The Man Problem: Destructive Masculinity in Western Culture

In The Man Problem, Ross Honeywill posits that the potential for evil in all men is the social, political, and economic problem of our age. Drawing on the work of social critics and theorists including Zygmunt Bauman, Karl Marx, Hannah Arendt, Simone de Beauvoir, Jean Baudrillard, Slavoj Žižek, and others, the book traces destructive masculinity through cultural texts, social systems, and everyday life practices. Using the lens of social theory, social philosophy, feminist cultural studies, and sociology, The Man Problem explores the legacy of the Enlightenment as a context for a social world constructed by men (in modernity), deconstructed (in postmodernity) and reconstructed (in the liquid present). This book investigates the outlines of the patriarchy and why the men who legitimate it behave the way they do. Despite the troubled and troubling legacy of masculinity, Honeywill reveals an alternative path forward.

Ross Honeywill is an internationally recognized social theorist and researcher. His books have been published on three continents. Associate Professor (adjunct) at the Tasmanian School of Business and Economics, Australia, he has a PhD from the University of Tasmania. Applying value theory to social research for more than twenty years, he is best known for his work in Desire Economics and the NEO population classification. His current research is on social intelligence, feminist cultural studies, and gender equity.