A History of Masculinity: From Patriarchy to Gender Justice

Men have been at the forefront of every battle, except for the battle for equality of the sexes. Their dreams have spearheaded every liberation, except for the emancipation of women. With few exceptions, they have grown comfortable with the patriarchal workings of society. They have gained from it. Today, as before, gender privileges are endemic throughout the world.

Although it has been shaped by millennia of stereotypes & institutions, the traditional model of masculinity is outdated. It is both old-fashioned & harmful because it is a mechanism for dominating not only women, but also
men whose masculinity is deemed illegitimate. Our dream for the future is to invent new masculinities so that they mesh with the rights of women & undo patriarchal hierarchies. This has the potential to transform everything:
the family, religion, politics, business, the city, seduction & even language.

A revolution of the masculine presupposes a theory of gender justice which aims for a redistribution of gender, just as social justice demands the redistribution of wealth. However, before considering the social, institutional, political, cultural & sexual implications of such a project, we have to understand the world we live in, with its two seemingly contradictory traits: longstanding patriarchy & the flaws of the masculine.

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Ivan Jablonka is a French historian. His work focuses on the Holocaust, gender violence, masculinity & new forms of historiography. In 2016, he received the prestigious Prix Médicis. He is currently Professor of Contemporary History at Université Paris XIII.