The exciting new territory for the male species is the inner world of imagination and feeling ...
Many young men are discovering spirituality as a hallmark of emotional maturity and a sign of genuine manhood - they are breaking out of the iron mask and opening their hearts to life. They are rejecting the traditional macho images of the Anzac warrior, the laconic bushman, the smart-alec larrikin, the beer-swilling ocker and even the champion sportsman. These models of manhood are outworn, outdated or not appropriate for their talents or personalities.
Stereotypes of the past have been collapsing over recent years especially among the educated classes of our society. The unfortunate legacy the suburban ocker, the larrikin in football and sporting cultures and in locker rooms, clubs and pubs where bigotry and prejudice continue to thrive, and where jokes are still xenophobic, homophobic and sexist. Many older men are confused about their place in society because character traits that were once at the cornerstone of traditional masculinity are now regarded as signs of weakness.
- laconicism is now regarded as self imposed alienation,
- stoicism as paranoid self-reliance and
- manly endurance as over achievement linked to poor self-esteem
These old men may fall victim to those preying on the nostalgia they have for the past.