Reviews for Learning the Rules

The average rating for Learning the Rules based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2012-12-04 00:00:00 Jose Lucero This book comes mainly from a sociological perspective that questions the norms and sterotypes surrounding what it means to become a 'man' in a variety of settings around the world. The beauty of this text is that it does not satisfy itself with a focus on what is wrong with men in the world; instead it attempts to discover and explain the social aspects that contribute to the abhorrant behaviour that creates this demonised version of manhood. Of course, the communities and locations used to illustrate this are all of low socioeconomic status, but I was able to personally relate to a lot of the issues that young men faced in these settings. My own experience is by no means the same (as I am white and middle class), but there are many comparisons to be made and correlations that can be discerned from the hyper reality that these marginalised youths face every day. Barker does a good job of constantly reminding the reader that his focus on men's issues does not suggest a diminished view of women's issues. Indeed, on of the great messages in this book is one that encourages (and illustrates the necessity of) men and women working together to change these gender-based pressures and influences that contribute to the prevailing stereotype and norm that is mandated as the ultimate goal for either gender. It would be easy to say that everyone should read this book and gain a better appreciation for the issues that young men face in their transition to manhood, but simply reading about it will not do the greater social issues justice. Rather, if this book has done anything (and it's done a lot) it has given me the encouragement to resist the pressures of manhood that need to be changed for the better. Overall, Barker delivers a strong voice that speaks out against the unrealistic demonisation of young men and the self-fulfilling prophecies of negative attributes that are largely contained within a minority, but assumed to be the stereotype.

Review # 2 was written on 2019-05-03 00:00:00 Anthony Lee Very good book about how people communicate together about political and other matters and how our personal identities direct or partially define our beliefs. I'm looking more at narrative elements from elites, but this is going to be a reference for my paper. Good stuff.