Similar to Shaft, Boyz n the Hood places much emphasis on masculinity. I have stated quite a few times that I really do not like Shaft, and most of that resentment comes from its portrayal of masculinity, or to be more precise, its relation to femininity.
I loved Boyz n the Hood, though, and I think its portrayal of black masculinity was done much better.
One of my favorite characters is Furious Styles, Tre's father. From the very beginning, he is there for his son and works to teach him responsibility, with the hopes that he will be able to go to a good college and have a successful life outside the dangers of the hood.
Furious is a great parent, and I like his message regarding sex. Through his jokes with Tre, it is clear that he sees sex as a good thing, but encourages his son to be safe about it to avoid an unwanted child. He doesn’t act like Tre’s friends, who constantly push him to have sex to prove his status as a man, but he also does not try to restrict him completely. He encourages Tre to do as he wishes but to practice responsibility.
On the subject of Furious, Reva, Tre's mother, made a great point about how men are praised for being good parents while it is expected of women.
I love this line because it puts things into perspective, acknowledges this problem with society, and highlights the importance of both men and women in this aspect without diminishing Furious's role as a father. Through his actions, he is still established as a great parent and respectable man while emphasizing the role of a mother. I think this is a great example of how masculinity and femininity can go hand-in-hand without holding one above the other.
That's not to say this movie's portrayal of masculinity does not have its flaws, though. Early on after the time skip, Tre's friends make fun of him for not having lost his virginity.
I don’t like this shaming, but it's not a big issue in itself since I think that's just how people tend to act. This is more of a personal grievance. It does, however, lead to my next point.
Spurred on by his friends, Tre pressures his religious girlfriend into giving up her virginity even though she has repeatedly stated that she is uncomfortable with it because it goes against her morals. When her beliefs were introduced, I thought he would come to respect her decision and I was excited to see how that played out. I hoped it would make a message about masculinity and how respecting other people's (especially women's) decisions despite peer pressure doesn’t diminish one’s manliness.
Unfortunately, this was not the case. After Ricky’s death, Brandi has sex with him. Her established boundaries are tossed aside with no explanation, and this is supposed to be a good thing for Tre. I take massive issue with this because it sets a dangerous precedent for viewers as well as establishes the man’s needs above the woman’s. It’s something you’d likely see in Shaft, and I worry viewers could take it as an invitation to treat their girlfriends similarly. It is the one issue I have regarding masculinity in this movie, but it’s a pretty big one. Constantly berating someone for sex even when they’ve said no multiple times is not consent, and I feel horrible for Brandi here. This also didn’t affect the plot at all. It should have either been cut out entirely or portrayed as a cruel action to one’s partner, not as a celebration.
The big topic of this movie, however, is of course gang activity. I like how this is handled because it is established that the harsh life that is often romanticized in outside society, such as on social media, movies, and books, is not ideal.
What seems to be a dominant message here is that trying to get out of the "hood" is not a weakness. “Softer” lives are often desired, and it takes strength to break out of this deadly cycle so many were forced into. Both Tre and Ricky dedicated so much of their lives to this. They work incredibly hard in their respective fields, with the constant worry that they will fail. This is exactly what happens in Ricky’s case: one small encounter with the wrong guy proves enough to get him killed, wasting his work. That’s how easy it is to fall back into the cycle. It takes so much work, strength, and luck to leave.
It is not an insult to the people that do not leave, though, as it's established that it also takes strength to remain. These characters have repeatedly shown that they are not scared of death. They take drastic actions while being fully aware of the consequences. To avenge his brother, Doughboy hunts the Bloods down and takes his time killing them. He dies for his actions 2 weeks later. He expected this. It takes a certain kind of strength to face death like that, and I think the tragedy of this was portrayed well.
Although it had flaws, I think life and masculinity were portrayed well in Boyz n the Hood. I loved the story, characters, and messages in this movie, and it has dethroned A Raisin in the Sun as my favorite movie in this class.
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