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Paper short abstract

Using bell hooks’ concept of love as practice, this paper examines heterosexual intimacy under economic precarity, gender politics, and antagonism towards women. Based on masculinity research and interviews with men’s rights groups, it asks how patriarchy shapes men’s capacity for relational love.

Paper long abstract

This paper seeks to explore men’s views on love and romantic relationships with women and how they might be impacted by broader political and economic pressures. Research on masculinities, globally and in Japan, has shown that patriarchy fails to support men in nearly as many ways as it puts them in positions of power. This especially concerns their abilities to engage with emotions and the subsequent difficulties they may face with intimate relationships (Itō 2005; hooks 2001; hooks 2004). Academic inquiries identified neoliberal economic logic, falling birthrates and the erosion of the male breadwinner model as some of the most protruding structural influences shaping men’s experiences with intimacy.

However, there remains a blind spot when it comes to investigating men’s ability and willingness to seek out and embrace loving heterosexual relationships. “Incel” and “tradwife” culture, antagonism towards women choosing singlehood and a general return to traditionalistic gender roles may all be considered elements of a current backlash against notions of increasingly diversifying societies globally and, specifically, in Japan. In turn, economic precarity, increasing loneliness among single men and evolving, as well as persisting notions of hegemonic Japanese masculinity deeply shape private practices of intimacy. Furthermore, the so-called “male loneliness epidemic” may speak to an increase in men’s longing for love and intimacy that seemingly co-exists with reactionary views of women and femininity.

bell hooks suggested a view on love that considers it a practice rather than a feeling. Drawing on this idea, this paper is going to utilise her framing to analyse how men and women can “do” love in troubled times and explores the links between practices of masculinity and the ability to form connections built on care, commitment, knowledge, responsibility, respect and trust. The methodology rests on discursive research rooted in feminist theory and in interviews conducted with men’s rights groups to answer the following questions: Are Japanese men still able and willing to form and maintain intimate romantic relationships with women? And how much do patriarchal dominance and power impact their ability to love?