Its A New Lfe For Men

Jeffrey Sobal and Eva Wiseman share the same view on the concept of masculinity
when it comes to eating. Sobal quotes Zellner in his essay Men, Meal and Marriage: Models
of Masculinity: The gendering of foods is largely culturally constructed rather than
biologically based (136-137). Eva Wiseman quotes Bell in her article The Truth about Men,
Women and Food: Gender, like nature itself, isnt natural; its something we do. And we
do it all the time, which means we do it when we eat (par. 21). They both think that the
image of hegemonic man doesnt speak for all kinds of men and fit men into a category with
distinct borders. Traditional Turkish culture enforced hegemonic masculinity on men when it
came to food choices and eating in social settings, but fortunately with the effects of the
modern world food and eating is becoming less gendered for men in Turkey.
Sobal says that Doing masculinity means eating like a man consuming manly foods
at manly meals in a manly way. (139) He describes this point of view as singular
masculinity: It ignores other types of men and sets the manly man as the ideal (145).
However, he believes that there are multiple kinds of men that need to be acknowledged such
as a healthy man, a smart man or a sensitive man (146). Traditional Turkish culture views the
manly man as the only acceptable type of man. For example, providing food has been a way
to show dominance and power for men for centuries. In traditional Turkish culture, the father
sits at the head of the table at dinner times, because he is the one who brings food to the table,
thus the householder. During the Ottoman era, the emperor would prepare banquets for his
army to show that he was the one who provided for them and that they depended on him. By
feasting in those banquets, the soldiers would show their respect for the authority of the
emperor. When they wanted to rebel, they would reject the food and knock over the furnaces.
As we see in both examples, providing food has been a way for man to prove their power and
manliness. This inescapable belief that proving food equaled manliness put pressure on men

and gave responsibilities that not all men might have wanted. It has forced Turkish men into
fitting the definition of singular masculinity that Sobal mentions even if they werent cut out
for it.
Wiseman says that men became the meat eater, the fire maker, the king of barbecues;
not because it was an innate feeling but because thats how they thought they would become
manly (par.21). For example, food was also a way to show roughness which was thought to be
an element of masculinity. Sobal believes that Animal flesh is a consummate male food, and
a man eating meat in an exemplar of maleness. (Sobal 137) Similarly, Turkish culture saw
meat as an essential in a strong mens diet. Turkish wrestlers are said to eat one whole lamb at
just one sitting when they sat at the table. This kind of an appetite was something to be proud
of for men. In traditional Turkish culture, rak which is a strong drink was named the lions
milk. Drinking it would show toughness which according to the traditional Turkish culture a
quality that a manly man would possess. As Wiseman claims, the wrestlers appetites or
drinking rak were not innate qualities of men, but qualities they thought they needed to
become a man.
Fortunately, with the arrival of the modern world lifestyle, life is becoming easier and
more joyful for Turkish men in many aspects of life and culinary aspect is just one of them.
The concept of singular masculinity that Sobal mentions is losing its dominance. Instead, the
concept of multiple masculinities that Sobal desires is gaining power. First of all, the belief
that men are the ones who are supposed to bring food the table is weakening. There are more
and more marriages where the man and the woman are sharing their financial responsibilities
in marriage. This takes the unnecessary weight off of mens shoulders. Wiseman quotes Bell:
Nature is natural.Its cultural (par 20). She believes that the natural qualities we attribute to
men and women are not natural but cultural (par. 20). Despite the contrary belief, women

dont need to be taken care of by men naturally. The weakening of this belief is giving men
time and resources to discover and become any type of men they desire.
Sobal says that Limitations of singular thinking include a tendency to overgeneralize
and, therefore, not fit much of everyday reality. (Sobal 150) This idea applies to traditional
Turkish culture. There was only one type of men that traditional Turkish culture expected: the
manly man. However, this expectation put men in a predicament. While there might have
been men who were happy to be a manly man, this was not the case for the majority of them.
Fortunately, there is more flexibility for all kind of men today when it comes to food. They
can diverge from the simplistic definition of singular masculinity. For example, men werent
much immersed in cooking in the past. All they had to do with kitchen was hunting and
cooking meat. In Turkish culture, men were responsible for hunting and the mangal (Turkish
barbecue). However, currently, they can show their interest in kitchen. Shows featuring male
chefs and male contestant in food programs on TV are increasing. Interestingly enough, the
men we see on these shows arent necessary the men we label as feminine: They have
mustaches and look tough. One example of this Salih Sadkolu from the cooking show Ver
Frna. Hes a contestant whose assignment is to make a cake. However, things dont go the
way he expects and his cake doesnt become fluffy. His eyes become teary and he starts to cry.
His video becomes viral on social media. At first, hes made fun of for not being manly.
However, this stops when people start to support him: They say that he doesnt have to hide
his emotions to be a man and crying over a cake is totally acceptable for a man. This is a sign
that the Turkish society is starting to agree with Wiseman that the singular masculinity was
not natural but culture (par. 20) and with Sobal that they need to accept the concept of
multiple masculinities when it comes to food and eating.
In conclusion, in Turkish culture, men had to fit into a category of manliness that was
undesired by many men. This showed its effect in behaviors and rituals surrounding food.

Fortunately, this effect is decreasing with the occurrence of modern world. Turkish people are
realizing that singular masculinity isnt natural (Wiseman par.20) and are starting to accept the
concept of multiple masculinities that Sobal introduces in food related activities.It seems that
Turkish men will have a chance to make more choices when it comes to eating and cooking in
the future. Hopefully, the acceptance of multiple masculinities for food will help the
degenderizing of other areas of life and make mens and womens lives easier.

Works Cited
Sobal, Jeffrey. Men, Meat, and Marriage: Models of Masculinity. Food and Foodways 13:1
S

(2005): 135-158. EBSCO. Web, 17 Sept. 2014

Wiseman, Eva.The Truth About Men, Women and Food. The Guardian.com The Observer,
d

17 Oct. 2010. Web. 17 Sept. 2014