This section is dedicated to analyzing briefly iconic male figures as to what they symbolize for the masculine image. Two posts will be devoted to representatives of traditional masculinity and another two to representatives of modern masculinity.
An irrefutable symbol and long lasting icon of the film industry, Clint Eastwood has become a staple of traditional male models in the culture. He is the face behind two quintessential models of the toughened action man: The Man with No Name, from “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly”, and Dirty Harry, from the homonym movie series.
His usual acting roles, those of an expressionless, grumpy, aggressive and lonely man, appeal strongly to a rooted desire of men to be able to live apart from society, exercising his freedom of movement and avoiding attaching strings… and being successful at it. In the case of Dirty Harry, the concept of the man who takes the law into his own hands is a common place in much of the pop culture.
The impotence that men feel as the streets are plagued by vice has its sublimation in the figure of the vigilante. Dirty Harry represents the man who is brave enough to face crime himself, the one who has really become a man. Ethic once again does not come at play in here. Clint Eastwood represents the stoic, impenetrable and cold image of the man as a fighter, the one who can protect.
The price to pay? Inability to connect with then inner world, incapacity to be open to others. When the emotions come at play, they only express themselves as a newfound vulnerability, which a man should learn how to balance with his “tough” guy attitude. This is the contrast shown in one of Eastwood’s latest movies “Gran Torino”.
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