Behold the man
Subtitle: the hype and selling of male beauty in media and culture
By: Edisol Wayne Dotson.
Series: Haworth gay & lesbian studies
Publisher: Haworth Press
Published: 1999
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 169
Subjects: Masculinity; Beauty, Personal; Masculinity in popular culture; Men in mass media; Men in literature; Male nude in art
Description: Discussing examples in which both attractive men and women are idealized as "the norm," Behold the Man argues that men are experiencing the same injustices as women - splashed on the covers of magazines and in advertisements, based on their sex appeal, sometimes to promote nothing more than their looks.

Within this book, you'll find topics on how society portrays 'the ideal male' through advertisements for clothing, cologne, sunglasses, automobiles, and shaving products; how well-built males and their bodies are featured in movies, music videos, and literature; and how advertisers and authors faithfully follow the "bigger is better" theory - from pectoral and bicep muscles to penis size.

Revealing how men alter their bodies by dieting and cosmetic surgery to achieve the look found in advertisements, this book also examines how today's growing number of male eating disorders are caused by the notion that only good-looking, muscular men are acceptable.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 149-158) and index.