Journal Entry #1--Self Made Man: One Woman’s Year Disguised As a Man :Feb. 26, 2009

Before we started reading the book we know that the author Norah Vincent is a female who is going undercover as a male. She completed her research within a year and a half and learned a different way of living, as a male named Ned. Vincent transformed her entire appearance to make sure that no one would realize she was in fact a woman disguised as a man. She set out on her research to break the stereotype that this is a “man’s world” and women are just living in it. The book questions the ideas of gender identity and discovers the behaviors men partake in when women are not around. We were also told that she actually dated as a male and tried having relationships with women. The book is for a mature audience that is willing to be open minded to her ideas and discoveries.
Some common biases and stereotypes of the male subculture are, that most of the time men look at women as though they are a “piece of meat” and not realizing that they have feelings too. For example, Vincent was walking outside a bar and noticed a man eyeing her and looking her up and down. This made her realize that she could never be invisible as a woman, she would always be a object of desire and lust.
On the other hand, Vincent might have wanted to prove somehow that men can also be as sensitive as women and she might have felt some sort of compassion towards the normative the society has about men. Men are expected to be strong, dominant and brave at all times; however, they are not much more different from women.
Even women have the misconception that guys have it so much easier than women. They do not have to worry as much about their outer appearance like women do. Women are supposed to look their best at all times; perfect hair, make-up, and well put together. However, there are some males that do not care whether a woman wears make up or fashionable clothes. So women may in fact worry too much about their appearance for nothing.
By reading this book, at least for the women of the group, we want to learn if our misconceptions about men are true or not. Reading a book written by a woman disguised as a man will help us to further understand why men do the things they do, and what activities they partake in when we are not around. Tony is interested in seeing how women actually view men, and interested in seeing how they talk about them when they are not around. Overall, it will be interesting to view Vincent’s findings and learn from her experience as a man.
Our group chose this book because it is extremely controversial. It questions gender identity and the reasons why men and women behave the way they do. Our group was interested to see how Vincent was treated after her year disguised as a man. We are interested in seeing how her guy friends view her and think of her after she told them she was actually a woman. We also wanted to see how she actually transformed into a man, and dated women in the process.
The topic of Self Made Man is significant to our group because it will give us a deeper understanding of the male subculture. It will also enlighten us and answer our questions about men, and show the male population that females are trying their best to understand them. We are looking forward to reading Self Made Man and learning even more about how it feels to be a woman living in a “man’s world.”