Robert Webb: How not to be a boy
Throughout this project I have been following the conversation on breaking stereotypes of masculinity that has been taking place across social media. I am so happy to see that finally celebrities and men in the public eye have come forward and opened up about masculinity.
Robert Webb is a well established comedian and most famous for appearing along side David Mitchell in Channel 4’s Peep Show. In his autobiographical book, Robert talks about the pressures on young men to suppress emotions and how negative the 'man up' culture is in the development of boys.
One of the most poignant things than Robert touched on during this interview and indeed his book - is the fact that whilst he was growing up, he felt that the only emotion he was taught to feel was anger. I think this is very true for many boys during childhood, and telling boys to "be a man" and "stop crying like a girl" leads to boys and men repressing emotions and not being able to convey how they feel. Stopping boys from being their own ‘emotional detective’ in turn leads to corrupting the mental stability of men and leads to problems in later life with the mental health of men being effected as we can’t vent our issues and feelings when we need to.
Robert also writes how he was different from other boys growing up, he was more emotional, didn’t like sports which subsequently made it difficult for him to fit in and grow up - the message Robert conveys is talking about how you feel allows you to unlearn the traits that society forces on young men during childhood. I think the importance of Robert’s book is that it creates a dialogue for men who have otherwise not questioned why they think and feel the way they do. As soon as I saw this interview I had to share on Facebook - simply because I have never seen a public figure speak so openly about masculinity and indeed a straight man admitting that during his life he has questioned and felt isolated because of his lack of 'masculine’ qualities - something I completely relate too.
This book is incredibly insightful and I would highly recommend it to anyone. Props to Robert, a great comedian and an even greater bloke.
