Lessons of masculinity in the short stories by José Rezende Júnior

Abstract

The aim of this article is to focus, on two issues connected to masculinities: sexual violence and conjugal practices in a heterosexual relationship, presented by contemporary Brazilian short stories. The selected short stories are: “Maria de Lurdes não queria ser estuprada” and “A educação sexual do homem das cavernas”, both written and published less than twenty years ago by José Rezende Júnior. The approach is based on the articulation between the depicted behaviors of male characters and the apprenticeship of men in their processes of education and social construction. In this enclosure, there is an emphasis on contributions developed in many knowledge areas that choose masculinities as an object of study. At the same time, this research intends to verify the connections between masculine profiles in the characters and the contemporary practices settled by the coexistence of traditional patterns and new arrangements for gender relations. Some challenges remain as possibilities of investigation: how can recent literature stimulate the rise of male figures more identified with change? and the weight of these lessons of masculinity will allow or inhibit the disruption against this apprenticeship?