Hegemoninen maskuliinisuus Suomen poliittisessa järjestelmässä ja politiiikan tutkimuksessa : eli Alexander Stubbin seikkailut kontrolliyhteiskunnassa

Authors

• Jiri Nieminen

Abstract

In this article I focus on the theory of critical studies on men and its usefulness to analyze Finnish political system and its gendered exercise of power, particularly in light of R. W. Connell theory of hegemonic masculinity and the concept of homosociality. I also consider problems of Connell’s theory to understand changes of masculinities in control society. According to Jeff Hearn, we should speak rather men’s hegemony or men’s practices in order to understand men as not only subjects, but objects of gendered power too. In fourth chapter I analyze Finnish foreign minister Alexander Stubb’s masculine image in newspapers and compare it his predecessor. Indeed, de­spite that there is no anymore single hegemonic masculinity in postmodern control society, in Finnish political system men politicians still benefit masculine ideals in order to contact their po­tential supporters just like Machiavelli described over four hundred years ago.