Description

In this eye-opening book on how male anxiety has come to shape political thinking and behavior, Dr. Stephen Ducat argues that there is a direct association between the magnitude of a man’s femiphobia and his tendency to embrace right-wing political opinions.

Ducat shows how anxious masculinity has been a discernible subtext in politics throughout the history of Western culture—from the political campaigns of ancient Greece to the contest for the presidency. He also explores why and how political issues—such as environmental protection, support for war, welfare reform, and crime and punishment—get gendered.

Analyzing various aspects of popular culture, such as editorial cartoons, political advertisements, and Freudian slips made by politicians—and drawing on his own pioneering research on the gender gap—Ducat illustrates how men’s fear of the feminine has been a powerful, if subterranean, force.

“A deeply important insight in the hands of a gifted writer.” —Arlie Russell Hochschild, author of The Commercialization of Intimate Life

“[Ducat’s] fresh and complex insights may reach a new generation of swing voters.” —Publishers Weekly

“Even those who disagree with Ducat’s values can appreciate his skillful deployment of anecdotes, media, and wordplay.” —Psychology Today

Stephen J. Ducat is professor of psychology at the School of Humanities at New College of California, a licensed clinical psychologist in private practice, and a candidate at the Psychoanalytic Institute of Northern California. He lives in the San Francisco Bay area.