrator expresses how men admired Clara’s beauty and each of them feel in love with her after seeing her wonderful hair, her chest line and her proportionate figure. In the Marquise story Count –F fell in love with the Marquise and proposed to her after saving her from the fatal incident with Russian solders. In despite of the fact that the count did not know the Marquise very well he dared to propose to her. On page 85, the count picked up his hat went to the Marquise and took her hand her kissed hand and asked her to marry him before he left. In traditional European social structure the man was therefore given the constructed duty of showing emotions towards the woman as a sign of love. The sex role theory is also a popular element of male personal identity in the two stories. The theory proposed by Dr Gray states that human’s beings in social institutions usually behave in a manner to appreciate their sex. According to this particular the men are perceived to have features such as being rational, objective dominant and aggressive as a result their social roles are directed towards being the sole bread winners for the family (George, 2005). The man was actively involved in the finding means of survival for the family. Unlike in contemporary society where the women are engaged in activities or occupations for earning a living, in the European social structure the women were basically home care givers who catered for the domestic errands as opposed to economic based errands, for instance in the Marquise story, the Marquise husband was attacked and killed on his way home from a business journey. On pg 95, Count F was detained in Naples due to unavoidable business duties that he has to undertake, as a result he only communicated to the Marquise through letters. This depicts that the role of men was entrenched on acting as the economic providers for the family. In the Sandman story the narrator’s father would tell them stories after coming from work and later he would go sit on his study, the father was hardly found at home due to the fact that he was heavy occupied by his duties (pg 86). The sex role theory wholly assumes that the culture of a particular society was influenced by sexual identity of particular sex as a result there were certain task that were supposed to solely be identified with the men while others were more with women (Kathleen ,1998). Augustine (2009) highlights that; the identification of the roles of a particular gender also influences an individual’s responsibilities and rights, authority and power within the family. This is because the family acts as the center of transmission of property and wealth. Augustine (2002) further highlights that sex greatly determines the status of the family essentially in the traditional European social structure. The man’s personal identity was derived from his natural attributes such as aggressiveness, powerful, active and authoritativeness, this gave the man the social role of the transmission of property and wealth. In the Marquise story the Commandant, was an influential member of society due to the wealth he owned as a result, the family name was greatly honored in the region. The Protagonist Social Roles On of the social role of Marquise was to the aspect of being a mother or what is referred to as motherhood. Even after the Marquise husband death she stayed home to take care of her children which was an essential role performed by the female gender. Secondly the Marquise as the protagonist in the story played the social role of companionship o the male gender. The Marquise gave Count –F a chance to have a companion who would assist him in evading the lonely type of life he lived. In despite of the many challenges that the two couples faced which almost lead to the termination of their proposed marriage, the Marquise finally agrees on pg113 that she would not have seen a devil in the Count, if she did not see the angle in him. The Marquise social role can also be described as the submission to the authority of the man. By agreeing to marry the Count, the Marquise indicated her dedication and submission to her husband to be. She acknowledged the fact that her life will have to be changed once again whereby she will move from the authority of her father to the authority of her newly found husband, the Count. The social role of the Marquise relates to the respective work as a whole in that women in traditional European culture are depicted as essential embodiment of certain values within the society that influence the state of the family or home. As a result she brings out a clear picture of how gender roles differed for men and women in addition she brings a revelation of whereby women were intended to act in a manner promote ethics in society. When evaluation the Sandman story, the protagonist who is the narrator brings out the social roles of a man in terms of the basic foundations of where the male gender derive their personal identity and how their personal identity influences their gender roles. Young children usually look up to their parents as their role models thus the parents have a lot to do with how the children perceive their roles in society. As children grow they develop their gender identity. In the case of the Sandman story the narrator had a strong type of fear for the Sandman; however he developed an aggressive response towards the existence of the dreaded Sandman after his mother moved him to a room of his own when he was ten. The mother’s intention was to assist the narrator to be much more aggressive. With time the presence of the Sandman in the narrator’s house made him develop an investigative nature towards the dealings of the Sandman and his father. What is evident from the story is that parents greatly influence the roles taken up by children; the narrator finally plays the significant role of solving the puzzle behind his father’s death. The role of the protagonist in the Sandman story relates to the work of the overall story in that we are able to understand that gender roles are imposed differently through various social influences. Formed in the phase of socialization of childhood and even adolescence, gender role usually influence an individual thought their lives. The initial and the strongest influence that a person can have in the development of gender roles are from their parents. Geis, (1993) argues that our first teachers are our parents not only in terms of basic skills like walking and talking but also in terms of behaviour and attitudes. Conclusion Marshall Berman’s ideology that men in the traditional European social structure derived their feelings of personal identity from social roles which were ascribed can be described as factually true basing on the accounts of Sandman and Marquise. However basing on the above analysis it is essential to note the fact that personal identity in the male gender can not solely be a social contraction due to existence of other elements of influence such as biological influence. What is evident from both stories is that most gender roles are socially constructed. Bibliographies Agustin, E.( 2002) Role identities versus social identities: Masculinity, femininity, instrumentality and communality. Journal of Social Psychology Bridy, L(1997). New stories about gender: Promising directions. Gender and emotions: Beyond stereotypes. Journal of Social Issues. Burke, P.(2001). Relationships among personal Identities. The Future of Identity Theory and Research. Costa, J. etal.( 2001). 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