Masculinity and Its Discontents: The Male Psyche and The Inherent Tensions of Maturing Manhood

Published in the Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association, 2023, Volume 71, Number 2. Masculinity and Its Discontents: The Male Psyche and The Inherent Tensions of Maturing Manhood. By Michael J. Diamond. New York: Routledge, 2021, xiv + 138 pp., $170.00 hardcover, $39.95 paperback.

The field of psychoanalysis is at a crossroads with regard to our theoretical understanding of gender and sexuality. The notion that “anatomy is destiny” (Freud 1912, p. 189) has largely been debunked—or at least recontextualized—giving way to more nuanced theories of masculinity and femininity. For the past three decades, Michael Diamond has been at the forefront of this dialectic, writing prolifically about men, masculinity, and fatherhood. His new book, Masculinity and Its Discontents, offers an integrative developmental perspective on male gender identity through a critical examination of three historical waves of psychoanalytic gender theorizing. It is an ambitious project, one that partly eludes Diamond given the dynamic complexities of gender development and its various biological, familial, and cultural influences.

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