Men Freeing Men: Exploding the Myth of Traditional Male [Paperback]

Francis Baumli (Author, Editor)

Product Details

• Paperback: 337 pages
• Publisher: New Atlantis Pr; 4 edition (September 2, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0961548002
• ISBN-13: 978-0961548001
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,781,151 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A staple for those studying the men's liberation movement, September 4, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Men Freeing Men: Exploding the Myth of Traditional Male (Paperback)

It's been almost a decade since I read this book, but it left a good enough impression that I've thought of it since and have occasionally recommended it to others. It's a collection of usually short pieces about all aspects of men's situation, broken down into several categories. (The exception is that there's not a section specifically devoted to the problems of bachelors.) As with any collection of this sort, some of the pieces are gems while others are just mediocre. Still, the editor has scoured the planet for the best and most representative writings, which in a mass-media dominated by the concerns of women is no small feat. Some may think that a fifteen year-old book on a social issue would be hopelessly out of date, but as men's liberation has not come very far (women won't allow it!) I think there is still much of interest beyond the historical to be found in "Men Freeing Men" even if a few books have appeared since. Sorry to not be able to go into more detail, but I thought the book deserved at least one review here.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Exclusion Unacceptable in A Movement of Inclusion, December 12, 2000

By 

"adriko" (Baltimore, MD United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Men Freeing Men: Exploding the Myth of Traditional Male (Paperback)

I picked up the book at a thrift store several years ago and perused it. I recently picked it up again and read through completely. It was exhilirating and truly life-changing to read about issues that I was experiencing, had experienced, or - by the looks of things - will be experiencing.

However, I am profoundly disappointed at the exclusion of issues pertaining to men of color. Admittedly, I am in possession of the second edition, and Baumli excused this lack of representation with the absence of material published by and about men of color. This is not true - even in 1985 - and is completely unacceptable. There have been several volumes, especially anthologies, devoted to men of color. I'm ordering the recent edition for myself and a friend as we prepare to collaborate on a writing project, and am hoping to find "us" between the front and back cover.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Men's Rights Versus Victim Feminism, September 6, 2004

By 

Baumli (Saint Louis, MO USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Men Freeing Men: Exploding the Myth of Traditional Male (Paperback)

This anthology, now in its fourth printing, is more timely than ever and won the "Best Book on Men's Issues" award given by The Coalition of Free Men. Endorsed by Dan Greenburg, Ed Asner, Karen DeCrow (past president of NOW), Warren Farrell, and many others, it contains writings by 50 authors, including such luminaries as Eugene August, Jed Diamond, Herb Goldberg, Arthur Winfield Knight, Naomi Penner, Jim Sanderson, and Suzanne Steinmetz. Edited by myself, Francis Baumli, Ph.D., it addresses men's liberation and men's rights. Topics include men and feelings, male depression, penis size, male midlife crisis, how prostitution humiliates men, and how men are the primary victims of pornography. Other issues examined are men and dating, how women manipulate men, men's desire for sexual foreplay, and how successful marriages are defined by playfulness. Political issues in men's liberation are examined too. Victim feminism is criticized, women's liberation endorsed. Other topics include men's image in movies and television, men and work, men and divorce-alimony, visitation, child support, mediation, child custody, joint custody. (This book's advice on joint custody is the most father-friendly you will find anywhere, with arguments that have special appeal to judges.) Father custody, and a lawyer's advice on how to get it, is discussed, along with men's rights in abortion. Men's health, macho dangers, men and birth control, men and sterility, male loneliness, men and suicide, the battered husband in domestic violence, the sexist military draft, and how handicapped men confront the macho ideal are also explored. There are also pleasant topics such as male friendship, the origins of Father's Day, the joys of parenting.

Used as a college textbook in women's studies and men's studies, this book elicits vigorous class discussion while reconciling opposing views on women's and men's liberation.