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Manhood versus Boyhood
The perceived differences between men and boys in the 19th century were based on the abstract idea of responsibilities and a sense of guiding one’s passion carefully the society. A man was defined by the ability to meet the responsibilities that the society deemed right for the man-figure. It was also based on the ideology that the behavior of a male determined his manhood. And at the same time, the opposite of manhood was not womanhood, but boyhood. Therefore, whether a man or a boy, manhood was determined by behavior, expectations and responsibilities that reflected the passage from boyhood to manhood.
To deal with the impulsive passions of boyhood, a man was supposed to behave like a man when the situation calls for. This is because the passions of boyhood were compared with the behavior of women, a gender that was considered weaker. Therefore, for a man to be treated with respect and dignity, he had to behave with no impulsive passions of boyhood. In addition, a man was supposed to align with social arrangements meant for men and avoid the boyhood groups, mostly after the training that turned a boy into a man.
In balancing men’s worldliness and aggression, women played the role of the custody of virtues that defined boyhood or manhood. In addition, women were the reference group in terms of the behavior of the male figure. Since the opposite of manhood is not womanhood, but boyhood, the behavior of males that was regarded as womanhood was referred to be a boyhood behavior. In addition, women played the role of training the boys to be boys and prepare them for a better training for manhood later in life.