Why It Should Be Socially Acceptable For Boys To Cry | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Lifestyle

Society Has It All Wrong, It's Okay For Guys To Cry

It's more manly for a guy to express rather than suppress their emotions as it shows that they are relatable beings rather than emotionless robots.

35
Society Has It All Wrong, It's Okay For Guys To Cry
Photo by Kat J on Unsplash

There is an unspoken social and stereotypically expectancy that boys (used as an umbrella term for all males) should not cry. In society, it's 'proper' for men to be more collected emotionally, and are therefore expected to suppress the will to cry. Boys are taught at a young age to subdue their emotions and act more manly. All these unrealistic expectations put a huge strain on boys, as if they act otherwise they are ostracized and laughed at for not 'being a man'. All humans have emotions, some that are too overwhelming to express any other way than to let it out by crying; and men are not an exclusion of this classification.

Suppressing the will to cry is actually really unhealthy as it teaches us to bottle up our emotions which will only cause us to break down later on. To restrain expressing or avoiding emotions of any kind can lead to physical stress on one's body such as memory problems, aggression, anxiety, and even depression. These, in turn, could lead down a darker path of suicidal thoughts. Society needs to take a stand, in realizing that men have emotions that they need to convey or be at risk of hurting themselves.

Boys Don't Cry is a YouTube video that "explores the negative impact of stereotypical expectations of masculinity on boys and men, including pressure on young boys to prove their masculinity to their peers and in our culture." - G. Tina Wolridge The video focuses on a young African-American boy who was told that boys don't cry, so through tears he questions what he is. This is a very twisted view of today's culture that is very harsh on the standards of how boys should act that to the point that they question their masculinity. True masculinity, however, should be defined as how to properly express your emotions and the courage to do so.

This all to say that it's okay for boys and men to cry, to express their emotions; as even Jesus, the Son of God cried. The perfect example of a human who did no bad wept, and not just once, the Bible records three times of Jesus crying. He cried when his friend Lazarus died (John 11:32-26), He wept when He witnessed humanity's sins (Luke 13:34, 19:41-42) and He shed tears while praying before He was to be executed (Hebrews 5:7). God gave us the ability to cry as a way to express our emotion and if Jesus who did no wrong cried, then it's fair to conclude that crying is a natural part of humanity that is not wrong in any way. As a child, crying is one of the few things we knew how to do and even though it's good to learn to talk as a substitute to crying, that doesn't mean we have to eliminate it altogether. In a way, we still cry for the same reason as to when we were young, we do it as a way to express our emotions when words fail us.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
two women enjoying confetti

Summer: a time (usually) free from school work and a time to relax with your friends and family. Maybe you go on a vacation or maybe you work all summer, but the time off really does help. When you're in college you become super close with so many people it's hard to think that you won't see many of them for three months. But, then you get that text saying, "Hey, clear your schedule next weekend, I'm coming up" and you begin to flip out. Here are the emotions you go through as your best friend makes her trip to your house.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

Syllabus Week As Told By Kourtney Kardashian

Feeling Lost During Syllabus Week? You're Not Alone!

733
Kourtney Kardashian

Winter break is over, we're all back at our respective colleges, and the first week of classes is underway. This is a little bit how that week tends to go.

The professor starts to go over something more than the syllabus

You get homework assigned on the first day of class

There are multiple group projects on the syllabus

You learn attendance is mandatory and will be taken every class

Professor starts chatting about their personal life and what inspired them to teach this class

Participation is mandatory and you have to play "icebreaker games"

Everybody is going out because its 'syllabus week' but you're laying in bed watching Grey's Anatomy

Looking outside anytime past 8 PM every night of this week

Nobody actually has any idea what's happening this entire week

Syllabus week is over and you realize you actually have to try now...or not

Now it's time to get back into the REAL swing of things. Second semester is really here and we all have to deal with it.

panera bread

Whether you specialized in ringing people up or preparing the food, if you worked at Panera Bread it holds a special place in your heart. Here are some signs that you worked at Panera in high school.

1. You own so many pairs of khaki pants you don’t even know what to do with them

Definitely the worst part about working at Panera was the uniform and having someone cute come in. Please don’t look at me in my hat.

Keep Reading...Show less
Drake
Hypetrak

1. Nails done hair done everything did / Oh you fancy huh

You're pretty much feeling yourself. New haircut, clothes, shoes, everything. New year, new you, right? You're ready for this semester to kick off.

Keep Reading...Show less
7 Ways to Make Your Language More Transgender and Nonbinary Inclusive

With more people becoming aware of transgender and non-binary people, there have been a lot of questions circulating online and elsewhere about how to be more inclusive. Language is very important in making a space safer for trans and non-binary individuals. With language, there is an established and built-in measure of whether a place could be safe or unsafe. If the wrong language is used, the place is unsafe and shows a lack of education on trans and non-binary issues. With the right language and education, there can be more safe spaces for trans and non-binary people to exist without feeling the need to hide their identities or feel threatened for merely existing.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments