--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Men talk about masculinity through sports…" description: "\"Men talk about masculinity through sports and clothes. They don't talk about gender, they talk about LeBron James and whether it's okay to wear lipstic..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/039/stephen-marche-15665_be-a-man_men-talk-about-masculinity-through-sport_1625782.jpg" --- # Men talk about masculinity through sports and clothes… ![“Men talk about masculinity through sports and clothes. They don't talk about gender, they talk about LeBron James and whether it's okay to wear lipstick and eyeliner. They're not getting to the question at hand, which is, "What does it mean to be a man when the traditional values of masculinity…” quote by Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/039/stephen-marche-15665_be-a-man_men-talk-about-masculinity-through-sport_1625782.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/039/stephen-marche-15665_be-a-man_men-talk-about-masculinity-through-sport_1625782.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/039/stephen-marche-15665_be-a-man_men-talk-about-masculinity-through-sport_1625782.jpg) > “Men talk about masculinity through sports and clothes. They don't talk about gender, they talk about LeBron James and whether it's okay to wear lipstick and eyeliner. They're not getting to the question at hand, which is, "What does it mean to be a man when the traditional values of masculinity are eroding incredibly rapidly?'” [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Men discuss masculinity via sports and fashion, avoiding deeper gender questions, highlighting cultural shifts and identity crises. **In simple terms:** Men focus on surface symbols, missing core gender issues. Key Takeaway Examine underlying gender concepts. Themes gender identity culture masculinity media Mood critical reflective Type analytical commentary When to use this quote - media analysis - personal reflection - public discourse Key Concepts social norms performance representation power dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How do media portrayals shape gender identity? - What deeper questions are avoided? A Different Perspective Surface symbols can distract from systemic issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Be a man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/be-a-man/) [Clothes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clothes/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Eyeliner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eyeliner/) [Gender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gender/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Lipstick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lipstick/) [Masculinity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/masculinity/) [Masculinity Eroding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/masculinity-eroding-333675/) [Masculinity Sports](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/masculinity-sports-333676/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Okay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/okay/) [Sports](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sports/) [Talk Masculinity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talk-masculinity-333673/) [Traditional](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/traditional/) [Traditional values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/traditional-values/) [Values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values/) [Values Masculinity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values-masculinity-333674/) ## Related quotes > [There are just so many ways to talk about masculinity, it feels like one medium can't do it alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-cooper/there-are-just-so-many-ways-to-talk-about-masculinity-it-feels-like/) [T Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-cooper/) > [I don't ever wear makeup to the gym, but if I'm coming from work, I might have eyeliner on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaimie-alexander/i-don-t-ever-wear-makeup-to-the-gym-but-if-i-m-coming-from-work-i/) [Jaimie Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaimie-alexander/) > [I heard Davey Havok has a brand of eyeliner out now... its AFI-liner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billie-joe-armstrong/i-heard-davey-havok-has-a-brand-of-eyeliner-out-now-its-afi-liner/) [Billie Joe Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billie-joe-armstrong/) > [I have never used makeup in my life. I'm not fond of it at all. I love myself the way I am, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sai-pallavi/i-have-never-used-makeup-in-my-life-i-m-not-fond-of-it-at-all-i-love/) [Sai Pallavi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sai-pallavi/) > [Failed relationships can be described as so much wasted makeup. Forget the laughs, forget the fights, forget the sex, forget the jealousy. But take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-keyes/failed-relationships-can-be-described-as-so-much-wasted-makeup-forget/) [Marian Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-keyes/) > [Day to day, I always wear eyeliner on my top lid and mascara. I like to do my own makeup, it depends on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicity-jones/day-to-day-i-always-wear-eyeliner-on-my-top-lid-and-mascara-i-like-to/) [Felicity Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felicity-jones/) > [“Could it be that Cania isn’t the ultimate prep school, isn’t the sure way into the Ivy League? As if to solidify my suspicion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/could-it-be-that-cania-isn-t-the-ultimate-prep-school-isn-t-the-sure/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [They are called 'Emos' now, and before that they were 'Goths.' They didn't have a name for it when I was one, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-gatiss/they-are-called-emos-now-and-before-that-they-were-goths-they-didn-t/) [Mark Gatiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-gatiss/) > [“Mallet? Check. Wooden stake—hickory, of course? Check. Crucifix? Well, yeah. Like five of those. Rohypnol? Check. Holy water? Check. Eyeliner? Check. Yeah, eyeliner. