Man, I Feel Like a Woman
What is the archetypal male? Has it changed since Macbeth? Why is Mulan such a good movie?
Manhood is big, often exaggerated, and exists only to sow its seed. By "manhood," I mean the essence of man. Manhood is the stuff that makes you stick out your chest and say, "Hey, I'm bigger than you and I'll fight you if you challenge me." A man's manhood is as important to him as his lifted truck and his daunting array of fireable weapons, and this has been true since the beginning of time.
In the times of Macbeth, three witches present Macbeth a fortune that ensures that he will gain absolute power. The promise of power pulls at Macbeth's manhood and drives him to make rash decisions, such as kill the King Duncan. Another person that is always stimulating Macbeth's manhood is his wife, the Lady of Macbeth. At one point in the play, as she is trying to persuade him to man up and kill Duncan, she tells him, "Art thou afeard/To be the same in thine own act and valor/As thou art in desire?" In this quote, the Lady of Macbeth is questioning Macbeth's ability to kill and make the sexy time. This pulls at the main qualities of manhood and manliness, toughness and virility.
In today's culture, not many things have changed. As the song from Mulan suggests (If you haven't watched it, do so now), it is important to be "... as swift as the coursing river. With all of the force of a great typhoon. With all of the force of a raging fire." Furthermore, the increased popularity of comparing a male that does not exhibit strength, virility, or manliness to a female reproductive organ stresses the importance of one's manhood in today's society. In the sense that men must be strong, the values of manhood have not explicitly changed from the times of Macbeth. For instance, once Macbeth starts to breakdown when he "sees" the ghost of Jacob Marley Banqou, his wife once again challenges the extent of his manhood. "Are you a man?" the Lady questions a hysterical Macbeth, as if it were womanly to not have the ability to control one's emotions.
One might argue that Lady Macbeth and Mulan could be considered men. Both women exhibit as much or more strength than their male counterparts at certain times. Lady Macbeth is the one that plans the murder of Duncan and is so engorged by the thought of gaining power, she wishes that she could be a man in order to do the deed herself. Mulan, on the other hand, transforms into a man in order to fight for her family. However, both females do not succeed at being a man; the Lady of Macbeth cannot control her emotion/gets murdered and Mulan starts making out with other dudes.
The values of manhood will never change. It is the strongest that survive, which means strength and survival will always be cool. In Macbeth, this is represented by the Lady of Macbeth challenging Macbeth's strength and desire for power. In modern times, this is represented by how tight your tank top is or what your bench is, bro. As Reese Bobby once said, "It's the fastest who gets paid, and it's the fastest who gets laid," and there ain't nothing sweeter in life than that.
