European University Institute Library

A history of virility, edited by Alain Corbin, Jean-Jacques Courtine, and Georges Vigarello ; translated by Keith Cohen

eng

Includes bibliographical references and index

illustrationsplates

index present

non fiction

A history of virility

bibliography

911171844

edited by Alain Corbin, Jean-Jacques Courtine, and Georges Vigarello ; translated by Keith Cohen

European perspectives : a series in social thought and cultural criticism

How has the meaning of manhood changed over time? A History of Virility proposes a series of answers to this question by describing a trajectory that begins with ancient conceptions of male domination and privilege and examining how it persisted, with significant alterations, for centuries. While the mainstream of virility was challenged during the Enlightenment, its preeminence was restored by social forms of male bonding in the nineteenth century. Pacifist, feminist, and gay rights movements chipped away at models and codes of virility during the next hundred years, leading to the twentieth century's disclosing of a "virility on edge, " or virility as an unstable entity dispossessed of any automatic claim to power. These original essays, written by an international group of scholars including Arlette Farge, Jean-Paul Bertaud, Christelle Taraud, and Fabrice Virgili, add an intriguing sociohistorical dimension to our understanding of the evolution of virility. Unsettling received notions of political and cultural critique, these authors consider painting, sculpture, literature, film, and philosophy to expand our knowledge of fascism, nationalism, liberalism, classicism, and colonialism.--, Provided by publisher

Translator's Note -- Preface -- 1. Greek Virilities, by Maurice Sartre -- 2. Roman Virilities: Vir, Virilitas, Virtus, by Jean-Paul Thuillier -- 3. Barbarian and Knight The Barbarian World: Hybridity and Transformation of Virility, by Bruno Dumézil The Medieval: Strength and Blood, by Claude Thomasset -- 4. Absolute Virility in the Early Modern World Modern Virility: Convictions and Questionings, by Georges Vigarello Virility and Its "Others": The Representation of Paradoxical Masculinity, by Lawrence D. Kritzman Examples from Painting, by Nadeije Laneyrie-Dagen -- 5. The Virile Man and the Savage in the Lands of Exploration, by Georges Vigarello -- 6. Uneasy Virility in the Age of Enlightenment Common Folks' Virility, by Arlette Farge Men of Fiction, by Michel Delon -- 7. The Code of Virility: Inculcation The Triumph of Virility in the Nineteenth Century, by Alain Corbin Childhood, or the "Journey Toward Virility, " by Ivan Jablonka -- 8. The Duel and the Defense of Virile Honor, by François Guillet -- 9. The Necessary Manifestation of Sexual Energy, by Alain Corbin -- 10. Military Virility, by Jean-Paul Bertaud -- 11. Virility in the Colonial Context, from the Late Eighteenth to the Twentieth Century, by Christelle Taraud -- 12. The Burden of Virility The Injunction of Virility, Source of Anguish and Anxiety, by Alain Corbin Homosexuality and Virility, by Régis Revenin -- 13. The Great War and the History of Virility, by Stéphane Andoin Rouzeau -- 14. Origins and Transformations of Male Domination Impossible Virility, by Jean-Jacques Courtine Anthropology of Virility: The Fear of Powerlessness, by Claudine Haroche -- 15. Virilities on Edge, Violent Virilities, by Fabrice Virgili -- 16. Virility Through the Looking Glass of Women, by Christine Bard -- 17. "One Is Not Born Virile, One Becomes So, " by Arnaud Baubérot -- 18. Fascist Virility, by Johann Chapoutot -- 19. Working-Class Virility, by Thierry Pillon -- 20. Homosexual Transformations, by Florence Tamagne -- 21. Exhibitions: Virility Stripped Bare, by Bruno Nassim Aboudar -- 22. Brawn in Civilization: Virile Myth and Muscular Power, by Jean-Jacques Courtine -- Notes -- Index