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/mallet-check-wooden-stake-hickory-of-course-check-crucifix-well-yeah/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [She straightens her hair, puts on her eyeliner,glosses her lips, and takes one last look in the mirror, all for the boys who will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/she-straightens-her-hair-puts-on-her-eyeliner-glosses-her-lips-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [She has enough black eyeliner on to outline a corpse, and her skin's so pale she looks like she's just broken dawn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/she-has-enough-black-eyeliner-on-to-outline-a-corpse-and-her-skin-s/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I do my own make-up always; I never let anyone else do it. It's quite simple, just eyeliner and a bit of lipstick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masaba-gupta/i-do-my-own-make-up-always-i-never-let-anyone-else-do-it-it-s-quite/) [Masaba Gupta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masaba-gupta/) > [The minute I'm off that stage, I try to get as 'me' as possible. I do that by piling on my black eyeliner, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/troian-bellisario/the-minute-i-m-off-that-stage-i-try-to-get-as-me-as-possible-i-do/) [Troian Bellisario](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/troian-bellisario/) > [When I don't wear eyeliner, I am shy and I feel like I can't dance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimin/when-i-don-t-wear-eyeliner-i-am-shy-and-i-feel-like-i-can-t-dance/) [Jimin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimin/) > [When I was a teen, I would draw a really, really long line around my eyes with eyeliner, like Lola Flores.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalia/when-i-was-a-teen-i-would-draw-a-really-really-long-line-around-my/) [Rosalia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalia/) ## More by Stephen Marche > [When you ask single men in their 20s, "Do you want children?" they want children more than women do. Again, economics drive this. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/when-you-ask-single-men-in-their-20s-do-you-want-children-they-want/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [Men are not taking women's job, which are good jobs. Being a nurse is an excellent job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/men-are-not-taking-women-s-job-which-are-good-jobs-being-a-nurse-is/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [ The division \[between how much housework men and women do\] is declining across all advanced economies - not for the reasons that people want,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/the-division-between-how-much-housework-men-and-women-do-is-declining/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [When you look at the biggest study of the American dream, the number-one correlate for upward mobility is having two parents in a home.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/when-you-look-at-the-biggest-study-of-the-american-dream-the-number/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [Men's gender problems cause them a lot of suffering. There is a massive spiking suicide rate in middle age for men and a cultural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/men-s-gender-problems-cause-them-a-lot-of-suffering-there-is-a/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [Actually the family is still the core social unit. Culturally, traditional masculinity was a removed father. That was a false conception of masculinity and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/actually-the-family-is-still-the-core-social-unit-culturally/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [Look at The Iliad, there's all this stuff about men loving children. The King of Sparta was the most brutal warrior of ancient Greece,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/look-at-the-iliad-there-s-all-this-stuff-about-men-loving-children/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [Marriage is an an inherently contradictory state. It involves the fusion of two people into one thing. And it's also love, and it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/marriage-is-an-an-inherently-contradictory-state-it-involves-the/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [Only idiots or snobs ever really thought less of 'genre books' of course. There are stupid books and there are smart books. There are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/only-idiots-or-snobs-ever-really-thought-less-of-genre-books-of/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [I cannot imagine why a woman would ever call herself anything but a feminist. But a man calling himself a feminist, what does that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/i-cannot-imagine-why-a-woman-would-ever-call-herself-anything-but-a/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [When you look at how men and