Raising Cain: Protecting the Emotional Life of Boys
I heard a piece in NPR this morning discussing this book. It was too early to get most of it, but I was struck by the passionate but matter-of-fact way in which the author made his case.
The premise is simple: boys are not allowed to be full-formed, emotional people, but are heavily pressured to deny their emotional and empathetic natures by what they perceive as a man’s role. Men don’t cry, they’re never afraid, they never need help, etc. And 95% of the murders in this country, claims the author, are committed by boys/men who take this message as the way they should live. Other western nations — Canada and Australia were the examples cited — don’t do this to their boys.
It’s on my reading list.