Sexualidade, corpo e saúde masculinos: transformações e permanências nos discursos de homens e da revista Men´s Health.

Abstract

The study analyzes the speeches of men and Men's Health magazine about the body, health and sexuality. For the construction of discourses of men, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 19 men and nine readers not readers. And two events focus groups that gathered 11 men in total. Was also interviewed the magazine's editor. The main drivers of this work were the concepts of gender, sexuality, power and hegemonic and subordinate masculinities. It was evident that the magazine is strongly tied to the consumer society to encourage the inclusion of men in a market for goods and services hitherto strangers to this genre. And that his views on health are related to wellness and individualization that articulate with the hegemonic discourses that are giving meaning to the concepts of health and illness today. The publication invests heavily in the idea of a muscular body that will provide professionals subject to social gains, sexual, and not always linked to health issues. She confirms heterosexuality designed the reader, exposing the female body and heterosexual sex and silencing of other forms of sexuality. Therefore we consider that the magazine is linked to a traditional conception of masculinity. His speeches, however, are not monolithic or free from contradiction, and also express nuances on a more contemporary model of masculinity, as when he presents the idea of ​​a new pedagogy of sexuality and appreciation of aesthetic and health care with the body aspects considered next bit of traditional masculinity. With regard to the resources of men, it became clear that social class and generation are the most important variables in their conceptions about body, health and male sexuality. That, among non-readers in general, there is stronger evidence of flexibility with respect to more traditional patterns between younger and / or more upper class men. While men above the age of 30 years and the lower classes are more tied to traditional concepts. Among readers, there was a big reflexivity with regard to the resources of the magazine showing that they are appropriating important form of speeches and magazine redefines its conceptions and practices of the three research themes from these speeches. And just like the speeches of the journal, the speeches of men, or not readers also showed contradictory aspects, sometimes showing more affiliation to a new model of masculinity, sometimes the more traditional model.