women are living together, there are two processes at work. One, women are rising in the middle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/when-you-look-at-how-men-and-women-are-living-together-there-are-two/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [I don't really mind it when Trudeau calls himself a feminist because, you know, he did the half-female cabinet; that's something to be proud…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/i-don-t-really-mind-it-when-trudeau-calls-himself-a-feminist-because/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [We're in Trump times - we're in the time this misogynist hate clown is the leader of the free world, and when Putin has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/we-re-in-trump-times-we-re-in-the-time-this-misogynist-hate-clown-is/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [The wilderness within us is actually the best part of us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/the-wilderness-within-us-is-actually-the-best-part-of-us/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [One thing you can say about Trump is that he is not a traditional patriarch. He has a wife who's not even in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/one-thing-you-can-say-about-trump-is-that-he-is-not-a-traditional/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) [Explore all 42 Stephen Marche quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) ## More Be a man quotes > [But if you will recall the history of our civil troubles, you will see half the nation bathe itself, out of piety, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-diderot/but-if-you-will-recall-the-history-of-our-civil-troubles-you-will-see/) [Denis Diderot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-diderot/) > [I closed my own jazz bar so I could be a man who can write novels as I like. I was pleased about that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-closed-my-own-jazz-bar-so-i-could-be-a-man-who-can-write-novels-as/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Just leaving the brotherhood I have made at Georgia, the staff and all my coaches. They've prepared me for the real world. I'm really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-j-green/just-leaving-the-brotherhood-i-have-made-at-georgia-the-staff-and-all/) [A. J. Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-j-green/) > [Biggest man law - be a man. Simple: be a man, definition of being a man is being a man. And don't let your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-griffin/biggest-man-law-be-a-man-simple-be-a-man-definition-of-being-a-man-is/) [Eddie Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-griffin/) > [I think transwomen, and transpeople in general, show everyone that you can define what it means to be a man or woman on your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laverne-cox/i-think-transwomen-and-transpeople-in-general-show-everyone-that-you/) [Laverne Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laverne-cox/) > [Feminist theory has left an indelible mark on my own critical—and creative—thinking . . . For me, everything I questioned about what it meant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/feminist-theory-has-left-an-indelible-mark-on-my-own-critical-and/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [Men will cease to be fools only when they cease to be men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/democritus/men-will-cease-to-be-fools-only-when-they-cease-to-be-men/) [Democritus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/democritus/) > [My friends, let us try to follow the Saviour's steps; let us remember all day long what it is to be men; that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-kingsley/my-friends-let-us-try-to-follow-the-saviour-s-steps-let-us-remember/) [Charles Kingsley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-kingsley/) > [Losing my dad made me more mature. Being an only child, I didn't have the right to act childish. I had to step up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zaza-pachulia/losing-my-dad-made-me-more-mature-being-an-only-child-i-didn-t-have/) [Zaza Pachulia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zaza-pachulia/) > [In spite of their obvious differences, folk art and popular art have much in common; they are easy to understand, they are romantic, patriotic,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-seldes/in-spite-of-their-obvious-differences-folk-art-and-popular-art-have/) [Gilbert Seldes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-seldes/) > [I want to be a man's man-not a kid actor or a glitzy pop star but a no-bullshit leading man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-eastwood/i-want-to-be-a-man-s-man-not-a-kid-actor-or-a-glitzy-pop-star-but-a/) [Scott Eastwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-eastwood/) > [I have decided to make a personal message to David Haye. I want him to fight me, to be a man. 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You only learn by learning what they need.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-gosling/i-don-t-think-anyone-can-teach-you-how-to-be-a-man-but-a-woman-you/) [Ryan Gosling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-gosling/) [Browse all 402 Be a man quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/be-a-man/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Men talk about masculinity through sports and clothes. They don't talk about gender, they talk about LeBron James and whether it's okay to wear lipstick and eyeliner. 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