John Waters Wants “Masculine” to Become a Neutral Word
Welcome to GQ's New Masculinity issue, an exploration of the ways that traditional notions of masculinity are being challenged, overturned, and evolved. Read more about the issue from GQ editor-in-chief Will Welch here and hear Pharrell's take on the matter here.
GQ: As the culture has shifted over the course of your career, how do you think the definition of “masculinity” has changed?
John Waters: It has taken on so many different meanings in my lifetime—today it's almost a word you can't use. When I was young, it was a threatening word. It meant that you were going to be hassled for not liking sports or not wanting to fight. And now “masculinity” is a word that is embraced by transgender men. It can mean so many things to so many different communities. It can be a very negative word, or it can be a positive. I think it should be a neutral word, and so should “feminine.” Then they can't be used against anybody.
In your new book, Mr. Know-It-All, you ask, “What is a real man today?” What's your answer?
A real man is not scared of strong, smart women. Freud was wrong. Men are the ones who have penis envy—for good penises that respect women and are not threatened by people who are smarter or more powerful than them. And I think that is what a good man is.
How widely do you think your notion of “a good man” has caught on?
It's an economic question. It depends on where you live in the country and how you're doing financially. And I think the more men are threatened, the worse they get at masculinity. Humor is how you get people to change their minds. Humor is the way that people escape. Humor is how you can embrace the enemy.
You write in the book that with all the progress we've made, there's little left that feels radical.
I'm glad it's not illegal to be gay anymore. But I go to the gay parades, and it's mostly all straight people showing their respect. It's a good step. But Stonewall was a gay riot. And I don't know why gay people aren't rioting now.
I wonder what happened. All those high school students were walking out of school. That was so brilliant. Why did they stop? Why aren't people marching every day? I don't get it. It seems to me there's more to be angry about than there has been in a long time. I think we need to use humor to humiliate and embarrass the extreme right. I'm not for violence, but I'm for humor as terrorism.
How masculinity is morphing and modernizing, according to 18 influential people who are shaping our culture now.
Originally Appeared on GQ
