Socialzing masculinity (Danby & Baker, 1998)

Danby, S. & Baker, C. (1998). How to be masculine in the block area. Childhood, 5 (2), 151-175.

In one of the earliest, influential CA papers in early childhood, Susan Danby and Carolyn Baker detailedhow a small group of boys aged 3-5 years socialized their peers in ‘how to be masculine’ in the block area. The interaction ‘serves as an initiation into a masculine way of talking and acting in the block area, so while using exclusion, also inclusion into a social discourse which is both private to the boys but public among them.’ (p.158). Physical size and strength are invoked by the boys as evidence of status, and these and other ‘objects of power’ (eg swords, a robot monster shark) are exploited to make threats of physical violence. As Danby & Baker conclude, ‘the play and conflict described here show how and where are use voice learn and teach the masculine discourse of the block area’ (p. 169). The merits of the method mean that although only two sequences between a small number of children are analyzed, the forensic detail of this analysis allows us to see how practices of socializing gender might be done in children’s own peer practices.