First of all it is important to understand what masculinity for men means. It has been reported that although men from all over the world vary, there is a surprising similarity in what is considered masculine. An article in the American Anthropologist reviewed four books written by anthropologists explaining acts of masculinity. According to anthropologist Raphael Ramirez, the presumed definition of masculinity is that men are aggressive, oppressive, narcissistic, insecure, loud-mouthed, womanizers, massive drinkers, and persons who have an uncontrollable sexual prowess. Ramirez however believes that there are two "dimensions" of masculinity, power and sexuality. To achieve power, Ramirez emphasizes that men feel they must work hard to gain success and

Evansburg. R Amanda: "But your honor, it's in his genes" the case for genetic impairments as grounds for a downward departure under federal sentencing guidelines. The American Criminal Law Review. Chicago, Fall 2001.

Society has placed masculinity and femininity in a category called gender. Gender is not the natural acts of males and females but it is the social acts. Since society has defined what it means to be masculine, males "do gender" in response to socially structured circumstances. Men feel they must "do gender" whether it be in school, the youth group, the street, the family, or the workplace. According to James W. Messerschmidt, "gendered power is central to understanding why men commit more crimes and more serious crime than women. Although crime is simply one practice in which and through which power over women can be naturalized, I must add that power relations among men determine the different types of crime men may commit. In the process of "doing gender"-socially constructing forms of masculinity -men may simultaneously construct forms of criminality. Doing masculinity, then, means creating differences from women and girls" (Messerschmidt, 84).

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Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)